Utah Spodefest 2001

Spodefest? What is Spodefest? I'd heard and read a little about previous Spodefests. Seemed like it was sort of like Jeep Safari for motorcycles. Some how I'd managed to get invited to Spodefest but I wasn't really sure what I was getting myself into. I knew it would be a chance to ride with a group of excellent riders. I made plans to attend by scheduling time off at work, trying to get in shape over the winter, and getting in some ride time. Here is some of my experiences.

Pre-Spodefest - Saturday, March 23. We arrived at the Swell pretty late, close to 2am. I slept outside on the trailer and woke with a lot of frost on my sleeping bag. Bill, George, and I had come to ride Five Miles of Hell. For me it was a warm up ride for Spodefest. George dropped out after he cracked a case on the "Steps". Bill and I continued riding with a couple of riders from Idaho. We enjoyed watching them struggle to ride the trail with stock gearing. At the end we had some lunch, rested a bit, then turned around and went back in. The Idaho boys thought we were nuts. Now Bill and I can say we have done Five Miles of Hell both ways in a day.

Pre-Spodefest - Sunday, March, 24. Bill and I rode the Red Trail, the Orange Trail to the Green Trail, the Blue Trail back to the Red Trail to the Purple Trail, then rode FMOH from Lone Man to the first bail-out we came to. This turned out to be a great figure 8 loop with a mixture of different terrain and lots of scenery. After we did the loop, we loaded up the bikes and drove over to Black Dragon Wash for a quick ride on some of the old mining roads in this area. This had been a great warm up for Spodefest.

Early Spodefest - Saturday, March 30. Brad and I arrived quite late in the Swell but we had enjoyed an amazing aurora borealis on the way down. We chose to camp away from the group so we wouldn't disturb them. In the morning we were greeted by Victor Johnson who invited us to join them.

After a quick riders meeting we rode to Temple Mountain on the Blue Trail and the Orange Trail. Victor was giving everyone a chance to warm up and get adjusted to Utah's terrain. Some members of the group had new bikes and were getting use to them.

When we arrived at Temple Mountain we stopped by the BLM trailer to chat with them. After that we went over and rode the Crack Canyon trail. This was new to me and very enjoyable.

After Crack Canyon, everyone seemed eager to get back to camp for liquid refreshment but Brad and I managed to convince another rider to join us on a run up Red Trail. At the intersection of Blue and Red we met some mountain bikers. I was thrilled to see mountain bikers on the trail. They told us these were some of their favorite trails. I have no problems sharing trails with mountain bikers, being one myself, and hope other motorized users will show mountain bikers the utmost respect when meeting them on the trail. The Red Trail was a blast as usual and we joined the rest at camp.

Early Spodefest - Sunday, April 1. More riders had showed up so we had a pretty good sized group. First stop before dropping into Eagle Canyon was at Swasey Cabin. We admired the I-70 bridges and continued on the Eva Conover Road to Coal Wash. We had lunch at Slipper Arch then hit the Devil's Racetrack. This was a fantastic loop through some amazing scenery. The route is very sensitive as it is one of the few routes still open after the emergency closure in the San Rafael Swell. We were grateful for the volunteer work done by the SEUOHV Club which has helped keep this open to OHVs. Thanks!

After we got back to camp, Brad and I took Rowdy for a preview of Five Miles of Hell entering at the first bailout just above the Steps and running it back towards the Red Trail. We were having too much fun so we continued on the Red Trail and took the Blue Trail back to the main road and returned to camp. I was wishing I could stay the whole week and continue riding but I couldn't miss that much work.

Spodefest - Thursday, April 5. I left Provo around 5:30 am. I rolled into Moab just as other riders were heading up to the meeting place. Road construction gave me a few extra minutes to get ready. Once we were able to get through the construction we divided up into groups and headed up Pritchett Canyon. After we continued on Behind the Rocks which contains White Knuckle Hill. We dashed along 191, "escorted" by Highway Patrol, to Kane Creek. After completing the loop we regrouped and rode Moab Rim.

Friday - April 6. It had rained most of the night. A few die-hards had arrived at the Poison Spider trailhead. The rest informed us they would meet us at noon. We rode the Poison Spider loop and then rendezvoused with the others. While on the Golden Spike Trail a storm moved in so we took shelter under an over hang near the Golden Crack. After the storm lifted we continued on through Gold Bar Rim, up to Gemini Bridges, over Metal Masher and returned back across Gold Bar/Golden Spike/Poison Spider. Our group had developed a fairly quick pace along the way back.

Saturday - April 7. As I pulled into the parking area, Victor was pulling out along with several other riders. They were done. I couldn't blame them since they'd been riding hard all week. FMOH is hard enough when you are fresh. I was feeling the effects of the previous two days and two weekends of riding myself but I cannot resist a ride on FMOH. The group interested in riding FMOH was dwindling but a few were ready. Since Brooke Sessions and I were the only ones in the group that had ridden FMOH, we were elected to lead the ride. I proposed we run it in the reverse direction which I feel may be slightly less difficult as you go down many of the big climbs (either way is still Hell). We encountered a little rain and hail on our ride but the group did suprisingly well. Two riders wisely bailed out. The rest made it through with minor difficulties. Jeff even showed us how the Steps are done on a YZ125.

After the ride we met up with the other group which had just done the Eagle Canyon to Devil's Racetrack loop. After a few quick good-byes the parking area cleared out and only Tim Harrell's family remained. Tim was looking for a near by riding area suitable for his kids and I had suggested Hanksville. Since I didn't have anywhere to be for another day I decided to join them.

Sunday - April 8. The wind had been quite fierce all night. In the morning it was much calmer. My first ride led me up a small canyon where the trail eventually climbed up on top of this narrow ridge. It was very unnerving but after successfully completing it I tried it again. This time I misjudged a corner and the bike slipped out from under me and I tumbled down the side. Once I stopped tumbling I climbed back up to the bike and dragged it down the other side. I had to laugh since my tumble must have looked hilarious but unfortunately no one got to enjoy it. The rest of the day I was very cautious about narrow ridge top trails. While riding I noticed many "crazy tracks" where riders had been jumping huge gaps and climbing steep walls.

Hanksville was a pleasant way to end several days of hardcore trail riding. I thoroughly enjoyed the Utah Spodefest. Thanks to all who made it a success. It was great to meet and ride with so many riders who came from far away to attend this event. I'm sure they were not dissapointed. Watch for me next Spodefest. Maybe next year I'll have some riding gear and an updated bike. See you then.