In the fall of 2023, Varya, David and I drove and biked to a nice AirBnB house on the north side of Lake Travis for some lakeside leisure and Texas Hill Country moto touring.
With David on his GS, and me on Duca, we rode through hill and dale in a big loop around Lakes Travis, LBJ, and Inks, venturing as far north as the southeastern shore of Lake Buchanan. (“S” was our start/stop point in the lower right of this Lago Vista Loop map.)
Lago Vista Loop
Feeling peckish around Llano, we sampled an ill-advisedly sizable portion of Cooper’s Pit BBQ.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, passing deer watched Varya read and knit, unconcerned with golfers in the clearing.
Walking down a long, rocky shore to Captain Pete’s Boat House for a floating dinner really showed how low the water is in Lake Travis.
The perfect evening for Varya was a little nap in the hammock followed by quiet reading and knitting while looking across the dark lake to the lights of the southern shore…so hygge.
About halfway between Houston and San Antonio is the little town of Shiner, best known for the Spoetzl Brewery’s premier product, Shiner Bock. But for those in the know, it’s also near the Lewis ranch, where John and his brother host an annual spring weekend getaway for friends and family on their parents’ estate. Shiner newbies, Varya and I made a day trip out to enjoy fresh air and open Texas countryside with new and old friends and colleagues.
Like any good semi-weekend mechanic, John has a few projects in various stages of progress in the family barn, including a little red Porsche and an old British BSA that he fired up to the delight of onlooking bikers.
After a huge feast of smoked BBQ and guest-provided side dishes, the fabulous Mr. & Mrs. Fox tended bar with a fine selection of their delicious mixologist cocktails.
When a group of well lubricated NASA nerds gather in an unrestricted rural area with tools, PVC and pressure vessels, how do they entertain themselves? Launch projectiles, of course!
Veggie Cannon
Ex-Watermelon
Big thanks to John et al for the fun, food (eaten and exploded) and festivities, and we look forward to our next journey west. Maybe we’ll even stay the night next time (in Shiner, not a tent). 😉
In April of 2023, I loaded up Duca–now sporting an Evotech Tail Tidy, Custom LED Blaster-X tail light, and Skene P3 decelerometer-activated LED lights–and prepared to ride west to Austin for the weekend, stopping first in Fulshear just west of Houston to meet up with my riding buddy David on his trusty BMW GS.
As before, we stayed with our ever-gracious and welcoming friends Erik and Liza in their beautiful home west of Austin, spending our mornings and nights enjoying their company and hospitality and our days enjoying MotoGP at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) and its (in)famous “Horsepower Rodeo” track. Saturday was hot and sunny, so though I’ve never been a “hat guy”, I gladly accepted a free cap at the Rever booth, their reward for showing their app on my phone (Rever membership included with Revzilla’s RPM).
While COTA let us park our bikes for free, the bike parking lot was a long hike or tram/cab ride from the front gates. Next time I suspect we’ll be tempted to pay the price for Ducati Parking directly next to the main grandstand. David may have to swap his GS for his Monster and sacrifice comfort on the ride to Austin in order to enjoy the closest and coolest parking at MotoGP. Plus, you meet the nicest Ducatistas there. 😉
We spent downtime between races both days walking the vast grounds of COTA, exploring MotoGP sights and concessions. Of course, the videos below can not capture the dangerously loud shriek (ear protection is a must) and sense of extreme speed (don’t try this at home) of the world class superbikes and riders competing in Moto3, Moto2 and MotoGP.
After a very exciting final MotoGP race on Sunday, with defending and future World Champion Pecco Bagnaia low-siding out of 2nd place and Alex Rins winning with a dominating 3.5 sec margin, it was time for all of us bikers to mount up and ride home. I’m sure it won’t be too long before we return to COTA, home of the only MotoGP race held in America.
Varya and I returned to the Lakeway Resort on Lake Travis last fall for our respective loops, her knitting and my biking. Lakeway already had holiday decorations out to greet guests arriving for the knitting retreat and weekend getaways.
While Varya and her fellow knitters showed off their creations (including her hoodie and shawl in these pics) and tackled new techniques and projects, Duca and I looped and twisted around the lakes, following a route I mapped out in Rever. Despite needing UI improvements, Rever is handy for planning a moto tour on roads with Butler G1-3 ratings, but always overestimates time required, or rather underestimates average speed. So, riders may assume Rever’s “TOTAL TIME” includes several stops for gas, lunch, naps, etc.
Speaking of lunch, I found a great place to stop in Llano, Cooper’s Old Time Pit BBQ, and enjoyed a couple pounds of excellent smoky meats…mmmmm. South of Llano, I rode by the locally famous Enchanted Rock that I’d heard about since first arriving in Houston decades ago. Sure, a pink granite hill is kinda cool, I guess, but I wasn’t enchanted enough to dismount, much less pay the $5 entrance fee.
Back at Lakeway, we enjoyed the resort’s stone decor, tasty dining, and tranquil vistas from our balcony. No doubt we’ll return again for more fun in the Texas Hill Country.
Late last October, Varya and I loaded up the old Lex and trailered Duca up through NE TX and a bit of OK to Eureka Springs, AR. The plan was for Sean & Keri to ride down from KC on his H-D and Greg to ride south on his KTM from StC for a couple days of hilly rides around Eureka. Unfortunately, an inescapably large, fearsome storm front on the horizon kept Sean & Keri in KC and forced Greg to ride home the next day to beat the deluge.
Before the storm, Greg, Varya and I stayed at the 1886 Crescent Hotel, basically an Ozark version of The Shining hotel, complete with an old, creepy vibe and ghosts of past horrors.
As Greg escaped on his Austrian, a little cold rain creeped into Eureka Springs warning of worse weather to come. Varya and I did a little damp shopping in the artsy/crafty town (OK, she shopped for baubles and beads while I sought a bar advertising “Husband Day Care Center”) before returning to the hotel to enjoy autumn afternoon views.
That night, we joined a Ghost Tour, in which a creepy old-timey nurse led us around our hotel while describing its haunted history. A fraudster once ran it as the Baker Hospital for Cancer Cure, preying upon rich, gullible, desperate patients who typically didn’t survive long enough to file suit. According to our “nurse” guide’s script, some may still roam the halls as spiteful spirits seeking solace. She invited us to take plenty of photos of specific rooms and slightly warped mirrors conveniently placed at the ends of halls, and to let the staff know if our phones caught anything spooky. Varya claims a blurred shape on the side of one of her pics looks like a child’s arm–perhaps the arm of the long-deceased child said to roam these halls! (I wasn’t convinced.)
Sadly, we saw no paranormal activity or apparitions on a tour that seemed a bit pricey for just a guided walk around the hotel–they could have rigged up a hologram or at least an eerie soundtrack. 😉 Perhaps the weirdest part of the tour was at the end…in the dark basement…with shelves full of bottled tumors removed from dead patients who apparently were not cured by Norman Baker.
After a couple nights in the so-called “Ghost Hotel” of Eureka Springs, we drove north into the expected big storm front. As Lex-rocking winds and torrential rains severely limited visibility, we slowly made our way across MO to Mom’s townhouse in Saint Charles by late afternoon.
Denied the Pig Trail and other famous Ozark roads by bad AR weather, Greg and I took advantage of the first clear, sunny day of the week by riding SW from StC in a big loop around central/southern MO. Greg’s been riding most of his life, and I’ve ridden for a couple decades, yet this was our first time riding together. After the wet, gray, abbreviated stay in Eureka Springs, this picturesque, spirited day ride through the colorful fall leaves of southern MO with my oldest schoolmate (at least a month older than me!) made trailering Duca all that way worthwhile.
Finally, the main event of the northern journey: on Mom’s 80th birthday, a couple dozen of her closest friends and family gathered at Tony’s on Main Street, perhaps the finest restaurant in St. Charles, to celebrate her eight decades on Earth. Tony’s excellent cuisine (oh, those medallions!) were well complemented by Scott’s cakes, Sean’s beverages, and everyone’s favorite stories about Jeanne, which Claire declared were to be shared while adorned with the Birthday Queen sash! 🙂
During the drive back south to Houston, I began noticing a strange sound, increasing with speed, coming from our right rear wheel. I eventually discovered thin wires sticking out of the walls just beneath the tread of our relatively new Kumho Road Venture tires. Discount Tire replaced it under warranty, of course, but call me a former fan of inexpensive Kumho tires from South Korea. Back to pricier Yokohama Geolandars!
Cute town and ghost hotel in the Ozarks, surviving severe weather, beautiful bike ride, and partying with octogenarians…not bad for a one week road trip!
April moto-mayhem in the Texas Hill Country seemed like the ideal way to try out Jerry’s new 2015 Honda Repsol SP before he headed north to Denver for new Sierra Nevada and Rockies adventures. Friday morning, Jerry trucked and I rode Duca west outta Houston to Bandera west of San Antonio, where we took our bikes for a quick afternoon loop north of Comfort. (The Rever app is good for creating GPX files for my Garmin Zumo, but way overestimates time required for distance–4.33 hours to cover 111.13 miles suggests a school zone pace under 26 mph…on a motorcycle! Really, Rever?!)
After a night of dining and moderate revelry in downtown Bandera, the real ride began Saturday morning. Zipping up 16 to Medina, we turned due west on Ranch Road 337, one of Texas’ infamous Three Twisted Sisters. North of Vanderpool, we stopped to check out the impressive private collection of 60+ vintage bikes at the Lone Star Motorcycle Museum. Soon we rolled into Leakey, pronounced “lay-key” as locals have corrected me, not leaky as it appears…as that might suggest a need for another little Texas town, Sealy. 😉
Just west of Leakey is the Frio Canyon Motorcycle Stop, a must-stop for any passing biker seeking parts, accessories, apparel, food, drink and live music. Judging by the amusingly similar bikes and trikes populating the parking lot, Harleys with 2 or 3 wheels are the all-too-common choices of the rugged individuals populating Frio’s live band and bar area.
We bought a couple shirts and souvenirs and continued west before some of the under-geared and over-lubricated Harley boys staggered back to their hogs. At Camp Wood, we turned north on RR 335, the second Twisted Sister, zipped east on 41, and turned south on RR 336, our last and perhaps curviest Sister. After navigating an especially twisty part (a Butler Maps G1 road), I parked beneath a shade tree in Leakey and waited for Jerry…and waited. Just as I was thinking of riding back north, he rolled in and revealed he’d experienced a little gravity attack in the middle of a tight turn. Fortunately, no serious injury and most of the bike damage was cosmetic, but a little oil leak was big enough to leave the Honda in Leakey while we rode 2-up on Duca (sadly without photo evidence) to retrieve his truck from Bandera.
Thus ended our moto-tour before we could ride NE to Kerrville, but not our big Saturday night in Bandera. We had a tasty dinner in a little joint with cold beverages and hot guitar licks by the impressively excellent Jake Castillo Trio out of San Antonio. From Hendrix to Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jake handled classic riffs and solos with veteran ease belying thousands of hours blues-rocking south Texas clubs and bars.
An old friend of Jerry’s joined us for Sunday brunch before Jerry drove to nearby San Antonio for Easter with family and I rode Duca back east to Houston and home, having enjoyed one last Hill Country moto-weekend before Jerry became a Colorado mountaineer.
One glorious Thursday in early spring, Varya and I rendezvoused at scenic Lakeway Resort on Lake Travis for a long weekend getaway. While I rode my bike from Houston, she drove her convertible ‘Stang, knocking out her longest highway haul like a pro! At the resort, Varya modeled her expertly crafted colorful creations, evidently as one does at a knitting convention, judging by the many yarn-clad guests.
As she began her exciting weekend trading yarns with fellow knitters from around the globe, I spent Friday twisting around Lakes Travis, Marble Falls, LBJ, Inks and Buchanan on a Ducati (almost as thrilling as knitting), winding up in Erik’s & Liza’s garage with David and his BMW. As is customary at this 5…er…6-star west Austin resort, appetizers and aperitifs awaited our arrival.
Fortunately for us dinner guests, Erik grills some killer steaks and master chef Liza sets a lavish, delicious table, so our generous hosts spoiled us all. After much feasting and revelry, we retired to the poolside veranda and fire pit for digestifs.
The next morning, perhaps a bit later than planned, David and I suited up and rode westward for our all-day hill country moto-tour, looping around Luckenbach and Comfort before twisting back east to meet Erik and Liza at Salk Lick BBQ in Driftwood. Nothing hits the spot after several hours of riding like a big plate of BBQ buffalo ribs!
Thanks, Dave, for the great ride, and thanks again, Erik and Liza, for opening up your most excellent hill country home to flatland bikers!
The cool and dry weekend before Thanksgiving was perfect for moto-touring through the Texas Hill Country. Carlos and I headed out of Houston Friday morning, zipping west to San Antonio on I-10 and on to Uvalde to spend an evening at America’s Best Value motel. After paying $90 for a 20th century tube TV, a bug-covered bathroom sink, a broken toilet handle and a very cold shower, I’d argue the motel was not much of a Value, much less the Best Value in America. But, it added “flavor” to a guys’ bike trip, and set us up to hit the notorious Twisted Sisters roads from the south via Leakey (pronounced “lay-kee”, not “lee-kee”, as I was corrected).
On the road to UvaldeFor some reason, Butler color-coding goes 1-yellow, 2-red, 3-orange
As we headed north from Uvalde to Leakey early Saturday in the cold morning air, I thanked the Italian moto-gods for heated grips. After some breakfast and much-needed coffee at a roadside taco truck in Leakey, we headed north on RR 336, west on 41, south on RR 335 to Camp Wood, and east on RR 337, returning to Leakey within 2 hours. We saw perhaps one other bike during that entire loop, headed the opposite way as we approached Leakey again, near the Frio Canyon Moto Shop that appeared closed. (Butler’s oddly ordered color-coding in the map above shows the twistiest, most technical roads in yellow, the next step down in red, and the next level of sweeping turns in orange.)
As we sat again at the same taco truck enjoying more tacos and coffee, a white-bearded older man in overalls chatted with us, ultimately offering us his condo in Leakey and cabin near Medina to rent for future hill country moto-tours. In response to the obvious question, “Why not advertise on AirBnB?”, he expressed his desire for greater selectivity because he “didn’t want that Harley crowd trashing things,” which made me laugh as he definitely looked like a Harley guy, not the more refined BMW and KTM biker he claimed to be (can’t judge a book…). So, instead, he scouted out nice bikes and riders he deemed “professionals” for in-person, targeted advertising. Not a bad approach, as I’ll likely contact him the next time I ride west of San Antonio.
Fully caffeinated and taco-ed, we headed east on RR 337 and north on RR 187 to the Lone Star Motorcycle Museum. A $7 entry fee enabled us to browse the private collection of over 60 bikes owned by Allan Johncock, an Aussie motorcycle enthusiast who moved to Texas. The several bikes sporting #346 were his personal race bikes, which he didn’t start racing until in his 50’s (never too old…).
Allan Johncock’s motorcycle collection and racing trophies
We continued east on RR 337 to Medina, where we saw more bikes than in the morning, though all headed west, the opposite way. We had to stop for apple/cinnamon/maple ice cream (oh my) at The Apple Store before continuing to make our way east and north on various twisty, rural roads, finally ending up at the famous, original Salt Lick BBQ in Driftwood for a most excellent, smokey carnivore dinner (oh my!).
Based upon the surprisingly few bikes we saw all Saturday, I’d say veteran hill country rider Carlos had a good approach for avoiding crowds on the Twisted Sisters:
Start very early in the morning at Leakey (grab some tacos from the truck), and ride counter-clockwise around the left loop in the above map. We saw almost no one this far west on Saturday morning.
Then hit the right loop, also counter-clockwise (stopping for ice cream at The Apple Store in Medina), as riders who start nearer San Antonio will be just arriving from the east, westward bound.
We spent Saturday night east of Driftwood, south of Austin, splurging for rooms at Studio 6, the “upscale” Motel 6…no Ritz Carlton, to be sure, but far better than ABV in Uvalde! The ride east to Houston started in dense fog Sunday morning, but was otherwise an uneventful cap on a nice hill country moto-tour weekend. Kudos to Carlos for joining the weekend tour, quickness through the twisties, and sage suggestions along the way (not counting ABV)!
MotoGP racing hooked me online even before I steered away from power cruisers like my old Triumph Rocket III and Honda VTX1800C to a Ducati Multistrada 1260S earlier this year. Perhaps watching young riders rocket through turns on 220mph GP bikes even had something to do with my switch to a sportier tourer. During the pandemic, I’ve watched quite a few races online, VPNing into European countries to watch “locally”, or waiting for Sunday afternoon replays on NBCSN or YouTube. (I guess I wasn’t so hooked as to spring for the expensive MotoGP VideoPass for live viewing–plus watching European races live means the wee hours in Texas, and I need my beauty sleep.) So, a few months ago, when the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin confirmed they’d be hosting the only American MotoGP event in early October, Austinite Erik and I jumped on full weekend passes. Turns out we didn’t need to rush, as biker buddies David and Edgar bought tickets just days before the event and joined us for a trio on Saturday and foursome on Sunday.
That first weekend in October was hot and mostly sunny, so we were glad to be sitting in the Main Grandstand Club section, one of the few shaded areas around the track with easy access to amenities such as the Velocity Lounge (for really fast food). Other grandstands around the track offered better views of twisty turns, but seemingly at the price of sunburns and heatstroke. So, I was duly lauded by our group for picking our Club section. Unfortunately, I was also relentlessly derided for not picking the adjacent parking lot A, but rather the cheaper and distant lot T. Apparently lower letter lots are what you want at COTA, which was surprisingly lacking in shuttles (saw several parked/empty, but never one in action…a COTA fail), so lot T made for quite a hike each day, especially leaving (all uphill). Not to mention the hour-long wait in the car just to exit lot T on Sunday afternoon (very poor parking lot traffic control was another COTA fail)…but I digress, back to the track…
Edgar, David, Steve & Erik decked out for MotoGP
If you really wanted to save money with General Admission tickets, there are hillside areas to drop a folding chair or blanket. Just be sure to bring your own shade in the form of umbrellas and hats.
David saved us by bringing enough tethered ear plugs for all four of us. The only MotoGP veteran, he was well aware of just how ear-shattering the unmuffled, unrestricted GP bikes are at full throttle. The rest of us newbies were very grateful for the ear plugs since we couldn’t find any being sold…at a race track (another COTA fail).
Ducati Island was the place to be for Ducatistas, offering new Ducati bikes to sit and drool on, overpriced Ducati gear for the price-insensitive, and even Ducati-only parking…filled with a long line of (mostly) red Italian bikes. Guess where I’ll be parking next year?!
Current & Aspiring Ducatistas
With immortal young riders pushing and occasionally exceeding the limits of their machines and tire traction, crashes are not uncommon in MotoGP, perhaps more so in Moto2 & 3 classes filled with teens. Fortunately, most crashes are “low sides” in which the bike and rider slide off the track and into the rock fields that slow them to a stop. While walking around the track, Edgar and I watched one Moto2 rider hop right up after sliding out on a corner and walk over to a waiting golf cart driven by a Medical Crew while waving to the fans, followed by a Track Crew who loaded his wrecked bike on a trailer, all within a few minutes. Glad to see the rider safe, and the efficient Moto-Cleanup.
Yellow smoke bombs filled the Paddock seats near the starting line shortly before the MotoGP race. We could smell it from our distant Club seats, so I wondered if the riders disliked breathing the cloud as they prepared for launch, even Rossi. But, moto fans gonna be (Grazie!) Vale fans.
Yellow Smoke pre-MotoGP
Just like last spring when Varya and I biked through the hill country, our host and hostess, Erik and Liza, were awesome! They graciously offered their west Austin home to us cheap crashers, feeding us great morning breakfasts and wining and dining us each night with Erik’s grilled steaks and Liza’s amazing cuisine. 5 Stars all around…soon to be 6 when the new pool is finished! 😉
Moonday 