Ride & Rally: Cross Country MN to FLA Ep 3

Cross Country Sportster Tail of the Dragon and Dale’s Wheels Through Time

Waking up in Maryville Tennessee knowing this was about to be one of the best motorcycle days of my life had me ecstatic. Knowing that people get seriously injured on the Tail of the Dragon also kept my mind focused on respecting the road and everyone else on it. In the parking lot I checked my tire pressure and gave my bike a good look over before hopping on TN-441 to head out of town to link up with TN-129. It was around a twenty minute ride through Tennessee farm and a good opportunity to warm up the tires.

Coming at the Tail of the Dragon from the north, the road winds along the Little Tennessee River which is the last chance you’ll get on your bike to look out and look long before getting to the Tail. The Tail of the Dragon boasts 318 turns in only 11 miles. Coming from the north, you only get a couple warm up turns in on the Dragon before pulling over at the Tail of the Dragon Scenic Lookout, an impressive and serene view of the mountains peering out over what you are about to ride.

Riding the Tail is everything I expected it to be. Turns on top of turns so tight that if you mess up your line in one turn, it could potentially throw off your line for the next few until you can get to a straight away and reset. Some of the turns are heavily banked, some are reasonably flat, some are blind and some of the turns have deep gouges in them from bikes dragging pegs. In regards to views, the area itself is quite heavily wooded and the road ahead is the view. With so many turns so close together you’re constantly looking through to the next turn. While the speed limit is 30, the tight blind turns are well marked with lower speed limit signs so you can judge what you’re getting into beforehand and most people followed the speed limit signs.

All in all, the Tail of the Dragon lives up to its name and because of that I wouldn’t recommend it for beginning riders. Complete competence in shifting, understanding where you’re at in your RPM band, counter steering, the ability to look through turns, looking at the next turn while you’re in a turn are all skills vital for making it through with all your paint on your bike. While there are pull offs to allow passing or stopping, there are plenty of situations where you have a dozen banked turns stacked one right after the other with no room for error. With medical help almost an hour away, the Tail of the Dragon is not the place to rip through.

After making it through all 318 turns with no issues other than bugs in my teeth, I stopped at the Deals Gap Motorcycle Resort for lunch and an “I Rode Mine” patch. It’s great being able to fly into a place, rent a bike and go on an amazing ride but it’s the whole experience when you make the memories on your own bike.

After lunch it was time to head east on TN-28 and boogie over to Wheels Through Time and meet up with Matt Walksler. The ride over, while not as legendary as the Tail of the Dragon, was winding and offered up stunning views with portions that were straight enough to look out and enjoy.

Arriving at Dale’s Wheels Through Time was like pulling into a rally itself. Bikes parked everywhere, people hanging out and having a good time. Wheels Through Time was founded by Matt’s father Dale Walksler out of his love for old iron. Besides having one of the largest, if not the largest, collection of rare and antique American made motorcycles dating all the way back to the early 1900’s, the best part is that they all run and Matt loves to give impromptu shows firing them up and even doing burnouts. As if continuing to acquire and maintain a few hundred rare and antique motorcycles isn’t a full time job, Matt spends a better part of the day walking around the museum sharing the love and history of old bikes with guests. So much so that when I arrived Matt was nowhere to be found until I overheard someone say, “Yeah Matt’s almost got that Panhead outside going.” After wandering outside I found Matt laying on the ground, covered in grease going through a visitors Panhead after it had been puking oil. Matt looked up and said “This is what it’s all about, making new friends and keeping old bikes running.” After a tour through the museum I came to the conclusion that one could easily spend 3 or 4 days and still not fully comprehend what is actually in there.

Spanning 38,000 feet with bikes stacked on top of bikes stacked on top of bikes, it’s hard to take it all in. There are some rare Harleys in there that there are only two known left in the world and you’re standing in front of one of them. Some highlights include one of the last surviving 1914 Model A racing bike, the only known original paint keystone frame factory board track racer, and early Flathead and Knucklehead factory prototypes. The passion for motorcycle history doesn’t stop at having old and rare bikes on display, but the display itself. The displays are covered in original antique flyers, posters, signs, neon’s, and parts adding to the vintage feel. It is truly the Smithsonian of American motorcycles.

Talk about the ultimate day being a motorcyclist. Tail of the Dragon and Dale’s Wheels Through Time on the same day. That whole area is a motorcyclist’s dream. There are so many rides through that area with so many fellow bikers to talk shop with that an entire month would still not be enough but I had a country to cross, and it was time to get back on the road.