TAT: Pre-Ramble Part Three - The Smokey Mountain 500 Shakedown

“We’ve got a long way to go and need a long time to get there…”​

The Himalayans we’d ordered came, which meant that unfortunately, we had to pay for them. Really shitty how that works, isn’t it?

But by this time, we had pretty much committed to taking the CT125s on the TAT. I love the REH (LOVE!) - but after riding it a bit, I can’t imagine taking something that heavy on any rough trails. Maybe someday when I’m a better rider. But it’s nowhere near as forgiving as the little Hondas.

The Smokey Mountain 500 was meant to be our final shakedown for the TAT. We’d pretty much settled on our gear, or packing strategies, our filming equipment, and riding gear… But we wanted to test it all out in a real situation that would be somewhat similar to what we’d encounter on the Trans America Trail. But also - the SM500 is an incredible ride.

For some details on this trip, John posted a ride report at:

Ride Report by Johnny Pow

Route Details by Andy

And there are a few videos on YT. Here's Day 1:

Not only was this a fantastic, scenic, beautiful, and epic route. But it was incredibly informative and helpful. We learned a ton. Starting the TAT without having done this would have been a grave error. Of course - starting the TAT at all may end up being a grave error.

As always, the CT125s were amazing on everything except for getting to the start of the trail and getting home. On the 55 mph roads - let’s be honest - it’s miserable. You’re blocking traffic, people get pissed if you can’t find a spot to pull over to let them pass… It’s just kind of stressful and it’s not all that fun. I don’t remember seeing many scenes of Ed March going 35mpg up a hill with 13 angry cars behind him. Because who wants to see that I guess. But on the dirt. On the twisties. Through the water crossings. Amazing. We rode for 10 to 12 hours per day and our asses didn’t fall off. The bikes swallowed everything that was shoved down their throats. The only real mishap was when John came down hard on a rock and bent his frame. which threw his foot brake out of whack. After getting home, it took him a few weeks to figure out how to fix it - but a friend helped him get it straightened out.

Other than that, we had a complete blast. And my confidence in the dirt has gone up plenty since Hurricane Creek. Am I competent? No. Am I getting closer to not being a complete disaster? Yes. Tentatively.

I learned quite a few things. First - filming and editing on the road is going to be much tougher than I thought. In fact - it's probably an impossible task. I have to film much less and be much more discerning about what I shoot. It took 2 hours to load the first day's footage onto a hard drive. That’s not sustainable. It’s still up in the air, but I may not be able to edit and post videos as I go, which is what I’d hoped to do. I’m not going to sweat it. If I can, I will. If I can’t, I’ll edit when I get home. We’ll see.

I also learned that my sleeping bag was not up to the task. I froze on night one. That’s been replaced. I also learned that my tool kit was not at all right. I’ve fixed that and made it much smaller. My side bag broke - and I’ve replaced that as well. Other than that - everything worked. There was nothing I needed that I didn’t have. And other than a small saw and a survival knife - there wasn’t much I had that I didn’t need.

I think John learned a few things and is making a few changes as well.

We’ve decided to attempt the TAT completely stock. Well - John got some knobbies for his (I’m using the stock tires to start with and hope to change them along the way somewhere) and I had some foam put into the seat because my ass is delicate. But no sprocket changes or suspension mods or big bore kits or anything else. I mean - it’s a Honda. Why mess with it?

All in all - we feel fairly ready for the epic ride. As ready as you can be for something that, no matter how much research you do, remains a complete and utter mystery until you’re in it.

I plan on leaving Asheville on June 23 or 24. I haven’t decided on where I’m going to pick up the TAT yet. My thought is that I’ve done most of the roads in this region already - and the ones I haven’t done I think I’d like to save for day or overnight trips when I’m home. John just texted that maybe we should do Outer Banks to wherever I start at some point so that I’ll have officially done the entire route coast to coast. As much as I’d like to do it all in one trip, I can’t carve out more time and I don’t want to have to rush through. So that sounds good to me. Also, that section seems like a bunch of boring slab anyway. Like someone commented, there’s no TAT Ticket to be punched and you don’t get a certificate of completion. Doing it however you want is fine. For now - I think I might hit the pavement to Cherokee, NC, and hop on the TAT there through Tellico Plains. And then get to wherever I get to that second day, the third, and so on until I hit the ocean (fingers crossed). I’ve tried to convince Johnny Pow to quit his job and start with me - but for some reason, he’s not going for that. Probably because his job is pretty awesome. Originally he was going to haul his bike in a rented truck to Amarillo and then ride to Branson, CO. But he decided to ship the bike and fly to Amarillo. Here’s his bike being picked up a couple of days ago.

He has an epic solo two-day ride from Amarillo to Branson or Trinidad where we’ll meet up. I have a feeling I’m going to be extremely glad to see him. From there, we’re off to Port Orford.