Princess Yum Yum and the Free Range Rednecks

[Nice Goat]

Video from Tuesday, July 24th

[TWJohn]

Was power loss very noticeable or no big deal?

[Nice Goat]

On any bike 250cc or smaller, you can notice a significant power loss.  There just isn't enough air.

I would not try to ride the Colorado mountains above 9,000 feet with anything less than 350cc. 

Whatever bike you take, make sure it is jetted for high altitude.  If you have EFI, you are golden.

[Mulley]

On any bike 250cc or smaller, you can notice a significant power loss.  There just isn't enough air.

I would not try to ride the Colorado mountains above 9,000 feet with anything less than 350cc. 

Whatever bike you take, make sure it is jetted for high altitude.  If you have EFI, you are golden.

I've been there on three different bike trips. Everything loses power. This trip I was on a KTM 500 EXC which is fuel injected. There was some power loss but the bike makes so much power, it wasn't an issue. My first trip there was on a DRZ400S with an FCR pumper carb (from an 'E' model). It did perform ok above 12,000ft but the power loss was pretty bad. No wheelies at elevation.  The next trip I took the same DRZ but with a big bore kit making a 440cc. This little bit of displacement made a huge difference. That bike ripped compared to a stock DRZ and was still pulling wheelies at 12,000ft.

One year I took my 2000 KTM 200 EXC 2-stroke for some single track use. It did just fine but it was hard to jet perfectly for varying elevation. At 9,000ft it would be a little lean but good at 10,500 or more. Those are picky engines for jetting anyway.

I've been with friends that had WR250R (street legal version) that had the piggy back fuel injection tuners. Those did really good until about 10,500ft. It was like the map didn't know what to do up there. The bike lost all power very abruptly. I tried riding one of them and it was pretty pathetic. I'm not exaggerating when I say it felt like it was down to less than 15HP but that bike isn't know for high horsepower at sea level.

Others on big bikes like a DR650 seem to do just fine up there. I rode a DR650 around Ecuador and although I think my rental didn't have a good tune to begin with I could still pull all of the mountains just fine.

[odell2115]

The wife and kid made it up on a DR200 and a KX85 but there was power loss.

[Nice Goat]

Ha!  Should have pointed out that my opinion on engine size was based on the rider being a full-grown, corn-fed adult male.  If you only weigh 140 pounds, ride whatever you want!

[Fencejumper09]

The 690 did great! I thought it was anemic at first when it struggled to pull 3rd gear wheelies and then I remember I had a 16 tooth sprocket on the front!

Still can't believe I left the sumo gearing on for this trip!!

[TWJohn]

struggled to pull 3rd gear wheelies and then I remember I had a 16 tooth sprocket on the front!  (That is awesome!)

[Fencejumper09]

@TWJohn It is a gift and a curse!

[Nice Goat]

Wednesday, July 25th
- Another good night of sleep, even though the rooms were very basic at the Silver Spur
- Woke up about 6:00am
- I had dropped my helmet the day before and broken the Sena BT mount
- Fixed it with plastic epoxy & a zip tie
- Walked a couple blocks to Confluence Cafe and had an All American breakfast sandwich, coffee, and orange juice
- Kevin and Ken joined me a short while later
- After breakfast, we filled up on gas and headed out toward Engineer Pass
- Saw beavers and chipmunks galore!
- Ran into Mulley, Brian, Fencejumper, etc., at Animas Forks
- The pink tutu was passed to Ken because of his carburetor trouble the night before
- Rode down mineral creek, then Million Dollar Hwy to Ophir Pass
- Nearly lost my ass coming down Ophir because of the baby head boulders
- Stopped to get a photo at a creek crossing and was nearly eaten alive by biting flies
- Made it to Telluride just in time to avoid getting rain soaked
- Hung out at San Miguel Country Store waiting for the rain to subside
- Mulley & crew arrived from Black Bear Pass, soaked from the rain
- We took off toward Imogene then changed our minds and went around through Ridgeway
- Arrived at Twin Peaks Lodge and Hot Springs around 6:00pm
- Had a minor come-apart in the hotel lobby over the stupid $100 deposit
- Got to the room and realized that the deposit was probably for the hotel bathrobes
- Showered and downed some tequila, then we all walked down to Maggie's Kitchen for burgers
- Had the Green Chile Cheeseburger .... yum!
- Waitress was a young girl from Turkey who was extremely friendly and outgoing
- Got back to the hotel, drank beer, and told stories until about 10:00pm
- Passed out ... exhausted!

[Nice Goat]

Video from Wednesday, July 25th ... click 1080p!

[klaviator]

Great trips, great pics and great videos.  I'm jealous.  Riding off road Colorado is definitely on my buckets list.   

I'm curious about how this trip came about.  It looks like there were three separate groups form this forum out there at the same time.  Was that planned or coincidence?

Many thanks to Ya'll for putting in the effort to produce this outstanding rider report.  If this doesn't inspire more of us to head out there in the upcoming years I don't know what will.