I met up with Steve today out here in Rio Rancho for a great ride. This has been the most fun I have had on this thing since I bought it a few month ago. The endless sand trails, river bottoms and whoops are just incredible & I had a grin from ear to ear the whole day right up until I hit some whoops a bit to fast trying to take a run at a big sand hill and flipped it over onto the right side. It was just an easy roll over compared to my last big show I put on in front of my wife, but the just my luck it took the right rear tire off the bead and broke my right rear fender. That pretty much ended our day, but the bad part was we had a 3 or 4 mile ride out of the canyon riding on the rim. Oh well it's all part of the fun, maybe one of these days I will figure out how to ride this thing and keep the shinny side up.

Looks like it's time to break out the plastic welder again.

get the stock rims back on the rears and you might have not lost your bead!!!!

Ok... I had bent the stock rear wheel bad enough that I could never get the tire to hold air. What is the difference in the wheel lips between these Douglas wheels and the stockers?

Were is this place located I have always wanted to stop and ride in NM, I have seen trails on the West side of Albuquerque but never stopped also been wanting to stop and meet and ride with Steve its just never happen.

It is clear out at the end of Southern road here in Rio Rancho. On the other side of those small hills you can see in my pics is a huge canyon with endless sand trails going every direction. If you ever get out this way Hoser, I would love to go ride with you and anyone else for that matter. Steve is a awesome guy & VERY fast!!! I really look forward to going again with him in the future.

I see Rio Rancho on the map I don't see Southern road, can you give me some detailed directions?

Sorry Hoser my mistake, it is Southern BVLD not "road". Depending on which direction you going thru Rio Rancho on 528, (528 is the main road thru town) you turn west at the corner of 528 & Southern BVLD and just keep driving all the way tru town & after the pavement ends until you run out of road. At the very end of the road is where we were parked in the picture I posted. You really cant miss it but it is a little ways out there. The last few miles of the dirt road are a bit rough with a few big mud holes in them, but people just drive around them on the side, but it can be a little rough. We usually don't get rain around here much so I would bet most of the time it wouldn't be bad, but we have had some pretty good rain storms lately and the road was flooded in a couple of spots.

Try this map, you have to zoom in to see it but it does show Southern BVLD.

http://www.mapquest.com/maps?city=Rio+Rancho&state=NM

I hope this helps,
Nick

See the yellow placemark on the map does that look like the area?

Here is a closeup

Yes that is it. Can you get a better close up pic a little farther to the west(left)? It is an awesome place to ride.

I will do one better you know how to use Google Earth? download the attached file and open it in Google Earth I traced out some of the major trials I could see, I will upload to my GPS so when I am out that way riding I have a reference where I been where I can go.

Found a wash looks like you can ride all the way to RT40 and beyond?

Whats the limitations out their is that state lands, BLM private? I think I see a few houses their too, some of the straighter trails I traced are probably roads, dirt or gravel again just for a reference if you zoom in their are plenty of small trails to ride.

Can you camp out their?

Good evening guys, first off I had a great ride as well Nick and hope we can do it again soon.

Hoser, if you come down this way I would love to take you down in there it has everything.
You can only ride in a certain area, it is mostly Indian reservation on both sides. The area that you can ride in is very large though and has everything you can think of, I like the dry river beds and hills the best I guarantee you will not be board.

I am not sure about camping out there but can find out if you would like.

Anyone coming this way that wants to ride give me a holler, open invitation to all.

When me and Nick went riding yesterday it had rained a lot the night before, the first road we took had some very large wash outs that we basically had to jump over I clanked the roll bar with my helmet on the last one. It was one of those do or die situations ( I was saying to myself OH SH?? ), we got down in there on a river bed that was awesome there were a few spots where the water had washed out the sand and made little cliff drop offs, those were very much fun I was goosing the throttle and just pulling a wheelie off of them. It started to rain so we had to go back to the trucks and wait it out.
After the rain stopped we did some high speeds on a dirt road up top, it is the first time I fully opened up the Odyssey man does that thing run great. One thing that I am a little worried about is, I put a 185 main jet in figuring that I would be fat but the thing ran great through all throttle positions. I think maybe the rain played a factor, I wanted to be fat first and work my way down just to be safe until I get the gauges hooked up.

Anyway, after we ran up top we went back down in the puerco. We found a great river bed, we were flying down through it and came around a turn and hit this mud bog and I mean mud bog I tried to turn out of it but the wheel did nothing the mud had me sucked in, I stayed on the throttle and thank goodness that machine pulled right through it. We went at least 70 foot or so before we came out of it, after we got out of the mud we both stopped and got out and walked over to look at what we went through, Oh my gosh it was bad I still can not believe we made it through. If we had gotten stuck we would have been in trouble.

We back tracked a little and went over to the hill where my wife had crashed two years earlier, I went up to the top of the hill and got out. Half way up the hill I saw Nick in my mirror and thought he was right there with me, I get out take my helmet off and hear his motor (( Internal Combustion Engine ? )) and then a crash type noise I look over the edge of the hill and there is Nick at the bottom in almost the same spot my wife had crashed on his side. I ran down the hill and thank goodness Nick was fine.

Crash and mud set aside it was a great day, thanks for going Nick.

Hoser, I am not sure about the camping either, this was the first time I have been out there since I sold my old KX250 about 12 or 13 years ago. I can try and ask the local Honda shop to see if they know????


Steve, thank you again for taking me back out there, you really made it fun for me trying to keep up you on the trails and words can't describe how nice your sons FL350 is. I was, and am still in aah of nice that thing turned out and it runs as good as it looks. Funny thing is, I really thought I had a fast 350 until I tried to keep up with yours on the roads up top, can you say reality check. LOL...


On a side note, six bucks worth of quarters at the car wash and you can't even tell we ever hit any mud. When I got home my tire took air right away and doesn't appear to be leaking. I was a little worried I had maybe ruined the sidewall of the tire riding it all that way out of there flat. I even pop riveted my broken fender back together until I can find a reasonably priced replacement.



Steve, Thanks again for an awesome day of riding.

Yeah ask around if you can about the camping if you will, it would be nice if I can just get off 40 drive to their or that area park, ride, camp then go right back to 40 to continue my trip, not a bog deal I guess if I cant I can just go find a rest area or truck stop, staying their would probably save about 20 bux in gas running around

What about that ride area on the south side of 40 as you leave Albuquerque heading west their are all kinds of trails you can see from RT40 and might even be some sand, anybody rode their before? I bet turbotexas has seen it before too, I have pics some place...

There is a Flying J truckstop on 40 near those trailes you are refering to Hoser... The trails I have seen are on the south side of the interstate maybe a mile or two west of the J I have never been laidover in Alb. always passing thru and usually heade to Farmington up the 550! I see now I can get to the 550 by way of rio rancho so I might have to drag the toy with me next time out!!!

I usually stop at that flying J to gas up and eat then end up running 30 MPH WOT (Wide Open Throttle) trying to get up that mountain when I get back on 40 heading West lol Last trip the son and I parked in the semi lot and took a nap when I woke up a semi pulled in crooked and over his marker line and had me almost blocked in, I had to pull forward and back up about 15 times to get out the problem was I had my trailer and cant see it well in the mirrors I had to jack knife the trailer so I could make the turn backing out, what a pain I will never do that again next time I will make sure I park where I can just pull out my kid wanted me to wake the guy up and have him move so I could get out lol

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What about that ride area on the south side of 40 as you leave Albuquerque heading west their are all kinds of trails you can see from RT40 and might even be some sand, anybody rode their before? I bet turbotexas has seen it before too, I have pics some place...[/quote]


I think they call that area "9 mile hill" . I have heard of people riding out there years ago, but I have never been there personally.

Hello Turbo, I know the spot you are talking about it is OK but nothing compared to the area north.
We have a few spots to go ride but the puerco is by far the best around here.
Most of the area south of the freeway is off limits, I think the trails you guys are seeing are service roads for PNM our gas and electric company.