From left: Scott Jones and Mark Cook from Racer’s Pit Shop, myself and Mike Garrett of Parts Unlimited share one of those moments at this year’s Rocky Mountain 400 Ride up above the tree line when you can look down at the world around you. This is near Hurricane Pass between Ouray and Silverton, somewhere around 12,500 feet.

ithout a doubt, my favorite place to go trail riding is Colorado…specifically, the high country near Ouray. I first rode there in the early 1980s and get back at least once a year, usually for the Parts Unlimited RM400 and/or the Colorado 500 rides.
     I know the trails are not the toughest to ride, it’s mostly Jeep roads, but I love the spectacular views and the air up there. And when you get up above the “tree line” (that’s somewhere around 12,000 feet) it’s like being on the moon. It’s just dirt and rock and you have to look down to see where all the trees went. But it’s so peaceful. The only inhabitants have four legs and a tail, and the other visitors are people with the same love of experiencing the outdoors on a motorcycle, ATV, or in a Jeep.
     It’s great that Parts Unlimited includes rides like the RM400 on their list of events they put on. It gives many of us in the industry a chance to get out and see first hand and remind ourselves what our customers do and why they love the sport that puts food on our dinner tables. Same goes for the UP300 ride. If you haven’t been going on one, I recommend it for 2007.
     In this issue we’ve got our annual reports of the RM400 and the UP300 (this year they were only a week apart), as well as many other motorcycle events. Be sure to also check out our pictorials on the Jeremy McGrath Invitational and the US Open of Supercross. There were some new twists added at both of these events which made Supercross even more fan friendly than it already was. There’s also a report on Troy Lee’s “Dual At The Docks,” the final race of the 2006 Supermoto season. The good news is that somebody finally did a Supermoto event right. Congrats to Troy, Bob Weber, Gavin Trippe and the team at Troy Lee Designs.
     If you’re looking for a winter project, be sure to check out the great Triumph project bike built by Todd Cooperider, one of Parts Unlimited’s Regional Sales Managers. The Triumph Speed Triple comes stock with lots of “attitude,” but as famed chef Emeril Lagasse would say, Todd “kicked it up a notch!”
     2006 was quite a year. We covered a lot of miles traveling the world to see our customers and also taking part in many events and rides, yet still cranking out more pages of Parts Magazine than ever before! My “Back Page” column on page 114 goes into more details about my thoughts of the year, but let me add here my wish that whatever holiday you celebrate this month be filled with peace, happiness and hope for a bright future.