After almost a year of being unable to dirt bike, I finally got to ride my Yamaha WR250F at Hollister Hills SVRA on Saturday, November 21, 2020.
On Friday, before my planned ride, I loaded my off-road gear into my Sienna minivan and attached the bike carrier. On Saturday morning, I strapped my Yamaha to my van and prepared a couple of sandwiches to eat after a hard day's riding.
The drive to Hollister Hills SVRA was uneventful, but I was worried that due to COVID-19 restrictions, I might be too late (and have to return home without riding). Fortunately, I arrived around 8:50am, and there were no restrictions.
I was, however, surprised by the business of the Vintage Track parking (where I usually park). I found a spot for my dirt bike, but I prefer to park my minivan near a picnic table. I unloaded my Yamaha WR250F and started it up to warm the engine. It's been a long time since I last rode it, so getting dressed and assembling all the riding gear took a bit longer.
At first, to warm up, I decided to ride a few loops around the TT track. I was out of practice, and it took a few loops to start getting the hang of riding. My shifting wasn't smooth, but I began to feel the rear brake bite more than before. The ground wasn't parched (due to the recent rains), but it was not muddy either - almost perfect, and I felt excellent traction.
For my first ride, I decided to try a leisurely lap on Harmony Road. It was an easy trail, but today, it had a lot of deep bumps. I felt like riding over a never-ending sequence of mini-craters! I have never seen so many. It was unsettling for my first easy ride. After riding a bit, I returned to my van for some refreshments. I felt a bit hungry and immediately devoured one of the two apples.
I decided to try the exciting ride following the Four Corners Trail for my second ride. It was just as expected, and I did very well. Nothing was unexpected on this trail ride, and I started to feel my bike a bit more. I returned for more refreshments. Looking closely at the Hollister Hills SVRA map, I decided to try the Lake Trail. I have always wanted to try it but felt apprehensive about it - what if I couldn't handle it? What if I got lost?
I had plenty of gas in my Yamaha and felt physically OK. Let's go for it. How hard could it be? It's only a blue-rated trail. So, I started riding the Lake Trail. It was definitely more challenging than Four Corners, with steep ascents and a lot of loose sand. However, I handled it fine, though not as fast as I would have liked.
Halfway through the trail, I stopped at an intersection. Having no map, I wasn't sure which way to go. I decided to follow North Canyon Road. I didn't know then, but this was the most extended possible way back! I followed the trail for a while and started to get a bit worried. Did I get lost? I stopped at one of the main intersections and waited for another bike. I asked the rider, who told me to follow the North Canyon Road.
Eventually, North Canyon Road merged with Harmony Road, so I returned without problems. After I returned, I finished lunch and decided to ride one more trail - the Middle Field Trail.
The ride on the Middle Field Trail was easy, and I followed it up with a ride on Tank Trail, followed by Adobe. It was a nice, easy ending to a fabulous day of riding. And I was so excited that my bike was still relatively clean (so the one hour of clean up would not be necessary)!
Here is my GoPro Hero7 video of my ride on Lake Trail:
On November 29, I returned to Hollister Hills SVRA for another day of off-road motorcycle riding. This time, I rode the Lake Trail correctly.
Here is the GoPro Hero7 Black video of my ride on the Rancho Road:
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