Tips for first time 'tail of the dragon' rider | Page 2 | GTAMotorcycle.com

Tips for first time 'tail of the dragon' rider

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Weekday morning is the key .Ride at 7/10 of your ability .Remember it`s long way home with a damaged bike .

Go to the track to find your limits .This road is not the place .

http://www.cherohala.org/ Try this road if your in the area it`s fantastic .
 
Hardwrkr13 said:
Canada Road - it's as fun as the Dragon and you'll be the only people on it. Highly recommended.
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That's NC281 and has to be one of my absolute favourite roads I've ever been on. So many elevation changes and fast, tight turns, yet so few cars and bikes on it. I never understood why it was so quiet.
 
shanekingsley said:
That's NC281 and has to be one of my absolute favourite roads I've ever been on. So many elevation changes and fast, tight turns, yet so few cars and bikes on it. I never understood why it was so quiet.
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Damn I wish I knew that one .. Guess I'll have to go back this summer ... ;)
 
Thanks for the suggestions, always good to try some new routes. We'll be heading down in July again

shanekingsley said:
Good Roads:
Cherohala Skyway, Foothills Parkway, Little River Gorge Road, Moonshiner #28, NC#215, NC#281, NC#276, NC226A, NC80, Blue Ridge Parkway, Wayah Rd, Ellijay Rd/Tilley Creek Rd, TN#32, GA#60 & #180, GA #68 and more...
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Don't forget to buy stickers :)
BRP can be in clouds. We had to bail off it as visibility was zero so consider alternative route.
 
When riding the Dragon, PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO "SLO(W)" SPRAYPAINT ON ROAD. Locals have painted this on turns that are decreasing radius - basically, don't go balls out into these turns, as they tighten dramatically.

My favourite is the the Cherohala Skyway - nothing but big long sweeping turns that really flow smoothly. The Moonshiner 28 is really cool, and has AMAZING scenery along the way, front waterfalls to riversides and cliffs (shear rock face on your left, wooden guard rail to a 300 foot drop on the other side).
 
What do you guys recommend for hotels, my buddy and i dont have Anything booked yet, we just decided on going couple weeks ago, the deals gap motorcycle resort was already booked, we dont mind staying 30-40 km away from the TOTD
 
Only place I have experience with is Fontana Village Resort, it's reasonably nice. You can enjoy the head-scratching combo bar and gas station at the entrance, for example. If you're putting a larger group together you can rent cabins from them as well
 
shanekingsley said:
That's NC281 and has to be one of my absolute favourite roads I've ever been on. So many elevation changes and fast, tight turns, yet so few cars and bikes on it. I never understood why it was so quiet.
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Same here. Only reason we found it was because our hotel owners recommended it as their favourite. Tight corners at the top of a quick elevation change really make this road amazing (beauty photo ops from the other side of the hill if that's your thing as well). For others: if you ride it the first mile is really rough so don't turn around.
 
Fontana is a decent place to stay. The ride on 28 is a nice "warm up" for riding deals gap. If you go this route there is one corner marked at 10mph that is decreasing radius. It can suck you in until you recognize it.


TwistedKestrel said:
Only place I have experience with is Fontana Village Resort, it's reasonably nice. You can enjoy the head-scratching combo bar and gas station at the entrance, for example. If you're putting a larger group together you can rent cabins from them as well
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I love that 10mph corner.

Ride carefully, watch for police on long straights, don't ride the Dragon on the weekend or if you do, ride slowly, and have fun.

A lot of the rest that people talk about, you can't change, so why try.

PS: Tapoco Lodge is a great place to have a drink and chill out on the back patio overlooking the 129 and the stream there. The pizza there is only OK but the place is great. It's right by the bridge that you must cross to hit the first real corner of the NC end of the Dragon.
 
If one were to plan on riding there, tootling around for a couple days and riding back, how long would be appropriate? I can do 800km a day and not hate life too too much. 5 days?
 
macro said:
I can do 800km a day and not hate life too too much. 5 days?
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You need to do more in one day to get the most out of a 5 day trip. It's 1300km or so to get to the top of the dragon. You're plan would take 1.5 days to get there, 1.5 to get back. Leaves 2 days of riding. Half day when you get there, half day before you leave, and 1 full day in the middle.
We usually do 8 day trips to get the best out of it. Trailer down in 1 day, ride for 6, trailer 1 day back.

As for accommodations, there are quite a few private cabins or full out houses you can rent for relatively cheap.

The Fontana is OK at best. Stayed there twice. First time in a cabin that was OK, second time the cabin was a disaster - not clean, almost no silverware or plates, mattresses were beyond worn out. Rented a private house (massive, with pool table, air hockey table, hot tub, 2 decks, 2 BBQ's, etc etc etc) the third time down. Going in July this year, and rented the same place again. Do a google search on "cabin rental fontana dam" or "cabin rental robinsville"
 
I wouldn't even entertain going there unless I had at least a week if not more. If you were to ride there you're talking two days comfortably and two days home. What's the point if that only leaves you a day or two?
 
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