ROADTRIP: Scooters in the Ozarks // Day 1

This is day 0 and 1 of our Ozarks ride on the scooters. Adrian and I rode my 2015 and 2016 Honda PCX150's, and Art rode his Suzuki Burgman 200. We rode from Houston to Marshall, TX on Thursday for our meet-up with other riders. Then we continued the ride to Talihina, OK, on Friday with Neil on his Yamaha Zuma 125. This is a long video, so skip to the end of this description for clickable time indexes.

I compressed and cut over 15 hours of video down to about 78 minutes, but I tried not to cut out too much of the scenic riding. 😉👍

Episode Links:
Days 0-1:    • ROADTRIP: Scooters in the Ozarks // Day 1  
Day 2:    • ROADTRIP: Scooters in the Ozarks // Day 2  
Day 3:    • ROADTRIP: Scooters in the Ozarks // Zuma 1...   (Zuma 125 Oil Change in the Woods)
Day 3:    • ROADTRIP: Scooters in the Ozarks // Day 3  
Day 4:    • ROADTRIP: Scooters in the Ozarks // Day 4  
Days 5-6:    • ROADTRIP: Scooters in the Ozarks // Days 5...  

Some of the members of the Scooter Cannonball Run forum decided to organize an alternate ride because the official event for 2020 was canceled due to COVID-19. So, we headed out on our scooters to the ride the Ozarks in Arkansas! We planned for about 6-8 riders and a 5-6 day trip, but several members had to drop out due to work issues or health concerns.

We about 270 miles from Houston, TX to Marshall, TX on Thursday afternoon (Day 0) so we would be ready for the meet-up on Friday morning. A couple of the riders that dropped out of the event came to the meet-up to give us a send-off... that was nice! We chatted for a little while and then started on our journey from Marshall, TX to Talihina, OK around 10:00am. Our ride up to Talihina on Day #1 covered about 240 miles over 7 hours. We rode at a leisurely pace and averaged about 50 MPH. We also took frequent breaks to refuel the bikes, to stretch our legs, and to take pictures... no rush, just having fun! 👍

We finally arrived at the Winding Stair Campground around 8:15pm, but the campsite was CLOSED! So, we did what any self-respecting motorcyclists would do... we stealth camped! 🤣 There were several other riders already in the campground doing the same thing! The weather held off just long enough for us to set up camp and relax for about an hour, but then the nasty weather found us around 10:00pm. We were right in the path of a storm cell that spawned some small tornadoes, but we were spared any destruction... we only suffered high winds and heavy rains for a couple of hours.

Time indexes:
0:00 Getting started after a 1.5-hour delay
2:09 Finally out of Houston and riding into the Sam Houston National Forest area
3:40 Sticky turn signal switch, not working for right turns
5:08 Resuming Friday morning from the meet-up, overview of the ride plan and today's destination
7:39 Following behind the Zuma 125, maintaining 55-60 MPH on the flats while pulling a trailer!
9:55 Riding on the shoulder, and Neil tries to jump the Zuma! 🤣
11:45 Crossing the Red River bridge into Oklahoma
13:36 Welcome to rural Oklahoma... just one big string of potholes!
16:39 Resuming the ride, leaving Beaver's Bend area
22:20 Dodging HUGE day-ending potholes, and the PCX is averaging 120.3 MPG!
24:51 The Zuma is struggling to climb some of the hills, dropping to 37 MPH uphill
29:22 Stopping in the middle of Nowhere, Oklahoma on Indian Hwy 144, quick tour of the bikes
33:45 Starting the ascent into the Kiamichi Mountains toward Talihina, Oklahoma
40:45 Adrian is riding like a champ for being a newbie! 👏 Dodging more 4-5" deep potholes, YIKES!
41:25 GoPro depth perception, GPS gauge overlays, and annoying software
45:42 Stopping in Talihina for fuel and provisions
47:05 Beginning the Talimena Drive (OK-1) into Arkansas
50:48 Stopping at Potato Hill Vista to take pictures and stretch our legs
1:12:15 Stopping at Cedar Lake Vista for more pictures
1:15:08 The Winding Stair Campground is CLOSED, so it's time for stealth camping!
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QM
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#motocamping #ridetheozarks #pcx150
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