With a few new parts bolted on, it was finally time to go find some real dirt to test Rosie the Scrambler off-road, or as I quickly realized, my off-road competence. A few weeks back, I got a text from a buddy about taking a day trip down to Shawnee State Forest between Hillsboro and Portsmouth; unbeknownst to me, there is a well maintained network of gravel forest service roads down that way, along with many local “unimproved” roads. Aside from a day at the Dragon Raid, I have been dabbling in whatever dirt of gravel I can find locally as of late, along with reading whatever I can about dirt riding skills, but there’s no substitute for the real thing. 
As a guy who’s never ridden a dirt bike, it’s still overly obvious that the Scrambler can be quite the handful once you leave the tarmac. That said, I have this sick obsession with squeezing a little more out of a given tool… and well, doing things people say you can’t or shouldn’t. Despite all my pipe dreams about racing the Scrambler in the Baja 1000, it’s not gonna happen; it’s still a street bike, venturing off into fire roads, pinning the throttle on the uphill stints, flinging gravel and having a good time, but it’s still out of its league when trail gets wet. That doesn’t mean I’m not having a damn good time, and learning more and more about how to ride a bike off-road, it’s just a matter of keeping that front wheel from washing out. Anywho, I figured I’d share a few photos of the adventure; I’m still learning my way around down that way, but hopefully more to come!
Moto Adventurer 
Drew: I dig your pavement ride blog posts; I at least glance at your reports on maintenance and upgrades; from top to bottom I read your reviews about bikes that intrigue me; and I savor your tales about food, beer, and cigars; but… I’m delighted–and very happy for you–that you’re now able to blog about off-road riding. Here’s to expanding the canvas (as I lift the last of a glass of Zinfandel and prepare to light a pipeful of a medium-strength English tobacco blend). Cheers.
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Cheers to that indeed! I love the outdoors, and being in the woods is even better; now I’m combining my passion for motorcycling and the wilderness all at once! Frankly I can’t believe it took this long! The Scrambler is no dirt bike, but with planning and good gear, it’ll get the job done. Thanks for reading!
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Glad to see you’re continuing the journey of exploring the virtues of the Scrambler.
I’m sorry I didn’t manage to catch you at The Dragon Raid this year, or that I haven’t responded much to your posts of late, but due to an industrial accident at work, I’ve been off the grid for a while sorting a few things out in Thailand. I took advantage of the work accident and brought forward my gender reassignment surgery, so although I’m still going by my given name Gerry, the Geri is now short for Geraldine, instead of Gerald. I’m still finding it difficult to ride, and the medication makes me do weird things, but I am determined to keep biking, even if it is from the opposite side of the field.
Thanks for the interesting blog. Love reading it.
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Love the pictures, great looking terrain. Where about do you mount the camera. – is that the side of your helmet?
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Yeah it’s behind my right ear on my Scorpion Exo950 helmet. I wanted to mount it on the front but it gets in the way. I have also mounted it to the frame of the bike in the past, which makes for great action photos but my mobile mount is currently broken.
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