How to Ride the Dragon SAFELY!!!

[Yellow Jacket]

I got this off Killboy's site:

Tips on Riding Deal's Gap

Submitted by anonymous reader



Stay in your lane - There are so many benefits here I shouldn't even have to justify it. If everyone stays in their lane, we get 22 miles of great riding instead of 11 miles dodging oncoming traffic. Riders who cut lanes, particularly in one of the many spots they don't realize is dangerous, often end up going into a curve too fast or with a bad line...it all goes downhill from there. Flow with the road, it's a nice curvy road, why try to straighten it? If you find yourself repeatedly too close to the yellow and can't seem to stop it, try making a few passes riding as close to the white line as you can. This will make you more comfortable with being in the right half of your lane.

Check your ego - I'd guess about 90% of the accidents are a result of trying to "keep up" or "stay in front" of other, faster riders. You do know you are not the fastest rider don't you? (no it's not me ;)

Check things out on your first run - Road conditions are pretty consistent at the Gap, due to the lack of in-roads, but your first pass should be at a moderate pace to see how things look. If there is some debris in the road, feel free to pull over and clean it up. You will be a hero for life in someone's eyes, and you won't have to worry about tracking that bad spot.

Lay off the rear brakes - (on the road) Nearly every black skidmark you see is the result of rear brake slides. Sportbikes in particular can stop so well on the front brakes they will easily raise the rear tire off the road. When this happens, if you so much as touch the rear brake lever the rear tire stops spinning and you lose a majority of your rotational stability. It's a bad habit that is complicated by panic. Save the rear brakes for off-roading. (gravel pull offs, etc)

Lay off the front brakes - (off the road) So many riders have dumped their bike right in front of me while pulling off the road to talk, that I always point my camera at anyone who appears to be pulling off in case they grab a handful of front brake and dump it. Slow down as much as you can before pulling off, and switch to dirtbike mode when you hit the gravel.

Lay off the shifting - I run most of the Gap in 2 gears, shifting very rarely. Try sticking to one gear until you are very comfortable and just concentrate on being smooth.

Fast sections do not last - Many of the problem corners where everyone seems to pile up, are sharp turns at the end of a fast section. Until you have things memorized, and let's be realistic, that's a LOT of memorizing, take it easy on the fast stuff. One more reason to stick with one gear.

Group Cruising - Spread out. If you are cruising through and you know others will be coming up behind your group, make it easier on them to work their way through by giving them space between bikes. It's nearly impossible to pass a tight group of 4 or more bikes safely, but some riders will try to force a pass on that whole group and it causes accidents, which brings out the cops and ruins things for everyone. You are all going to the same place - there are no roads to turn off onto. You won't get lost if you back off a few feet, I promise.

Watch for signals - If you see someone motioning for you to slow down or pull over, do it immediately. Mack truck bumpers are not very forgiving to motorcycles or squishy humans. =)

Give signals - If you know there is a road hazard behind you, motion for other riders to slow down by pressing down with your open palm. If you want to warn others of a speed trap, pat the top of your helmet. If you see a semi heading into the Gap, try to get in front and warn people. I usually ride very close to the center line, even ON the center line, and motion for people to pull off the road by pointing at their shoulder of the road. Try to stay about 2 turns ahead of the rig...just far enough for a person to slow down, but not so long that they think you were crazy and take back off only to meet the truck around the next bend. Also watch your temperature. Try to use a higher gear and coast as much as you can to keep your bike cool.

Slow down as you near the ends - Speeding up to the crowd at the Overlook or the Store only impresses the types no one is trying to impress. These places are crowded, and dangerous by design. At the Overlook, the parking area on one side of the road is a blind pull out, at the Store you have Hwy 28 joining onto 129, and a parking lot full of bikes and people distracting everyone. Also, the cops like to hang out at the Overlook and clock people as they come speeding around the last bend. The road opens up and it's very inviting to speed. Familiarize yourself with the indicators before each end. Generally we ease off after crossing the state line into NC heading toward the Store, and the last sharp left heading toward the Overlook. There is a yellow/black Curvy Road sign just before the Overlook...the only one between the state line and the Overlook. One other benefit of taking it easy near the end is that it allows your brakes to cool a little. Hammering the brakes right up to the last 10 feet, then parking your bike can very well cause brake rotor warping. The calipers are super hot, and they sit on one spot of the rotor, keeping that spot very hot while the rest of the rotor cools. This difference in heat is what causes warping. Needless to say, stoppies for the crowd just before you park are hell on your rotors.

Source for the above: http://killboy.com/riding-tips.html

I would like to add a few things.

1. Remember, it is illegal to pass another vehicle anywhere on the Dragon. The entire length is marked with a double yellow center line.

With that said, it still is common practice for slower bikes (cruisers?) to allow faster bikes (sport bikes?) to pass. If you are holding up several bikes (or cars) behind you there are a couple of things you can do.

Watch for the pullovers. They are all paved now and much easier to pull onto. If you are holding up any vehicles use the pullovers to let them get bye.

You also can pull over to the white line and wave them to pass you. If you do this, try to pick a place where you can see a ways down the road.

Warning! Even if a vehicle pulls over to the side and waves you around you still can get a ticket for an illegal pass unless the other vehicle is completely off the roadway. The only place this can be done is at the pullovers.

2. Don't ride over your head! This road is full of tight corners with elevation changes and decreasing radius turns. There may be gravel kicked out on the road by cars or trucks (including 53' 18 wheelers!) which cut the corners.

3. If at all possible, plan your ride for a weekday. The traffic will be a little lighter then. Weekends can be chaos! Actually, the weekdays are fast approaching the traffic levels on the weekends.

4. Be aware that tractor trailers still come through the Dragon! They will take up both lanes and both shoulders at the same time.

5. Always, always, always. . .leave something in reserve. If you're riding right at the edge of your limits anything unexpected will put you over your limit.

[phenrichs]

Thank you very much for that. the dragon has always been on my bucket list. I know for many bikers Sturgis is their #1 must do but for me it is the dragon. Just to ride in that scenery and get to that overlook. I missed the needles in Custer and Iron Mountain Road. I have already told my wife that if the next national is at deal's I am going no matter what.

[dabull]

nice Bob;)

[ringadingh]

That was some good advice , I hope the right people see it.

[AlabamaNomadRider]

Thanks Bob, very good advice. You know the right people will not even bother reading it. They are way too good to read something like this.

[waterman]

Good reminder Bob. Just good old fashioned common sense for the most part.

[tinskeep]

Common sense (which is not as common as one would like to think anymore) and obeying the speed limit will get you thru it over and over...

[gsanborn]

Thanks for the information, plan on making this ride next spring.

[macmac]

Wise thread. I rode the Dragon 3 times in less than a week and each time saw crashes both ways. I just took my time, let other pass as best i could, sometimes waving them by if they were up my pipes.

Going into it i didn't want to be another stat with parts on the tree..

[glwilson]

Well Bob... you just talked me out of ever riding the dragon.

Sounds like far too many idiots are on that road for me to ride -- given all the videos, posts, and comments made about how many crashes; injuries and death that occurs.

It almost seems like there should be a required educational class to attend for anyone wanting to ride it.

Anyway... it's not on my list anymore.

[Cajunrider]

Thanks for posting this good advise Bob. I bookmarked this thread and will read it again before my future trip to the Dragon.

[trip]

Actually glwilson, the Dragon, for the most part, is pretty safe to ride. And can be a fun experience.

The above post of advice off the Killboy site is very good and timely. It looks like the next KawaNOW National Rally will be held at the Dragon.

[glwilson]

Originally Posted by Trip

Actually glwilson, the Dragon, for the most part, is pretty safe to ride. And can be a fun experience.

The above post of advice off the Killboy site is very good and timely. It looks like the next KawaNOW National Rally will be held at the Dragon.

Oh... guess then the "Dragon" is back ON my list!!

[tinskeep]

Also, the last time I was on the dragon there were thirteen Tennessee State Troopers working the Tennessee side, which they do quite often. There will always be a bad apple or two in the barrel and they usually pay for it one way or the other. If you can get a small group together it works to your benefit and keeps the reckless ones back from you or at least gives a buffer zone..

[rayski271]

hey greg my son and i did a trip to the dragon at the end of july we hit on a friday right after the rain stopped took are time going thru cause it was wet then hit the skyway tuirned around a did it the opposite way it was a great day of riding no crowd first time thru a whole lot of people second time thru and i agree with the statement about riding within your limits you will be fine it was a floorboard scapeing good time