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Time Travel
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Don Williams
04/01/2007
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Photograph by Jeff Kardas
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Freedom. It is the spirit that drives us to ride motorcycles, and we attain
that feeling in ways as diverse as our choice of machines. Of course, freedom in
highly organized societies can become a relative thing. Unless we are riding
entirely on private property (and sometimes even then), we are restricted by
laws governing our sport. Those on custom cruisers are limited by equipment
regulations, sport riders by speed limits and off-roaders by land use
restrictions. Sometimes, we must travel to other countries to expand our
perceptions of freedom, regardless of our appreciation for our home
nation.
Costa Rica offers the freedom of travel that off-roaders dream about.
A peaceful nation without an army, Costa Rica is a land where children still
sprint from their schoolrooms to greet a group of dirt bikes with hand signals
exhorting the riders to lift the front wheel skyward. And, when you do, you are
greeted with the enthusiastic cheering normally reserved for a champion flying
across the finish line jump.
 RIDING STYLE. Helmet: HJC AC-X3 Carbon Titan. Goggles: Progrip
3400. Jersey, gloves and pants: Shift Racing Faction. Boots: Sidi
Crossfire TA. Photograph by Jeff Kardas. (Click image to enlarge)
The logistics of flying your bike to Costa Rica,
then finding your way through the rain forest to some of the most exhilarating
trails on Earth, is daunting. Instead, we took advantage of the services offered
by Costa Rica Unbound. Its fleet of 2007 Yamaha WR250Fs and WR450Fs are superb
platforms to explore the mountainous rain forests of Costa Rica. Revealing
those single-track trails and primitive roads that only a local would know
are highly skilled bilingual guides from both the United States and Costa Rica.
They tailor your riding experience to your preferred level of difficulty, and
visit hidden local destinations—an abandoned bullfighting ring, a historic
church, remote villages—if that is your desire. Even a spectacular, private
hillside motocross track is at your disposal, with the ever-present local
children there to spectate at a respectful distance.
Based in the resort area
of Hermosa Playa, on the Pacific Ocean just south of the vibrant town of Jacó,
Costa Rica Unbound operates out of the Marea Brava Beachfront Suites and Villas
resort. Not a traditional high-end luxury resort, Marea Brava still has its
share of indulgences to enhance its condos and rooms. Services include two
pools, massages, bars, restaurants and a black sand surfing beach that is mere
steps from your door. Surfing lessons, personal watercraft rentals and
all-terrain vehicle tours (for the inexperienced) can be sampled by your
non-riding companions, or if you are taking a break from two-wheels. Nearby are
canopy tours that whisk you between the tops of gum trees, over 130 feet above
the ground, as you enjoy a panoramic view of the Pacific. After dark, of course,
there’s the vivacious, and sometimes edgy, Jacó nightlife.
Top: Ridgerunning on Costa Rican single-track. Bottom: Marea Brava offers a
relaxing post-ride environment. Photograph by Jeff Kardas. (Click images to enlarge)
But, back to
riding. The standard tourist mode of transportation from Juan Santamaría
International Airport to Marea Brava is a two-hour drive in a rental car
or chauffeured van—locals may opt for the bus. Costa Rica Unbound had
something else in mind for us. Transporting us from the airport to the nearby
Del Sol Hotel in Atenas, we changed into our riding apparel and rode our choice
of WRs over the mountains and through the jungle to our ocean-side destination.
Having done it, we no longer consider this an optional ride—it is an imperative.
Starting off through the bustling village to many friendly waves, we quickly
shed the potholed tarmac and tackled the progressively deteriorating local dirt
roads. The first wonder that greeted us was a concrete bridge across the
confluence of the Virilla and Tárcoles rivers. The massive span in a primitive
area shocked us, as we parked to gaze over the edge at the rapids and forest
below. All the while, not another vehicle traversed the wide, lonely bridge.
From there, the adventurous can drop deep into the jungle on roads that appear
to have escaped the attention of modern man.
Occasionally, you will pass an
unexpected village, such as Lagunas, where a wide and sometimes-deep Turrubares
River crossing beckons you. On our trip, a daring triple-axle food delivery
truck was stuck midway, awaiting rescue by a Caterpillar. Mid-point, you can
hungrily wolf down some chicharrones (a crunchy pork dish) in Dellicias, or
succulent rotisserie pollo at Yami in Orintina.
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