Event:	DVD Pre Run ride for 2008 DVD days
Date:	November 16-18, 2007
Location:	Death Valley, California
GPS Coordinates:	N36 54.478 W116 45.584

Overview:
This was a great three days of riding. I meet a bunch of fellow riders from the BMW Sport Touring site at Beatty Nevada to pre-ride the area for January's MLK Weekend Ride this January 18-21, 2008. Among another excuse to ride our goal was to check routes, find good places to eat, check fuel stops and overall try to ensure the riders (and non riders) in 2008 have a good weekend.  More information can be found in this posting on the BMW Sport Touring site. Ironically I will not be able to make the 2008 DVD ride due to work scheduling.

Friday: Ride to Death Valley:
I left home Friday at 10:00pm for the 443 mile ride there. I was  lucky that highway 89 over the passes was open. The ride down was an easy with little traffic once I got out of Sacramento. The ride from Hwy50 to Hwy 395 over the passes was without traffic. I only seen a few cars while riding over the pass. The weather was clear and cool (~65 degrees). The map on the right shows my route to Beatty Nevada.The best part of the ride was on highway 168 and 266 from highway 395 west to highway 95.


Saturday: Route Recommendation for DVD Days in 20088
I decided to check out the southern part of the park towards Badwater and Shoshone (where highway 127 and 178 meet). The route (loop) was 241 miles and took me through Pahrump, Nevada for lunch.  The roads overall were exceptional. Highway 178 leaving Badwater heading south has been almost completely repaved (in some places the lines were not painted yet).

In Pahrump I ate lunch at a fabulous Mom-&-Pop café called Patio Café (N36 13.179 W116 01.584). The menu was complete, servings large, service great and prices very reasonable. There is either inside or outside dinning. Since Pahrump to Las Vegas is only 66 miles, eating lunch in Las Vegas is another option if one would like a little longer ride – still an easy day ride. This might be a good choice for two-up riders.

After lunch I returned to California via Bell Vista road (cross of highway 160 - Nevada) that turns into Ash Meadows and then State Line road (on the California side). This 26 mile road was empty of traffic, recently repaved and had slow sweeping curves. The perfect road after eating to much for lunch.With a small route (241 miles), gas stops were not needed, however, I did pass many gas stations once out of the park. In Pahrump gas was $3.31 for premium.  Note: My route can be downloaded below for those who use Garmin MapSource.

Saturday Night:
No pre-ride would be complete without checking out the local eating and drinking establishments in the area. Directly across the street from the Motel is the Sourdough Saloon. While the menu is limited to pizza, the atmosphere was good and our group was able to occupy the entire back room. The Motel (Exchange Club - 775-553-2333) worked out well. We parked our bikes right outside our rooms and the parking lot is shaped in an “L” fashion allowing the group to stay together. Hats off to Pat (manager) for supporting our group.

Friday Ride to Death Valley

Click to download all pictures in a single WinZip file.  (~4.2MB)

Saturday
Sunday ride home