Ssr Ride From Bangkok To Chiang Mai Bike Week, December 4th

[BigBikeBKK]

We're leaving EARLY! 0600 departure to Chiang Mai from the Caltex Asoke on Friday December 4th!

We'll take the more pleasant route via Highway 11 through Pitsanulok which adds only 20km to the total distance and the road is in much better condition than the main highway, a lot less trucks and has some beautiful scenery and some nice twisties as well. Map:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source....753418&z=6

The ride from Pitsanulok is really quite spectacular:

Another view of nirvana:

Riders and Bikes:

Frank Yamaha R1

Travelmate- Triumph Tiger

Bakerboy- Honda VFR 800

Dr. G- Ducati

NakedAir- Yamaha FZ6 or Kawasaki Ninja ZX10R?

Ithailian- Ninja 650R

BigBikeBKK- Kawasaki Ninja 650R

Dunder- Kawasaki Ninja ZX10R

Chiang Mai Bike Week is on December 5th and 6th: http://www.chiangmaibikeweek.com/

Anyone else going from Bangkok?

Some possible day trips while we're there-

Ban Pong Loop is an easy half day ride- perhaps we could do this one on Saturday since some might be tired from the previous day's ride

Blasting up to the top of Doi Inthanon is always a guaranteed good time. Continue down to Mae Chaem, then on to Khun Yuam, Mae Hong Song and all the way back to Chiang Mai via Pai- this would be a FULL day ride and not for the weak of heart

The distance is not so great but average speed on many of these twisty mountain roads is low so it will be a FULL day ride! Figure we could do lunch in Mae Hong Song, coffee and whatever in Pai. To do this route in a day requires a brisk pace and minimal stops. It's also an excellent 2 day trip and you can actually slow down and enjoy some of the stunning views along the way.

Google Map: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source....469177&z=9

Plenty of other options as well! Doi Ang Kang, Phrao, etc etc. Who else has some ideas?

Can't wait!

Tony

[bazmlb]

Will be good to see you up here for it, already got the tractor rented for the weekend

[ScubaBuddha]

Have fun!

[ajahnlau]

Why not stop in Phits for the bike party Dec. 4th?

[LivinLOS]

Looks like a great trip up.. Have fun and stay safe lads.. Was trying to get up to CM before christmas but highly unlikely now, looking at Feb-ish probably before I have a few weeks free.

That second loop would be a full day by my reckoning, up and out early doors without too much messing.. The Inthanon to Mea Chaem rd is something that would be great on on a small and light chuckable tool... I thought I was going to do that loop in a day but turned back at the sunflower fields as I didnt have the GPS and wasnt sure how much ground I was covering and didnt want to be in the hills after dark with spinner on the back.

[nakedAIR1300]

We cant stop in pits as most of us will rondevue with our wives/gf in CM as they are either flying or driving up to CM...sorry

I will be on the FZ6 as its a more comfortable ride for such a long journey... AND i dont think everyone would appreciate the noise being expelled from the ninja along the highway. Think we would all arrive in CM deaf.

im keep for a blast on the Saturday after arrival, im up for Doi Inthanon... although it will be freezing this time of year at such an altitude!!

so tell me, who's GF is driving up on 4th? Will we have a car available at the departure point? I need to get an additional helmet transported to CM if possible.

At this chilly time of year i think full leathers will actually be comfortable for this ride...cant wait

cheers for the threat Tony, looking more than forward to this ride.

[Travelmate]

What the fok!

Bard not going? I have a paid hotel reserved for him and his family.

[BigBikeBKK]

What the fok!

Bard not going? I have a paid hotel reserved for him and his family.

I still haven't heard from Bard- seems his phone is off, perhaps still recovering from the Cambo ride? Hoping he'll join us! It isn't a proper SSR ride without him!

[BigBikeBKK]

Updated list:

Frank- Yamaha R1

Travelmate- Triumph Tiger

Bakerboy- Honda VFR 800

Dr. G- Ducati

NakedAir- Yamaha FZ6

Ithailian- Kawasaki Ninja 650R

BigBikeBKK- Kawasaki Ninja 650R

Dunder- Kawasaki Ninja ZX10R

Spud1- Yamaha R1

Woohoo! Can't wait!

[justcruisin]

Hi SsR Guys,

Went on the run to Mae Song Son loop last week,15 riders for a tribute to a Simon (slinthai) and Tropical John(TJ).

Road conditions are great and an excellent ride.Ended up with 20 riders in MHS for the night.

KM just under 550,maybe a longish ride for one day..whatever have a good ride and hope to see you at the Sirinart hotel saturday.

Cheers Rich

[nikster]

Traffic warning on the CM-Pai part of the MHS loop. Tons and tons of tour buses etc might make this part a little less pleasant than it would otherwise be. The rest of the loop is great. But a pretty tall order for 1 day...

[BigBikeBKK]

Traffic warning on the CM-Pai part of the MHS loop. Tons and tons of tour buses etc might make this part a little less pleasant than it would otherwise be. The rest of the loop is great. But a pretty tall order for 1 day...

Ah yes, thanks for the heads up, I forgot about the mad traffic this time of year... Will talk to the rest of the group and see what they think. Plenty of other options! Thanks again for the advice! Happy Trails! Tony

[BigBikeBKK]

Hi SsR Guys,

Went on the run to Mae Song Son loop last week,15 riders for a tribute to a Simon (slinthai) and Tropical John(TJ).

Road conditions are great and an excellent ride.Ended up with 20 riders in MHS for the night.

KM just under 550,maybe a longish ride for one day..whatever have a good ride and hope to see you at the Sirinart hotel saturday.

Cheers Rich

Cheers Rich,

Look forward to seeing you at the Chiang Mai Bike Week! We've got one room at the Sirinart Hotel and the rest next door at the Chateau Chiang Mai. Ride On! Tony

[Jpoplover]

I'd love to go on any of these rides, but alas i'll be in Singapore that week playing on my baby zzr400, so prolly a tad small

Best of guys, and watch out for those damned "improvised road repairs", aka pot holes

[katabeachbum]

Too bad its same time as Hua Hin bike week. cant go to both

[BigBikeBKK]

Too bad its same time as Hua Hin bike week. cant go to both

Hua Hin vs Chiang Mai? Easy decision! While the Hua Hin Bike Week sounds like a fun event, CM is blessed with some of the very best roads in all of SE Asia- Nothing like this around Hua Hin-

Ride On!

Tony

[BigBikeBKK]

Updated list:

Frank- Yamaha R1

Travelmate- Triumph Tiger

Bakerboy- Honda VFR 800

Dr. G- Ducati

NakedAir- Yamaha FZ6

Ithailian- Kawasaki Ninja 650R

BigBikeBKK- Kawasaki Ninja 650R

Dunder- Kawasaki Ninja ZX10R

Spud1- Yamaha R1

Hawkhill- Ducati

Bard got called away for work again and can't join us this time.

Only 3 more sleeps!

Edited December 1, 2009 by BigBikeBKK

[katabeachbum]

Too bad its same time as Hua Hin bike week. cant go to both

Hua Hin vs Chiang Mai? Easy decision! While the Hua Hin Bike Week sounds like a fun event, CM is blessed with some of the very best roads in all of SE Asia- Nothing like this around Hua Hin-

Ride On!

Tony

agree, but cant make it further than Hua Hin this weekend. actually left my bike there last week. been a loooong week without Ninja kicks.

Trying to find some Chiang Mai time end of january, actually trying to find some time to travel all over LOS end january february with pickup and bike.

[Pikey]

Tony et all,

MHS loop in a day? Doable - certainly. Enjoyable - probably not! I was on the TJ/Siinthai tribute ride with Rich and the other guys last week and whilst we had a few stops, including about an hour at Doi Inthanon and then the same for lunch in Mae Chaem, it was a fullish day with a 9:30 off from CNX and arriving in MHS at 16:30 and the pace whilst not frantic, was brisk. Also the roads were a bit slippery in places too (it was dry) which obviously affects your overall speed. Sure you could start at the crack of dawn and be back in CNX for nightfall but IMO, best to spread it over 2 days and get on the piss in MHS or Pai for a night.

Hope to see some of you here.

Cheers,

Pikey.

[BigBikeBKK]

Tony et all,

MHS loop in a day? Doable - certainly. Enjoyable - probably not! I was on the TJ/Siinthai tribute ride with Rich and the other guys last week and whilst we had a few stops, including about an hour at Doi Inthanon and then the same for lunch in Mae Chaem, it was a fullish day with a 9:30 off from CNX and arriving in MHS at 16:30 and the pace whilst not frantic, was brisk. Also the roads were a bit slippery in places too (it was dry) which obviously affects your overall speed. Sure you could start at the crack of dawn and be back in CNX for nightfall but IMO, best to spread it over 2 days and get on the piss in MHS or Pai for a night.

Hope to see some of you here.

Cheers,

Pikey.

Cheers Pikey,

I agree with you and that's why I said in my previous post, "The distance is not so great but average speed on many of these twisty mountain roads is low so it will be a FULL day ride! Figure we could do lunch in Mae Hong Song, coffee and whatever in Pai. To do this route in a day requires a brisk pace and minimal stops. It's also an excellent 2 day trip and you can actually slow down and enjoy some of the stunning views along the way."

You have the good fortune of living in CM and having all these great roads in your back yard, but some of us who are stuck in the Big Mango try to make the most of the limited time we'll have up north, hence the proclivity of some to try to get in as many miles as possible. Anyway, I'm more inclined to make it a two day trip also. Would be wonderful to relax a bit in Pai and hit the Crossroads Bar in MHS again!

Ride On!

Tony

[dunder]

Rock n Roll!!

[Travelmate]

Reckon half of MHS on second day. As we will all be carrying our "ball & chain" with us. Plus she want to see the long neck.

I even got the "MHS GT Rider" map!

[BigBikeBKK]

Reckon half of MHS on second day. As we will all be carrying our "ball & chain" with us. Plus she want to see the long neck.

I even got the "MHS GT Rider" map!

Coolio! So CM-MHS on Sunday, overnight in MHS and rest of the loop on Monday? Awesome! (Coming back on Monday will also help us avoid the heavy weekend traffic between Pai and CM.)

[Travelmate]

Reckon half of MHS on second day. As we will all be carrying our "ball & chain" with us. Plus she want to see the long neck.

I even got the "MHS GT Rider" map!

Coolio! So CM-MHS on Sunday, overnight in MHS and rest of the loop on Monday? Awesome! (Coming back on Monday will also help us avoid the heavy weekend traffic between Pai and CM.)

No No...

CM-MHS-CM...

Girls still got a night in the hotel in CM on Sunday. Then they all flock away on Monday.

Then Monday morning onwards we do what we like..

[BigBikeBKK]

Reckon half of MHS on second day. As we will all be carrying our "ball & chain" with us. Plus she want to see the long neck.

I even got the "MHS GT Rider" map!

Coolio! So CM-MHS on Sunday, overnight in MHS and rest of the loop on Monday? Awesome! (Coming back on Monday will also help us avoid the heavy weekend traffic between Pai and CM.)

No No...

CM-MHS-CM...

Girls still got a night in the hotel in CM on Sunday. Then they all flock away on Monday.

Then Monday morning onwards we do what we like..

Ah... gotcha... But...

CM-MHS out and back is about the same distance as doing the whole loop...

CM-MHS via Pai is 466km round trip:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source....938354&z=8

Remember there's a lot of traffic and kamikaze tourist vans between CM and Pai on weekends and holidays.

CM-MHS via Mae Chaem and Khun Yuam is 534km round trip:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source...ie=UTF8&z=9

This way is a bit longer but also a lot less traffic...

The whole loop is about 517km (a little less if we skip Doi Inthanon)

So... whaddya think?

The tourist vans and buses between Pai and CM are a real menace- they love passing into blind corners in the wrong lane and don't give a crap about right of way or motorcycles... Best way to avoid them would be to ride CM-Pai early, coffee / breakie in Pai then on to MHS for an early lunch, then on to Khun Yuam, Mae Chaem and back to CM.

Again, this would be a challenging FULL DAY ride and we'd need to leave very early if we want to get back before dark.

I'm not sure the ladies would enjoy this- it's probably more than they've bargained for unless they have buns of steel!

Anyway- I'm riding solo, so whatever you decide it's all good for me.

Ride On!!!

Tony

[nikster]

Guess you guys must have decided by now but IMO CM-MHS loop is too much for 1 day. Main problem CM-Pai is bad visibility and going around turns sand / oncoming trucks on the wrong side of the road.

You can do it probably in 7 - 8 hours going as fast as possible, with 7 probably going somewhat faster than would be safe. Buns of steel indeed. Enjoyment... maybe not so much.

Let me know if you do it - I'll be impressed

[BigBikeBKK]

Awesome!!!

Ride On!

Tony

Edited December 5, 2009 by BigBikeBKK

[Garry]

Glad you guys had a good run up from Bangkok. My buddy owns the 1098S and I was quietly cursing him while he was getting ready to travel to CM as opposed to my getting ready to wing it back to the Middle East. I had just flown down from Chiang Rai and paid him a visit the day before.

MORE PICTURES PLEASE...!!!!!

[BigBikeBKK]

The adventure continues!

Chiang Mai to Chiang Dao on the 107, Chiang Dao to Phrao on the 1150, Phrao to Wang Something??? on the ??? And back to Chiang Mai on the 118!

AWESOME!!!

The Chiang Mai Bike Week seems a snooze again so I think we're heading out tomorrow to Nan via Phrayao and the stunning highway 120!!!

Can't wait!

Ride On and Happy Trails!

Tony

[BigBikeBKK]

Riding West from Den Chai to Lamphun on Highway 11

Happy Trails!