Gnarliest public road for street motorcycle?

[Mortifer]

eh, there's far worse out there if you include barely paved.

China Grade and Ziyante are two of the worst I guess....if you don't like bumpy roads.

I love them both during a nice downpour!!!

like this lil vid of us on Ziyante, and yeah, DRZsm rain wheelies ftw!!!!!!!!


[youtube]Zx-iUIEr6Wo[/youtube]

 

[jupiejupe]

i love the goat trail at skaggs been airborne a few times, but it's all paved with multilayers, so...

chinahill where is this loveliness?

 

[SM610]

That's my backyard..............

BASTARD...







btw- you are neighbors with jake28...

 

[/dev/null]

Balinas/Fairfax Rd.

That roads is always fun in the winter with the wet foliage on the ground. 1st 1/3 of Skaggs is also fun in the winter.

 

[StreetRacr 67]

Fremont...Morrison canyon and Mill creek road.

 

[Gary856]

Oh...last 8 miles of Summit Road to the west of 152. Only road I've been on to date where I turned around and went home.

Dirt and rock surface, potholes, "5 mph in turns next 8 miles" sign, and wonderful cliffs falling off both sides of the road with zero runoff if you make a mistake.

Beautiful, gorgeous views of Monterey Bay, though. I just wasn't willing to crash to see them.

"last 8 miles of Summit Road to the west of 152" - where is that exactly? Could you give a google earth coordinate for this road? Did you have to turn around because you were on a sportbike, and would it be more rideable on a standard?

 

[Gary856]

OK, I've got to check out China Grade as soon as I put back the gauge cluster on my GS500 (in about 1 week). That's the bike I worry the least about dropping.

Would you (not "could", but "would you", if dropping the bike in the process is not cool) ride China Grade on a sportbike? How about a even heavier FJR/VFR type sport touring bike? Both uphill and downhill?

 

[Mortifer]

yes, you could. no matter what road, dirt or "paved", any bike can do it, but not every rider.

 

[LS1Bandit]

Just looked that up on google. That looks pretty cool. Probably better on an SM, but I think I'll have to take the trusty SV there and check it out.

Ooh, even better.

Tassajara Road.


17 miles of dirt and rocks, terminates at a hot springs in the middle of nowhere. It's passable on a streetbike. Even in the rain. I did it.

 

[nine_inch_rear]

Pinehurst has a few surprises throughout it, not that long but definitely an advanced only road

Agreed.. especially toward the end near skyline/grizzly. That one hairpin off cambered upward turn always puts me offline. Have to feather the clutch to make it smooth.

 

[GAJ]

Ida Clayton Road near Calistoga to Middletown.

I would NOT want to hit the unpaved section going downhill; even an SM might be iffy due to the steepness combined with hairpin turns.

The paved sections are gnarly enough...very very narrow.

Again, you'd need a true DP to handle it going from Calistoga to Middletown, but from Middletown to Calistoga might be OK as you'd be going uphill...slow, mind you, but challenging.

Here's a map:
http://www.sundaymorningrides.com/road/2386243/

Here's a description with a few photos from a bicyclist's blog:

http://scottwalnofer.blogspot.com/2009/07/ida-clayton-road-brutal.html

If you're going from Calistoga to Middletown, which I don't recommend, you'll need to slow to walking speed or less before you hit the downhill dirt/gravel section.

If you don't, you won't like the results!

I've only taken it in a friend's 4X4 pickup truck; what a wimp I am.

But I'm planning to try it the "safe" way soon.

 

[EEL]

I hear Van Ness is good on Weekends.

 

[Ant]

Calaveras between Milpitas & Sunol will keep you on your toes.

 

[flying_hun]

Pinehurst has a few surprises throughout it, not that long but definitely an advanced only road

Except for oncoming 350Z's in my lane, that's my favorite local road. Only portions of it could be considered even mildly goaty.

Oh...last 8 miles of Summit Road to the west of 152. Only road I've been on to date where I turned around and went home.

Dirt and rock surface, potholes, "5 mph in turns next 8 miles" sign, and wonderful cliffs falling off both sides of the road with zero runoff if you make a mistake.

Fun road! It belongs on the list.

Morgan Territory is rough, but it's still mostly there.

I was out there a few weeks ago, and it had been resurfaced. Still a little goaty, but not life threatening.

 

[flying_hun]

Ida Clayton Road near Calistoga to Middletown.

I would NOT want to hit the unpaved section going downhill; even an SM might be iffy due to the steepness combined with hairpin turns.

The paved sections are gnarly enough...very very narrow.

Again, you'd need a true DP to handle it going from Calistoga to Middletown, but from Middletown to Calistoga might be OK as you'd be going uphill...slow, mind you, but challenging.


If you're going from Calistoga to Middletown, which I don't recommend, you'll need to slow to walking speed or less before you hit the downhill dirt/gravel section.

Another road I like. I've ridden it on street bikes in both directions, and you are correct that it's more technical going from Calistoga to Middletown, and things could get out of hand depending upon the quality of the dirt on the day you ride it. It's a great escape valve from annoying weekend traffic on 29 though.

Calaveras between Milpitas & Sunol will keep you on your toes.

That road is narrow, but it doesn't have really big elevation gains and losses, and it seems like the greatest threat out there is oncoming cagers. I like the road, but I couldn't say, "If you can ride Caleveras, you can ride anything", with a straight face. Still, it's a very fun road.

I'm scratching my head to come up with any better examples than have already been named. Check with Luckett, he's a great resource on this topic.

For my money, the scariest road in the East Bay is 238, followed by 880. I avoid the former always, and the latter mostly. Not goat trails, but way more likely to kill you.

 

[Ouches]

Fremont...Morrison canyon and Mill creek road.

These! You get the feeling that they were paved at some point but it's getting a bit hard to tell and the grip comes and goes at random.

Fortunetly Mill Creek dead ends, so you also get the pleasure of going back downhill

 

[TTTom]

Masonite Industrial Road

40 miles of mostly paved, private goat trail running thru the coastal range... motards and dual sports only

 

[flying_hun]

Masonite Industrial Road

40 miles of mostly paved, private goat trail running thru the coastal range... motards and dual sports only

Does that intersect 128 out towards the coast? I seem to recall a road sign for it last Sunday, and wondering where it went.

 

[Bluenote]

For my money, the scariest road in the East Bay is 238, followed by 880. I avoid the former always, and the latter mostly. Not goat trails, but way more likely to kill you.

Amen to that , China Grade I love ,likewise Lodge rd. , Santa Rosa Creek rd , Nacimiento-Ferguson and myriad other goat trails in this state , the 2 above make my palms sweat at 25 mph.

 

[Cheyenne]

I got charged up reading this thread, and went up China Grade this morning.

As I was expecting, and remembered, the "gnarliest goat trail" I kept waiting for the *REALLY* gnarly section...and met back up with 236.

Not that it wasn't goaty enough, it was a blast, but when you put a road on a pedastal... I'll have to try it again in the rain, looks fun.