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A beautiful ride across cities and places named World Heritage by the Unesco, through an splendid protected natural area and ending in a surrealistic garden by artist Sir Edward James. Just keep reading…
The ride starts in Queretaro City at 5,970 ft above sea level.

Queretaro is a colonial city founded more than 500 years ago and named World Heritage by the Unesco in 1996 . It’s located in the center of the country two hours North Mexico City. Nowadays it has become one of the most dynamic cities in Mexico due to the surrounding industrial parks where many international companies are located.

The first stop is just 45 minutes away: “La Peña de Bernal” (The “Rock of Bernal”). We are talking about the third biggest rock in the world and the highest in Mexico. At its feet a quaint little town were you can stop for a soda, lunch or spend the night. You can also find nice little souvenirs. Whatever you decide to do, this place is a must.

If you like rock climbing, you are in the right place too!

The road to Bernal doesn’t present any major challenge, most of the road is straight with just a few extended curves… but just after passing Bernal it starts to get fun!

Surrounded by an arid landscape due the high content of lime in the soil, you start with a very interesting section of twisties, one after another, up and down, a technical road between the mountains for about 30 miles. The landscape changes a bit as you advance and a few miles later you are in the middle of a semidesert.

After this twisty section you then continue on a straight part of the road. A few more miles down the route and you find a military checkpoint… Don’t worry about it, they are normally courteous people just looking for arm and drug smugglers.

After the control point the curves and the fun start again. As you get to “Peña Blanca” (”White Rock” in English) - by the way if you need gas, this is the place to stop and fill it up - you start climbing the mountains twist after twist.

I love this part: most of the ride you can clearly see three or four turns in front of you, and as it is a low traffic road, you can enjoy yourself taking the best lines (always keeping it in the safe side if you know what I mean!).

After climbing for a while you notice how things start to change and suddenly what were rocks, sand and cactus are now pine trees. It’s beautiful.. You feel the change of temperature and then you reach “La Puerta del Cielo” (The Door of Heavens”) the highest point in this ride.

We are now at about 9200 feet above sea level… The turns continue but now you are going downhill. Remember to adjust your riding to that fact. Unfortunately I have seen more than one forgetting about it that and paying the consequences.

As you start descending you ride through a small town called Pinal the Amoles… descend, turn turn, descend turn turn, descend turn turn… I love it! About 10 miles after Pinal de Amoles, the weather starts to change again and gets warmer. The vegetation also suffers a sudden transformation.

You keep devouring the road and you cannot help but getting marveled of the landscape around you… Just remember to keep your eyes on the road! Turn, turn… You are in the middle of the Sierra Gorda protected area and home of multiple plants and animals.

You continue descending till you reach Jalpan de Serra the most important town in the Sierra Gorda and place where Father Junipero Serra built one of his most important missions in the area before heading north to build the Missions in California. These missions were also named World Heritage by the Unesco in 2003.

In Jalpan you can find a couple of simple but nice hotels and some restaurants. Another possibility to spend the night is to ride a few more miles west to a place called Conca where you ‘ll find a hotel with Spa to relax from the day’s ride and get ready for the rest of the trip.

After Jalpan our next stop and final destination is Xilitla,
so you head north-east till you reach the state of San Luis Potosi.

A few miles after crossing the state limits in the middle of the mountains, at about 3,300 ft asl, in a rain forest of incredible vegetation you get to Xilitla.

This town was chosen by Sir Edward James, a surrealistic British artist - also noble and rich -, to spend the rest of his life. It is in this place he built a huge garden, a private zoo and a meditation place in the middle of the jungle. Its very difficult to describe it with words… Maybe the photos in this site can help: http://www.junglegossip.com/.

In Xilitla you can stay in the Castillo “The Castle” the house of former Sir Edward James’ right hand and friend: Plutarco Gastelum. This exclusive Bed and Breakfast is unique in its kind and you can see, feel and breath the influence of the artist everywhere.

Another possibility to spend the night is to ride a bit more to the north and stay in Ciudad Valles an important city of San Luis Potosi state where you will find all kind of hotels and restaurants, night life etc.

My recommendation… stay at the Castillo, forget about your ride and enjoy for a whole day this Mexican Shangri La.

After spending the whole day in Xilitla prepare for a long ride back to Queretaro. For this one I like to leave early in the morning and keep, if possible, a fast pace. Turn, turn…

We are talking about many miles and literally hundreds of twisties… Once my wife counted them… She stopped when she was at the 500th and we hadn’t arrived back to Queretaro City yet!

It’s so fun that the time flies and suddenly you realize it’s all over and you would like to turn around and do it again…

You know the feeling right?

Another possibility from Xilitla is to head to the famous Huasteca Potosina a zone of exuberant rivers, waterfalls and springs… But that area deserves a whole article by itself. I will be writing it in the future.

If you liked the trip I described and want more information about great motorcycle rides in Mexico and/or to contact me for any other issue please visit my site at www.japanese-motorcycles-only.com.

Enjoy the ride!

Daniel Levy

P.S. Below you will find a few facts about this ride.

Facts about the ride:

Difficulty: Intermediate-Advanced
Recommended time to enjoy the trip: 3-4 days
Total length of the ride: about 600 miles
Checkpoints:
Queretaro-Bernal
Bernal-Military Checkpoint
Military Checkpoint-Pinal de Amoles
Pinal de Amoles-Jalpan de Serra
Jalpan de Serra-Xilitla

Weather: normally clear and dry with the exception of the rainy season from July to September where you can find some heavy rain.

Recommended Map: Guia Roji Mexico Tourist Road Atlas. You can find it at Amazon.

Daniel Levy is the owner and contributing writer of Japanese-Motorcycles-Only.com. He loves motorcycles and Web development. For more great info about Japanese Motorcycles visit his site or his blog at: http://japanese-motorcycles-only.blogspot.com/

The Giro d’Italia has a fine history behind it, like the Tour de France it was started to publicise a newspaper, just like the Tour de France the organisers made the leaders jersey the same colour as the paper, yellow in France from the L’Auto newspaper and pink in Italy from the La Gazzetta dello Sport. The first Giro was in 1909 and was 2448 kilometres long (the shortest), split into 8 stages and was won by the Italian rider Luigi Ganna, 127 riders started in Milan, but by the finish, also in Milan, there was only 49 left, this was not the worst edition, in 1914 only 8 out of the 81 starters managed the full distance.

The winners.

Just like the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España, the Giro d’Italia always has a deserving winner, three riders have won it five times, Alfredo Binda and Fausto Coppi of Italy and the great Belgian, Eddy Merckx, Merckx of course also won the Tour de France five times and the Vuelta once. There have been many other “stars” who have won the Giro over the years, French heroes Jacques Anquetil and Bernard Hinault and from Spain Miguel Indurain have all one 5 Tours de France and the Giro more than once. The home riders have obviously been the big winners, Felice Gimondi, Gino Bartoli, Ivan Gotti, Gilberto Simoni and Paolo Savoldelli have all shown there winning ways, but the battles between Giuseppe Saronni and Francesco Moser in the 80’s are epic. The strangest rider to have taken part in the Giro d’Italia would be Alfonsina Morini Strada who is the only woman to have ridden the race, and finish!

The race itself.

The Giro has started outside of Italy on eight occasions, the furthest away being either Belgium, Greece or possibly the Dutch town of Groningen, which hosted the opening individual time trial in 2002. When the race is on Italian soil the main difficulties are usually the Alps, Dolomites and the Apennines, the Giro is in May so the big climbs can get dreadful weather, snow, rain and cold temperatures can shape the race and determine the winner.

The future of the Giro d’Italia.

The future of the Giro d’Italia looks good, since the UCI (cycling’s governing body) brought in the Pro-Tour all the top 20 teams have to ride, before they would only get all the Italian teams and a few foreign teams with sponsor interests in Italy, now the race is also shown free on television, where as before it could only be seen on a private station. The 2005 edition was one of the best for years, top teams, top riders and a hard course brought the race to life, for years the Giro had become a procession until the last hour, then the sprinters took over. The climbers had some good hard stages and the team leaders would do there work for the overall on the hills or the time trial, and that was it, now its one of the most exciting stage races there is from begging to end.

Alastair Hamilton is a successful writer who offers a truly unique depth of experience in competitive cycling, he also contributes adding technical articles about bikes to some cycling online magazines. Find further reviews road and mountain bikes at http://www.bike-cycling-reviews.com

I firmly believe that knowledge is the most important tool in anybodys tool box. I would like to share some of the things that I have learned over the years. Today we start with Victory fuel injection. I hope when I am done that you may have learned something. To some this may be review, but it never hurts to have a refresher course.

Unlike your car a Victory motorcycle has very few sensors. They are as follows:

1] Barometric sensor[baro] - this is to allow the ECU to change maps depending on elevation. Think of it as having infinitely variable jets.

2] Oil temp sensor[temp] - this tells the ECU actual engine temperature. The main purpose for this sensor is cold start enrichment.

3]Air temperature sensor[AT] - since air density is effected by temperature. The Air temperature sensor, like the Barometric sensor, allows the ECU to adjust mixture for varying conditions.

4] Speed sensor[SS] - not only tells the speedo how fast you are going. It tells the ECU speed , and rate of change. It also works as a load sensor.

5]Crankshaft position sensor[CPS] - tells the ECU the crank angle so it knows when to fire the injectors,and the plugs.

6] Throttle position sensor[TPS] - on the Vic this is the big daddy. It not only gives throttle angle, and rate of change, It is also how the ECU sets base mixture.

7]ECU[Electronic Control Unit] Is the brains behind the whole thing.

Now that we know what the parts are here is how it works[simplified]. We are all familiar with the term “map” as it is referred to in EFI, but actually there is a large collection of maps. This is where the AT, and Baro sensors come in. By cross referencing the two sensors the ECU can select a map area based on air conditions. Once that is done the ECU looks at the Temp sensor to allow enrichment for cold or warm start/run.

Now we begin to fine tune things. After the map area is selected. The ECU looks at the TPS. The base voltage signal from it narrows the process to one map[This is the reason that TPS setting is so critical]. Within this map[think of a series of thousands of boxes set up in tight rows] Lets say we are in the bottom left box at idle, and that if you slowly twist the throttle we will move in a diagonal line up the chart. Each box adds a little bit more fuel. If we jab the throttlle quickly we shift from the bottom left to a few boxes right,and continue the diaginal line up. If we are moving[under load] We start off up a few boxes, and as we accelerate we move up the old diagonal line. At cruise we stay in one box,and on decel we go diagonally down towards our idle position[bottom left]

So basically any change in throttle angle moves us diagonally to the right. Rapid change moves our start point directly to the right, and load[as determined by speed] moves our starting point up. this is a simple explanation for a simple system. The real kicker here is that since an injector fires in milli seconds. All this is happening in nano seconds. The faster the ECU works the better the mixture control.

Contributing author to Cycle Solutions

http://www.cyclesolutions.net

with victory technical input from Kevin Cross of Kingpin Cruisers.

http://www.kingpincruisers.net

Whether interest rates are high or low or it’s the end of a model year with lots of incentives, motorcycle buyers tend to make the same mistakes when shopping for a motorcycle loan. Here are four common mistakes motorcycle buyers make with motorcycle loans.

Shopping for a motorcycle before shopping for a motorcycle loan.
Many motorcycle buyers enter the showroom looking for a motorcycle before they determine how much money a motorcycle lender is willing to loan to them for the purchase of a motorcycle. There is no need to shop for a $20,000 Harley Davidson motorcycle, if a lender is only willing to provide a loan amount of $10,000.

Additionally, once motorcycle buyers enter the showroom slick salespeople often pressure them into motorcycle loans with much higher internet rates than they could have gotten had they shopped for a motorcycle loan at a bank, credit union or online. Salespeople do not like motorcycle buyers to leave the dealership to get a motorcycle loan. In the salespersons mind this only increases the chance of loosing a sale and commission. Therefore, salespeople frequently try for a quick sale which normally results in pushing motorcycle buyers to get motorcycle financing at the dealership.

The bottom-line is that it is always best to shop for a motorcycle loan before entering the showroom.

Diving into the unknown motorcycle loan.
Motorcycle buyers often jump into motorcycle loans that they do not completely understand or may not be the best alternative for them. For instance, in today’s age manufacturers frequently run credit card motorcycle loan promotions on their private-label credit cards. But these promotions typically offer a low interest rate for a short term like 12 or 24 months and have a much higher interest rate after the short promotional term. On a credit card promotion if motorcycle buyers can not afford to pay off the loan during the short promotion period, then they are typically better taking a slightly higher interest rate on an installment motorcycle loan for a longer term.

Borrowing too much.

The most common mistake the first time motorcycle buyer makes in not having a clear sense of how much motorcycle they can afford. This is especially true for young motorcycle buyers who look to buy the top sport bikes that cost up to $10,000 - $15,000. What they fail to realize is that financing a $10,000 - $15,000 motorcycle can stretch them to thin, resulting in them having little cash to enjoy themselves and the motorcycling lifestyle. They may also have too little cash to pay for insurance, maintenance, registration or new accessories for their motorcycle.

Not asking the right questions.

The first warning sign that motorcycle buyers should see is that if they do not understand the type of motorcycle loan, then they should be sure to ask a lot of questions.

Here are some good questions to ask:

• Is the interest rate fixed or variable? If fixed how long will it be fixed for?

• Are there circumstances that can make the interest rate on the motorcycle loan change in the future?

• What happens if a payment is 30 days late? Does the interest rate increase?

• What happens if a payment is 60 days late? Does the interest rate increase?

• How long is the term on the motorcycle loan?

• If the loan is an installment loan, does it use rule of 78 or simple interest? (Simple interest is always better because it does not penalize the motorcycle buyer if the loan is paid off early.)

• What is the down payment requirement to get the motorcycle loan?

• Is full coverage insurance required?

• How much is registration and are these fees included in the motorcycle loan?

• Are there any administrative fees to get the motorcycle loan and if so how much are the fees?

Overall, motorcycle buyers can avoid these common mistakes by spending a little extra time focusing on shopping for a motorcycle loan and asking lots of questions.

Copyright (c) 2004, by Jay Fran
This article may be freely distributed as long as the copyright, author’s information and an active live link to http://www.motorcycle-financing-guide.com is published with the article.

A complimentary copy of any newsletter or a link to the site where the article is posted is greatly appreciated.

Jay Fran is a successful author and publisher at http://www.motorcycle-financing-guide.com. A comprehensive resource on how to have the best experience and get the best deal on motorcycle financing, bad credit motorcycle loans, high risk motorcycle loans and motorcycle buying.

Mini pocket bikes are targeted at those who are too small or too young to hold the handles of a normal motorbike. A mini bike is the most stylish of the other lots of pocket bikes, and it is an advancement to the concept of pocket bikes. Mini pocket bikes are not only appropriate and fast, but they are a realistic way to begin motorcycle racing and riding. These bikes are more popular for off-road riding.

Mini pocket bikes weigh around sixty-five pounds, with a height of about four feet. The diameter of wheels is about ten inches. The mini pocket bike can be driven at speeds of twenty-six to sixty miles per hour, depending on the engine horsepower of the bike, which ranges from 2hp to 8hp.

These bikes have a fully adjustable rear swing-arm suspension, which provides the exact amount of dampening and street feel to suit each individual rider’s tastes. This racing suspension setup is, in fact, the first in this class of racing sport motorbikes. The mini pocket bike has become a craze among the new generation. The passion of the new generation is to get a mini bike and then fully modify it into a super pocket bike. There are many additions available to increase the power of the mini motor bike.

The additions available to increase the power of the mini motor bike are custom saddles, headlights, chrome for everything, and engine kits.

Mini pocket bikes have banned in some cities, with the bikes becoming more popular and faster; and other cities have imposed strict safety rules for riding these mini motor bikes. For instance, a rider of these bikes should be at least sixteen years old and riders are prohibited from riding after sunset. Children under eighteen should operate the bikes only under the supervision of an adult. Wearing of a helmet and other protective gears like elbow pads, knee pad and cloves, are a must for safety reasons.

If a rider speaks against doping and gave information about what other riders were taking they are likely to be ostracised and forced out of the peloton. It is happened to many riders who speak against doping. If you take cheat and take drugs you will be always welcomed back.

Its an irony that many within cycling have tried to maintain a system which puts the physical and mental health of the riders at risk, just so they can waste money on dope.

What is the point is wasting money on dope when the positions of riders will be the same as if there was no dope? If you allow doping the same riders will win as if you had no dope. So what do they gain?

The UCI drug testing is ineffective is doesn’t catch the cheats. It is too predictable yet they say they don’t have enough money to have more drug tests. See this story from former US Postal team doctor http://www.procycling.com/news.aspx?ID=1661

Cycling is a multi million pound sport, the money is there but just not the will.

The physical dangers of doping will always hard to quantify but there have been numerous premature deaths due to doping. Big names such as Simpson, Pantani, Jimenez but also countless of less well known amateurs. Johan Sermon, Denis Zanette

Cycling doesn’t just harm physical health of riders, there have been numerous premature deaths, Tom Simpson, Marco Pantani, Jose Maria Jimenez. But also many of long term drug users end up with mental health problems. Both Pantani and Jimenez suffered from depression before their premature end.

For all its faults British cycling is at least relatively drug free. I assume there is no one as insane to take a £100 course of EPO to win £20 for a 25 on the F1. But also in Britain the culture is different. There has never been the wide acceptance of doping you might find on the continent.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/cycling/3490225.stm

Writing in a London newspaper, Phil Liggett, the veteran cycling broadcaster, pointed out that as many as 100 international racers have died prematurely during the past decade, most from heart attacks. The likely cause, Liggett argued, was the ongoing abuse of EPO,

http://outside.away.com/outside/news/200406/cycling_epo_1.html

To combat cycling doping there needs to be a change of attitude by the riders, teams and organisers. More random tests are need both within and without competition but also more support for those riders who are willing to speak out against doping in the peloton.

Recent events show the uphill struggle the cycling community faces to overcome the problem. Recent high profile cases include Tyler Hamilton (Olympic Gold Medalist) Roberto Heras (Tour of Spain winner) David Miller (World Champion)

Also revelations from pro cyclists like Fillipo Simeoni and others show how many riders are able to easily avoid the detection of drug tests.

Richard is a member of the Sri Chinmoy Cycling Team. He competes in UK time trials.