I went out checking the conditions of some of the better backroads in the southwest part of our county. As I suspected, many of them had been freshly (and heavily) graveled by the county road dept., and were no fun at all. But I found several that were hard packed and good for riding, and made good time down to the best, gnarly, steep, rocky with lots of ledges, impassable when wet, trail in the area. This hill is well over 200 yards long, has a bunch of rocks and ruts (some large), and most of the ledges are a foot or so high, and has been the demise of many a wanna-be truck, jeep, atv, and bike that didn't have adequate ground clearance and/or good skid plates or rider/driver skills. On my old Bighorn 350, the hill would have been a blast today. On my only previous trip there on the Tenere last fall, I made it up just fine. When I considered going back down it that day, I said "Uh-Uhhh, too slick" and went out the long way around (about 6 miles).
Today, when I arrived, the hill was remarkably dry and only wet at the bottom, so I didn't hesitate and headed right up it. That was a mistake. A Tenere Noob mistake. Forgot to turn off the Traction Control. And it was still set on #1.... I made it up through the most gnarly parts, but when I got to the steepest section, I goosed it a little (wanting to get a little air over the last slope-fronted ledge), broke loose the rear tire, and BAM, the traction control slammed on the rear brakes, and that plus the steep hill killed the engine before I could slip the clutch, and just before the last ledge. And of course, my foot came down in a rut below the last ledge, so over we went. "Pearl" (the name we've given her) wanted to take a short nap.
My friend, Logan, helped me get her back up on her feet, and rather than go out the long way around, I wanted to practice going back down that steep, rocky hill using some of techniques I've seen on the MOTOTREK videos on YouTube. Logan wasn't too enthusiastic about that, but we were both impressed that I took her back down the hill like a boss, even over the places where the skid plate drug. Anyway, Pearl was none the worse for wear, only a little dirt here and there and a few scratches on the skid plate. And it was definitely a learning experience.
View from below, about a hundred yards up from the bottom, looking up. Pearl snoozing comfortably.
Another shot looking down from beside where Pearl was napping. It's further than it looks to the bottom.