RIDE OVERVIEW
For 2021 Exit Tours Motorcycle Club will be hosting multiple X-Roads of the Rockies Dual Sport, Singletrack & ADV Rides near the Crossroads of the Rockies in Colorado.
The club’s adventures are shared group expense and dirt-oriented.
We work to minimize pavement mileage, maximize scenery and fun, and generally only use paved roads as necessary to tie dirt loops together and access amenities.
Our rides cover routes you cannot put together on a map. If you could put the routes on a map, you couldn’t follow the map as trail markings in the Rocky Mountains are, even in designated riding areas, often missing, non-existent, outdated, misplaced or confusing.
We use a “High Adventure, No Hassle“ approach where you can share the experience with like-minded enthusiasts’ and experience what the Rocky Mountains have to offer.
Chaffee County, Colorado should truly be called a ‘Mecca’ for off-road motorcyclist’s. The Arkansas River starts to the North in Leadville and exits the Rocky Mountains to the East through Salida, which means ‘Exit’ in Spanish. The headwaters of the Rio Grande river are the Southern boundary. The Headwaters of the Colorado River are the western boundary.
MECCA – noun
1) A place that is regarded as the center of an activity or interest.
2) A goal to which adherents of a religious faith or practice fervently aspire.
There are more 14 thousand foot peaks in Chaffee County than in any other County in the Continental U.S. There are hundreds of miles of old mining roads, railroad right of ways and singletrack trails in the area. Plus, one of the only portions of the Continental Divide trail open to motorcycles.
Join the club and your first ride is Included with membership.
There is no qualifying or probation period to become an Exit Tours Motorcycle Club member and there are no required meetings or work days associated with your membership — Just join and ride!
These rides will have a riders meeting in the morning at 7 and 8 am where we discuss the day’s ride. You only need attend one meeting. Riders start the ride whenever they want and ride at their own pace with whoever they want, although we discourage riding in large groups. Everyone should be on the route by 9 am.
GPS Tracks will be emailed before the ride of your choice
The X-Roads of the Rockies rides are self-guided
We do not provide guides.
Navigation:
Every rider will be emailed GPS track of the routes and maps will be available for you to print. The maps provide an overview of each day’s route so that riders have a general sense of where they are and where they’re going, but are not detailed-enough for navigation. There will be no course markings.
Ride with GPS club membership is included with Exit Tours MC Membership.
• Hazards DO exist on our routes, such as downed trees, washouts, rocks, etc. and will NOT be marked in any fashion. All routes are publicly-accessible, so you may encounter other riders and traffic. Riders need to use caution and common sense at all times and stay to the right when possible, particularly around blind turns. Remember vehicles heading uphill have the right-of-way.
• We discourage you from riding alone and encourage everyone to use the buddy system and pair up with at least one other rider so that you can look after each other. Your ride will be enhanced if you ride with others who are of the same skill level, are riding similar motorcycles, and have compatible desires for the ride (speed of travel, how often to stop for a rest and pictures, etc.). We won’t have any checkpoints throughout the day or sweep riders to keep track of you.
Motorcycles we recommend:
• X- Roads Dual Sport Ride: 250-690cc Dual Sport or a street-legal dirt bikes for those up to the challenge. Skilled riders will be able to complete the loops on a well-equipped 600-700cc dual-sport, such as a KTM 690.
Your bike should have new DOT knobbies or a Hybrid rear tire. Larger-displacement (800+ cc) adventure bikes are Not Recommended for the Dual Sport loops. Smaller play bikes or KLR 650s are not recommended.
Singletrack: Plated Dirt Bikes
ADV Loops: 250-1250 cc Adventure Motorcycles
• Your motorcycle should be capable of going at least 80-miles before needing a fill-up. If your bike doesn’t have the necessary range you should carry extra gas with you – our gas stops are scheduled at gas stations along the route.
• Have your motorcycle geared for at least 70 mph so that you can keep up with traffic on highway sections.
• You will ride through remote, rugged locations that are often inaccessible by truck. You should carry your own tube, plug kit, tool kit, air, lighter, first aid, water, snacks, tow strap, etc.
• Carry a cell phone and we highly recommend the use of a satellite-operated tracking and rescue device such as a SPOT – you will often be out of cell phone range. We also recommend you obtain appropriate healthcare insurance before participating in any rides.
