2 China Riders Moderators Ride 2 Days in East Idaho
 

On Friday morning I greeted FastDoc after he arrived at my local airport. Our Christian Brother Andy visited with us while we ate a healthy lunch at McDonalds before we went to my home, loaded up the the luggage racks on both my bikes, and headed south to ride in the Malad and Arbon Valleys. We stopped along the way to admire the scenery, and take some photographs of the local mountains. :)

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Riding the gravel roads, we entered the Malad Valley from the north.

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Then we ascended a fire road to cross over the mountains, and enter the Arbon Valley to the west.

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Entering the Arbon Valley, we paused to admire the amber waves of grain growing in a field next to the fire road. :) Brother Bill looks good mounted on the Zong, don’t you agree? ;)

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Riding a bit farther south, we ascended another trail to enjoy an elevated view of the northern end of the Arbon Valley.

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Descending from the overlook, we headed east to climb to the top of another fire road, which would take us once again into the Malad Valley. We paused to admire the view of the Arbon Valley before we descended to the east.

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Re-entering the Malad Valley, I snapped some action photos of FastDoc kicking up some Idaho dust with my Zong. :)

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We entered another canyon, and climbed westward to another favorite spot of mine that overlooks the sweep of the Malad Valley to the east.

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Once a Zongite, always a Zongite. ;)

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Brother Phil Hall, a Zongshen dealer, printed these Zongshen T-shirts for us before he went home to be with the Lord Jesus Christ. All of us who knew Brother Phil miss him very much; the Dual Sport Forum is dedicated to his memory.

We backtracked a little, and headed over to a parallel ridge to gain another perspective of the valley, and the local mountains.

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Descending the overlook, we headed south and climbed to another favorite vista as the sun moved lower in the sky.

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Descending to the pavement, we rode back north and arrived home well after sunset. This day we rode approximately 165 miles, and Brother Bill completed half of the requirements needed to earn his Idaho Leather Butt Certificate. 8O FastDoc would complete the prerequisites for this coveted award after riding the following day. ;)

Spud :)

Beautiful pictures guys! It's awesome that you could get together for a weekend ride in the mountains, very nice to see the old Zong out as well! :) Again, thanks for sharing, looks like it was a blast! :D

X2 on Stew's comments. :D Spud's Zong is the ultimate DS buddy bike. Thanks for the terrific pics!

Looks like an awesome time, guys! :D

Despite the old guys in all the photos :wink: they are great! The scenery out there is amazing, and as always with Spud's ride reports, makes me want to come visit Idaho.

Spud's Zong is the ultimate DS buddy bike. :D

Amen to that Brother Weld! That bike did EVERYTHING, including a climb on steep technical rocky terrain to 9,000 feet, a 60 MPH blast on a secondary road at night (Brother Spud was attacked by an owl. Really), and the Zong never missed a beat. It was a pleasure to ride, and I was very grateful to be able to use it. :P

The scenery out there is amazing, and as always with Spud's ride reports, makes me want to come visit Idaho.

Dmmcd, you gotta remember the hard truth about Spudland. It's freakin' freezing half of the year! The riding season is short, but sweet. Then it's time to fatten up on berries and salmon like a bear and hibernate until next June. :wink:

If you look at the series of pics you can see me getting more tired and dirty as the fun goes on. Spud's got a carbon fiber butt I think. but I DID earn my Idaho Leatherbutt Award. 8)

I've ridden down to 10 deg F here on the east coast. I am fairly comfortable in the 30s. But I would definitely try to visit in the warmer season...

I have been talking to my wife and think I may have convinced her to take a motorcycle tour around Iceland. I work with a guy who did it a few years ago and his pictures were amazing. Idaho might be similar distance away... But someday (in the very distant future) I want to tour the US on a bike, and I'll be sure to swing by Idaho.

Thank you, Stew. :) Needless to say, the Zong was overjoyed when it heard Brother Bill was coming to visit! ;) Looking at the photographs, I am very impressed with the light output from the Zong's H4 headlight conversion! 8O I highly recommend this H4 conversion to all my fellow Zongites. :)

Spud :)

Thank you, Weld. :) FastDoc gave the Zong a good workout while earning his Idaho Leather Butt Certificate. ;) We rode about 300 miles in two days, and Brother Bill witnessed the Zong turn over 40,000 miles on the odometer. :D

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The Zong reached this historic milestone near the beginning of the second day's ride. :) Anticipating the event, we switched bikes so I had the pleasure of riding the Zong when the odometer turned over 40,000 miles. :)

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Brother Bill helped me commemorate the event before he remounted the Zong to continue the second day's ride. :D

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Spud :)

Thank you, 2LZ. :)

Spud :)

:lol:
Thank you, DM. God's creation is magnificent, and I feel truly blessed to live in such a beautiful region of this world. :)

Spud :)

I thought owls were supposed to be wise! :roll: That stupid bird brushed the bike's handlebars and my right arm as it arose from the road, and then flew straight ahead of me! I swerved to the left to avoid hitting the owl, but he did the same thing! That bird appeared to have a 4-foot wingspan! 8O
The coveted, Idaho Leather Butt Certificate is never awarded without merit; it must be earned! Congratulations, Brother Bill. :D

Spud :)

Wow! 40,000 miles on a china bike... Who'd a thunk it? :D Testament to your riding and maintenance I would say Spud! That's 64,000 kilometers in Canadian, impressive! 8)

MIC, I gotta tell you, even though Spud is a gentle smooth rider those were not easy 'commute to school' miles. Most of them were acquired in the rugged mountains arorund his home, in first or second gear. That Zong is a very durable motorcycle, not just for a CB, but for any manufacturer. :D

its always nice to ride with friends. looks like you guys had a ball.. i hope my zong makes half that mileage.. :D