Questions about Deal`s Gap Rumors?

vfroger · Mar 5, 2009

RoboRider said:
I ride the NC/TN mountains a lot, and have ridden the Dragon many times. Here's my advice:

1) Ride it on a weekday.

2) Ride it at speed limit or speed limit +5 in the straights. Feel free in the corners. You'll notice that cops usually sit on a straight section just after a corner, looking for people who are exiting the corner at speed an accelerating in the straight. If you power through a corner, let off at the end and slow down for the straight.

3) Cops will drive the Dragon also, keep on your side of the yellow.

4) Have a radar detector.

5) If you MUST get into it, and you want to ride hard, I suggest riding a section, like 1 or two miles, and make sure it is cop free. Then, turn around and nail it on the section you've cleared. Of course, a cop could still pop up but you are likely OK.

6) The area around there has so many great roads. Too many to list. They are all really as good as the Dragon, just not famous.

7) Always signal other riders if you see a cop. Pat your helmet. I've been saved, and saved others, many times. If we work as a team, we can beat the cops.

8) I have occasionally run scout. I get about a 5 minute head start and run at the limit. If I see a cop, I U turn and if my buddy see's me coming back, he knows to slow down. Of course, this is for stationary cops, not cops driving as you'd have to pass them to warn a buddy!

9) Drag that knee and have fun (keeping the above in mind); And keep your eyes open for cars/bikes/trucks coming into your lane. It is not a track.

My avatar too is a pic on the Dragon from Killboy.com

A big 2nd to all of the above. I live here and monitor our local boards. The wrath of the THP and Blount County Sheriff's Dept is at its highest on the weekends. We have lots of wonderful roads in the area, some that equal the infamous "Dragon". As motorcyclists we share in the demise of the dragon. Hooligan riding, loud pipes, and other antisocial antics as well as numerous accidents with injuries or fatalities led to this.

If you must ride it, do it during the week. Also, US421 from Bristol to Mountain City a.k.a. "The Snake" has stepped up enforcement due to the same problems as US129 across Deals Gap. Watch out.

Now, a little self promotion. The BMW Riders of Knoxville are having a pre-rally in Del Rio (near Newport) just prior to the national. We are the "locals" and can give lots of advice on great riding all over east Tennessee and western North Carolina. Check it out and get in the good riding before the national rally starts.

globalrider · Mar 5, 2009

RoboRider said:
Alex, is that an Alpine road?

Yes it is.

I contacted the owner of that Deal's Gap web site some time ago and asked him how he defined a "curve". Well don't get too excited, because there aren't 318 curves in 11 miles. What I call a curve, he was counting as two or three curves; everytime the radius changed, etc. even though to anybody it is one curve.

For your viewing pleasure (turn down the volume..he didn't use a mic sock)...

SS 46 - Part 1

SS 46 - Part 2

SS 46 - Part 3

Not very twisty, but some nice narrow sections...Kaiserjaegerweg...same road by another rider...same road by yet another rider heading in the opposite direction.

If you like twisties and some pretty wild riding (no comments on their attire though...nuts!) here is one done in Corsica...it gets better one-third of the way through.

tommcgee · Mar 6, 2009

Am I the only one who has no interest in Deal's Gap?

The last road I want to be on is one with 300 other bikers...

Okay Okay, so I keep checking just to see if I really am missing something.

PAULBACH · Mar 6, 2009

300 other bikers some who are blatantly breaking the law endangering themselves and others. On the plus side there might be some great photo ops. Would not have to have all that law enforcement if there was not trouble in the making.

If we work as a team, we can beat the cops.

globalrider · Mar 6, 2009

tommcgee said:
Am I the only one who has no interest in Deal's Gap?

No, +1 here.

Besides, too straight and not challenging enough.

tommcgee said:
The last road I want to be on is one with 300 other bikers...

Correction, 300 other bikers, most of whom really don't know what they're doing. If they did, they wouldn't crash and a "Tree of Shame" wouldn't exist.

globalrider · Mar 6, 2009

scbmwrider said:
5 hours to 100 miles as the crow flies .

Thats when a road becomes interesting and when an SS1000 becomes meaningful.

scbmwrider said:
There are MANY great roads in N GA, W NC, the SC escarpment and E TN.

Thats what we should do; have a sticky in each regional folder with only YouTube, Yahoo videos of the roads in that region.

If you have any videos that riders have uploaded of the roads you've taken, post the links here.

globalrider · Mar 6, 2009

warredon said:

...What the hell was he thinking....

A bit too much Jack Daniels, I would guess.

osbornk · Mar 6, 2009

scbmwrider said:
It has become a destination for many riders. There are MANY great roads in N GA, W NC, the SC escarpment and E TN.

I'm looking forward to finding more roads in E TN myself. Lets see the Gap is 150 miles away, the boring way, and shady Valley is 40.

Some of the best riding you will find anywhere starts about 35-40 miles from the rally site in the mountains of Virginia. When you live in the Virginia mountains and go to Deal's Gap, you wonder why you wasted the time. I rode all the way to Deal's Gap and left better roads that are ten minutes from my house.

PAULBACH · Mar 6, 2009

osbornk said:
Some of the best riding you will find anywhere starts about 35-40 miles from the rally site in the mountains of Virginia. When you live in the Virginia mountains and go to Deal's Gap, you wonder why you wasted the time. I rode all the way to Deal's Gap and left better roads that are ten minutes from my house.

Look forward to riding those roads - coming to and going from the rally.

Brettendress · Mar 6, 2009

I ride down and ride the Dragon every year on my 04 R1150gs and I don't drag knees but I do drag foot pegs. I try to get there Sunday night and camp. Sunday it is very busy, lots of police but it clears out late. Then I get up first thing Monday morning pack up my tent and ride it with no one else on the road and have a blast. I must say that even though I ride Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, and NC on the way nothing beats the 11 miles and 318 curves of the dragon for a 20 minute blast of adrenaline. Other rides and roads are great but if you hit the dragon right with no traffic, cars or trucks in your way that 20 minutes is worth the 765 miles I ride to get there. Then I get to ride the NC roads and spend a few days on the parkway getting home. It's all about planning, weekends are out for sure but the same goes for all the roads in the area even the parkway. Plan good and ride this whole area Monday through Thursday and you will love every minute of it.

Brett Endress
Altoona Pa

Voni · Mar 6, 2009

One of my fondest memories of the Iron Butt Rally '03 was riding the Dragon at sunrise. No other bikes coming or going.

What a beautiful mind picture!

Voni
sMiing

beemerred · Mar 6, 2009

Thanks

I started this thread and then got a quick call to go to work. I deliver constuction equipment to job sites, so I was not able to see all the comments. I just got home and reviewed all of them and sounds like that if you get there before the Nat`l. starts and play it smart you can still enjoy "the dragon". I also have gone and because it was so crowded just kind of sat back and people watched (at both ends) and had a great time also! I also have one more question and that is, I do not quite remember where the "Sam`s Gap" is? Anyone? Thanks for all the great info and I hope to see you there, Kerry aka beemerred :dance

tommcgee · Mar 6, 2009

Voni said:
One of my fondest memories of the Iron Butt Rally '03 was riding the Dragon at sunrise. No other bikes coming or going.

Sunrise anywhere is usually good for the same amount of traffic.

warredon · Mar 6, 2009

beemerred said:
I started this thread and then got a quick call to go to work. I deliver constuction equipment to job sites, so I was not able to see all the comments. I just got home and reviewed all of them and sounds like that if you get there before the Nat`l. starts and play it smart you can still enjoy "the dragon". I also have gone and because it was so crowded just kind of sat back and people watched (at both ends) and had a great time also! I also have one more question and that is, I do not quite remember where the "Sam`s Gap" is? Anyone? Thanks for all the great info and I hope to see you there, Kerry aka beemerred

I think Sam's Gap is about midway between Johnson City and Asheville, near the TN/NC border.

beemerred · Mar 6, 2009

Truck Pics

I also wanted to comment on the truck pics. I have a class A CDL and have been driving stuff for a long time. If I came down US 129 and saw that big yellow sign stating that the road is not suited for big trucks I would rather back my way to Knoxville than get stranded on a strange, curvy road that I know nothing about. That being said, there is always some trucker (mechanic, ironworker , equipment operator, etc. ) who thinks that their skills are better than everyone else`or that they are the exception to the rule and can handle anything that comes their way. I like confidence and competition but there are limits to every field I know of. Some truck drivers are just too stupid to know their own or their vehicle`s limitations. So what I`m saying is I`m very sorry for anyone that gets involved with that kind of scenario. Good Luck in the Future, Beemerred :scratch

tommcgee · Mar 6, 2009

beemerred said:
If I came down US 129 and saw that big yellow sign stating that the road is not suited for big trucks I would rather back my way to Knoxville than get stranded on a strange, curvy road that I know nothing about.

Yep. I learned early-on that those little square yellow signs with a speed limit printed on them are intended for anybody driving a rig. IT'S NOT THE SAME THING AS A SPEED LIMIT SIGN! It's a real number and you better pay attention or your ass is going into the ditch.

Nope, I didn't crash but got up on half my wheels. Screw that. I've been paying attention ever since.

beemerred · Mar 6, 2009

So I have been preachin`to the choir. Say Amen brother and can I get a witness!

MARTYH · Mar 9, 2009

Onboard movie of the Gap

Here is a movie of a portion of the Tail of the dragon I took last summer. This is a week day (NOT weekend). I am riding a R1200GS. The ride is fun and beautiful.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5yls1MG4qs

Marty

ctyankee · Mar 9, 2009

I took a week last summer, and truly enjoyed the time in VA/NC/TN. I rode the dragon several times over two week days. In both instances, I found that while there was a police presence, they didn't seem to be focusing on motorcyclists.

The sole encounter I had first hand was when a LEO was coming the opposite direction and was flashing his siren and lights to alert me (and my friend) that there was a truck coming our way.

I say go ride the dragon. Stick close to the limit, and enjoy it. But frankly, it is just a road - and there are better out there.

nplenzick · Mar 11, 2009

I thought the Dragon was way over rated when I rode it two years ago. Very narrow in spots and not very much room for late apexing or experimenting with different ridding techniques . In some areas it reminded it me of a wide bicycle path. I got my T shirt and then visited the Cherohala Skyway which reminds me of a 25 plus mile racetrack. A real joy! A nice mix of corners, from fast sweepers to hairpins with very little traffic. It's also about as wide as the average roadcourse at a racetrack so there's a good amount of room for trying different ridding techniques. The Skyway is in a remote area so if something goes wrong it could be sometime for emergency personal to reach you. Something to keep in the back of your mind!
There's also a pretty neat road that goes from Ashville to Bat Cave and Lake Lure, it's not very long, just a few miles but great fun and it leads you to the second most photograph lake in the country ( Lake Tahoe is the most).
A word to the wise, I believe this will be the largest MOA ever and I suspect that every law enforcement agency will know about it in the area, so keep a heads up for them!

Questions about Deal`s Gap Rumors?

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