Putting the T's in Twisties

[B][URL="http://www.bmwmoa.org/news/general_interest/the_rally_putting_the_ts_in_twisties"]The article and maps are now online.[/URL][/B]


To go with the article of the same name, I'm posting a few zips with GPS routes.

The maps are in Garmin .gdb format, and for other GPS in .gpx format.

The first set is paved routes, and are attached to this post.

The second are dual-sport, and are attached to the second post.

As discussed in the article, it's not a short distance to the Dragon from the Rally site. Getting there and back is a full day's ride... especially if you take the dual-sport rides.

You may consider going there on your way to or from the rally.

The routes are reversible *except* for the National Park Way dual sport route, which uses a 1-way dirt road out of the park (btw, this is one of the best rides).

And remember: ***Always and Adventure*** these roads are fun, a bit challenging and you will have fun [SIZE="1"](even if you get a little lost at some point.)[/SIZE]

Please let me know if you have questions.

Ian

Both are fun.

(edited route, stupid Mapsource autorouted right through Gatilinburg hell!)

Looking forward to going back down. We hit "The Dragon" on our way home from New Orleans after doing some Katrina work. Some seriously fun roads on the way in and out. There are better roads than 129, as most will attest to, but it's fun to do. Got "lost" in Kentucky somehow. Pre-GPS, so we were just following the twisties and low and behold "Welcome to Kentucky", at which point the nice paved road became a crater field from an old WWII movie. We made it back to decent pavement without any damage to suspensions or riders though. I was on the K1200RS and my riding buddy had his CBR1100XX, so we weren't prepared for logging road conditions. July can't get here fast enough!

[QUOTE=john1691;416687]...we weren't prepared for logging road conditions. [/QUOTE]

i think most of kentucky is dual-sport conditions. an excellent north/south road through the east part of the state is KY11.

watch out for coal trucks!

Thanks Ian, these really look great. You have included some of my favorites from Tapoco toward the rally. I guess I will have to ride these either before or after the rally...hmmm or maybe I'll just blow the rally off and go ride...ya think? :)

Keep the good stuff coming!

Nice job, [B]IAN[/B], with your [B][I]ON[/I][/B] article about the 'twisties!'

I just finished reading it, and it both brings back memories, and excites me about this coming July.

I recall last year's snacking at a nice river-side restaurant (on your right) as you enter Tellico Plains along the [I]Cherohala[/I], and the challenge of flawless runs on the [I]'Dragon'[/I] in both directions.

Can't wait!

Nice routes,Ian.Thanks for all your effort!

And a heads up to those of you who are not sure you can get enough of this in the 3 days of the MOA Rally.

The ROK(BMW Riders of Knoxville) have decided to move our traditional Labor Day Rally up to coincide with the MOA Johnson City International Rally.This is very preliminary,but the ROK Rally will be Sunday,July 12 til Wednesday,,July 15,the three days before the Johnson City Rally.

The location is Two Creeks Campground(don't even try to find it on the net.It's a private campground,owned by a BMW rider) in Del Rio Tennessee.It's located 80 miles from Gray Tennessee,site of the MOA Rally.If you look at Ian's dual sports map in the February MOA ON,the rally site is at the bottom of Hwy 107 from Max Patch.The campground is a stones throw from the scenic French Broad River.(not to be confused with Barbarosa,a Harley campground on Hwy 25/70,a few miles away).

The ROK Rally will focus on dual sport riding(GS),but of course all bikes are welcome.We will be limited to the first 100.Pre registration only.Cost will be about $40 +/-(We're working on that!) and will included several meals,etc..

The ROK location is about 1/2 way between Johnson City and the Dragon/Cherahola area,but,hey,you don't have to go waaaay over there to get your fill of great dualie or mountain twistie roads.No wonder the Adventure Riders have their East Coast rally in May a few miles from here.

Look for registration info on this site,on the "Where and When" on the MOA web page, in an upcoming MOA Owners News and on the ROK web site.We finalizing plans as we speak.

I'll save you a spot,Ian!

[QUOTE=cluster148;418773]
The ROK(BMW Riders of Knoxville) have decided to move our traditional Labor Day Rally up to coincide with the MOA Johnson City International Rally.This is very preliminary,but the ROK Rally will be Sunday,July 12 til Wednesday,,July 15,the three days before the Johnson City Rally.
[/QUOTE]

I'm in! I'll have to rearrange my side trip to the cousins' place in GA.

Too much to do and see, but I guess that's a GOOD thing!:bikes

Tried to do the National Park DS ride today. Unfortunately, the roads are still frozen. Got about a mile in and ended up on a sheet of ice. I backtracked and just took a nice lap around the Great Smokey Mountains National Park.

Beautiful day. Had to be careful on Deal's Gap because there was still sand all over the road.
Couple of more weeks of weather like this weekend and all should be clear. Maybe we could use a good rain to wash all the sand off of the road.

The Chain Gang will be hosting an April rally in Cruso, NC so these routes will certainly be useful for some pre-running. Thanks for the efforts! :clap

[QUOTE=fauster;422164]The Chain Gang will be hosting an April rally in Cruso, NC so these routes will certainly be useful for some pre-running. Thanks for the efforts! :clap[/QUOTE]

from cruso, you'll definitely like the 1,001 route to the dragon, if you're planning on going over that way.

i can point out a few more in the area if you'd like.

it was *hard* editing out some of the roads around that area!!!

I put this file together when the RA was in Asheville.

Don't know much about the JC area, will find out this July, but there are places in the mountains south of I 26 and 40. Including waterfalls and some good roads marked.

Mostly a little way from the rally but may be useful to some.

In both GBD and GPX formats.

[ATTACH]16227[/ATTACH]

Ian,
Thank you for the postings. However I am NOT very GPS savy. I have a Gramin NUVI350. I have riden the Dragon several time and the dual sport tracks sound really good. I will spend about a week in the area during the rally.

I have a question though: Can anyone direct me to a site that will help me figure out how to load these maps and use them on my garmin? ANY help would be appriciated!

Thanks,
Marty

Marty;

Here's what I did. After clicking on the attachment, I saved it to my hard drive in a place I could remember. The desktop is always good. Then I opened the .zip files and extracted them - again to a place I could easily find.

Then I opened Garmin's Mapsource and used the file menu to open each downloaded and unzipped .gdb file. From there, you should be able to send them to your GPS. I haven't tried connecting a nuvi to Mapsource yet so your results may vary. After I did a bit of route modification (changing the start waypoint to Cruso instead of the MOA rally), the routes were successfully uploaded to my 60CSx. Hope that helps.

So I have a question... Are my friends that DON"T ride a Beemer welcome at the rally???
I just want to enjoy the rally with my other riding friends.
Hope this is not a stupid question : (
Rvs