“Gonna have to get one” is how the last post ended. Well, I am here to report that we “got one.”

3 of us went to the dealership to purchase the new RZR XP. A nice three way split, a hat trick split of a new gas burning, curb stomping, 1000cc awesomeness that is the new RZR XP. The tripod — never liked 3 anyway — manged to last all the way until we got the RZR home and partner three decided to drive it for the first time. With little more than a hot cake lap up the block and a curb stomping at velocity and we were down to two partners. Partner number three departed with a sonorous outburst of “thats it, im out, I want my own.” Hence forth three became two, but we had a plan.

Plan was to go get the new RZR, load it up, and then RZR 1 -the white super sick one purchased earlier — and RZR 2 – the normal whatever red one — where to reconoiter on the 91 freeway on our way out to Lake Elsinore to go break the new toys in. Specifically, the plan was for RZR #2 to be purchased and loaded up, then came phone call to RZR #1 to hit the road, then came the reconoitering on the 91. Given the general excitement level no attention was to be paid to the monsoon rain conditions that particular Saturday. As RZR#2 was rolling down the 91 undetered in pouring rain to the sountrack of Poison’s fist pumping “Nothin but a good time” blarring at 1.21 gigawatts a photo text message arrived…

Allow me to add a caption to the thousand words — Jaguar going too fast, hydropalned acorss 5 lanes of the 55, first hit the truck then hit the trailer , bent the tie-downs straight and threw the new baby upside down onto the 55 freeway.

Rzr#2, partner number three, and I arrived on the scene to partner #1 being slightly punch drunk from the accident and RZR #1 still turned upside down on the side of the 55. Tahoe pretty much totaled, trailer wrecked, and the beautuful new white sweetness upside down bashed to Sh*%.

First things first everybody was ok, which is the most important thing. The gal driving the Jag was able to leave the scene NOT in an ambulance. Which was amazing if you saw her car and praise be to god for that. Second, partner #1 was ok. Third, the first time I got to drive the new toy was after a cop , paramedic and I flipped it over on the side of the 55 — keys were still in it and it fired first time — probably not an experience soon duplicated. The RZR although destroyed managed to make it back onto the destroyed trailer and the tahoe fired up and was able to drive. For the proverbial cherry on top and LIKE A BOSS style moment the rig made it all the way within a block of home before the trailer tire blew off and started rolling down the street. The rig pulled into its spot shooting sparks and flames side ways but it made it. Witnessing it made me think of the what a ride quote

Life’s journey is not to arrive at the grave safely, in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, totally worn out, shouting “Holy shit, what a ride!”

Sans ride in the new RZR of course. Earlier in the post I made reference to the part about it being Saturday. Scary part was that I had yet to get the RZR insured as it was Sat — impulse buying is a sickness — so things could of gone horribly wrong. Luckily they didnt. She was fully insured. The tahoe was totaled with frame damage, the trailer will be repaired, and we got a check to cover the RZR damage. A check that more then covered the repairs and left some money over for modifications. All is well that ends well.

So dunefast has recently been called out by a commenter…

Now under normal circumstances this is something we tend to enjoy. Glamis pairs well with several things just like peanut butter to jelly, crown royal to ginger ale, or Sriracha to pretty much everything. One of which is dispensing verbal lacerations, speaking the word, and or edumacating unruly blog trolls on the proper definition of #winning — as it pertains to glamis of course. Unfortunately, none of that awesomeness is going to be unleashed as a result of this particular comment.

dave April 15, 2011 at 3:43 pm
Dig your blog, but only 2 outings this season? What’s up? I thought I was in the cellar with only 4 visits this season. Looking forward to more outings from you next season

Truth be told after reading said comment we feel exactly like Chapelle did in the chicken bit. Not angry, upset, or mad but rather …

Bottom Line Dave was right. Two outings is ridiculous and potentially a tragedy if true. However in dunefast’s sake the truth is far worse. We have been L-A-Z-Y — lazy. Only two kinds of people out there; lifters and leaner’s — and I am sad to say that we have been leaners. We have had no less than 11 trips as a crew this season and yet the blog only reflects two of them. We could blame it on the down economy, a moron in of the oval office, the heat, the cold, or a shortage of cold bud light but the reality is it all comes down to leaning. Thankfully, its not a permanent state of affairs and can switched at will. Dave — this is us lifting again.

So with the first heave ho lets get to explaining the trip and what this part #1 is all about. This trip was par for the course although the hole had a dog leg left. We were joined by an old friend and his buddy and to reference the part #1 his new Polaris RZR XP. Camped at the look, had a rare weekend trip to glamis and brought the standard armament along.

What wasn’t standard was the new RZR XP. My buddy was one of the first to get one and I can honestly say that the majority of the rumors and hearsay were both confirmed and perhaps even surpassed. The machine performed solid. He was able to keep up with us on the motorcycles running hard. Whats more it jumped like a champ. One test drive and that was that. Started thinking about it and then yep — gonna have to get one.

Also threw some photo sin of Boardmanville for good measure.

photo contributions: Alireza Alivian

And you know whats wrong with that? Absolutely nothing!

Completely ripped up dunes this trip. The post xmas/new years celebrations have not yet been erased. As such, adjustments had to be made to overall Mama G enjoyment scheme and minor deviations to the standard MO were applied. Specifically, wheelie competitions, long exposure photography with fireworks(well, thats par for the course actually), late night sniper fire at glow sticks(thats new), slow smoking ribs, epic sunsets, and all the rest of the normal shenanigans.

Side Note

Its no easy task getting to Glamis; Its takes hours of prep, hours of planning, a three hour drive, hooking up the trailer, loading/unloading and gassing things up, checking oil, checking coolant, tightening bolts, unloading groceries, turning on propane, the whole mental checklist to get everything working, the full time gypsy special that is camping in Glamis. After that is all done all you want to do is crack a beer sit in a chair and enjoy the view — take in the sights as it were. The next morning comes(we always showup at night) and its straight to the business of ripping dunes — and cousin, business is a booming! Booming all the way till your arms fall off and you are right back in that chair beer in hand, almost completely comatose after the evening repast as well as the 5 advils you have taken in best hopes of alleviating the full body pain only a days hard riding in glamis sand can create. That type of rigorous activity leaves one more or less worthless and in no position to properly take advantage of all the rest of the joys that Glamis has to offer. To say nothing of the fact that as soon as its over you get to pack everything back up and get the hell out of dodge. That being said I think the day and a half special(our normal trip duration), while still epic, needs to be stretched a bit. Perhaps two full days at least and maybe 2.5 days to 3 even. If anybody has any thoughts on the matter — specifically whats the perfect amount of time to spend in Glamis. We would love to hear about it in the comments.

No I am not talking about Christmas although for all intents and purposes I might as well be

No I am talking about none other then the opening of yet another Glamis dunes season. A season that I hope will have at least more then three blog posts as that was all I seemed capable of for last year. Year started off just like last years although perhaps more like two years ago.  Slow drive out towing the rig, camping at Osbourne, out of control temperatures, canal dips to cool off and Chinese fireworks by night.

Too hot to take to many photos which has always seemed an admirable although lazy excuse in the past.  It held true this time and without proper photos not much to report on other than the fact that we brought out a newbie — with all the typical first time newbie problems.  Spent time in the blazing heat fixing bikes.  Rented a Rhino one day and had fun with that.   Moreover, got to see a new bike make its debut in the sand…. A BMW no less.  Not many of those(BMW 450 dirt bikes) in the sand dunes or anywhere else for that matter.

Old Dogs…Check.  New Tricks….well sort of.

And by sort of I mean sort of.  We camped in the same place, parked in the same spot, brought the same toys, the conditions were about the same, and yes the same dog (who is definitely old by the way).  And yet, we got the overlook to ourselves(not an easy feat) and I brought my old college roommate, shithands I call him, out for his first time in the dunes.   You might ask yourself where that particular sobriquet comes from.  As I think about it, its more of a gift really, then it is a nickname.  Comes from both raw talent and years of hard work and training.    So Shithands fires up the quad,  jumps on it, and fixes to go let everybody know his moniker is for real.

He lives up to his name and rolls it hard right in front of the trailer.  When I say hard I mean hard.

Ok here i go…watch me rip..I am super sweet

The pain train commeth…it looked so bad people are rushing over

I get up with some help from my friends

It was like getting body slammed, well it was a body slam and perhaps worse it was like pounding sound with the flat of your back, a dose that made him wish he was born a woman.  Aside from that hilarity the trip was par for the course….The middle of the week, some hard dune ripping, and within 36 hours the car was speeding home its passengers tired but smiling as usual.  A few photos.

Trip 2 is in the books and the season is off and running. Yet another dune ripping trip, and to mix things up for a change we threw in an old fashioned Glamis wedding.

In this the year of our lord 2010 Glamis…You never know what kind of strange business you will come across.

Numero dos del ano.  First trip was a few days prior to Halloween and sadly a bit too windy to acquire the proper media for a blog post (I changed my mind after looking at the shots again). Epically virgin dunes though which is always nice. Anyway, to the task at hand.

Trip two of the season held brutaly ripped up dunes, new contour HD helmet cam testing, a few super solid meals and a glamis wedding. Yes a wedding in the dunes! No more than a 100 yards from where we camped, which as any one who reads this blog knows is none other then Osbourne Overlook.  Weather could not of been nicer even if the dunes were ripped to pieces.  As I fancy myself a photographer I even proffered my services to shoot a few of the bride and groom.  In hindsight I question my judgement relative to approaching said wedding in moto pants, boots, no shirt and looking a bit crusty.   I can only hope that the photo services rendered in some way make up for the transgression.  Assuming it was one of course.  Never know what you will see in Glamis.

Other than that a few random shots, some of the wedding, KTM 505′s ran strong, camped next to a rail running on alcohol, an oil change or three and the Contour HD helmet cam testing.

Testing the contour HD. Jury still out. Slammed myself a few times on this one. Less time worrying about filming more time riding is advised.

So it begins.  The Glamis 2009/2010 Season is upon us…

As it turns out one of the unforeseen benefits of attempting to blog about one’s Glamis adventures  is you have an easily accessible digital archive of dates.  Specifically,  the dates for the two previous years in which you fell off the wagon and submitted to the insatiable drug like desires of yet another Glamis dune ripping season.  Thankfully, we spent no time consulting last seasons results or we might of called it all off.  Last season opener jumped off on Oct 9th and was too hot.  Consisted of a few short rides, an excess of bud lights,  and a retaliatory firework displays once the temperature dropped enough for sensible human beings to be outside.  In contrast this opener was not too hot and we started it in September rather than October.

It was cold actually.  Cold and REALLY REALLY windy.  Like hurricane style winds.  Which can be a pain in the butt for the dog, photography, and for being outside sans goggles.  Yet it creates beautifully virgin sand dunes.  We broke in the freshly prepped new toys. Got sand in the teeth and generally had a great time remembering the feeling all over again.  Not much in the way of photography this go around.  Sadly hurricane winds and sand have a tremendous way of keeping the expensive camera gear in the case.  Just a few photos this time.

6 Straight days of desert hell; a veritable cornucopia of weather, red bull guys going HUGE at Glamis, and 3 days of Coachella,  all to end the season. Fantastic way to go out…

Wednesday April 15th.

The rig gets stored all season at Dunes Edge and Coachella was coming so we had to make the season ending trip.  Got out Wednesday morning to the craziest wind I have ever seen at Glamis; it was blowing so hard you could not be outside without goggles, and the wind chill made it freezing.  Had to stagger the warrior when we setup camp so it would not blow over on us.  Despite the wind there is something about EMPTY and VIRIGN glamis dunes.  No tracks anywhere and nobody out there period.  Beau had just bought the new KTM 505 so the wind was not going to stop us.  Rode a bit on Wednesday the sand was incredible aside from some super soft spots here and there. We both went over the bars a few times. There were some crazy and dodgy formations form all the wind. Definetly had to be super careful. Rode hard and were hoping for better weather the next day.  Turns out we were not the only ones.

Red Bull Air Show.  I thought we missed the Red Bull show in SD with the planes by going to coachella…turns out we got our own show.

Apparently the Red Bull guys were out there to shoot a commercial and just waiting for the wind to die down so the chopper could get in there.  Went for a morning ride on Thursday and we were getting ready to pack up when we saw them.  Watched for a bit and took some pics and video.  Going to post the pics now and the HD footage after the 6 day desert hangover subsides…  The HD footage is sick as you get to see both the skills of the riders and the chopper pilot(he was pulling sick maneuvers).  It was a great situation to test the Mark II 5d video features.  Threw in a couple of shots of the rig at Coachella for good measure.

After the air show loaded up and raced out of glamis to get the rig ready;unload the toys in palm springs, get the rig detailed, and load the golf cart up(god bless a toy box) to get a good spot for coachella.  From one great show with rock stars to another…  Hell of a way to end an incredible Glamis season.

here is the link to their shots and story.

Red Bull Glamis Session from Dune Fast on Vimeo.

Back from another midweek crusade in the holy land. Not many places I would hammer out the three hours out and back for 24hrs of fun. Being a self professed fanatic, it turns out Glamis is one of them.

Osbourne Overlook

Camped at Osbourne and got the dunes just how we like em.  Untouched and empty.  As is all too typical of camping at Osbourne Overlook, met some interesting folks.  Personified in this case by Charles Chandler a photog/paraglider. Paragliding is some seriously sick business.  Based on watching take off and landing and how quick and easy they are to setup, I think I need to re-evaluate my glamis in between riding down time.  The paragliders name was Charles Chandler and his website is

http://www.charleschandlerphotography.com

He took a few pics from the air which I am hoping to get my hands on.  I will add them to this post if and when I do.  Most photos are from the new Canon 5d Mark II.  A new Mark II I might add, that was immediately equipped with one of these.  Shot some video with it as well and once I figure out how to edit that video without my computer blowing up, I will post that as well.  Its pretty sweet as its his whole take off.  Specifically my buddy with beer in hand almost getting a hair cut.   Nothing, and I mean nothing, is quite as nice as the sand during the week.

You have to click HD and go to Vimeo to watch it in HD

TEsting new Canon 5d Mark II in Glamis from Dune Fast on Vimeo.

Guess what you are about to buy????

If self preservation of your electronic gadgetry is an instinct you possess, I would argue its an invisible shield by zagg.

Invisible Shield screen protectors are made by a company called Zagg.  Its essentially just a clear plastic shield you put over your electronic gadgets and devices.  Its a great idea to do no matter what as they are really cheap to begin with(12 bucks or so).  For Glamis however, I would argue that they are mandatory.  The sand gets everywhere and all it takes is to drag a single grain across the screen of your brand new digi cam or phone and you will be stir fried that you didn’t get on of these.  There are a number of companies out there that make these things and I have found  Zagg to be the best.  I currently rock them on the GPS, both big and small cameras video and still, iphones, ipad.

invisible shield screen protector

WHY?

they are cheap

they have them for a crazy amount of devices

they are easy to install

they dont come off unless  you want them to

They are great for GPS, cameras, your iphone, or anything else you are going to subject to the sand.

Its originally designed for the military…not the boy scouts or your weekend softball team but the military k.  I am such a sucker for that type of BS marketing.

Go to zagg.com and search for your device.  I would order them for all of em.