It’ll be Easy
It was a beautiful morning. The sun was shining as it should
be. We had about five days of rain prior to today. What a blessing to see the
blue sky! We could not have asked for better weather.
I picked up the 3 fellas from the Bayside Adventure Sports
group from their hotel. With a lot of anticipation, we piled into the car to
head back to the MotoMission headquarters and gear up for a sweet day of eating
dirt! Ah, the feeling of grit in the teeth!
Look at Me When I am Talking to You!
On the ride to headquarters, I was able to explain the
details of how Motomission works. The guys asked a bunch of questions. I
answered while swerving in and out of traffic and trying to maintain proper eye
contact with the person in which I was communicating. My daddy always told me
to look a man in the eye! I wasn’t so sure they were impressed with my eye
contact as they would have rather me be watching the road. In any case, it was
a good indication of the reckless abandon that we might encounter on the trail
if it turned out to be the great day that we were all expecting. Our expectations proved to be spot on.
This was a great bunch of guys. In this line of work, you
pretty much have to take what comes to you. With guys like this, it was easy to
enjoy the company and the ride to boot.
During the process of getting to know the skill level of
these riders by means of specific questions regarding their experience and
knowledge of motos, I felt comfy that they had been real with me and that their
abilities would be in the intermediate range. I then confirmed that we would go
through a series of trails and hill climbs, and areas that would stretch them
to the limits of their abilities. I explained what we might face in the near
future. It got them all excited and ready to ride.
Man Down!
After all the gear was fitted, we fired up the bikes and hit
the dirt. Just behind headquarters is a single track testing ground to see what
these guys were made of. It was a fun start with only a few mishaps; at least nothing
that would seem out of the ordinary. However, there was a funny little moment
that created the first “man down.” It was one of those stops on a tight ledge
where there is grass that one might think they can put their foot down. It
happened to be longer grass than originally thought and the spance of nothing
solid under the grass was the intended stopping point for the right foot of one
of our riders. Down the ledge he went with the bike right behind. The feeling
of silliness and maybe a bit of embarrassment made itself present. No biggie, he
got over it and blazed up the trail with force.
The trail that was before us was some incredible single
track with plenty of technical spots. We got through it with just a tiny bit of
oxygen left. The climb started at about 10,500 feet and went up to about
13,000. It was full of all types of terrain that was perfectly suited for these
three riders. With lots of challenging obstacles, we mustered up the energy to
pound through each one. My goal as a guide was to make sure the guys had a good
time, got home in one piece, and were able to stretch their comfort a bit to
make better riders out of them. Through the numerous rocky sections, single
track, climbs, mud, and other random challenges, we ended up at the edge of the
Sacred Valley of the Inkas. It was there that the cameras came out and many a
pic was taken. The guys were spent at that point so it was back to Cusco we
rode. This time it was more about getting back so we could eat.
The Homecoming
The return to Cusco was much tamer as we took mostly double
track trail back down the mountain. It was fun, fast, and full of tight turns
and random animals in the trail. With the last 2000 foot drop into Cusco, we
found ourselves roaming through a pristine farming area full of Inka ruins and
fun trail.
At the end of the trail, just happened to be a plate of fire
roasted chicken and fries that would easily satisfy any hungry motorider. We
ordered about 150 percent of what we could possibly eat, sat down and began
recapping the adventures of the day. We laughed about the silly crashes, shared
the emotions that were generated by the sketchy drop-offs, and relaxed and
rested as our muscles which were begging us to call it a day.
This was a day that will not soon be forgotten. These guys,
all part of an adventure group from the US, had one of those experiences that
many never get a chance to have. Riding dirt bikes in the Andes of Peru is an
amazing experience. Thanks Greg, Durk, and Robert for making it a sweet day!
Tomorrow will be the icing on the cake as we use our aching bodies to help
finish a concrete project for the Altivas Canas Children’s Project (not a
requirement of one of our tours, but a great way to see where the profits of MotoMission
go!). Thanks for turning up some dirt
with MotoMission! Until next time… Scott
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