First Guest Post: A Columbian Moto-Adventure
I've got a good group of military buddies that I've had the pleasure of serving with and riding with. Many adventures have been had from the combined thousand of miles under our wheels. A good friend took a trip to Columbia recently and managed to break free from the family long enough to rent a bike and explore what the country had to offer those bent towards a Motorbike Obsessed Lifestyle. I asked him to send me a write upend some pics so I could live vicariously through his ride. Here is his contribution, take it away Torque Spec...
"Hello My Motorbike Obsessions Fans! Long time reader, first time writer. Ha. Anyways, wanted to do a quick note for Ol’ Blue about a ride I was lucky enough to grab in Colombia. We’ll break it up into three sections, the route, the bike, and the company that made it possible.
The Route:
"The trip itself was awesome. We started at Cali, Colombia at the Motolombia garage with a cup of Colombia’s finest and a pre-ride briefing. For this trip it was going to just be Mike (the owner), Dianna (his wife, and other owner) and I. After a quick review of traffic habits and hazards, and how we would communicate on the trip we readied our rides. We quickly exited the city into tight technical mountain twisties. This first section was replete with all the traffic excitement you’d expect in a foreign city, but within about ten minutes of leaving the city all that traffic quickly faded away. This gave way to curvy open roads with a few smaller bikes and sparser automobiles. The pavement was in better condition than I expected, but I was still thankful for the adventure styling of my ride as we maneuvered around these tight technical turns.
"By lunchtime we approached the scene above. Lake Calima is a man-made reservoir and absolutely beautiful. It’s the whole lake community scene; water sports, beautiful homes, breath taking views, and most importantly, great twisty mountain roads. We ate a traditional Colombian lunch by the water, watched a small town just outside the lake area prepare for their Easter Festival, and then headed out on what was called the “Valley Road.” The way we headed out over mountains was tight and technical, but the Valley Road was endless wide-open sweepers. I felt like a raptor as I flew around traffic and finally felt myself leave 3rd gear and open the bike up a bit. At the end of the Valley Road we stopped at this great spot. I’m going to include the picture below because if you find yourself on this tour you need to ask Mike to stop. Seriously, it was the single best fruit-ice-cream snack I have ever had. Ever. I’ve been on five continents and this was the hands down best.
"Following that the small group size had us well ahead of schedule so Mike and Dianna brought me up one more mountain. It was the technical turns again, but I had started to settle into my ride by this point and was considerably more confident. The view (and the break from the heat the elevation brought) was just icing on the cake. Views below. The topography lets you get a bit of an idea just how much fun it was getting there.
"Believe it or not within about twenty minutes we were back at Motolombia’s Garage where I blathered on about what a great trip it was to a bunch of people who already knew. I knew that they knew, but I had such a blast that I couldn’t help myself.
The Bike:
"So… what noble steed carried me through this fantasy adventure? None other than a Honda CB500X. See below for a visual.
"This was a great ride for me. I’m 5’9” and 180 pounds so adventure bikes can get very tall very quickly, but on this ride I was able to get two feet down with a good contact patch over the balls of my feet. Normally I ride a 2014 Kawasaki Ninja 650 so the style was a bit of a switch, and the front suspension was significantly softer. Often in the twisties I found myself wishing I had better feel on that front contact patch, but at the same time, that softer suspension saved my back on some of those same mountain roads.
"The tires were Metzlers, which I’ve never road on before, but would definitely consider when it’s time to re-shoe my own bike. She did step out on me once on a muddy road in a corner but after a quick correction I was able to quickly regain traction and keep the shiny side up so overall I consider it a win. The only other issue I had with this ride was the lower rev limit and lack of top end power. Suffice it to say I definitely felt the reduction from the 12,000 rpm limit on my Ninja to the 8,000 rpm limit on the Honda as well as the 150cc displacement difference. Over all she was mild mannered and accommodating, which was great for a rental, but I’d probably look elsewhere if I wanted to extend my personal stable. Luckily for those out there that are looking for increased power out of the gate Motolombia has a diverse stable that goes from my little Honda CB500X all the way up to the Honda Africa Twin, and the much-vaunted BMW GS 700, 800, and 1200 models.
The Company:
"This brings me to the company that made this possible. Motolombia. I’ve mentioned them before, mostly because I wanted to make sure I got their name out there right away. There are few companies I find myself so universally impressed with that I run out and within 15mins of returning to a WiFi spot I’m telling my friends and family they need to try them. When taking my taxi to the business I had literally no idea what to expect. It could have been a dude with a few bikes in his garage, but when I got there I was pleasantly surprised. It was extremely professional, with a great garage to maintain the bikes, immaculately maintained hardware, and a knowledgeable accommodating staff. They offered a full stable of rides and rental gear. Additionally when you book the tour it includes the guide, the bike, the insurance, all the meals and (for the longer rides) accommodations. You can go the budget route like me, or really upgrade to a truly luxury vacation.
"The website is www.motolombia.com. They offer a wide variety of tours from the shortest day
tour I described above, to truly epic pan South American Tours almost 60 days long. There are the ones way back in the back woods for the adventure enthusiasts, to the coffee taster and Colombian tourists ones that are great for couples that happen to love two wheels. They’ll accommodate your ride if you have one you really want to take with you, or set you up with one of theirs. I’m gushing here, but really, when it comes to a grade A, superstar company, Motolombia is hard to top. Give them a shot and they’ll give you the ride of a lifetime.
"Well folks…. It’s been fun, but that about does it for me. Thanks for listening and hopefully I’ll have more to add as Ol’ Blue and I head out to a round of California Superbike School later this summer. Until then I’m not sure of the right sign off, but I think the below works best….
-Torque Spec
"P.S. The pen name is not a tough guy thing… really the story, at least looking back on it, is funny as hell. Maybe, after a few drinks, I’ll tell you sometime."
I hope you enjoyed my first unpaid guest correspondent. With the way the military sends us all around the globe, I have buddies everywhere and hopefully they can all contribute their own Motorbike experiences for us all to enjoy. Let me know if you want more guest articles through my contact page. I have got more posts coming as soon as I can get the time in front of the computer. Ride safe!
Blue
"Hello My Motorbike Obsessions Fans! Long time reader, first time writer. Ha. Anyways, wanted to do a quick note for Ol’ Blue about a ride I was lucky enough to grab in Colombia. We’ll break it up into three sections, the route, the bike, and the company that made it possible.
"The trip itself was awesome. We started at Cali, Colombia at the Motolombia garage with a cup of Colombia’s finest and a pre-ride briefing. For this trip it was going to just be Mike (the owner), Dianna (his wife, and other owner) and I. After a quick review of traffic habits and hazards, and how we would communicate on the trip we readied our rides. We quickly exited the city into tight technical mountain twisties. This first section was replete with all the traffic excitement you’d expect in a foreign city, but within about ten minutes of leaving the city all that traffic quickly faded away. This gave way to curvy open roads with a few smaller bikes and sparser automobiles. The pavement was in better condition than I expected, but I was still thankful for the adventure styling of my ride as we maneuvered around these tight technical turns.
"By lunchtime we approached the scene above. Lake Calima is a man-made reservoir and absolutely beautiful. It’s the whole lake community scene; water sports, beautiful homes, breath taking views, and most importantly, great twisty mountain roads. We ate a traditional Colombian lunch by the water, watched a small town just outside the lake area prepare for their Easter Festival, and then headed out on what was called the “Valley Road.” The way we headed out over mountains was tight and technical, but the Valley Road was endless wide-open sweepers. I felt like a raptor as I flew around traffic and finally felt myself leave 3rd gear and open the bike up a bit. At the end of the Valley Road we stopped at this great spot. I’m going to include the picture below because if you find yourself on this tour you need to ask Mike to stop. Seriously, it was the single best fruit-ice-cream snack I have ever had. Ever. I’ve been on five continents and this was the hands down best.
"Following that the small group size had us well ahead of schedule so Mike and Dianna brought me up one more mountain. It was the technical turns again, but I had started to settle into my ride by this point and was considerably more confident. The view (and the break from the heat the elevation brought) was just icing on the cake. Views below. The topography lets you get a bit of an idea just how much fun it was getting there.
"Believe it or not within about twenty minutes we were back at Motolombia’s Garage where I blathered on about what a great trip it was to a bunch of people who already knew. I knew that they knew, but I had such a blast that I couldn’t help myself.
The Bike:
"So… what noble steed carried me through this fantasy adventure? None other than a Honda CB500X. See below for a visual.
"This was a great ride for me. I’m 5’9” and 180 pounds so adventure bikes can get very tall very quickly, but on this ride I was able to get two feet down with a good contact patch over the balls of my feet. Normally I ride a 2014 Kawasaki Ninja 650 so the style was a bit of a switch, and the front suspension was significantly softer. Often in the twisties I found myself wishing I had better feel on that front contact patch, but at the same time, that softer suspension saved my back on some of those same mountain roads.
"The tires were Metzlers, which I’ve never road on before, but would definitely consider when it’s time to re-shoe my own bike. She did step out on me once on a muddy road in a corner but after a quick correction I was able to quickly regain traction and keep the shiny side up so overall I consider it a win. The only other issue I had with this ride was the lower rev limit and lack of top end power. Suffice it to say I definitely felt the reduction from the 12,000 rpm limit on my Ninja to the 8,000 rpm limit on the Honda as well as the 150cc displacement difference. Over all she was mild mannered and accommodating, which was great for a rental, but I’d probably look elsewhere if I wanted to extend my personal stable. Luckily for those out there that are looking for increased power out of the gate Motolombia has a diverse stable that goes from my little Honda CB500X all the way up to the Honda Africa Twin, and the much-vaunted BMW GS 700, 800, and 1200 models.
The Company:
"This brings me to the company that made this possible. Motolombia. I’ve mentioned them before, mostly because I wanted to make sure I got their name out there right away. There are few companies I find myself so universally impressed with that I run out and within 15mins of returning to a WiFi spot I’m telling my friends and family they need to try them. When taking my taxi to the business I had literally no idea what to expect. It could have been a dude with a few bikes in his garage, but when I got there I was pleasantly surprised. It was extremely professional, with a great garage to maintain the bikes, immaculately maintained hardware, and a knowledgeable accommodating staff. They offered a full stable of rides and rental gear. Additionally when you book the tour it includes the guide, the bike, the insurance, all the meals and (for the longer rides) accommodations. You can go the budget route like me, or really upgrade to a truly luxury vacation.
"The website is www.motolombia.com. They offer a wide variety of tours from the shortest day
tour I described above, to truly epic pan South American Tours almost 60 days long. There are the ones way back in the back woods for the adventure enthusiasts, to the coffee taster and Colombian tourists ones that are great for couples that happen to love two wheels. They’ll accommodate your ride if you have one you really want to take with you, or set you up with one of theirs. I’m gushing here, but really, when it comes to a grade A, superstar company, Motolombia is hard to top. Give them a shot and they’ll give you the ride of a lifetime.
"Well folks…. It’s been fun, but that about does it for me. Thanks for listening and hopefully I’ll have more to add as Ol’ Blue and I head out to a round of California Superbike School later this summer. Until then I’m not sure of the right sign off, but I think the below works best….
-Torque Spec
"P.S. The pen name is not a tough guy thing… really the story, at least looking back on it, is funny as hell. Maybe, after a few drinks, I’ll tell you sometime."
I hope you enjoyed my first unpaid guest correspondent. With the way the military sends us all around the globe, I have buddies everywhere and hopefully they can all contribute their own Motorbike experiences for us all to enjoy. Let me know if you want more guest articles through my contact page. I have got more posts coming as soon as I can get the time in front of the computer. Ride safe!
Blue
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