My First Solo Dirt Ride- Video

 

Back In The Saddle

As I mentioned in a previous post, I haven't ridden off-road in 30 or so years. When I decided to get a dirtbike again, I opted to take the economical route, and get a good used bike to keep my investment at a minimum... just in case I decided to abandon the idea. What I ended up with, was a great bike for a great price... but she's a big 'un. A 37 year old XR600R that was set up for extended desert rides, not single track trail riding. 

After word got out that I had bought an off-road machine, I was invited to ride with some guys that I used to work with, before I retired from my paying job. Now, keep in mind that my bike is older than each one of these guys, and I haven't been on a dirtbike since before most of them were born! Regardless, these guys are awesome and I couldn't wait to get on the trails with them. 

My First Ride

My first ride with them was on the local trails in the National Forest... and I had a blast. I was slow, fell over a lot and was absolutely not in the proper gear, at all. I had good off-road boots, a good off-road helmet and goggles, but that was it. The guys were great, though- they were very patient with my slow, cumbersome riding, and they even said I did pretty good for my first time out. I appreciated it, even if they were lying to me! The takeaway, though, is that I was hooked! I couldn't wait to get back out and ride again. There was just one problem though- I am retired, but they aren't, and riding single track trails in the National Forest alone isn't the smartest thing to do, especially for a novice rider like your old pal, The MotoWriter.

Smart Or Not, I Needed To Ride

After talking to the guys and getting their gear recommendations, I went home, got on Rocky Mountain ATV & Motorcycle's website, and ordered some more gear. After it arrived, I donned my new gear and loaded the old XR into the truck. When I got to the parking area, it looked like I had the place to myself, which was good... but a bit unnerving. Thoughts of "what if.." circled my head, but the need to ride the trails was too strong, so I kicked that 600cc beast over, and set out into the woods alone. 

I took it easy... really easy, after all, riding off-road by yourself is dangerous- if you break down, or worse- crash, there's nobody there to help you. I didn't get crazy, kept myself within my own comfort level and made sure that I had my OnX Off Road App pulled up on my phone. I also brought the GoPro to document my ride so I could critique it later... and so I could share my adventure with my friends and loyal MotoReaders, once I got back home.

Now Playing... The Slow Guy Trail Ride

I'm not a racer and never claimed to be. The following video isn't exciting, and in true MotoWriter MotoVlog fashion- it's probably way too long. But, I had fun editing it and, as long as you can get through the first four and a half minutes, you can see a much better view of the trails I was riding. 

The takeaway is that I didn't crash, didn't break down and didn't get mugged by marauders or killed by a serial killer. I made it back to the truck, safe and sound, and had a great time. If you want to ride along with me on my first solo ride through the DeSoto National Forest, on The MotoWriter dirty bike, you can watch me slow crawl along the trails here:

https://youtu.be/QEEgezJiB-A?si=ohzs9NJax3LZl8pB

I made this video several weeks ago, and have since been out on the trails a couple more times. The last time with the guys, however, I ran into some trouble... literally. Check back for that one, coming soon!

Until then, MotoReaders...

Ride safe, and get dirty!

Old Skool Cool

2026 Indian Chief Vintage

A bold and badass move by the company formerly owned by Polaris, or a makeshift attempt at a new bike by scrounging through the parts bin? To each their own, but in my humble opinion, the new 2026 Chief Vintage is a win. In a cultural climate that has been focusing on "do all" types of bikes and reducing the equipment offerings by platform (I'm looking at you Harley-Davidson for killing off the Electra Glides and Road Kings... among many others), the guys over at Indian doubled down and said, 'let's take one of our most popular models and make it a true vintage-inspired time machine'. Personally, I think they hit the "old skool cool" mark beautifully. 

What they did

What they did, essentially, was take a current model that has been in production for 12 years- one that has amassed an almost cult-like following, and stripped it down to the basics of what made it so desirable in its original heyday of the 1940's. But obviously, large motorcycle manufacturers can't go back to 1940's tech, and the mass buyers don't want that, so it is a modern iteration of the classic. Ok, I'll be honest enough to say that the biggest changes are wire spoke wheels, a solo seat and some trimmed down bodywork from the 2014 and up Chief Vintage models. This new Vintage is basically just a hybrid of the first generation Vintages, the later model Chiefs and some Scouts. BUT IT WORKS. 

Lookit, Indian just took a page out of Harley-Davidson's playbook, here. Back in the 1970's when the MoCo was in desperate need of some new machines, Willie G. went to the parts bin and started building some new bikes out of what they already had. Mix in two parts big twin, with one part Sportster model and.. "bam!" you've got yourself a new bike! H-D learned that sometimes, a bike can be worth more in the sum of its parts, so they started building on that idea. Make the fairing permanent on the Electra Glide... then put the windshield back on and call it a "Highway King", then later... a "Road King" as a new model. Put a variety of different parts on the Dyna, Sportster and Softail frames, and you have three new families of motorcycles! It made for great business, and they sold a bunch of motorcycles and were able to offer a motorcycle for just about anyone looking to get on two wheels, or upgrade their current scooter. The problem was, that having different factories, machines and tooling for all those different models, became too expensive for the MoCo to maintain when sales started to decline. But, this post isn't about that... this post is about this "new" bike from Indian... so let's talk about what you get for the $19,999 price tag.

What you see, is what you get

Basically, this is the bike. What makes it so cool looking- the solo saddle- goes away if you start adding passenger pillions or other two-up features. The tech is the same as previous model Chiefs and the engine, aside from a super cool retro two-tone paint and finish, is the same mill that Indian has been counting their money from. The other feature that adds to its retro styling is the spoke wheels and, well, spokes are spokes... so there really isn't anything to talk about. But, it's the overall package that makes this bike so cool. It's the retro-inspired machine that has modern day technology like ABS brakes, three different ride modes and fuel injection. Sure, you can add saddlebags, a two-up seat, windshield and a laundry list of other features to this bike to make it more like it's Polaris predecessors, but why would you want to? At $20k, it's not the cheapest Chief you can get (that can be had for $15k), but it's definitely one of the coolest. 

Final Thoughts

Personally, I'm still a die-hard Road King guy, but if there has been any bike that has gotten my attention in this most recent iteration of Indian Motorcycles, this is it. I love that while other companies are consolidating models, Indian took a bold move to expand on one. Not to mention the fact that it is a damn good looking motorcycle. For the kind of riding I do, it wouldn't work for me, but for the guy or gal that wants to go for a ride after work, or meet up with some buddies on the weekend for lunch, then this bike is a top-notch head turner and one that will, inevitably, elicit the question of how old it is.

Till next time MotoReaders...

Ride safe and make cool choices!

*All images in this post are property of Indian Motorcycles