Riding The Dragon

[kballowe]

The foliage is peak color in the Smoky Mountains right now.  We spent a few days just riding.









On Tuesday, the weatherman forecasted sunshine and blue skies but we got liquid sunshine instead.

[MikeP996]

Being a weather forecaster is the only profession where you can be wrong half the time and keep your job!

[guzziart]

My first time on 129 was the most nerve racking, the pavement was in very poor condition.  The other subsequent times were much better, the roadway had been newly/recently paved/well maintained, there was very light traffic, it was fun.  I think having to ride it in rain would be tiring.  I'm glad I was able to experience it as at this point in life I don't know if I'll ever make over that way again.

[Bill W]

Beautiful pic's ( except rain pic ). I was just up there this past May. I really need to plan a Fall trip up there.

[davethewelder]

TOTD, is a great road to get to Deals Gap Motorcycle Resort!  Its great place to stay and its cheap.  TOTD is a very technical road and you ride it slow a few times and when some one comes up behind, just wave them by.

[nc43bsa]

The last time I was at The Dragon was 2-3 years ago when I picked up some honey at Wehrloom in Robbinsville and continued on to Maryville.  It was in late autumn and near dusk, so very little traffic.

IIRC, the last time I rode a bike there was about 45 years ago, probably before it was known by its present name.  I just remember the pavement on US-129 between Deals Gap and Robbinsville was really crappy at the time.  Very little traffic then, too.

[bronzestar1]

If I'm ever going to ride any part of The Dragon, it's going to be the Back, and not the Tail...nice pics of the fall colors though, rain pic doesn't look like fun at all...

[PeteS]

The last time I was at The Dragon was 2-3 years ago when I picked up some honey at Wehrloom in Robbinsville and continued on to Maryville.  It was in late autumn and near dusk, so very little traffic.

IIRC, the last time I rode a bike there was about 45 years ago, probably before it was known by its present name.  I just remember the pavement on US-129 between Deals Gap and Robbinsville was really crappy at the time.  Very little traffic then, too.

Similar experience here. First time was in 1985 on my Norton on my way to the Norton National in Hiawassee. It was just a blue line on a map, I had never heard of Deals Gap. I have ridden it maybe half a dozen times since but last time was probably 15 years ago.

Pete

[TN Mark]

Remember, ‘The Dragon’ is a public road with a marketing campaign. UPS trucks drive it nearly every day.
Is it challenging, yes. Does the ‘mystique’ mess with people’s heads, yes. Riding your own ride and not trying to keep up with the ‘locals’ and the ‘Ricky Racer’ types is a very good plan. 

A more scenic road for many is The Cherahala Skyway. More scenic and for the most part, devoid of the RR types.

[cliffrod]

Well, today is not the day to do the dragon.  Just got home from up there 30 min ago.

We (wife, mother and I) drove from SC up to TN on Sat on what we call the back way- 19/23 from Asheville to weaverville, then 25/70 from weaverville to Hot Springs to Newport- to skip the one lane risks of I-40 to get to Dandridge & Jefferson City.  Unless you can time it to be very alone on the dragon, I prefer 25/70 to the dragon and have for years.  On the drive up, it was absolutely gorgeous and I spent a lot of time wishing I was on the bike to keep riding.  Yesterday the weather was just as good, more overcast so probably even better to go over to the dragon and more.

This morning, i was pleased to be in the minivan.  it was raining fairly heavy in Dandridge and we drove home the same way to SC in non-stop rain around 60F.  Told my wife I was glad I wasn’t riding 3 hrs over the mountain in the cold rain again. Btdt more than once. 

Only saw one bike coming home in the rain but didn’t see that many on Sat.  Guess everyone else was stuck in a minivan, too.

[PeteS]

Speaking of racer types, there is a guy in the Norton Club from Knoxville, named Dave (lastname???), who did vintage racing and rode 129 many times. He would show up at the rallies on his Norton with tires that were bald on the outside and had tread in the middle. I learned not mess with those hillbillies. Those boys can ride.


Pete

[kballowe]

[kballowe]

If I'm ever going to ride any part of The Dragon, it's going to be the Back, and not the Tail...nice pics of the fall colors though, rain pic doesn't look like fun at all...

We normally run the Cherohola Skyway and then The Dragon.  Next day we take 421 (the snake) from Mountain City, TN over to Bristol and then run to Marion and pick up Hwy 16 to Tazewell, VA.

[Bulldog9]

I've been riding that road for years, LOOOONG before all the commercial nonsense, paparazzi, and when the Deals Gap MC hotel was a rathole.  Now its a madhouse with maroons on the weekend. I still try to ride/drive it 1x a year, and try to hit it midweek. 129 is a great road, but if I'm going to be honest, there are no bad roads in the whole Appalachian, from Front Royal VA all the way down to Georgia.

[Motormike]

when the Deals Gap MC hotel was a rathole. 

I remember those days all too well. 

Was recently at the Deals Gap junction of 28 and 129 on a Friday.  Place was absolutely packed!  I'd say the cars almost outnumbered the motorcycles.  IMHO, the cars are far more obnoxious than the loudest Harley or sportbike.  I will avoid that place like the plague, at least around the weekends!

[twowheeladdict]

I rode the Dragon the day after Kevin and it was clear and very little traffic.

[n3303j]

Riding toward Alabama this spring I ran into "The Rattler" in North Carolina.
It's kinda like The Dragon but has a 50 MPH speed limit, no photographers and no cops.
I found it more appealing than The Dragon as it was almost empty.

https://www.209therattler.com/

[Trialsman]

My son and I rode down from PA and it rained the entire way.  By the time we got to the north end of the dragon it was almost midnight.  We passed the reservoir and there was a small rockslide we had to skirt from the cliff on the left.  The rest of the way was surreal.  Lightening would flash and light up the road from the normally pitch black surroundings.  Limbs and leaves were down all over the place making the road a little challenging.  We stayed at Deal's Gap for the night so we could ride the Dragon in the light the next morning.  Next morning we were informed 129 was closed to traffic due to a landslide.  When I asked further as to the location of the slide, they confirmed it was at the other end where we went around the smaller slide during the night.  We rode up to that point and back.  The entire trip we only saw two other bikes - no one else!  Of all the times I have been on it over the years, this was the best time ever riding the Dragon for me.

[Bill W]

And there's always something new to see at Deals Gap!

[faffi]

Old bike trundling down https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ML05_3rsibE

[Moparnut72]

I watched that yesterday. Great video.
kk

[guzziart]

Old bike trundling down https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ML05_3rsibE

Darn nice old bike!

[Mayor_of_BBQ]

Riding toward Alabama this spring I ran into "The Rattler" in North Carolina.
It's kinda like The Dragon but has a 50 MPH speed limit, no photographers and no cops.
I found it more appealing than The Dragon as it was almost empty.

https://www.209therattler.com/

This is a great road. You have hot springs at one end with amenities and it terminates at Lake Junaluska where you can roll over to 276 and on to the parkway and beyond up 215....  A lollipop loop of 215/64/107/74 back to 209 is a nice jaunt

209 has a lot more crossing roads and driveways than the dragon, but very little traffic most of the time

The Dragon is a pain in the ass to get to for me, a full ride for just the out and back, not counting runs & reps on the segment itself.

[faffi]

The mention of 209 brought back memories.  There are roads around here that I rode for 30 years without noticing lots of small crossroads and 90 degree road exits more or less hidden by trees or tall grass. It was not until I began slowing down that I began noticing these small roads. Several of them even had right of way, as the general law in Norway is that you must always yield from traffic coming from your right unless informed otherwise. Only luck, combined with next to no traffic, kept me from a prang with other road users.

While the Dragon is a cool road, there are many, many roads that are more interesting and more challenging around the world, roads that also extend over much greater distances. Like this road (ignore the stupid riding) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMxZUcAmZD0&t=637s&pp=ygUqQWcgSW9hbm5pcyBSb3Nzb3MgVmVyeSBGYXN0IFJpZGluZyBPbmJvYXJk