Yellowknife (July 02/03) - A posse of motorcycle riders geared up for a trip to Escarpment Creek over the weekend, raising money for a charity enroute.

Riders from Fort Smith, Hay River, Yellowknife, Enterprise and even Fort Vermillion took part in the NWT Riders Association sixth annual Buffalo Run.

"This is the one ride we do each year as a group. We also do it to raise money for a local charity," said Wayne Mercredi, president of the association.

The charity receiving the money will be decided by the group afterwards.

In past years, the group has raised money for a variety of organizations, from the Side Door and the hospital to the Kids Lunch Fund.

About 35 motorcycles and 50 people went for the ride.

Gravel roads will form part of the trip, but that aspect of riding has been changing in the North.

Riders are anxiously awaiting the paved highway to Rae-Edzo.

"Right now, we do what we call 'the loop'," said Nancy Young, a motorcycle enthusiast who has been riding in Yellowknife for the past five years.

"From wherever we head off, we go down to Old Town, then down to the highway to where the pavement ends; and then head back into town and then go to Kam Lake," Young said.

The loop takes about an hour to complete.

But the loop isn't the only ride available.

"It would be nice to have more paved roads, but we realize it's expensive to pay for those roads," said Dave Harder, who recently took a ride to Prelude Lake.

"I realize I live in the North, so my expectations aren't the same as if I lived in the south," he said, noting there are more and more places to go now.

"I've been up here on and off for 13 years. I first came up in 1985 on a Harley Super Glider, all on gravel and through rain. Things are getting better," he said.

So even the gravel roads have been mastered and used by most riders.

"I've been riding down that road (Mackenzie highway) when it was gravel all the way," Mercredi said.

"I was born here and I've been riding before I could even get a licence. We go out on the gravel roads a bit, but there's only two directions out of town anyway," said Mercredi.

Mercredi said that many people take day-trips and weekend trips, mostly to Prelude or Hay River.

But that's not the only trips that local riders take. Some have ridden as far as Newfoundland.

Mercredi said there are some who are heading to motorbike manufacturer Harley Davidson's 100th anniversary bash, The Ride Home, in Milwaukee ending on Aug. 27.

Season too short

"Riding up here is great but the season's too short, way to short," said Young, noting that she and her husband Art usually take their bikes for the first time around Mother's Day.

"However, the last two years, we've taken them out a little earlier. There was still ice on the roads and snow in our backyard."

While it's true the riding season up here is shorter than in the South, Mercredi says it's actually pretty long because of the total daylight involved.

"You actually get more out of a bike than a boat or even a snowmobile. It's quite surprising and most people don't realize this. We are usually out by third week of April to about Oct. 22. That's six months of riding," he said.