#PikesPeak

A motojournalist’s life isn’t quite as glorious as it might seem. Endless hours chained to our computers, researching and cranking out words for your education, illumination and, hopefully, entertainment steal time away from what we most enjoy – riding motorcycles. A colleague of ours, Aaron Frank, succinctly described a motoojourno’s job thusly: “It’s the best job in the world two days a month.”

If you are looking to experience all types of America’s riding in one state, Utah is your destination. We started at Utah Lake State Park, which is centrally located three hours from the barren red desert of Moab and an hour from the green forest-covered mountains of the Nebo and Alpine Loops. In between the two extreme environments lie classic desert plains, which lead to the fascinating flats of Bonneville. Just north is the city of Salt Lake. If you are traveling from outside of the States and want to see the entire American backdrop in one week, nothing compares to the diversity of Utah.

One week in Colorado just wasn’t enough, and if I have to blame it on the average 19 mph uphill speed of our truck and a long detour through Wyoming’s Route 80 to avoid the mountain passes of I-70, then so be it. But ask anyone riding a motorcycle here, and they’ll agree we made the right decision. With the idea that some of us might decide to call this place our post-adventure home, a second week gave us a chance to experience everything that Colorado has to offer. No flukes or honeymoon effects here, just real, raw Colorado.