Cerro Gordo, Riding in the Reward Mine, and Alabama Hills: Death Valley Noob Rally, Day 1

Рет қаралды 13,867

2 ай бұрын

The first day of riding my CRF300L Rally in Death Valley took us to some of the coolest sights in the area including Cerro Gordo (famous from the ‪@GhostTownLiving‬ KZfaq Channel), the Reward Mine, and the Alabama Hills (filming location for Django Unchained, Tremors, Iron Man, and more).
Huge thanks to ‪@BigRockMoto‬ and friends for showing me around the Death Valley area.
I've been a fan of Brent Underwood's Cerro Gordo KZfaq channel for a while, so I was stoked to get the opportunity to ride up to visit the ghost town and check out some of the cool artifacts in the mine.
Afterward, I rode my Honda CRF300L Rally up to and then INTO the Reward Mine, which is an incredibly unique experience.
Then we visited the famous Alabama Hills where some of my favorite movies were filmed.
Riding motorcycles in Death Valley is an amazing adventure.
The Death Valley Noob Rally is an annual gathering put on by the fine folks over at the ADVRider.com forums.
Big thanks to ‪@SlowEddie‬ for the excellent editing work!
Riding gear in this video:
MSR Rover Vest: www.rockymountainatvmc.com/ri...
Garmin InReach Mini 2: motocampnerd.com/products/gar...
Shoei Hornet X2 Helmet: imp.i104546.net/XY3vxG
Tourmaster Horizon Line Storm Chaser Gloves: amzn.to/4cjmRQA
MSR Xplorer Jacket: bit.ly/3ZIPCjg
MSR Xplorer Pants: bit.ly/3XnE2IE
Alpinestars Tech 7 Enduro Drystar Boots: imp.i104546.net/q4gNYO
Honda CRF300L Rally Mods List:
Tusk Fender Eliminator Kit: bit.ly/3Sw7smL
Tusk Accessory Dash Panel: bit.ly/3umDB8r
Tusk Bar Risers: bit.ly/49ruxOl
TrailTech Voyager Pro: bit.ly/3UwMoPR
Tusk Aluminum ⅞” Handlebar: bit.ly/3waOz1m
Tusk D Sport Tires: bit.ly/350Wn8e
ProTaper Pillow Top Grips: bit.ly/2MVmQLV
Seat Concepts Comfort XL Seat: seatconcepts.com/products/pre...
Giant Loop ZigZag Handlebar Bag: www.giantloopmoto.com/product...
Graves Full Stainless Exhaust: www.gravesport.com/products/h...
Outback Mototrek Crash Bars: east.outbackmotortek.us/produ...
Tusk D-Flex Handguards: bit.ly/3eJZsMV
Doubletake Mirrors:bit.ly/3F1lxkT
Quad Lock Motorcycle Handlebar Mount: amzn.to/3cFOUvI
Quad Lock Vibration Dampener: www.quadlockcase.com/collecti...
Giant Loop Mojavi Saddlebags:www.giantloopmoto.com/product...
Yamoto Skid Plate for CRF300L: bikerzbits.com/honda-crf300lr...
Tusk Folding Shift Lever: tinyurl.com/yre9szxp
Tusk Anodized Oil Filler Plug: tinyurl.com/yenjec4v
Tusk Top Rack: tinyurl.com/yjz39snb
Tusk D-Flex Adventure Pro Handguards: tinyurl.com/5xs8dv9v
IMS Super Stock Foot Pegs: tinyurl.com/bdcvy45j
YSS Rear Shock: bikerzbits.com/crf-300-rally-...
Cyclops Aurora Lights: www.cyclopsadventuresports.co...
A to Z Composites Carbon Fiber Fork Guards: atozcomposites.com/
Giant Loop Pronghorn Straps: www.giantloopmoto.com/product...
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Revzilla: imp.i104546.net/4eMdJZ
MotoCamp Nerd: motocampnerd.com/?ref=dork
Giant Loop: www.giantloopmoto.com/?ref=dork
Cyclops Adventure Lighting: www.cyclopsadventuresports.co...
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FULL DISCLOSURE: MotoCamp Nerd pays me to create content for his KZfaq channel. This isn't a "sponsorship" per se, but it does mean I use their products exclusively and may impact my opinions about camping gear. Fortunately their stuff is good so I'm happy to recommend it, but just FYI.
Disclaimer for reasons: I am not a professional journalist, expert motorcycle rider, or a mechanic. These videos are for entertainment purposes and represent my personal opinions and experiences. I'm just a dude who isn't even good at riding or making videos, so be smart and don't risk life or limb trying to follow my example or advice.

Пікірлер: 77

@DorkintheRoad 2 ай бұрын

Want to support the channel when you buy your dual sport or ADV gear and mods? Please consider using these affiliate links: Rocky Mountain ATV/MC: bit.ly/3tYzpXq Amazon: amzn.to/3aDkk4z Revzilla: imp.i104546.net/4eMdJZ MotoCamp Nerd: motocampnerd.com/?ref=dork Giant Loop: www.giantloopmoto.com/?ref=dork Cyclops Adventure Lighting: www.cyclopsadventuresports.com/?AffId=15

@BigRockMoto 2 ай бұрын

So glad you made a film series for this ride... I am just sending my audience here since I didn't film anything... great job capturing this epic 3 day ride.

@josephthornton8560 2 ай бұрын

Sitting at the computer, this was one of my favorite rides to watch.

@speedbird3955 2 ай бұрын

I was in Balarat and Goler wash area in my 4Runner and noticed all the bikes and figured that there must be a rally event. The weather was perfect and the desert was very green. There was a nice yellow flower bloom in the in Panamint area, I helped load a broke down bike into the back of a truck out by the gold mine, Death Valley is amazing......

@WeAreChad 2 ай бұрын

n00bs was awesome, glad you made it down. Can't wait for the rest of the videos 👍

@TomsTinkeringandAdventures 2 ай бұрын

DVNR 2024 was a good time. Riding into Reward mine was exciting and nerve wracking. I’m already looking forward to 2025.

@subthousandoaks 2 ай бұрын

Jelly!! ❤❤

@nodnarbthered6896 2 ай бұрын

Gotta love when two of your KZfaq interests overlap. Ghost town living and dorkintheroad at the same time? Hell yeah

@dustindewind3210 2 ай бұрын

Noobs ride looked like a blast. Cave ride was exiting and a little nerve wracking, imagine engine quitting while deep inside. I'm more than a little disappointed in the local hooligans for not having a stuffed Bigfoot or some other creature around one of those bends 😅

@theninja001 2 ай бұрын

Welcome to my backyard! This really is ADV and dirtbike mecca.

@fixnflykai 2 ай бұрын

Growing up and only riding in Alaska really makes me feel like I'm missing out on all the cool desert riding and views

@DorkintheRoad 2 ай бұрын

It's cool but it gets old fast. Everything looks the same and there's a lot of sand. ;)

@sorenmelchior 2 ай бұрын

Ditto… I live in Fairbanks, and waiting for the spring trails to melt and dry out is an exercise in patience.

@squid148 2 ай бұрын

Riding in the mine was above and beyond the call of duty 😮!

@eriknash8783 2 ай бұрын

Good to meet you and share a meal with you at the Rally. Outro is hilarious 🤣

@Unknown-ym5gz 2 ай бұрын

beautiful area, thanks for sharing

@user-kz5km7qq5v 2 ай бұрын

Interesting that you took the CRF300 Rally instead of the 790 Adventure. What a great bike the CRF is 😀😀. Thanks for the ride.

@advredbikes 2 ай бұрын

Thank you Ben, Great to see you out and about. Love the caves, awesome lights on the Rally. Looking forward to the rest of the content.

@drpayne77 2 ай бұрын

I've watched a lot of Ghost Town Living, excited you did this.

@brianesquivel6516 2 ай бұрын

I cannot wait to be there this weekend. I love the racetrack! can't wait to see how you like it up there

@rlpatton1970 2 ай бұрын

Wild ass horse !!! LOL

@davidsonneman1121 2 ай бұрын

This looks amazing. I have to go!

@terrygoldsmith4006 2 ай бұрын

Aloha Dork from South Kona, Hi. Awesome ride. Sometimes I wish I could be back in California where I'm from when I see rides like this one. Oh, Joshua Tree is the common name for Yucca Brevifolia.

@import9163 2 ай бұрын

I was stressed out watching you ride in that cave. I could feel the walls coming in. What a beautiful place to ride. Thanks for another fun video.

@WDGFE 2 ай бұрын

Thank you for showing us the mine. I’m probably a bit more claustrophobic than that ride would allow me to do. Those Cyclops work great, though!

@AKAOmnivore 2 ай бұрын

Nice Video, I enjoyed it!! I lived 20 years in that area, (Oregon Coast now for the past 20) as far as camping goes, it would get kinda cool in the high desert at night, you would be by the fire (we sat on the ground typically) I can't count how many times I got up and scorpions would be hiding under my ass to keep warm lol (dont leave your boots out all night) The other thing we typically did was straight up desert riding, meaning, we didn't ride on the roads we were out in the actual desert, but on dirt bikes not adv bikes which might be a bit heavy for that. Snakes out there as well so you just had to keep an eye (ear) out for them. Usually if you heard them you were toooo close! You went at a great time of year. Lots of horses and mules out there in certain areas.

@Crittermoto 2 ай бұрын

Super cool area! I wanna hit Cerro Gordo one day!

@karlfonner7589 2 ай бұрын

I can’t wait for part two

@tomdavid1309 2 ай бұрын

Love all these spots. Good to see this video

@muskrat4852 2 ай бұрын

In Oregon we have a lot of buttes that are given the name “mountain”. Mountains are in ranges, buttes stand alone.

@markfisher9834 2 ай бұрын

Loved that you said at big rocks and you were with big rock moto😂

@TimeDemand 2 ай бұрын

Nice video! I made a solo camping/riding trip that same weekend and stayed at Tuttle Creek Campground. Attempted to get to Cerro Gordo via Swansea Road. That was a challenging climb but doable. The issue was I hit snow before I got to the top and had to come back down. Can't say it wasn't anticipated, but worth a try. Met a noob attendee at Mt. Whitney Restaurant in Lone Pine and heard about the rally. Then rode around Alabama Hills which was awesome. Eastern Sierra's are great dual sporting! Need to make another trip back to see Cerro Gordo and Reward Mine.

@whiskeythrottle9772 2 ай бұрын

Dammit Ben, now i have to go watch 92 videos about some crazy dude who bought a ghost town. I dont have time for that!

@MeerkatADV 2 ай бұрын

The Alabama Hills are incredibly beautiful. You can see why so many movies get filmed there. And you've gotta get out to colorado and ride the BDR, views that can't be beat.

@sambomoto 2 ай бұрын

As a new rider, I wish I had made it out to this rally...looks like some amazing riding. Thanks for another great video Ben! Hoping to make it there next year.

@DorkintheRoad 2 ай бұрын

Next year for sure!

@Dalton5042 2 ай бұрын

Great adventure video man!

@ridgetop8161 2 ай бұрын

I think Cerro Gordo has become something like a ADV Temple or Holy Site that all ADVers in Death Valley must someday ride to LOL 😂. Great video.

@Catbeans99 2 ай бұрын

Just found your channel looking up tips for new riders. Love the content. The wife and I are looking into getting a couple Honda XR150’s and watching rides like this are making me impatient to get out there myself.

@rench55 2 ай бұрын

If you're ever in Lone Pine earlier in the day, try Alabama Hills Cafe for Breakfast. If you really want to see Joshua trees, Head south and check out Joshua Tree N.P.

@frooke2 2 ай бұрын

Most shocking part of this video you ask??? Dork actually uttered the words "DR650" !

@Ramenscooter 2 ай бұрын

Your in the Inyo mountains. Yes every peak in the sierras have been named

@donnieyoung2774 2 ай бұрын

Killer video ! I love it out west, so why am I living in Virginia ? Riding in the mine was EPIC ! Cyclops lights kick ass !

@tandenpoetser3124 2 ай бұрын

I just started riding on a xr125 and boy do i want a crf300 rally bad 🤣🤣🤣 looks amazing and has more power so you can actually keep up whit regular traffic 😅

@blainegauvin9458 2 ай бұрын

Tremors... great movie... one of my favorites as well... cheers.

@MotoFishy 2 ай бұрын

Cerro Gordo had the town closed sign out each time I tried to go last weekend so I didn't end up making it, but that gives me a good excuse to get back out there and I'm more than ok with that. Such a beautiful area to hang out and ride around in. I also got my first drop on the new bike in Alabama Hills when we took a wrong turn and found some deeper sandy bits so now I need to give it a name. For gear its all about layers when you are riding in the desert. Temps change quickly.

@eriknash8783 2 ай бұрын

Worth the trip up the mountain even if the town closed sign is up. It’s a county road

@SlowEddie 2 ай бұрын

Uncle John is def jealous. Added to the bucket list.

@davidkinkade4764 2 ай бұрын

Looks Super Rad!

@DualSportDoug 2 ай бұрын

I'm in the same are right now! I did the Reward Mine yesterday. With more than one rider in the mine, the dust gets overwhelming.

@MericanAdventures 2 ай бұрын

Nice! I rode my BMW up to Cerro Gordo the year before the American Hotel burned down, there was a lot of neat stuff and history in it, so sad it was all lost😢. I went up there last August in my 4runner and camped on the other side of his mountain. I see he's made more progress on the new Hotel, he hasn't had many update videos lately. Looking fwd to the next video.

@airadaimagery692 2 ай бұрын

I saw “Alabama” in the thumbnail description and was about to be really irritated that you ventured all the way over to my side of the country and didn’t even tell me you were going to be here. Then I realized how ridiculous that sounds.

@knappdaddy 2 ай бұрын

Wow what a great day !! I wanted to see the food to finish it off lol

@PatFarrellKTM 2 ай бұрын

My sister lives in Lone Pine, her husband works at Manzanar historical monument. Pretty cool scenery there.

@stevemartinez4180 2 ай бұрын

Good job on the Union upper left,,,

@MyNameIsTimIThink 2 ай бұрын

I wish i was there. Im on vacation in Tennessee and its 45 with the wind blowing. I cant wait for summer

@edgarbradford 2 ай бұрын

Firefly should have kept going. I miss that show. The only space western I know of.

@user-hq7rb5hv7s 2 ай бұрын

cool p[lace to ride.....nice bluesh haze on the mountains

@asacross8472 2 ай бұрын

I do miss riding out there, minus the heat.

@loganroberge7632 2 ай бұрын

I work underground and we always joke about taking the bikes or side by sides down to the bottom and having a race to the top . Would be a good time 😂 5000 feet of ramp to giver on

@JamesHyde-tb8os 2 ай бұрын

Great video! Are you running the Ace Pro’s now?

@densamme1752 2 ай бұрын

This was a excellent riding video, would you say that the tracks are possible to traverse with a passenger?

@ADVenturaJoe 2 ай бұрын

at 13:44 you said Jacket off bahahahaha I'm a nerd.

@manybikes 2 ай бұрын

Somehow I have missed this event for the last 10 years... Every year I see the amazing footage (like this here) and kick myself for not having it on the calendar. When is next years event?

@DorkintheRoad 2 ай бұрын

April, I assume. Details on advrider.com when they're available.

@stevenrees6015 2 ай бұрын

Nice vid. Im not envious at all. Sitting here in the uk, waiting for the rain to stop. (Since September).

@loganroberge7632 2 ай бұрын

I feel this ^ Canadian waiting for it to stop snowing since well about September lol 😂

@chiptaxfree 2 ай бұрын

Ben if you did this ride again what would be the one single perfect bike you would use?

@eddcurry501 2 ай бұрын

Why not show more of ghosts town?

@phillipdaulton9861 2 ай бұрын

You find Gram Parsons’ grave?

@vegasranger 2 ай бұрын

Did u ride ur 300l from Oregon?

@connercampbell3596 2 ай бұрын

Hey i just watched ur video from 2 years ago about overweight riders (great video). i am about 6'5 270-280 lbs and fairly inexperienced to bikes I'm looking for an enduro/trail bike and suggestions thanks

@ggs0605 2 ай бұрын

Dork, what is the gps unit on your bike? I thank you!!

@airadaimagery692 2 ай бұрын

Probably a Trail Tech.

@jamesonpace726 2 ай бұрын

All that for 12 seconds of Cerro Gordo? Huh....

@DorkintheRoad 2 ай бұрын

Yeah sorry Brent wasn't there to take me down in the mine to go exploring. It's a RIDING video, my man.

@auroratours6716 2 ай бұрын

Nice footage but the autofocus of the Insta ace is definitely NOT capable to difference between close objects (your windshield) and mid-field objects (the trail up to app. 15ft in front of the bike). Causing disgusting flickering & irritations of the beautiful scenery ! Independent of all reviews about the Insta, this here is the " real life" - review that shows me why I will NOT buy this camera👎. Thanks a lot 👍