Adventure Rider Issue #3

FULLY SPECCED WITH HIGH-TECH EQUIPMENT FOR ALL YOUR ADVENTURES... NO MATTER WHERE IN THE WORLD! WITH 15,000KM

LONG WAY...

KTM 1190 ADVENTURE 2014

MORE POWER - 150HP (110kw)

LONG SERVICE INTERVALS - 15,000kms

FULL ELECTRONICS ASSISTANCE PACKAGES (MSC, ABS AND MTC) AS STANDARD - SAVE THOUSANDS

MOTORCYCLE STABILITY CONTROL - MSC gives the rider a lean-sensitive traction control

MANAGED TRACTION CONTROL - MTC allows Sport, Street, Rain and Off-road modes

BOSCH 9ME C-ABS - Combined Anti-Lock Braking System

BREMBO BRAKES - Precise application, powerful and free from fading

MULTI-FUNCTION COCKPIT - State-of-the-art instrument cluster with adjustable features

MODE SWITCH - Simple and intuitive to use

ADJUSTABLE ERGONOMICS - to suit individuals

» Two handlebar clamping positions: horizontal +/- 10 mm

» Two rider seat heights 860 mm + 15 mm

» Two footrest positions: diagonal 10 mm high and back

ADJUSTABLE WINDSHIELD - To suit varied sizes of rider

WP STEERING DAMPER - Makes for a smooth ride

LED INDICATORS Brighter and better

It’s what we do

By Tom Foster - Editor

Idon’t know whether I’m getting soft or smart.

Lately I’ve been riding a few bikes with anti-lock braking systems (ABS) and traction control, and I find more and more I’m expecting those rider aids to work, and work well.

I’m a little at sixes and sevens as to how I feel about that.

It seems like only a few years ago early ABS was a primitive hammering under the boot that caused so much distraction it just wasn’t worth having. It felt like riding over nasty corrugations. Traction control is newer in adventure bikes, and it seems as though it’s hit consumer bikes in a far more refined state than ABS did, but it can still be an unwanted limiting factor in certain situations.

Lately those situations seem

to occur less and less often. Rider aids have become so good I find myself riding in expectation of them saving my bacon. I ride harder into turns knowing the ABS will keep me from my usual monumental cockup-lockup, and I know I can crack open the throttle of a big-horsepower bike as early as I dare and the traction control will keep me from harm. Not only that, but these systems are getting so good that in a lot of situations I don’t know if I’d achieve anything extra relying on my own judgment.

So I trial them, work out which settings are best for me, and off I go.

Does that make me soft?

All those MotoGP guys are using that technology, and they wouldn’t do it if it didn’t make them faster. And I know from experience that good riders can perform much better with those things working for them. They have the talent to understand the potential and use the rider aids to add to their performance.

My problem is, I feel as though I’m cheating, or doing something sneaky, if I don’t judge the pressure on the brake or the twist of throttle to find the limit of traction myself.

So am I soft or smart?

I guess I’m a little of both.

I’m a huge fan of anything that keeps me from injury, and I’m not the stallion of man that I once wished I’d been (but never was), so I’m smart for using good equipment when it’s available. Not only that, everyone else is using it. I’d be a mug to let pride stand in the way of making it through the tough rides or covering the big distances, when in reality, a lot of other riders wouldn’t look that great either if they weren’t making use of what the bike had to offer. Or looking at it another way, those rider aids will mean I can do tougher rides, cover even longer distances, and when I need to, safely run at higher speeds.

I’m thinking I’m smart to embrace these new technologies, and the ones that are coming. If you’re smart, you will too.

Adventure Rider Magazine is published bi-monthly by Mayne Publications Pty Ltd

Publisher

Kurt M Quambusch

Editor/Advertising Sales

Tom Foster tom@advridermag.com.au (02) 8355 6842

Production Managers

Michelle Alder michelle@trademags.com.au

Arianna Lucini arianna@trademags.com.au

Design

Danny Bourke art@trademags.com.au

Subscriptions

W: www.advridermag.com.au/subscribe E: admin@advridermag.com.au P: (02) 8355 6841

Accounts

Jeewan Gnawali jeewan@trademags.com.au

ISSN 2201-1218

ACN 130 678 812

ABN 27 130 678 812

Postal address: PO Box 489, DEE WHY NSW 2099

Forum www.advridermag.com.au/forum

Website: www.advridermag.com.au

Enquiries:

Phone: 1300 76 4688

Int.ph: +612 9452 4517

Int.fax: +612 9452 5319

On the cover: TF fell in love with the mighty Triumph Explorer. Jeff Crow ventured out before breakfast on a crisp, clear Victorian morning to drop the shutter on this fabulous shot.

62 Suspension with Nick Dole

66 How To Ride with Miles Davis

70 Rules To Ride By with John Hudson

72 Reader’s Ride: The Flinders Ranges, SA

76 20 Things You Should Know About: KTM’s 950/990

80 10 Minutes With: Sam Sunderland

86 Reader’s Bike: Steve Evans’ HP2

88 Checkout 90 Next Issue

ADV Rider contributors

John Hudson

John thought adventure riders would love an event offering some of the thrill and challenge of The Dakar at a miniscule price, so in 2010 the real estate manager kicked off the APC Rally in 2010.

Karen Ramsay

Karen’s in that growing group of females either returning to riding or taking it up. She’s worked in the Northern Territory as a governess/jillaroo, supervising kids and mustering on bikes, and bought her first bike from an undertaker.

Paul Beavis

Paul’s only been adventure riding for three years. He got his learners’ in 2010 and has vowed to complete the task of touching the four corners of Australia, plus hopefully do some adventures abroad, on a bike. If you’re travelling through Blackheath, NSW, pop into the Wattle Café for a chat about your adventures.

Denise Bentall

Ex-pat Denise and her daughter travelled to Mongolia to ride a Britton Adventures tour of the steppes. They went from being virtual novices to dead-set adventurers in just a couple of weeks.

Nick Dole

Nick is an owner and director of Teknik Motorsport in Penrith, NSW. He runs a workshop specialising in a wide range of motorcycle suspension work, mechanical repairs and wholesale parts.

Craig Tarlington

Craig has been riding motorcycles since he was five. He’s raced in Australia, South Africa, South America and Europe. In recent years he became obsessed with motorcycle rally racing, competing in several World Championship events.

Robin Box

A lifelong rider, Robin now rides, “whenever there’s a chance” on any bike available, on- or off-road. Between churning out Safari Tanks and importing high-quality Touratech gear, there’s not as much riding going on for this Victorianbased bloke as he’d like.

Craig Hartley

Craig has been riding for 40 years and has competed in enduros in Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The purchase of Dalby Moto in 1984 was to feed his dirt-bike habit. Adventure riding came on the scene in 1995 and he’s ridden three Safaris and manages the largest trail ride series in the world.

Trevor Jenkins

Recently retired and only back on bikes for 10 years after a 30-year break, Trev, 61, loves riding the Flinders on his Tiger 800XC. The Flinders Ranges Classic is an annual highlight, and he reckons the retirement lark is a great opportunity to get out on the Tiger and explore.

Miles Davis

Miles has been National Motorrad Marketing Manager for BMW Motorrad since 2006. He’s a very highly qualified motorcycling coach and an ex-professional mountain-bike racer. Miles is still riding every chance he gets, and has built an enviable reputation as both a world-class rider and a great riding companion.

Cape

York

All great adventure ideas start somewhere. Steve and Paul began theirs at the local, promising to reach all points of Australia eventually – north, south, east and west. The first destination was Australia’s most northern point, Cape York.

Just a week before we were due to leave everyone bailed, and Steve and I thought it’d be just the two of us.

But then good mate Dave said, “I have an idea. I’ll take both my Ténérés and bring my friend Mark.”

That balanced the numbers: two Suzukis and two Yamahas.

A DR650, DR250, Ténéré 600 and a Super Ténéré 750, and before we knew it we were bunked down in Cairns, ready to go.

What plan?

We awoke to find the CREB Track closed, so our first day consisted of 80 per cent tar.

We didn’t hit the dirt until Cape Tribulation, 110km north, and we couldn’t wait to get to the Bloomfield Track. It’s a nice, flowing road with some knee-deep water crossings marked with warning signs for crocodiles. We were on one of few bridge crossings when we saw our first ‘snappy handbag’, a 2.5-metre salty. We pulled up and took photos for those who wouldn’t believe us.

The famous Lions Den Hotel, just short of Cooktown, was our first nights’ accom, offering a camp, pizza and a few celebration coldies. It was there at the pub we met Oliver, an English backpacker who’d

ridden from Victoria on an XR650, and invited him to tag along for the trip. After way too many coldies we made an executive decision to go to Cape Melville.

There was no plan in the itinerary to go to Cape Melville, and we had no research on the terrain, but what’s an adventure if you’re going to stick to a plan?

There and back

The next day we headed for Cooktown to stock up on tackle and fuel and venture up to the lighthouse for photos with 360-degree views.

After the complicated task

Words: Paul Beavis. Images: Paul Beavis, Dave Harrison, Mark Darcy and Steve Farrell

Above: Kalpower Crossing is a popular spot for spotting saltwater crocs. No-one wanted to fall on the causeway.

of getting an e-permit (a pre-booking for a campsite within a Queensland National Park) we had lunch and ended up at the police station to ask if there was a shortcut across to the Starke Track.

“Are you guys off to Cape Melville?” enquired the officer. “It took us five-and-ahalf-hours to get there on our last recovery”.

Nevertheless they were very helpful and told us of a trail that turned out to be a blast, twisting through banana plantations and making a change from all the cane fields further south.

Everything was fine as we continued up the Starke Track, and then, with panniers hitting the ruts, we regrouped about 10km into the bulldust and found it was already 4:30pm. A LandCruiser approached from the other direction, so we flagged it down and exchanged terrain stories. The driver told us there was another 50km of rutted bulldust to reach the Cape Melville turn off, then another 56km to our destination.

We made a decision right then to return to the Endeavour Falls Tourist Park and hightailed it south to get as much distance as we could before nightfall. It was 120km to the park, and 10km would be the bulldust we’d just ridden through.

The evening came rushing down as we went looking for our second night’s accommodation.

Now that’s an anthill!

Top left: We made it! We had to line up for our turn to get this pic. Left: Cairns to Cape York in a not-very-straight line.

The Old Telegraph Track. Another one off the Bucket List.

Somewhere along the Peninsula Development Road.

Croc head

Now back to our itinerary. We headed for Battlecamp Road, through Lakefield National Park, stopped at the Old Laura homestead for a few photos and then Kalpowar for a bite to eat.

This day’s leg wasn’t that difficult, so we arrived at Musgrave in the early afternoon to fuel up and have a few coldies before calling it a night. Musgrave Roadhouse has a swamp behind it and if you look carefully there are ‘freshies’ in there.

Pfft. Freshies. They were still worth a photo.

Signs of where

Up the boring Peninsula Development Road to Weipa we went, saying goodbye to Oliver at Coen. He was starting to have a few issues with his bike…so he said. I think he’d just decided we were mad.

Archer River Roadhouse provided lunch, and the Ténéré boys were ahead for once when I got a flat 70km from Weipa. They were almost at Weipa when the Super Ténéré ran out of fuel and they waited for us. They were waiting a while!

The night’s stop was at Weipa Caravan Park, where we found Dave’s Super Ténéré was running really rough and the carbon-fibre exhaust on my DR650 had broken its rivets. Thankfully we’d planned the next day to be a rest day, and the exhaust was shortened with no problem. Unfortunately for Dave the Yamaha had sucked dust, and he decided to fly back to Cairns to pick up his LandCruiser and trailer and return to camp by the next morning. He flew out on a noon flight and, true to his word, was back in camp at 6.00am.

Cross my Palm Creek

The plan for the following day was to complete the southern section of the Old Telegraph Track, then head east to Captain Billy’s Landing.

The bike and trailer was dumped

The Starke Track was a challenge.

at Moreton Telegraph Station and we headed for Bramwell Junction, the gateway to the Old Telegraph Track. This is where you choose between two options to arrive at the Jardine River Ferry. You either go up the Old Telegraph Track or the Bamaga Road, and our plan was to tackle the Old Telegraph Track. We were informed that this was the driest wet season for many years and the water levels at the creek crossings were well down, so we fuelled up and only four kilometres down the track found the first crossing at Palm Creek. The creek itself was only a trickle, but it was the entry and exit that were the fun bits.

After that, a couple of easy creek crossings had me a bit complacent and I entered a crossing to see the headlight go under and the bike cut out. Mark on the Ténéré 600 had the same problem. Steve made it through, and Mark and I got lucky with both bikes firing up after a little coughing and splattering.

The road to Captain Billy Landing, once off the Bamaga Road, is a sweet firetrail. As everyone says, Captain Billy Landing is windy, but bearable. We set up camp, set up a camp television and had a few well-deserved coldies.

Get the point

Captain Billy Landing was like a fivestar hotel. With the crashing of the

Crystal Creek’s bridge was a challenge all by itself.

Sunset at Vrilya Point.

Fruit Bat Falls. Below: Jardine River petrol prices.

ocean, we awoke early, keen to hit the northern section of the Old Telegraph Track, and our destination was Vrilya Point.

We arrived at Fruit Bat Falls, an oasis, there’s no other way to describe it. After days and days travelling on the corrugated Peninsula Road and then the sand of the Old Telegraph Track, it was like arriving at a day spa.

We had to eventually move onto the next oasis, Twin Falls, just 12km north. This place was just as good, but daylight was getting away from us and we reluctantly decided it was time to tackle the northern section of the Old Telegraph Track, and this is when we came across 15 or so fellas on their Massey Fergusons with their wives tagging along in the support 4WDs. It was a convoy of around 25 vehicles with an average speed of 30kph. Good on them I say.

Cypress Creek has a log bridge that would be eventful if a 4WD and a camper trailer were to come through this way. The LandCruiser only just fit!

Nolans Brook Crossing has the same reputation as Gunshot Creek, if not more infamous. It’s a deep crossing but there’s a three-log bridge about 20m to the left and we nursed our bikes across.

After consultation with the GPS we found the infamous bridge over Crystal Creek, and the following 30km road had sandy sections that would test the best. It seemed like every time we got into a great rhythm we arrived at a corner (and there aren’t that many on this road) where we had to suffer through 60cm-deep sections of fine sand for 100m and then back to great fire trail.

Eventually we got to Vrilya Point. What an amazing sight the Gulf Of Carpentaria presented. We found out we had to ride up the beach for 10km or so to get to the head for some great fishing. This was incredible. We set up camp and threw a few lines in. You wouldn’t want to be anywhere else!

u

The five beaches ride was a blast.

We were planning to have a rest day, but despite the perfect location, we were all just too keen to get to the top the next day.

Beach mission

After a few hairy moments with wild pigs the next morning we got back to

the Bamaga Road and the Jardine River Ferry, and from there to the WWII plane wrecks near Bamaga Airport. In 1945 a DC3 came down not long after take-off, killing all five on board. Just near there are two other plane-crash sites to visit also. We started to head north again

and, after 40km or so, stopped off at the Croc Tent store for some souvenirs.

The last 15km to the tip was swampy, dark and eerie terrain, and once you reach the end you have to park and walk approximately 500m to the top, then wait in line for that photo of the little sign that says “You are standing at the northernmost point of the Australian continent”. With our task completed it felt a bit surreal.

Done and dusted

We were happy to have completed our first of many missions and glad we’d made it all in one piece.

The lady at the Croc Tent had told us about a five-beach ride on the east coast of Cape York, over near Somerset Ruins. I’m glad she recommended this, as it was a great way to complete our day. It’s not very often you get to ride on a beach, but five adjoining beaches was fantastic.

We headed for Loyalty Beach on the west coast for celebration duties to finish off.

The final days

We headed south in the coming days, not seeing anything along the way as we did most of it on the way north. My rebuilt exhaust didn’t last long due to the 30cm-deep corrugations on the Bamaga Road and the remains of it now reside on the number-plate tree at Bramwell Junction, making for a long, noisy return trip.

We do have unfinished business at The Cape: Frenchman’s Track, Starke Track and the CREB Track. Dave has to complete the adventure on his now newly built 850 Super Ténéré and by the time we return, ‘corrugation concussion’ will have been totally forgotten.

Overall it was a great experience and I highly suggest you plan your own trip soon.

Eliot Falls.

Waiting patiently on the Peninsula Development Road.

Bramwell Junction.

A Challenging adventure

Adventure Challenge The

Need to go riding?Adventure Rider Magazine is here to help.

The Adventure Challenge is for reals. It’s here now, and it’ll be the biggest thing to happen to adventure riders since Preparation H. What’s it all about?

We’ll tell you.

The concept

Once a rider grabs a bike and gets kitted up, he – or she – is quite often left standing, looking vacantly out the shed door, wondering where the Fukuoka they can ride.

The road’s there to share, and that’s part of the problem. A big attraction of adventure riding is to get away from the overpopulated centres and overused roads, and to see those wide, open places that haunt the dreams of adventure riders everywhere – the mountain passes, river crossings, deserts and trails that even four-wheel drivers don’t know about.

But how does one – or two or three –find those places?

One way would be to grab a stack of maps and see what can be seen. Another way would be to ride to remote destinations and ask people –if you can find any.

But who has time for that?

Those who take the Adventure Challenge can log on to advridermag. com.au, decide how much time they have to spare, then choose from a plethora – yes, plethora – of possible destinations and trails. Having decided which one or two will suit the time available and the adventure the rider is looking for, it’s as easy as punching the location into the GPS, or marking it on a map, and heading on out there.

That’s all there is to it.

Once the destination is achieved, take a selfie, or have a mate shoot a pic, showing the landmark and the rider wearing the shirt, and upload it to the advridermag forum.

That’s all there is to it. That challenge is taken and conquered.

All good

The smart riders will pick off some

weekend, and those with annual leave might get together to scratch a couple off the Bucket List.

And you’re not being spoon fed. It’s up to each Challenger to work out the route. If you find an especially fantastic road, trail or section, make sure you tell everyone on the website. The aim is for us all to share great locations and awesome riding.

The idea came from Your Local Shed Market kingpin Chris Laan, purveyor of high-quality adventure-bike shelters and maker of none-too-shabby coffee in his luxuriously appointed camper.

“It just seemed like a very good concept,” BMWed Chris, scowling at some nearby ducks in desperate need of a feed.

“Too often I’ve been on trips and I’ll pull up at a pub and talk to blokes. They’ll ask where I’ve been. I tell them, and they say, ‘Gee, 20km back, if you’d turned left and gone 300 metres, there’s a spectacular lookout or waterfall (or something).’ And I’d find myself wishing I’d known that.

“And we’d find a lot of fabulous places on our rides. We didn’t know they existed, and we’d tell others about them.

“So I was wondering how we could get started on a database of unique, interesting places or roads, and at the same time, raise some money for a good charity.”

The Adventure Challenge was the answer.

Making it easy

“Often one of the hardest things about planning a ride is where to go,” Chris GSed. “You know the roads you’ve been on, and I hate being on the same

How to become a challenger

road twice. If people not only put their pics on the forum, but outline the routes they used, other people are going to find new ways to get from one location to the next.”

And where does the charity come into it?

To sign up for the Challenge you… Hang on.

That’s the next bit!

Be part of it

So how do you get involved?

First up, log on to www.advridermag.com.au and go to the forum. Chances are you’re already a member there, but if you’re not, sign up and get your member on there.

After you’ve finished saying hello to all your mates – because they’ve all been spending their work days chatting to other Aussie adventure riders when they should’ve been earning a living – go to “The Adventure Challenge”, about halfway down the page.

Click on that bastard.

Straight away you’ll see a button that links to a T-shirt order, and another button that links to the Royal Flying Doctor Service.

To sign up, click on the RFDS link and make a donation. When that’s done, click on the link to buy the T-shirt.

From there you can work your way through the pages, reading how the idea developed and who’s doing what.

The next step is to have a look at the locations, pick one, and ride there. When you arrive, get a pic of yourself with the shirt in front of the landmark.

Then, when you’re next at your computer, upload the pic to the forum, tell everyone how you got there, and brag like anything about how great it all was.

You’re a Challenger. Done.

The fine print

Not so much fine print, but just to tie up a few little loose ends because we’re having to go to print a fair way in advance of the Challenge kicking off.

As we write this, we’re in high-level, top-secret negotiation with a very large and important player in the Australian motorcycle industry. This company is looking at the possibility of slinging a few prizes in the direction of some Challengers who achieve various

Above: Log on to www.advridermag.com.au. Click on FORUM up the top there.

Above: Chris Laan, prime mover behind the Adventure Challenge, has 40 locations in NSW and he’s keen to share them with Adventure Rider Magazine’s readers.

Above: On the forum page, log in. If you’re not already a member, sign up.

Above: Click on “The Adventure Challenge”. u

A Challenging adventure

milestones, probably measured by the number of destinations they cross off. We can’t say any more until negotiations are concluded.

Everyone will no doubt want to know how many destinations there will be. We’re still not sure yet. Chris alone has 40 in NSW. Robin Box of Touratech Australia is running up a list of Victorian POIs, and John Hudson is covering Queensland. There’s likely to be a lot of possible destinations. Remember the idea isn’t for everyone to get to every destination. The idea is to offer a heap of possibilities in distance and terrain. Chris points out that all destinations can be reached in a Hyundai Getz with bald tyres. It’s up to the riders to decide how tough they want the route to be, but if they’re so inclined, it can be very easy indeed.

Also, there’s no requirement to actually be on a bike. If someone is on annual holidays with the family, and within cooee of a destination, grab the shirt and bang off a pic. That counts.

There’s no obligation on anyone to do anything except donate to the RFDS and buy a shirt. After that, riders can do a single destination for the whole year if they like. Or they might just choose the ones they’ve always dreamed of reaching. That’s up to each individual.

Get going!

So there it is. Log on and start riding. Get those pics up there and let’s see this fabulous country.

3 3 Reasons to keep Reasons to keep you on the road... you on the road...

HELMETLOK™

Designed to lock your helmet to your bike. Simply set your own 4 digit code, open the lock, slip the carabiner through your helmet’s D-shackle, attach it to your bike and lock it!

Ultra-compact, weighing in at only 570g, the MotoPressor™ can be used to inflate tyres, top off air shocks, air forks, inflate airbeds or anything else, anywhere, anytime, over and over

A puncture repair system for tubeless tyres. Simply remove the object that’s punctured your tyre, insert a plug into the puncture hole and pull the tool out of the tyre. Job’s done!

To order these and other products visit

Above: On the very first post there’s two buttons. Click on the first and make a donation to the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Click on the second and order a T-shirt.

Go through the thread and find the locations. Pick one that suits you. Click on it in Google Maps. Put the info into your GPS or

Have a ball riding to the destination/s with your mates. When you get there, get a pic of yourself with your T-shirt at the landmark. Post that pic on the The Adventure Challenge thread. Done. The more destinations you get, the bigger legend you are.

SOME OF THE BEST ROADS AREN’T ROADS AT ALL

We built the Tiger 800XC to be just like the Tiger 800, but with a little bit more.

Using the rugged Tiger 800 as a starting point, we added a pack of special o -road equipment so you can keep on going when you run out of tarmac.

Mongolia

Top: The crew. Denise, the author, is third from the left.

Below: Mighty Mike Britton led the way. Those are yak in the background ignoring him.

You might think riding Mongolia would be all about temples, eagles, the Gobi and 2500km of off-road tracks uninterrupted by fences. You’d be right, except it’s all that and so much more. Ex-pat Aussie Denise Bentall joined a Britton Adventures tour to find out first-hand.

Relieved to survive the erratic traffic of Mongolia’s capital

Ulaan Baatar, local lead rider Munko shot off the four-metre

steppes of Mongolia. Instead of choosing a more sensible line I braced myself for the descent and remarkably stayed on. Rachael, my daughter, thought: ‘Mum made that look easy’ and followed.

That started the wonderful 17-day adventure.

Wolfman

Bikes used were 2010 WR450Fs and WR250Fs, with lowered KLX250s provided as requested for the ladies. Terrain was mostly off-road tracks, with speeds up to 90kph. Gravel, sand, river crossings and rocky roads full of potholes all offered plenty of fun, challenges and flat tyres. Auckland rider Murray set the record by getting

two flat tyres at once after “hitting a clay bank”. Whatever.

Trip leader, Mighty Mike Britton from NZ-based Britton Adventures rode as sweep, changing wheels or making repairs in a flash with assistance from the awesome Mongolian backup crew.

Munko, the human GPS, led the way and set the pace with the cornerman system in place to avoid anyone getting lost and having to beg to spend the night in a local ‘ger’ – felt-lined tents favoured by the Mongolian nomad tribes. Tradition has it the locals will take you in for the night if necessary, but they don’t speak a word of English. Riders were warned to be wary

Words and images: Denise Bentall

of ger dogs as their role is to protect the stock from wolves, and they can be aggressive. None of the group was keen to risk a bite with rabies present in Mongolia, although Bogy, the local interpreter, was happy to let a wolf pup chew his hand.

Top right: The ger is a warm and comfortable shelter…even if the mattresses were sometimes a touch hard.

Above: Laying the smack down, Mongolian style.

Below: This could be any one of 100 places on the ride. The views were always spectacular.

Kitchen whizz

There were a few glitches getting used to the cornerman system. Mike chased a couple of mavericks who missed a turn, but eventually was forced to return without them. The pair were mopped up by the Mongolian crew down the track, turning up a little late for our gourmet lunch next to a Turkish monument dating back to the Ottoman rule.

Boldera, Mongolia’s answer to Nigella Lawson, had been talked into cooking for the trip and she served

up excellent lunches in the dining marquee set up especially each day. The marquee was transported to each location by UAZs, Russian 4WD vans, nicknamed ‘Ivan Delicas’ due to their heritage and resemblance to certain Mitsubishi vans.

Sweet revenge

The second day’s ride started with a blast in some sand dunes. Steve had his only off for the trip, and I discovered that ‘she who hesitates is lost’ on the lip of a steep dune.

That was followed by a two-hump camel ride. Rachael jumped on a pony for a quick gallop, and then it was some great off-road riding to the ancient capital and monastery of Chinggis Khaan and a photo shoot holding a hunting eagle. What a great way to start the trip!

In a ger camp that night we were treated to an amazing throat-singing concert and a 13-year-old u

Anywhere else in the world this would be an incredible, romantic scene. On the Britton Adventures tour of Mongolia, it was like this most nights. The marquee travelled with the group as a dining hut.

Top: None of a sheep is wasted. Boldera’s cooking up some sheep offal, but the Westerners were served more traditional cuts of mutton.

Above: Preparing food is a communal and very efficient process.

contortionist. Wow! These guys are talented musicians.

It turned out they weren’t such talented cooks...but as Angela said, you don’t come to Mongolia for the food. Vodka and Bordeaux wine proved to be able digestive assistants throughout the trip.

We were looked after amazingly well, riding through lovely valleys dotted with ger (the plural of ‘ger’ is ‘ger’) and

grazing herds of horses, sheep, yak, cattle and goats, usually tended by young boys without helmets or shoes riding bareback.

Arriving at the lunch marquee, we’d park our bikes, remove dust moustaches with wet wipes and tuck into restaurant-produced cream-ofmushroom soup, frozen and brought along in the Ivan Delica’s chest freezer. This was followed by burgers and a variety of chocolate bars guaranteed to foil any hope of losing a couple of kilos from all the extra exercise.

Crew

The backup team of Mongolians

There was plenty of animal life throughout the whole ride.

included: 60-year-old mechanic, triple Mongolian motocross champion and ex-policeman Buayan; Russian-military trained LandCruiser owner/driver Bold – who amazed us with his ability to look perfectly crisp and clean the entire trip despite sleeping in his car each night; and Tsegy, Ivan Jeep driver and next year’s lead rider.

The 4WDs used roads to keep up and be on hand in case of injury or mechanical problems, and to transport Angela Bruce, co-trip-organiser and first aider, and Bogy, trip interpreter.

Other locals drove the capable old two-wheel drive ZIL Russian truck with robust suspension and dual wheels which transported a spare bike, fuel and other supplies, and acted as a hanging post for the slaughtered sheep and goats purchased by the crew to take home on the last camping night of the trip. Kev, a Beijing-based, British oil-in dustry engineer, owns the bikes and wouldn’t miss the ride each year. He proved a fascinating source of information about life in Mongolia.

Storm troopers

Most nights were spent in ger camps, traditional Mongolian nomadic round homes constructed of wooden roof poles and lattice held together with dried animal gut. The structure was covered in sheepskin wool felt and tensioned with horsehair rope. Beds were wooden with firm mattresses, and the pillows smelled of sheep and felt as though they were filled with rocks. Showers were usually hot, and mutton was served for most dinners. Some ger camps had hot pools and some had freezing lakes to take a dip. This isn’t a tour you’d recommend to girls who are into Club Med.

The camping nights were a breeze. Turning up after a

the Russian border.

hard day’s riding to find your tent set up and dinner being cooked was magic. Angela informed us that camping nights were accompanied by a traditional Britton Adventures storm each year, and this trip was no exception. We expected to wake up toasted when gunshot thunder shook our tents as the sky came alive with lightning at 3.00am.

Ewe bet!

Mongolian nomads’ summer diet traditionally consists of a variety of dairy products made from sheep or mare’s milk, Lake Khovsgol near

Far travels

Main: Another river crossing. Not too deep. No problem. Below: A Russian ZIL hauled all the clobber and the occasional sheep carcass.

including Airag, an eight-per-cent alcohol drink tasting like fizzy, fermented yoghurt, which is extremely popular.

Their winter diet consists almost exclusively of mutton, especially the fat and offal. No part of the sheep is wasted, as we saw when we watched a sheep killed for dinner. We were impressed with the communal cooperation, lack of fuss, efficient butchering and lack of waste. The whole procedure could be done inside a ger in the winter without a drop of blood being spilled.

Thankfully we Westerners scored chargrilled sheep meat for dinner. It was delicious.

Festival records

Nadaam is an annual festival made up of three competitions designed to celebrate male prowess: horse racing, in which young boys race 30km cross-country with no saddle or helmet, archery, and wrestling. Trip drivers Bold and Tsegy drove us 20km to the nearest town while the bikes were being serviced, and we were fortunate enough to see the fun. The losing wrestler walked under the arm of the winner, who then slapped the loser on the bum and victory-danced around an altar waving his hands up and down –the kind of act no Western male would be found dead performing.

One to remember

There was a fair variety of riding on the trip. Some tracks closely resembled the outback tracks of Australia, and the pothole-riddled roads were a blast.

The trip organisation was superb and riders didn’t have to worry about anything except staying on so we could

keep riding – and that was no mean feat at times.

At the end of the trip we counted 15 flat tyres, two fractures, two nasty bruises (one to Ulzy, the Mongolian backup rider), and a whole heap of fun. Everyone extended themselves, blasted away and had a ball. Nobody wanted the days to end.

There was some dispute as to what constituted a fall, it being generally accepted that one’s legs should be astride the bike at the time of falling to qualify, but everyone came off at least once, and the record of six offs went to…well, you know – what happens on tour stays on tour.

This ride was a favourite. Every single day was an adventure with great trail riding, no fences, beautiful scenery, herds of animals grazing freely, companionship, lots of laughs, fascinating cultural experiences and being looked after like royalty.

We wouldn’t have missed it for the world!

It wasn’t necessary to be particularly good at riding hills.

Adventure

Touratech: $788

Wunderlich: $415

Motohansa: $309 Light Set

Touratec: $115

Wunderlich: $102

Motohansa: $79

Touratech: $496

Wunderlich: $454

Motohansa: $279

Touratech: $599

Wunderlich: $454 Motohansa: $309

Andy White

There’d be very few Australian adventure riders, on- or off-road, who weren’t familiar with Andy Strapz gear. Starting with a high-tech strap back last century, Andy, the man who loves the letter ‘Z’, has built an enviable reputation for offering high-quality product that’s been thoroughly tested and proven. A big part of Andy’s well-deserved reputation stems from his insistence on personally testing every product he offers in real-life riding situations. If it doesn’t work for Andy, Andy Strapz won’t sell it. AdvRider Mag caught up with Andy himself, wringing out his merino socks, and making every rider’s adventure easier.

The Andy Strapz story starts back when Andy was an emergency nurse and needed to strap important stuff to his bike, but found the good ol’ ocky strap was a bit sub-par.

“They were the secondleading cause of permanent eye injury after playing squash,” Andy recalled. “Think about

the physics of the mass at the end of the elastic. Mass times acceleration equals force. And you pull it towards you. If they were trying to invent ocky straps now they’d never get them through Occupational Health And Safety.”

The inspiration for something as reliable, but less dangerous, came while working in

Everything Andy sells gets tested by Andy in the real, adventure-riding world.

Image: Jane Arnold

paediatric emergency in Western Australia. The hospital held patient charts together with binding of one-inch webbing and Velcro. Andy decided to put them to use attaching a pannier on his bike. They worked a treat, but there was room for improvement.

“I found 50mm-wide, flat, stretch webbing and it was just one of those ‘Eureka!’ moments,” he stretched.

Andy Strapz – the device, the shop, a logo and an entire product range – was off and running.

“It took seven or eight years, slowly building Andy Strapz to where it would support my family and staff,” Andy recalled.

“First I bought a sewing machine and taught myself to sew. That’s where we started.”

Interestingly, it came full circle about a year ago. “A hospital rang and ordered 200 straps to hold charts together,” Andy noted. “That’s about 17 years down the track.”

Trying times

Andy is a keen rider and now a retailer of high-quality motorcycle equipment, especially adventure-riding gear, and he

Andy discovered off-road adventure riding on an old Elefant. These days he loves his Triumphs. Image: Jeff Crow

knows what riders in this segment of the market want, and don’t want, when they’re on a bike facing a challenge. Once he recognises a need for something that actually works, he has the courage and conviction to make it or find it and offer it to adventure riders through his store, website, and stalls at just about every motorcycle trade show in the nation.

“I don’t know whether it was stupidity, arrogance or inventiveness that made me decide things available on the shelf didn’t really suit what I had in mind for motorcycle travel,” Andy strapped. “Everything I’d come across seemed to be designed by committee, or by people too busy to spend time on the road testing their gear.” The equipment Andy makes from scratch does the job better.

“If they were trying to invent ocky straps now they’d never get them through Occupational Health And Safety.”

Like his seat bags. “I wanted a bag I could move from bike to bike, and if I sold the bike I could keep the bag,” luggaged Andy. So I developed my A and AA Bagz.”

“It’s all about paring down to key, necessary components.”

Consider his Pannierz – all Andy’z pluralz finish with a ‘z’ instead of an ‘s’ – designed for actual riding conditions.

“I wanted a set of panniers that, should I fall off and slide down the road, I could get up and not even worry about knocking the dust and mud off, and just keep going. Heavy-duty canvas was an obvious fabric choice because it’s designed to take abrasion.”

Andy’s hard-line attitude extends equally to items he doesn’t make himself. “If I haven’t tested it and don’t know exactly how it works, I don’t want to sell it to my customers,” he stitched.

u

The extent of testing depends on the product.

“Something obviously good, like a Sea To Summit liner bag, I’ll use once or twice to make sure it lasts. I’ll jump up and down on it. I’ll pull it and tug it. The Forma Adventure Boots I probably wore for six or eight months before I committed. Some things might take a year. Until I’m happy they work as they’re supposed to, I don’t take them on.”

It was a big break for off-road adventure riders when Andy got hold of his beloved Elefant 750. “Back then they were called ‘dualsporters’,” trumpeted Andy. From then on, specific off-road adventure products came in for the Andy Strapz treatment as well.

Warm and fuzzy

Thermals are a good example of Andy’s commitment. Most are clearly not designed with a motorcyclist in mind.

“Shirts were too short in the arm, too short in the back and had the wrong neck shape to work for a bike rider. Pants had no flies. After a long ride on a cold day you have to do the Urinal Dance to get the wedding tackle out. Neck warmers had non-stretch string,

making it difficult to move your head and do head checks.”

So the thermals Andy designed allow a rider to move around on a bike, urinate and move the head without recourse to Bikram Yoga.

Andy also stocks Back Country Cuisine tucker – freeze-dried roasts, curries, pastas and desserts – that become meals for two with the addition of boiling water. “It’s stuff I’ve used,” he said. “I have one in my kit in case I get stuck somewhere. All I need to do is boil water and I can hole up for the night.

“When we’re going into serious outback country and have to watch the load on the bike, quality food is really important. By freeze-drying it, they’ve removed all the water and the majority of the weight. It still maintains nutrition and taste, and it has a really long shelf

“Everything I’d come across seemed to be designed by committee, or by people

too busy to spend time on the road testing their gear.”

life. It’s easy, convenient, tastes good and it works.”

Understandably, Andy’s always on the lookout to adapt or develop items that work from outdoor, travel and camping markets; riding is clearly the best combination of all three.

Ride-on time

Setting up and running a successful business has one fundamental flaw: it involves time. Lots of it. That can eat into your own riding time.

“Therein lies the problem,” Andy

Andy Shopz

acknowledged. “You get into something you love and you create a monster that starts taking over.”

Andy does make the time to get out and about. He has no choice. “My excuse is I need to get away and get some testing done. I went to the Alpine Rally last year. I took a week off, went into the high country and through the back of Braidwood. I saw a few people and did a few things.”

Having come from a road-bike background, Andy’s spent the last decade learning how to ride dirt and adventure bikes. “Rather than changing to a bigger bike, like the trailbike guys do, it’s all about skilling up for me,” he said. “Now I’ve got the skills to get myself into trouble, it’s time to learn how to get out of trouble.”

Andy’s bikes have grown over the years, but not by much, and there haven’t been many of them – mostly because he’s never really had “a lot of cash to splash around”. He still has the bike he got when he was 21 – a 750 Sport Ducati. “It’s glorious,” he twinned. “I just love it to bits.”

For a full selection of Andy Strapz products and stockists, visit www.andystrapz.com Desert. Coast. Whatever.

While the Andy Strapz shop is a factory and showroom in Frankston on Melbourne’s Port Phillip Bay, Andy frequently hosts a stall at or near suitable motorcycle events, and trades online. He also has a ‘core dealership group’ of three shops in Sydney and a couple in Brisbane and Melbourne

Since then he’s had “a road-going Benz, one of the old model Tigers and a 1200GS”. His current – and favourite – is a Tiger XC.

“It’s pretty flash,” Andy roared. “It does everything. The road-bike part of me will never leave – I still love the corners, the winding mountain roads, and the Tiger does that beautifully. And when the road turns to dirt, it does that extremely well as well.” According to Andy, versatility is the key: “I love mountain roads and corners, and I love dirt roads and back roads as well. Much of the time the two are connected. There’s a bunch of nice corners and 20km of dirt that separate them. I think that’s heaven.”

that stock his gear. “They’re a select group,” he franchised. “My gear is a bit left-field and needs to be understood. There’s no point just sticking it on a shelf and hoping people find it. I want to work with people who understand it, take an interest and follow through.”

BETTER PREPARED TOURATECH ACCESSORIES

Touratech offer an extensive range of accessories, engineered to the highest quality, designed and made specifically to improve your adventure. Our accessories are tested not just in the lab, but throughout the world.

Order

With thousands of accessories available, the Touratech team have the knowledge, experience and the products to make your next adventure the trip of a lifetime.

Touratech - made for adventure!

VSM DRZ400S

Lightweight adventurer

It’s not a big step to take Suzuki’s DRZ400E from being a trailbike to an adventure bike. But when someone like Vince Strang, Australia’s foremost authority on Suzuki’s DR line, elected to start with the softer ‘S’ version, we had to find out why, and whether or not the result was a good one.

Vince Strang and his DRZ400S. It’s a proven adventure package.

The 400cc trailbike has almost disappeared from the Australian landscape. There was a time when it seemed the 400 traillie was the people’s choice. It offered good, manageable horsepower, incredible versatility and light weight.

Those days are gone it seems, and Suzuki’s DRZ pretty much flies the flag for the once-popular class of bike, even though there have been innumerable occasions where the hardy little thumper has proved itself to be far more capable than the name ‘trailbike’ implies.

There’s two off-road versions of the DRZ, and it’s the E version that gets all the attention. The most noticeable difference between the E and S models is the plastic tank on the E. There are other variations, but that’s the giveaway. The S is a tad heavier, but it’s the steel tank that marks the S as the soft option.

‘E’ for enduro. ‘S’ for soft.

Strang, but true

It’s strange people think that about the two versions, because neither is an enduro bike. The model run has covered 10 years so far, and even when the bike first appeared it couldn’t have been considered an enduro bike. Now there’s bikes like the WRF, EXC and KLX, and the DRZ looks slow and timid by comparison.

Of course, the durability and comfort of the Suzuki leaves those other bikes way behind over any kind of distance, and for the multitude of riders who never front a special test, the performance is actually pretty good. It’s not competitive-enduro good, but it’s well capable on single track and smooth as on the road. That sounds like a good start for an adventure bike.

The thing is, why would anyone choose the S model over the E as a starting platform? With anyone else we’d think it was a peculiarity, but we know from plenty of experience that Vince builds great adventure bikes, and he doesn’t miss much. So we asked him, “Why the S model?”

“My preference is generally for the S model for the majority of people,” insighted Vince. “It’s got a fan on it, so you can really ride it slow, whether it be mustering or poking along in traffic or stuck on a hill. The fan helps it keep calm in the heat department a lot better.

“Also, the S has a CV carb that’s

Top right: The DRZ’s steering will seem a little quick to those used to bigger adventure bikes. The RalleMoto steering damper helps keep things on the straight and narrow.

Below: A lowering link drops the rear of the bike, so the fork legs are slipped up through the triple clamps to maintain the bike’s correct attitude.

slightly smaller than the carburettor on the E model, so it’s better on fuel, and it has a brilliant, quiet exhaust.

To me it feels like it has a similar power output to the E, but the quietness is really nice.”

“I set this bike up for my daughter to come on her first outback ride,” Suzukied Vince. “We went out west through Bollon, Thargomindah, rode the properties there for a few days, then came back through Hungerford to Inverell.”

Crikey. That’s an adventure ride, for sure.

Details

You can bet Vince won’t cut any corners when he’s setting up a bike for a family member, so let’s have a look at how he treats the DRZ.

Heavy-duty tubes are dropped inside a Michelin AC10 front and Dunlop 606 rear, and a Polisport front guard goes in place of the stocker. “It’s just a better-looking front guard,” explained Vince. A screen helps with protection from the wind and rain, and Renthal ’bars replace the low-bend Suzuki stockers, topped off with ProTaper grips, grip heaters and Acerbis handguards.

The Acerbis handguards fit the Suzuki very nicely, says Vince, and accommodate the longer levers, especially on the DR650, very well.

A Ralle-Moto under-’bar steering damper lifts the ’bars a tad and helps deal with tankslappers. The DRZ is a shortish bike by adventure standards, and the damper helps control weaving in the sand or at speed on loose terrain.

This bike also has a Talon lowering link on the rear, and the forks are raised a few millimetres in the triple clamp to keep the geometry level. That change is purely to suit Vince’s daughter, who’s not overly tall.

Right: The VSM heated grips are going to be a big bonus in the cold. u

Above right: Vince feels the Polisport front guard just looks better than the Suzuki unit. It’s a very neat fit and bolts straight on.

The fuel cell is a 17-litre Safari Tanks tank, which Vince says is really 20 litres.

“I guarantee they’re 20 litres, not 17,” laughed the Inverellian. “I think Robin (Box, owner of Safari Tanks) sells them as 17 litres so people don’t think they’re too big, but they fit this DRZ perfectly, and they’re made to accommodate the fan.”

The stock seat was replaced with a Sargent’s seat, and Vince says this was an important change.

“It’s still the same, narrow width at the front if you’re paddling or have your feet down,” he explained, “but where your bum sits most of the time it’s broader and kind of scalloped out. It tends to fit most smaller bums a lot better than the Suzuki seat.”

Suspension front and rear stays dead stock, as does the gearing (15/44), and a B&B bashplate and rack and Pivot Pegz, are bolted on.

A FunnelWeb airfilter rounds out the package.

A brand-new S model DRZ starts out at around $7900, and Vince reckons the bike we see here would cost about another $3000.

That makes for a very inexpensive adventure bike.

The

business

Inexpensive if it works, of course.

We clambered on board the DRZ ready to treat it gently and with our expectations suitably held in check.

It was a girl’s bike, after all.

The first thing to shatter our complacency was the height of the bike. After Vince saying the bike had been lowered to suit his daughter, we were a little nonplussed to feel as though we wouldn’t want the thing any taller. It’s not like a skinny, section-shredding enduro bike, but it’s not a Postie either. The height felt entirely comfortable to ‘regular’ Aussie

Left: Protection from the wind and the worst of the weather.

Bottom left: A Sargent seat offers a more comfortable perch for long-distance riding.

blokes. It’s easy to get the feet on the ground and there’s no danger of tearing a gusset while swinging a leg over, and that’s surely a big plus for a loaded adventurer.

Not only did the bike not feel short to mount and dismount, it didn’t feel as though it was short on ground clearance, either. We’d’ve been happy to steer this bike into the same ruts and rocks as we’d steer any other bike.

The next facet of the DRZ-S we’d badly underestimated was horsepower.

Because we’re so manly and really only ride ‘big’ bikes these days, we were ready for a 400cc traillee to be a bit soft in the rort department. The delivery was very smooth – as was everything about this bike – and for sure it won’t stretch anyone’s arms with its incredibly ferocious thrust, but without the rider making any effort at all the DRZ sung along at 100kph and 110kph on the tarmac. On the dirt it seemed to take less effort to go everywhere and do everything we were used to doing. The rider has to think a little more instead of just relying on a blast of throttle and wheelspin, but there’s enough grunt available to

Above: A quiet pipe makes a big difference on long rides. The differences to the E model are hard to spot.

take this lightweight package just about anywhere.

It finally dawned on us that the DRZ might have less horsepower than we’re used to, but it still has plenty for just about everything short of high-speed desert running. Because the bike’s so light, popping it over logs and ruts and steering it through tight going is a breeze.

Short shift

As Vince pointed out, the mid-size Suzi is a little tighter in the steering geometry than some, and it’s noticeable when the bike is pushed toward the upper limit of its speed. It never gave a moment of trepidation or behaved unexpectedly, but the steering is undoubtedly light and fast. The payback, of course, is on any kind of tight going. The bike is like a hot knife through butter compared to, say, the DR650.

The ergos on the bike felt brilliant. Things like the ’pegs, seat, Ralle-Moto damper, screen and ’bars make for a very high-level of rider comfort, and the motor being so incredibly easy to use

means minimal fatigue. It’s light, so it’s a piece of cake to pick up, its reliability is unquestionable, and there’s a gazillion accessories and aftermarket parts available.

And buzzing along the bitumen it’s as much at home as any dualsporter we’ve ridden.

All this for around $11,000.

That’s pretty hard to beat.

Think about it

We’ve overheard a lot of discussion lately from riders chewing over the idea of riding much smaller, lighter bikes and of the benefits they offer. They’re easier for the rider to handle, they’re far less expensive to run, they’ll do much greater distances on very much smaller fuel loads, and with the way

VSM

policing and regulation is going in This Great Country Of Ours, there’s not a lot of point in owning a bike capable of intergalactic velocities.

If you let your mind wander in that direction, and you begin feeling that a bike that’ll double as a trailbike and an adventurer would make a lot of sense, the DRZ would have to be a frontrunner. If you’ll take the advice of a seasoned campaigner who knows what he’s talking about, the S model is probably a better proposition than the more commonly fancied E model.

Think about that next time you’re trying to drag your 220kg longhauler from a creek or boghole, contemplating a 40-litre fuel load, or looking at a destroyed rear tyre you only fitted that morning.

Thanks to Vince and his entourage for roosting down from Inverell to let us ride this excellent little bike. Vince knows more about Suzuki off-roaders than just about anyone. For advice and a huge range of products give Vince Strang Motorcycles a call on (02) 6721 0610, or log on to www.vincestrangmotorcycles.com.au for more info.

Gear with a story

A few old dogs let the cat out of the bag. Some of their equipment has a story of its own.

TF’s AXO kneeguards

“Idon’t know how it happened,” thesaurused AdvRiderMag’s kneeguards in the mid-1990s sometime. I never liked them. They were never comfortable, they make me sweat like a rapist and most of the elastic straps busted and fell off maybe 15 years ago. I don’t know why, but I’m still wearing them. Any time I’m not wearing my CTi knee braces, I still wear these poxy things. They do offer great protection, and I’m at the point where I just wear them without thinking.”

Craig Hartley’s helmet

“Ihave a Shoei helmet that near rips my ears off every time I take it off,” explained the Desert Dingo. That’s all Craig told us. He doesn’t say much.

John Hudson’s camera

he APC Rally’s head honcho has a camera that seems determined to stick around.

“The first time I lost it was on a Simpson crossing,” 1190ed Homer. “I photographed a mate riding up a dune and must’ve dropped the snapper in the dust. Some time later some four-wheel drivers found it and took it back to their home in Hervey Bay. They had a look at the pics and asked a policeman friend to see if he could find the owner of the bike in the images. The copper traced the rego number on my mate’s bike and contacted him in Darwin. The mate told the copper where to find me, and the camera arrived in the mail three months after I lost it.”

Geoff Ballard’s iPhone-friendly gloves

“All my life I’ve been really fussy about gloves,” says Australia’s ISDE veteran. “In the early days when there weren’t any good gloves I hardly wore them at all, and in fact used to ride most special tests without them.

“Nowadays they’re a lot better of course, and they come with pretty thin palm material on them that I

If that’s not amazing enough, on the recent Byron BaySteep Point crossing, John snapped a couple of pics of Craig Hartley fuelling up. John put the camera on his rear guard and, caught unawares when Craig roosted off, roosted off after him, once again dumping the Panasonic in the desert dust.

A few kilometres down the trail Hartley realised he’d lost a loose fuel cap and the pair went back looking for it. The cap was found, and lying within a few metres was the forgotten Panasonic.

really like, but I still go crazy with my old, worn-out favourites.

“Here’s my current adventure riding gloves and they’re just ‘ripe’ and in their prime! I just love ‘em!

“And bugger me if they don’t work fantastic when I pull up to check out what’s happening on my iPhone.”

What about the chills of winter, we wondered?

“With the double-up ‘softie specials’,” grinned GB, “I use heated grips as well as hand covers. I’m soft, but I can feel everything!”

“G’day,” e-gibbered Anton Seifert, a self-employed chippy from Adelaide.

“The storms were chasing us on the 13th day of the APC Rally. We were 60km west of Tilpa, NSW, and turning south to Ivanhoe.

“The locals said the night before, ‘Don’t turn west if it’s been raining overnight.’ Luckily for us the rain was a few hours behind. One of the guys running a day after us broke his leg on the wet, black clay that arvo.

“The rain finally caught us just before Narrandera that same day.”

Anton scores an exclusive Adventure Rider Magazine polo for this rip-snorter image. If you have an image you’d like to share, email it to tom@advridermag.com.au with your details and some brief info about the pic.

Battlestar fantastica

Building a serious long-distance tourer will drive most people to look at BMW first up. Rob Dunston at Sydney’s specialist BMW service centre Motohansa looked at the new R1200GS, looked at the gear on his shelves, got all excited and started building like a madman. The bolt-on Bavarian might sound like a big handful, but that’s because it is. A big handful of luxury and protection.

Before everyone starts e-mailling and going crazy on forums, we know this bike isn’t for everyone. No bike is. But even more than a straightup, long-distance tourer, the Motohansa R1200GS as you see it here would be a very specialist item. That’s not to say the individual protection and comfort features won’t have a place for the majority of R1200GS owners – or BMW owners in general in a lot of cases – but to have the whole lot set up on one bike is a big commitment. And that’s what this GS is all about. If you’re making the commitment to ride across a dozen European countries or around This Great Country Of Ours on an extended trip, living off the bike and heading to places where you don’t know who or what you’ll find, this is probably exactly what you’re looking for.

Lockdown

The bike itself is the R1200GS that Motohansa top banana Rob Dunston rode in both the GS Safari and GS Safari Enduro in 2013. It’s a hell of a bike with a superb, unbelievable motor, good suspension, and a bewildering array of electronic functions and readings. Watching all the menu pages and their variations flick over is like an extended scene from The Matrix 12: Morpheus eats

Main: For long-distance, hard-core adventure, this is the rig you want.

Right: Lots of luggage and lots of protection. Not much bling. Bottom right: The crash protection was excellent. We know. We put it to the test.

Moss. There are rider aids with varied settings up the wazoo and gauges, readings, and warning lights for everything including tyre pressure.

The stock, naked bike is a fabulous longdistance runner and a huge pleasure to ride, so it’s a great platform to build into a pukka tourer.

With a massive inventory of accessories and service options at Motohansa, we wondered how Rob knew where to start when he decided to build the bike. And when to stop.

“We looked at what we see as the functional items that improve the overall ‘usability’ of the bike,” chugged Rob. “Obviously the panniers are a no-brainer. This is a great, locking pannier system with top-loading boxes and a good quick-connect system.

“Luggage is prerequisite if you want to go touring, and protection is probably the next priority. Radiator guards are paramount, and along with the crash bars and a headlight protector are probably the three big protection items. A headlight for this bike is something like $2000. Are you going to run around without a headlight protector? Probably not.

“After that you go down to things like your sidestand enlarger.”

Not only is the protective gear functional, it looks good. We said so.

“SW Motech doesn’t tend to do much bling at all,” said Rob. “They tend to do only functional stuff. Probably the only thing Motohansa put on the bike that maybe could be put in the ‘bling’ box was the Arrow exhaust. I don’t think it provides a big improvement in performance, but it probably looks a bit better, it’s lighter than the stocker, and it gives the bike a bit of a growling note,

and a lot of riders like that,” muffled Rob.

“It’s a serious touring bike. If you want to cover serious distance around Australia, you clip the hard luggage on and off you go. If you want to go off-road for something like the GS Safari or Enduro, you clip the panniers off and you’re ready. The bike has all the protection gear it needs.”

Adventure Rider Magazine is always up for a challenge, and that sounded like a challenge to us. Would that protection gear be worthy of its name?

Packing

it

Mounting up on the Beemer is a serious proposition in itself. It’s a big hua. The panniers and top box give the impression of a large chunk of bike behind the rider, and the screen and tank don’t do anything to alter the overall impression of bigness.

Alongside that goes the wide, comfy seat, lots of leg room, an upright seating position and very nice spread of ’bars that has a rider feeling as though 500km between stops would

Above: The panniers and top box have great access and are surprisingly light. Just make sure your mates don’t all chuck their gear in there when you’re not looking.

A headlight with a price like that one deserves a guard.

be fine. Grip heaters were included, of course, but with the temperature nudging 30 degrees as the R1200GS nosed out on to the bitumen, we really didn’t give the grips too much thought.

It’s worth pointing out that the bike itself doesn’t feel wide or large on the road. The cylinders feel as though they might be a whisker higher and tighter to the bike than the air-cooled boxer-twin, but we’re not certain if that’s the case. It was just a feeling.

On the tarmac the bike just works. It sits solid and steady, the cruise control and screen leave the rider free of distraction and able to enjoy the scenery and the smooth running. The bitumen world is a very, very pleasant place. SWM auxiliary lights meant sunset at the other end of the day didn’t matter a damn, and thanks to the huge storage capacity there was no comfort stone left unturned when it came to jammies, clean socks and jocks, reading material and all the comforts of home.

It wasn’t long before the big girl was on the dirt, and with a motor as good as this one, every turn was a delight. Cracking the throttle open let the

rear come around a little –we were on the ‘Enduro’ setting with the ‘hard’ option –and blast the whole shooting match straight down the next section.

the rider, right down to the Pivotpegz and SWM gear shifter. There were quite a few guards scattered around the bike, but nothing got in the way and everything about riding the BMW was easy.

But Rob had talked about protection, so in the interests of credibility we decided to put that to the test as well.

As it turned out, the crash bars over the cylinders were gold. We thought the bike would fit through a gap, but it didn’t. As the rock chips flew, the motor roared and a sickening crunch shattered the mountain silence. The whole show ground to a halt in a fairly embarrassing position, crash bars and panniers wedged.

That was all very well, but the panniers and top box had a big pendulum effect that took some getting used to. In fact, the effect was just a little stronger than we expected, so at the first stop we had a look to see what we were carrying.

It seems all the riders thought the large luggage capacity shouldn’t be wasted. There were a couple of tool kits, a few first aid kits, a complete camera rig (the editor was shooting the story and had his camera in his bumbag, so the publisher decided there was no need for him to carry his as well), and sundry other items to which riders sullenly confessed to having stowed because “there seemed to be so much room”.

We were only trying to reset the tripmeter.

So there was a reasonable load on, even though there was still plenty of space for more. And from then on the panniers remained locked, thus showing the value of hard-pannier security. The thing about that is, the bike towed the load like it wasn’t there. It was only on change of direction it could be felt. Considering the clobber on board, we were impressed by that.

Testing. One. Two. The comfort was exceptional. This bike was really nice for

Now here’s the point: Of course we didn’t hit the gap hard, but even a fairly gentle nudge on a cylinder from a rock wall, boulder or tree stump can be a serious issue. In this case, the bars took the stress and the motor and vitals were completely untouched. After the AdvRider Mag crew sweated and strained to haul the bike over the boulder by main force, it was only a touch of the button – and a few harsh words to the editor who was riding the bike at the time – to have the bike back on the pace, charging hard and leaving the sweating, whinging princesses behind.

That’s what good crash protection can do for you. In fact the bars themselves still looked in good shape, we thought. We hoped Rob thought so too when he saw them.

We didn’t put any stress on the radiator guards or sump guard, but knowing SW Motech gear could cope with that kind of abuse let us relax and enjoy the challenges as they appeared.

Falling for it

One item on the list was a really good-looking enlarger for the foot of the sidestand. We’d like to rave about this feature, but to be honest we didn’t really put it to the test. The rocky terrain meant things were fairly stable most of the time. We did drop the bike

Right:

off the stand several times during clumsy panic attacks to get photos of fallen riders – for the benefit of you readers, of course – and once again were impressed with the way we couldn’t find any evidence of damage when the bike was back on its wheels.

We feel as though we gave this BMW a very fair run and treated it as would most owners who set up a bike this way, and not once during our test did the bike look as though it was threatened with any real damage. Features like the heel protector and gear shifter weren’t immediately obvious, and that’s probably an indicator of just how well they worked.

So we reckon it’s a great set-up for serious touring.

Here’s a rundown of the fittings:

SWM crash bars

Trax pannier system

v Trax top case

v SWM gear lever

v Pivotpegz

v SWM Fenda Extenda

v Brake guard

v Heel guard

v SWM auxiliary lights

v SWM headlight protector

Custom made sheds at “kit” prices-delivered Australia wide. We supply all plans and specifications for council approval

Today, you can see 100’s of the same model of bike but they will all be optioned and set-up differently to suit the owners individual style and preferences, the final design of your shed is no different.

We do not have any “standard” designed sheds, every shed can and is ordered individually to your design. Door and window locations and opening sizes can be tailored to suit your specific needs.

Radiator guards are another must-have for long-distance travellers, especially the off-roaders.

There you have it

v SWM radiator guards

v SWM sump guard

v SWM slide protection

Arrow slip-on sports muffler

SWM sidestand foot enlarger

If you’re going to buy a premium item – and let’s face it, no-one can argue a BMW isn’t a premium item – and you’re going to hit the road or trail, you’ll want to organise some good protective gear, and you’ll want to tune it for comfort. With the rides already on the board for this specific bike, clearly the guys at Motohansa know how to do both.

Just check the luggage each morning and make sure your mates aren’t chucking all their heavy gear in there while you’re not looking.

Last but not least, if you’re heading for serious adventure, think about packing the GS 911 diagnostic tool and the Motohansa Pro Series tool kit. With these in your panniers you can do all but an engine rebuild on the side of the road. The GSs are very high-tech electronically –there’s no fuses and no way to diagnose the red warning light on the dash without the GS 911 – and they also have virtually no tool kit supplied stock. There’s nothing to change a wheel or remove a plug.

Motohansa

Thanks to Rob and the guys at Motohansa for letting us loose on their pride’n’joy. The shop these guys have in Sydney is an Aladdin’s cave for BMW owners. Give them a call on (02) 9638 4488, or log on to www.motohansa.com.au for more info.

Ol’ mate

One of the best things about our sport is the people it throws together. Here’s an AdvRider chosen at random from the thousands who read this magazine. Everyone, meet…

Scott Summerville

Q. Where’s home, Scott?

A. Born in Macksville, NSW. Now live in sunny Brisbane.

Q. What’s your age?

A. 45, I think.

Q. Are you registered on the AdvRiderMag forum? If so, what’s your handle?

A. I’m there as dirttrackbandit.

Q. What bike do you ride?

A. KTM 950SE Erzberg Special.

Q. What’s the best ride you’ve ever done?

A. Last year’s 14-day APC Rally was up there.

Q. What’s your favourite

place to ride?

A. Anywhere there’s a good pub.

Q. What do you like most about the mag?

A. Everything. I often sit at the front gate waiting for it to be delivered. It’s so awesome. I have anxiety issues waiting for it to arrive.

Q. What’s something that really peeves you on a ride?

A. Broken legs, collar bones, elbows or anything else that makes it a DNF. Other than that, nothing. Any ride is better than the best day of working.

Q. Have you ever raced or ridden competition?

A. Yes. I’m the current King

Of Mt Coree. No other results worth mentioning.

Q. Fuel-injection or carburettor?

A. Two of each, thanks.

Q. Foam or paper filters?

A. My bike has both.

Q. Goggles or visor?

A. Goggles, but I have a visored adventure helmet. I wear the goggles under the visor. I only put the visor down in really dusty conditions. When I’m hooking in it’s up so I have maximum vision.

Q. Did Steve McQueen really jump the fence in The Great Escape?

A. Yes. I think he may have jumped a few fences back in the day.

An excellent bike for getting to out-of-the-way places with minimum fuss.

Kawasaki KLR650

Don’t

think. Just ride.

What’s it all about? High-performance technology and a laptop? Or watching the sun set as you wind your way through a mountain pass, the dust thick on your visor and the thought of the day’s first cold beer making you grin with satisfaction at the distance you’ve covered and the things you’ve seen? If it’s all about the journey, the KLR650 is ready, willing and very able.

Kawasaki’s KLR is one of those bikes that’s been around, one way or the other, for a long time. It kicked off in the late 1980s and didn’t come in for any major updates until 2008. In a familiar story with bikes like this one, the long model run means costs are very low, and problems are very few.

Even the major redesign in 2008 kept the proven essentials of the bike. Upgrades included bigger diameter forks, a new swingarm and headlight,

a dual-piston rear brake, upgraded cooling system, heavier spokes and a fairing redesign. There were some other bits and pieces, but those are the main ones.

For 2014 there’s nothing major to talk about in the way of revolutionary changes, and after a couple of days on some wildly varying terrain, we’re not surprised. Why change something that’s so damn good.

Simply saying

Before some serious readers get their noses out of joint, the KLR isn’t a competitor for the high-end techno marvels leading the adventure-bike charge at the moment. It’s a very simple, single-cylinder, dual-overhead cam, 651cc, liquid-cooled four-stroke with (gasp) a carburettor, dual counterbalancers, a cable clutch and one of those trip meters where you push the button on the speedo and all the numbers roll around to zero. About the only thing it doesn’t have from the Old School of design is a kick start.

By today’s standards it’s a very simple motorcycle.

And that’s one of its greatest attractions.

Just the good bits

The motor sounds simple because these days we all spend a lot of time looking at very involved electronics. The KLR doesn’t have things like fuel injection, selectable ignition maps, electronic suspension adjustment or even a digital clock. Or a clock at all. The forks are 41mm right-side uppers and the shock is a basic unit with adjustable preload and ‘stepless rebound clamping’ adjustment.

We don’t actually know what stepless rebound clamping adjustment is, and you know what? We don’t care. We climbed on that bike, touched the button, made sure it was running – it’s a smooth, quiet little puppy – then roosted off. That’s it. On other bikes we might’ve selected all kinds of technical variables, scrolled through menus on multi-function dashes and made sure we had every thing right to suit the weather or the trail surface. On the KLR we spent that

time cruising effortlessly up the Bells Line Of Road, dashing along rocky, mountain trails or even plunging knee-deep across crystal-clear creeks. And if the rear wheel started to spin we backed off the throttle a little bit. If the wheels locked, we eased up on the brakes. When we dropped it we just grabbed it and heaved it upright again without any special, ergonomically approved methods or intricate lifting systems.

Does it sound a little basic? You bet. It’s you, your bike and the world under your wheels. It’s what a huge number of riders go looking for when they think ‘adventure’.

Seat of the pants

First impressions of the KLR probably don’t happen any more. The bike’s been around so long that most people will already have a fair idea of what to expect. Even so, we couldn’t help but be struck by the quality of the paint and the finish in general. The shimmery green of our test bike was eye-catching as the sun played across it, and while we don’t think it looks all that great in photos, it’s quietly impressive in real life.

The screen provides good protection from windblast, and the simple instrumentation was very easy to read and understand.

The guys at Kawasaki fitted up our bike with a set of soft-shell luggage, and it covers up most of the tank. That was a shame from the point of view of looking sharp, but it also offered a lot of protection to that paintwork, so that was fair enough. The luggage itself was brilliant. It had the advantages of a soft luggage because it was a bit squashable, but the soft-plastic lids meant the panniers and top box held their shape, even when they were empty. Straps hold them on the bike, so it’s a little fiddley to get them on and off, but once we worked it out it was no big deal. The storage capacity was surprising, and in general, all the riders thought the luggage a big plus on this ride.

The tank bag wasn’t as well received as the panniers and top box. When empty it doesn’t hold its shape and flopped around a bit,

u

How to enjoy a dirt road: Ride it on the KLR.

Off-road test

Above: The luggage was brilliant. There was good capacity, and the soft-shell manufacture meant it held its shape, but was light and malleable.

Left: A twin-pot rear calliper! Nice. Braking was good both ends.

Left below: By today’s standards the KLR is slim. Not only that, at under 200kg it’s light as well.

Bottom right: There’s lots of little modern fittings.

but with a few small bits and pieces chucked in it soon behaved itself. The clear map pocket in the top is always a bonus, and this one is a generous size.

We didn’t test the waterproofosity of this luggage – the editor went close during a squirmy creek run, but managed to stay upright – and as skies remained blue and temperatures punched into the mid-30s no-one gave it much thought.

In general, we liked the luggage.

To buy from a dealer the gear runs at the following prices: tail bag $184.80, saddlebags $330, and tank bag $116.40. But if you snap up a KLR before the end of February 2014, there’s a deal running where Kawasaki throws in an ‘Adventure Pack’ for free. All the luggage we have here is included, as well as a taller screen.

How frigging awesome is that!

Soft option

With the bike off and running there are a couple of impressions that can’t be avoided.

The first is that the bike is really comfortable. It’s very smooth and very quiet. The dirt-bike style seat – with no step up to the pillion seat – is awesome for those who like to move around a little, and the fairing and screen mean the rider is well protected from annoying wind blast. Riders over about 180cm tall might want to look at some way of

raising the lip of the screen, but in general rider comfort is excellent. Even the handlebar/seat/footpeg relationship should have riders of average Aussie heights feeling pretty good about things.

The next thing most riders will notice is a very tame power output.

We think this has more to do with current trends toward marketing big-horsepower motors, because although we didn’t measure it, this motor felt very respectable for a carburetted, 650cc single. We didn’t once feel we were hampered by a lack of power delivery, and no doubt there’ll be plenty of tuners ready to give advice on how to wring more from the donk. We’d think very hard before doing any work of that kind. The reliability of the KLR is legendary, and we wouldn’t be keen to diminish that. The pipe isn’t very attractive to look at, but geez it’s quiet, and it’s mostly hidden anyway. The CV carb does its job.

Nah. We’d just ride it like it is, and enjoy the simple pleasure of it all.

Good to go

It kind of feels like we’re dodging an in-depth test here, and not telling you all the intricacies and technicalities of the KLR, but honestly, we didn’t pay much attention to those things. We enjoyed riding the bike so much we just didn’t care how it was doing what it did. The suspension only came to mind because it was surprisingly good. On the road it allowed for some fairly precise line selection, and with good braking feel the KLR holds a pretty tight line on bitumen. Off the road we were again surprised at how well the suspension coped. We didn’t load the bike up for a big trip, but just as it stood with a couple of pairs of jocks, a camera or two and a few tools on board, it handled some rocky, crappy trails without being unpredictable and without crunching or smashing its way off into the trees. It bottomed out from time to time, but so did every bike on that ride. The lack of adjustment didn’t worry us because the bike worked.

Interesting!

There were a couple of quirky things that are worth a mention.

The first is that you don’t need to pull in the clutch to start the bike.

If it’s in neutral, just hit the button. If it’s in gear, nothing will happen. No problem. If it’s in neutral and safe, brrrm! It purrs into life.

The footpegs look like they belong on a road bike. They even have little hero pegs hanging off them.

As far as we could tell, they’re one piece and have a rubber surface as slippery as an ex-union secretary with a credit card when they’re wet. Changing them means changing the whole ’peg.

Kawasaki KLR650

We’re struggling a bit with this one, but the KLR feels slim by comparison to a lot of today’s adventure bikes. And quite light, too.

No. Really. That’s how it felt.

Just do it

Above: The ’pegs were one of the very few things about the KLR we’d need to change. They’re comfortable as all getout, but as soon as there’s any moisture at all around they get very slippery.

Top right: Photos don’t do the paintwork justice, and the tankbag covers things up, but it’s a great-looking bike.

It’s not that we don’t enjoy the performance modern bikes and leading-edge technology offer us these days, it’s just that the KLR made us feel we’d reconnected with the uncomplicated pleasures of adventure riding again. We didn’t think about performance or making sure we weren’t forgetting to use some feature the bike had to offer. We found ourselves noticing the clarity of the water in the creeks, how good the sun felt belting down on our backs, and wondering whether or not the overnight stop would have TV.

For us, that’s adventure riding at its most basic. Maybe that’s even adventure riding at its best.

That’s the KLR.

Engine type: Liquid-cooled, single-cylinder, DOHC, four-valve, four-stroke

Displacement: 651cc

Bore/stroke: 100.0mm x 83.0mm

Compression ratio: 9.8:1

Fuel system: CVK40 carburettor

Ignition: CDI

Final drive: Chain

Clutch: Wet multi-disc, manual

Starter: Electric

Lubrication: Forced lubrication, wet sump

Transmission: Five-speed, return

Final drive: Chain

Frame: Semi-double cradle, high-tensile steel

Front suspension: 41mm telescopic fork

Rear suspension: Bottom-Link Uni-Trak with fiveway adjustable preload and stepless rebound clamping adjustment

Brakes front: Single 280mm petal disc with twin-piston calliper

Brakes rear: Single 240mm petal disc with twin-piston calliper

Fuel capacity: 22.1 litres

Length: 2295mm

Width: 960mm

Height: 1350mm

Seat height: 890mm

Wheelbase: 1480mm

Ground clearance: 210mm

Kerb mass: 194kg (including full tank of fuel and all fluids at correct levels)

Triumph Tiger 1200 Explorer Lay back and think of England

Did you ever dream of a chance encounter with a happy, young, British girl? She’d be playful, strong, and have a silky smooth complexion, a firm rear end, and the love of a shaft that would drive a man insane right up until he collapsed in an exhausted, pleasured-to-the-end heap. That’s what it’s like riding the Triumph Tiger 1200 Explorer. British it may be, but it’s no bulldog.

From the ground up

The Explorer isn’t a new addition to the Triumph line-up. It was introduced in 2012 with a new three-cylinder, liquid-cooled, fuelinjected, 1215cc motor that was built specifically for this bike. What’s new for the Explorer is the spoked wheels. Previous models had mag wheels, and the new arrangement offers stronger and lighter tubeless units. Although it’s clearly a ‘big brother’

Image: Jeff Crow

Above: A wealth of information at a glance. We weren’t really revving it to 12,000rpm for this pic.

Right: Bashplate, tank pad, headlight protector, hand guards and crash bars are all part of the bonus kit included in the price. Panniers are included as well, but weren’t fitted for our ride. The promotion with the bonus gear was due to finish at the end of December 2013, but all the parts will still be available as optional extras.

was expected to finish at the end of December 2013, so check with your dealer. The items are all available as optional extras as is an Arrow pipe.

First and second aid

to the Tiger XC, the Explorer uses an incredibly smooth shaft drive, driveby-wire and cruise control. The bigger capacity offers 135 horsepower in its 258kg package, and there’s no doubt it bears more than a passing resemblance to the 800.

The horsepower is one thing, but the torque delivery is another. Around 121Nm is a lot of drive, but it’s the linear delivery that’s so remarkable. It’s astonishingly smooth.

The seat and cockpit in general are generous, and Triumph says the bike was designed with two-up, longdistance riding in mind. We can believe that. It’s a very comfortable bike under those conditions, and included bonus features as we write this are a tank pad, headlight protector, handguards, engine-protector bars and alloy bashplate. A two-box pannier kit goes to anyone buying an Explorer as well, but we didn’t have them on board for our test ride, and the promotion

We’re seeing a lot of electronic rider aids on the big dualsporters lately, and some companies have them better sorted than others. In the case of the Triumph, there’s a couple of traction control settings, switchable ABS, and it’s probably fair to include the cruise control in this category.

As usual, the default setting is with the traction control at its most aggressive and the ABS on. This isn’t

The XC heritage is

apparently an ADR requirement, and it’s a bit of a pest. Still, selecting the settings is easy enough. It’s the push of a button, a selection using a rocker switch, then pressing the button again. It takes a few seconds, but it’s still a bit annoying to have to do it every time the ignition is switched off.

The default settings are fine on the bitumen. The ABS works well and seldom comes into play, and the traction control doesn’t matter much unless the road’s wet – or you’re a knucklehead journo trying to get all Marky Marquez with the horsepower. In either case it’s the best thing you can have going for you.

On the dirt the default setting for the

easy to see.

Off-road test

traction control is just a touch intrusive, and it can be a real hindrance on any kind of dirt hill, even a gentle one.

Flicking to setting number two gives a far more realistic dualsport result, and turning the traction control off makes the whole world a fun place.

We quickly settled on automatically turning the traction control off and leaving the ABS on every time we started the bike. If we found ourselves at the top of a hill, quietly soiling our Triumph touring pants because of the descent, it was easy to turn the ABS off. The rest of the time it was a welcome helper when things got tough.

Take a seat

There’s a bewildering array of information available from the multi-function LCD displays, and getting to something as simple as the

trip meter took a long session of study with the manual. Once we saw the flow chart it all made perfect sense, but until then we had no idea what the hell we were being told. But with that sorted the rider’s free to think about the more visceral, tactile aspects of the Explorer…the way it feels, if you like.

The first impression as the bum hits the very comfortable seat is that the tank is a tad wide. It is actually the tank on this bike, with the airbox underneath, and thanks to the sacrificial plastics on each side it seems to be broad. It’s a false impression though, and it’s heightened by the rest of the bike being so slim. The three-cylinder motor seems to take up less room than most twins we remember, and the bike feels very easy to move around and shimmy through tight turns.

The plastic protectors that add the width to the tank are clever work on Triumph’s part. They’re intentionally wide enough to protect the steel tank, and when they’re eyed in, they’re no

Top left: An amazing shaft drive. Super smooth and pretty much undetectable from the rider’s point of view.

Left: Selection of the various functions and data displays is very simple and all done from the left-hand switchblock. The blinkers are self-cancelling, which is a nice touch.

Right: Overall the bike feels very slim, and that makes the tank seem a little wide.

It’s not, though. Plastic ‘wings’ on the side are there for protection, and after some real-life testing, we can say they work well.

wider than other fairing parts around the front end. Even though all the bikes on our ride were dropped, there was no damage to the tanks on any of them, and to be honest, we couldn’t see any damage that would justify replacing the plastics either. If that were necessary, the protective panels are around $20, and that’s a whole lot cheaper than even a small repair to a tank.

The seat has the easiest height adjustment in the known universe. Just flip the two rubber-strapped stops to the alternative notches to gain or lose 20mm, and there are accessory seats that’ll give taller or lower heights for those who need them.

For most riders the seating position will have backs fairly straight, the cockpit nice and open, the rider himself well sheltered behind the screen and flared design of the front, and anything from a run to the servo to a run across the Nullarbor will be a very pleasant and low-fatigue exercise.

Less wire

Ride-by-wire might seem a bit of a gimmick, but on this bike it’s a big asset.

We mentioned earlier how the torque

delivery from this motor was so remarkable. It’s incredibly linear, and the motor is wonderfully responsive and predictable. Rolling on the throttle from around 2000rpm feels the same as rolling on the throttle from 4000rpm or 6000rpm. It’s all amazing, seamless drive, and when there’s that much horsepower churning the rear wheel, having a throttle as exact and responsive as this one is awesome. AdvRider Mag’s staffers were able to hold some impressive corner speeds and tackle some perilously loose surfaces thanks to the precise and predictable nature of that throttle.

The cruise control is true cruise control, and by that we mean it slows the bike on downhills and speeds it up on ascents, and that makes freeway running a piece of the proverbial.

While we’re talking about varying speeds, braking is good both ends. The Nissin four-spot at the front was a little aggressive at the first touch of the lever, but it was never a problem, and the rear is strong with good feel.

Bouncing back

KYB suspension front and rear was interesting because our first impression was that it’s too soft at both ends.

The test ride started off-road, and with genitals fully

engorged thanks to the fabulous motor and final drive, we slammed the front into every tree root, rut, puddle edge and log on 300km of dirt.

Triumph Tiger 1200 Explorer

As we settled into the bike, we began to take in the scenery and without realising it we slowed down to a realistic dualsport pace. The front still had a tendency to bottom out on hard edges, but in general, we’d say the suspension was good for the way this bike is intended to be used. It kept the backroads smooth and allowed the rider plenty of control, but most of all it was a very plush ride. There was no wallowing or unexpected behaviour, and by the end of the ride we thought the suspension was actually pretty sensible for the bike’s intended purpose. Personal tuning aside, it’s a good set-up for a dualsporter expecting to do plenty of dirt road and big distances.

The adjustment on offer is preload only, but we think that’s sensible, too. Preload is the adjustment everyone should expect to play with as loads vary, and both forks and shock are dead easy. There’s a winder on the top of each fork leg and a big knob to twist for the shock.

All up

We could go on about the Explorer for a long time. It’s super smooth, the motor and drive train are sensational, it’s comfortable and a rage to ride.

Engine Type: Liquid-cooled, 12 valve, DOHC, in-line three-cylinder

Displacement: 1215cc

Bore/Stroke: 85.0mm X 71.4mm

Compression ratio: 12:1

Rated output: 137PS (135hp) at 9300rpm

Maximum torque: 121Nm at 6400rpm.

Engine Management: Ride-by-wire fuel injection

Exhaust: Stainless-steel, three-into-one, side-mounted, stainless-steel silencer

Final drive: Shaft

Clutch: Wet, multi-plate

Oil capacity: Four litres

Starter: Electric

Fuel tank capacity: 20 litres

Transmission: Six-speed

Frame: Tubular-steel trellis frame

Swingarm: Single-sided, cast aluminium-alloy with shaft drive

Front suspension: KYB 46mm upside-down forks. 190mm travel

Rear suspension: KYB monoshock with remote oil reservoir, hydraulically adjustable preload, rebound damping adjustment, 194mm rear-wheel travel

Length: 2248mm

Width (handlebars): 962mm

Height (without mirrors): 1410mm

Seat height: 840mm/860mm (adjustable)

Wheelbase: 1435mm

Brakes front: Twin 305mm floating discs, Nissin four-piston calipers, Switchable ABS

Brakes rear: Single 282mm disc, Nissin two-piston sliding caliper, switchable ABS

Wet weight: 258.5kg

The shaft drive hasn’t come in for a mention because it’s hard to remember it’s there. There wasn’t a single moment where we felt the bike’s behaviour affected by the final drive. If we hadn’t seen it, we’d’ve assumed a chain was doing the bizzo. It’s a big bike, but so are all the other bikes in this class. The motor is a gem, it handles well, the comfort level is extremely high, service intervals are a whopping 16,000km, and let’s not forget it’s a Triumph. That alone will be recommendation enough for most buyers, and after the XC and now the Explorer, it’s enough for us too.

Image: Jeff Crow

KTM

700RR

Are you ready for this?

KTM’s 690 is a weapon. Straight off the showroom floor it offers seriously good performance in pretty much every parameter where performance is measured. With a great deal of research and some very precise, high-powered fabrication, an Aussie company has come up with a rally kit that’ll have the 690 ready to lay waste to the type of longdistance, hard-charging that rally racing needs. The best bit is, it’s a smooth, comfortable distance runner for ‘ordinary’ riders as well.

Craig Hartley’s been around a while. He’s done a few Safaris, a jabillion enduros and cross-countries, and ridden across the Wide Brown Land a few times. There aren’t too many people who can handle a seriously heavy, big-horsepower off-roader as well as Craig.

Darren Wilson has a few runs on the board as well. He’s ridden a Safari, done a heap of adventure riding and loves trailriding. He’s built some really nice bikes and has a love of beautifully finished manufacture that not too many people would match. He likes building bikes.

So when the two of them team up to design and build a rally kit, there’s a reasonable certainty that on the one hand, it’ll be functional and designed to do the job, not just look the part, and on the other hand it’ll be a seriously

undies-stretching, drooling-from-thecorner-of-the-mouth object of lust.

And that’s what we found on a stormy Queensland afternoon, ready to take the Horizons Adventure Rally Designs 700RR – Craig and Darren’s designation for their kitted-690 creation – for a blat.

We’re still drooling, and even now we won’t be able to stand up from behind the desk until the office girls have left the building.

The kit

Before we get into the bike itself, here’s the deal: a customer can buy the HARD 700RR kit you can see here and fit it straight to their 690. Or they can buy the kit, and Dalby Moto will do the fit to the customer’s bike. Or, a customer can write a cheque and pick up a brand-spanking new bike,

Right: Craig Hartley knows a thing or two about setting up desert racers and rally bikes, especially KTMs, and his input shows on the 700RR.

Main: Balance and general handling are really excellent. We rode the bike with tanks about half full.

already fitted with a HARD 700RR kit. The new-bike warranty is still good, and there’s room for personalisation in the choice of pipe, instrumentation, seat, ’bars and just about any other variable a bike can offer. The price will depend on what the customer asks for, but as a general guideline, the kit alone runs at around $6000, the kit fitted to a customer’s bike $6500, and a new, kitted bike, around $21,800 plus on-road costs

(which can vary a tad from State to State).

And what’s in the kit? Here’s the rundown:

v Fibreglass fairing

v Carbon-fibre dashboard

v Carbon-fibre/Kevlar bashplate

v Carbon-fibre tank guards

v Purpose-built Nomad Tanks

v All mounting brackets, electrical components and wiring, and all fuel hoses, taps and joiners

v The downpipe header as far back as the muffler

v Hella rally-style headlights

Mechanically the bike is the stock 690. That’s a big platform to start from.

Smoove

We’ve ridden rally bikes before and they can often be front-end heavy motherfudgers. They’re usually loud, difficult to turn and offer all the vision of an NRL strength trainer with a bag of ‘supplements’. So we were pleasantly surprised to find the 700 didn’t have an oversized feel. When we first snuggled in to the seat we were surprised at the narrow and roomy impression of the bike in general. It’s obviously a fair chunk larger than a standard 690 thanks to the front turret alone, and there’s a couple of small bulges between the rider’s knees where the Nomad tanks finish, but the overall impression is that it’s a tidy package. The downpipe is there behind the rider’s left heel, and the bashplate adds some width

u

Left: The tower and cockpit layout are excellent. A set of standard KTM gauges fits on, and after that it’s up to the customer. There’s lots of room.

Left centre: The front tanks are built by Mick at Nomad Tanks, and they’re superb. Like the rest of the kit, they’re beautiful work. Tough too.

Left bottom: A nice touch.

to around the bottom frame rails, but it all gives the impression of being very nicely integrated and designed as a whole. We were expecting the usual ‘bolt-on’ result where things stick out all over the place and the impression is that it’s a slim bike with heaps of stuff stuck on it. Not this bike. It really does feel as though it was designed to be like this.

The large turret limits visibility forward, a lot like the old 640 Adventures. It seems strange at first, but after a minute or two it’s forgotten, and once the rider stands up it doesn’t matter a damn.

Our test bike had heavier fork springs to suit Craig’s preference – him believing he’s really fast an’ that – but otherwise bog-stock suspension. This bike also had heated grips, and that meant a couple of extra wires running to each side, and the speedo and switches mounted on the dash let the rider know this was something different. But in a way that’s difficult to explain, it wasn’t a million miles from the stock 690. It’s going to be a very comfortable transition for current owners.

Handle it

Hit the starter, snick the 700RR into gear and hoo-aah! Life is good.

Our test area for the day offered a rocky, rutted, uphill dirt road, and it was ideal for this bike. Any mistakes meant the new 700RR was over the edge or piled into a large gum tree. There were plenty of hard-tosee erosion mounds, a few gates that sprung up unexpectedly, some puddles, and even a few four-wheel drives with scowling drivers who clearly felt this was ‘their’ road.

And the 700RR flayed them. All of them. Every obstacle was a delight, every unseen hazard was dealt with, and slewing around

oncoming four-wheel drives was a joy.

A lot of it was due to the 690 suspension being so damn good to start with, but even allowing for that, there was something very stable about the front end that’s not easy to explain. The front wheel was slamming into things and the ’bars were passing the deflections on to the rider, but somehow the whole bike just felt incredibly stable. It wasn’t just a sensibly set steering damper at work. We think it may have had something to do with the way the nav turret itself seemed to stay straight. It didn’t flex or rattle, and the harder we pushed the bike, the more the bike rewarded us with an increased feel of confidence.

The rear was good as well, but it was the front that copped the pounding during our ride, and it was astonishingly good. Perhaps we should be saying the overall balance of the bike was astonishingly good, because there’s no doubt of that.

Full tanks will change things of course, but we’re ready to back this bike’s handling integrity. It’s really bloody nice. It’s not nice like the 690, because there’s a lot more bike here, but it’s beautifully balanced, a pleasure to wind through twisting, tight dirt corners, and it seems to thrive on the hopeless, misguided pounding of flappy, no-hoper magazine wobblers with very high opinions of their own ability.

Imagine what it could do in the hands of a genuine competitor.

WYSWYG

Mechanically there’s not really a heap to talk about. The 690 motor is smooth and punchy and the Akro gave it that guarded, throaty growl that only an Akro seems to give. There are no electronic rider aids, and we admit we thoroughly enjoyed trying to keep

Main: It’s a competition-standard bike through and through. The harder it’s ridden, the more it rewards the rider.

Right: Our test bike had an Akro, but the kit is designed so that just about any pipe will fit, including the stocker. Not only does the pipe fit, it stays in close to the bike and keeps everything nice and narrow.

the motor in check and steering with the rear wheel when circumstances allowed. We didn’t enjoy soiling our tweeds as we locked both wheels and slithered toward an oncoming fourwheel drive, but we were ecstatic at how we could ease off the anchors and drive the bike hard through the full 45cm-gap the drivers begrudgingly left us. The bike made us feel so confident we were back on the throttle before we’d cleared the three-layer pearl of his rear quarter panel.

There was a quiet whooshing sound from down the front somewhere, and

we thought it may have been the knobby tyre, but on dirt it couldn’t have been. We asked Craig and Darren, but we’re pretty sure now it’s the carbonfibre/Kevlar bash-plate resonating. It’s not loud or unpleasant, but we were curious about it. That’s our best guess.

On appeal

It’s not easy to offer an opinion on a bike like this without hedging a heap of bets.

For competitors who know what they want, and who understand what rally racing is about but have a tight budget,

Top: Heated grips. Mmm…

Above: This is the kind of attention to detail that gets us really excited. The carbon-fibre fitting below the tank routes a fuel hose in the best possible way. There’s little features like that everywhere on this bike.

we suspect this bike will be a really excellent platform, but we can’t really say that for sure unless we race it.

For recreational riders it’ll definitely be excellent, as well as being the kind of bike that makes an owner proud. It’s a superb build and riding it is a huge thrill. For the APC entrants, this thing should be mother’s milk. It’ll be brilliant.

For the sightseers and general dualsporters, we still think the pleasure of being able to climb on a bike as exotic as this, and to be able to savour that hint of a genuine, dead-set rally contender, makes the 700RR a good bet. The motor is silky smooth and the handling impeccable. Perhaps the nav turret might be a little intrusive to the sightseers, but they should bear in mind that with the performance the 700RR offers, they’re going to be at the lookouts way before everyone else. They’ll have time to climb off the bike and have a look before anyone else gets there.

Rainbow Valley. NZ South Island.

Karen Ramsay Girl’s talk

Any women reading this are going to nod knowingly. Blokes, you’re probably going to disagree with me initially. All I ask is that you open your mind and realise I’m not being sexist. I’m merely revealing what I’ve observed after living with one of you for 25 years and spending time with quite a lot of you over my lifetime. The fact that this is even getting printed means both the male editor and male publisher recognise the truth. I’m sure the lovely women reading will agree that all the hairy-knuckled ones out there have been covering up the reality for too long and it’s time they were exposed (figuratively, not literally).

I hope you’ll all be man enough to acknowledge, despite years of denial, that blokes can hold their own at both shopping and talking.

Fair’s fair

Women have unfairly been stereotyped as obsessed with shopping and talking. Men are often equally unfairly stereotyped as beer-swillers who stand around scratching themselves.

I know many a female who likes their beer and is partial to scratching, but ask any man to generalise about women and he’ll probably say they love to shop and they all talk a lot. They’ll declare most women

they know can talk the leg off an iron pot, or how their wife would win gold for Australia if talking was an Olympic sport. They’ll also tell you how the women they know can spend all day at the shops and come home with a multitude of shoes/ handbags/craft items. They’ll say they don’t understand why women need any more of these when there’s already dozens in the cupboard.

I’m here to add some balance and remind men they’re equally as talented in the shopping and talking departments, and it’s about time they embraced their place on the podium beside us.

Talking the talk

Spend any time around a bunch of bike-riding men and they can, and will, talk for hours about their bikes. Not just the bike they have now, but past bikes (lost loves), future bikes (temptation) and current bikes (works in progress). Look at all the forums out there for motorcycle enthusiasts; they’re dominated by men. Even my technologically challenged husband can reply to threads, insert images and add icons, all in the name of talking about ’bikes and riding. For hours on end. Go on a ride and every time you pull up, the men will be talking before they’ve even got their helmets off. There’s

been plenty of occasions I’ve had the chance to get a second cuppa while my hubby is talking to someone who’s pulled up on a bike. I reckon a lot of times I could’ve ridden on to our next stop and set up camp while he was deep in conversation with a stranger. And I’m a particularly slow rider!

Torque talk

Before you go thinking I’m suggesting that’s a bad thing, I’m not. If men, specifically my husband, weren’t such good talkers, and didn’t love talking about bikes and rides, there are lots of places I wouldn’t have been and so many experiences I would’ve missed.

For starters, I wouldn’t have tried riding to Cameron Corner. I wouldn’t have written off my beloved BMW650GS and wouldn’t now be the happy owner of a Husqvarna Terra. I also doubt I would’ve had a go at riding in some of the challenging terrain and situations we’ve found out about by talking to other enthusiastic and passionate adventure riders. The fact men love a chat means I’ve had a wealth of fabulous adventures and met such of lot of truly lovely people. It’s a great way to share information and experiences. We’ve made friends all over the place because of men’s love of talking.

Variety shows

Women are less likely to go up to a rider they haven’t met and just start chatting. I’ve had men come up to me in the supermarket and ask about my bike, which they’ve obviously seen in the carpark.

I’m going to burst a bubble or two here, but women riders don’t stand around talking about how they’re going to have a pillow fight in their nighties when they get to their evening destination. On the whole, when we’re talking with other riders our entire conversation doesn’t revolve around bikes either. It might start there, then onto work, partners, kids, grandkids, travel, politics, health, stain removal, riding tips, shopping…all kinds of things.

My husband finds it baffling that I can go on a ride and find out nothing more about the other bikes than the brand and colour, but I know all about when they met their partner, how long they’ve been at their current job, what they did to end up in the lock-up at 22, where they’re planning to go on their next holiday, what made them support their favourite charity and a dozen other details. Perhaps that’s why we females have the stereotype as talkers, because our conversation varies so widely.

The hunt

If my husband, along with most other men I know, is anything to go by, males put females to shame in the shopping department, too.

The truth about men is that they love shopping. It probably harks back to prehistoric days when Ug and Og were off hunting mammoth. Adrenalin would kick in at the chance of a hunt. Back then it was a mammoth in the valley. Today it’s a bargain on ebay. It’s the same thing. Ug and Og could visualise how happy the tribe would be when they brought that mammoth back. Modern man can visualise how it’s going to look on his bike, how much bragging he can do about the savings he made and how much better his motorcycling experience will be with this new addition.

Hands up if you’ve ever said any of these things to justify a purchase –either to a spouse or yourself:

v “It was too big a bargain to pass up.”

v “I’ve been looking for one of these for years.”

v “It will make my ride safer/ faster/more economical/louder/ softer/better.”

v “This bloke told me it’s the best thing he’s done to his bike.”

v “It makes my bike look sexy.”

I could go on but I think most of you have your hands up already.

Priorities

A bike is never perfect. There’s always some modification to be made, some accessory to be bought, some farkle to add. (I thought ‘farkle’ was a madeup word. I would’ve washed the kids’ mouths out with soap if I’d heard that one pop out before I started to spend time around bike enthusiasts).

“You’ve bought new curtains?” a man will ask. “What are you wasting money for, woman?” Yet, the triple-dipped-in-titanium, handcrafted-overlooking-the-slopes-of-Nerberg, cost-a-week’s-wages cover for the left dooverlackie – as used in a custom build in the latest issue of his favourite magazine – is a necessity!

“I really should have got one for the right dooverlackie as well,” he’ll explain patiently, as though she should be grateful for the saving his self-sacrifice has bought them.

Join ’em

At our place, my hubby built a small room to hold all the bike gear, tools and accessories. Our car doesn’t fit under cover now with all the adventure bikes taking up space, and the courier is on first-name basis with us and the dog. We could build a retaining wall with all the bike magazines he’s bought and are now piling up around the house.

On a broader level, bike shops have to hold Christmas parties in shifts just to cater for all their customers. There’s

magazines dedicated purely to advertising motorbikes (or cars, or tractors) for sale. And they’re all aimed at men. Because people who publish and write for bike magazines know that men love to shop and to talk.

My first bike-related purchase was made a long time before I started riding. It was a copy of Long Way Round. When I bought my first bike a couple of years ago, it cost me under $2000 for the bike, helmet, jacket, gloves and boots. And I thought that would be all the money I would ever need to spend. Now I find myself wandering around bike shops, searching online, looking for things I’m sure I probably need.

So for now, I’d better shave my knuckles, and I’m off to get my testosterone levels checked. But first I have to buy some handlebar risers, order a new chain, take a look at those long-range tanks and call up a friend to find out what tyres they’re running on the weekend.

What I’ve learned

v Men can talk about bikes longer than women can talk about anything

v Men won’t remember the baby’s birth weight, your anniversary or their mobile number, but can tell you the full specs of every bike they’ve ever owned or would like to own

v The more I ride, the longer I can talk about bikes and riding, the more bike-related purchases I make and the hairier my knuckles become

v Men will always say we women talk and shop more than they do. (I think we know better now)

v Regardless of gender, everyone loves a bargain

Packing For Adventure

Words: Robin Box

Main: A well set up bike with properly distributed luggage will be much easier to handle in tough going than one that is poorly balanced.

Above: Dry bags usually strap across the back of the bike or on the seat, and overlap over on to the panniers.

Top right: Top boxes can be big and bulky, but are handy for extra storage.

Packing for adventure Luggage – Part 2

Last issue we had a look at preparation for an adventure ride, the advantages and disadvantages of hard and soft luggage, and a few key considerations in selecting panniers for specific uses. This issue we’ll look at few other types of luggage, and when and where they might be appropriate.

Top boxes

Top boxes are very convenient for bulky or light items. It’s very important that you don’t put a lot of weight in them, as any weight behind the back axle has a counter levering effect on the bike’s handling. On tar roads there’s little or no noticeable effect, but once on looser surfaces it can become a real safety concern.

All top boxes have very clear weight limits on them. Stick to the recommended weight. The manufacturer has specified this for a good reason.

Top boxes are very convenient for storage of helmets and other light items, and give valuable extra storage space on your trip.

Our advice would be that if you are doing extended adventure touring, use the aluminium, adventure-style top box, particularly where rough surfaces will be encountered.

Top boxes typically have a capacity of between 25 litres and 40 litres.

Tank bags

Tank bags have been prominent on road bikes for a long time, but have found their way more and more into the adventure market, and the dirt bike and enduro bike scene, in recent times.

What a tank bag offers is a convenient spot to carry the things you want to grab quickly – cameras, goggles, phone, wallet, and so forth, and all within easy reach.

Most of them now have a clear map pocket on the top, and this is really beneficial and is one of the key things I look for in a tank bag. The little side pockets for earplugs, sunglasses and those types of things are very useful as well.

The dual-size bags that can extend are quite useful on bigger bikes, even if you don’t use it very often. You can also use the bags as a

convenient spot to put light clothing, such as a microfleece jacket or wet-weather liner.

They need to be the type that strap on to the bike.

You’d think that having a tank bag would be a major inconvenience for refuelling, but they have quick, detachable methods, and after a while you don’t even notice them. They’re certainly not an issue when it comes to rider comfort.

It’s worth noting that very few are 100-per-cent waterproof. To a point, they’ll cope well in wet weather, but the only way to make them fully waterproof is to have the waterproof cover that goes over them – and this also has the clear top, so you can still read your map in the wet. You must put the waterproof cover on before it rains, otherwise they’ll steam up and you won’t be able to read your map.

Zip care is also very important. Zips are usually the first item that gives you trouble, so treat them carefully.

Tanks bags range in price from around $180 to $450, and can have a capacity of anything from around four litres to about 26 litres.

Dry bags

Attached to the back of your bike, dry bags are for the lightest or bulkiest items you need to carry, such as a tent or clothing for extended travel or camping. They usually strap across the back of the bike or on the seat, and overlap over on to your pannier system.

A good quality dry bag is important and the thickness of the fabric needs to be around 400gsm to 500gsm, and it must be waterproof with a roll-down top. Most have nice convenient straps and strapping points to tie down securely during travel. They can also double as a duffle bag or, at a pinch, as a backpack.

Dry bags come in various sizes, but those around 45 litres to 50 litres work well and are certainly the most popular. The monster ones – 80 litres

Above left: Many tank bags have a clear map pocket on top, and extend to allow more gear to be carried.

Left: A rain cover is essential for your tank bag in wet weather.

Packing For Adventure

to 90 litres – are bigger than most people need, even though you can compress them.

On small bikes where you’re doing more serious adventure riding, the small dry bags, in the 30- to 35-litre range, are ideal because they’re light and take up less space.

Dry bags are also good in an accident, because if you fall off it’s unlikely the bag will get damaged. It will probably be the last thing to hit the ground, but they need to be very well strapped on.

The strap systems we use are ROK Straps, which are an Australiandesigned product and they just work.

They’re a really solid, durable brand, and are also very cost effective.

Dry bags will run at prices between around $150 to $200, while ROK Staps, depending on size, cost around $5.00 to $25. Dry bags are generally available in capacities from 30 litres to 90 litres.

Backpacks

Typically in adventure riding, you’ll want to reduce the weight you’re carrying. Backpacks are convenient and some people like them for short trips, but it’s nice to not have something on your back all the time.

Being lightweight and easy to transport, they can be used for shopping bags on long trips, without

having to unpack your whole bag.

A backpack containing a hydration system can be an essential item in hot weather, enabling you to sip some fluid on the run without having to stop.

The convenience of a backpack is handy, but use it for the convenience only, not as one of the key parts of your luggage transport.

We suggest if you’re going to use a backpack, you choose one with a capacity no greater than 35 litres.

In conclusion

In the end, only you can know which luggage options will work best for you, and for the riding you’ll do. It will all depend on the wants, needs and budget of each individual rider. Choose wisely, and you’ll enjoy your next big adventure.

In the next issue of Adventure Rider Magazine we’ll move onto clothing, and discuss the riding gear and clothes that you’ll need for your trip. We actually said we’d do that this issue, but there was still some luggage to discuss, so we’ll hold that over for next time.

The Adventure Travel Film Festival

We know we’re running a little late with this, but we only just found out about it.

The Adventure Travel Film Festival is a stack of films about travelling the world and experiencing new cultures, people and places. There’s a stack of adventure movies, but we got all excited when we saw there’s a few motorcycle adventure movies being featured.

Begun in the UK three years

February 14-16, in

Bright, Victoria

ago, the Adventure Travel Film Festival is now a weekend festival founded by Brit adventurers Austin Vince and Lois Pryce.

Among the many diverse and dynamic film highlights of the 2014 festival are: African Odyssey which has four teenagers from New Zealand riding from Cape Town to London with no motorcycle experience and a borrowed camera, and a true classic The Omidvar Brothers

In 1954 Issa and Abdullah Omidvar were in their twenties and growing restless in the suburbs of Tehran. The brothers ordered a couple of 500cc Matchless bikes and set off to see the world and

make films about it. They shot incredibly sensitive, stand-alone anthropological documentaries about Eskimos, Amazonian cannibals, Polynesian islanders and much more.

Anthropological! Crikey. That must’ve been before Beta and VHS.

For the full festival program and updates, please visit: www.adventuretravelfilmfestival. com/australian-festival.

A weekend ticket starts at $95, and day passes $65. There are local hotels, campsites and B&Bs aplenty, and best of all, you get to ride to Bright!

We are SO going to try and be there! We love adventure bike movies.

Festival Founders Lois Pryce and Austin Vince.

Above: African Odyssey. Main: Belitung Island Sunrise.

A complete Öhlins DR650 shock before assembly.

Shock culture

“I’ve just bought a new bike. Why would I want to make the suspension better? The salesman said it’s perfect!”

So you have your new ride and you’re getting it ready for some big trips. You’re bolting on racks, a big tank and every accessory you can find.

How much weight did you just add to your bike? Ten kilograms? 20? 30? Is the rear suspension looking a little low now? How does it feel when you put your svelte 110kg arse on it?

Stock or aftermarket?

This is a common situation for a lot of riders, and there are a few solutions. Apart from surviving on water alone for a year and dropping your bodyweight to 60kg, you can either modify your

“You can’t fix suspension mate. When you see a bump ya’ just gotta do a wheelie.”

Honest Muzz.

stock suspension or go aftermarket.

The simplest mods are stiffer springs front and rear, followed by modifications to the damping character of the forks and shock internally. While this seems okay, some bikes come with really poverty-pack stock suspension. Modifying it can be an expensive exercise and hardly worth the expense for the result. It’s difficult to make broad strokes here as every model varies and my suggestion is to talk to a suspension expert who’ll give you honest advice.

To simplify explaining why an aftermarket shock can be beneficial, let’s pick on one bike, the adventure workhorse, Suzuki’s DR650.

Stock

The DR has been equipped with the same shock since its introduction in the mid-1990s, a Japanese KYB unit

Left top: The 40mm DR650 stock piston versus 46mm Öhlins piston, the heart of the shock.

Left: The shaft assembly of the Öhlins alongside the stock DR650. The Öhlins is totally rebuildable, more adjustable and comes with a ride-height adjuster.

Right, top and bottom: The Standard DR shock is actually higher-spec than a lot of its competitors, but the Öhlins is made from better materials, more performance-focused design and is beautifully made. That’s what you’re paying for in an aftermarket shock.

with a 40mm bore. It has some adjustability, spring preload and a compression adjuster. While it’s not a great shock, it’s actually above the stock equipment supplied on a lot of adventure bikes. The Honda NX650, Kawasaki Versys and KLR650, Yamaha Ténéré 660 and 1200, and Suzuki DL650 are all supplied with lower-spec equipment. It’s not that any of them can’t be made to work well, it just has to be done with a sensible budget and a realistic outcome in mind.

I don’t consider rebound and compression adjusters critical on an adventure bike. In the words of the great Laurie Alderton,“You don’t need 40 clicks of adjustment or 60 clicks. You just need one click – the one that works!”

It’s true that if what’s in your suspension is too far away from what you need, or the oil is on its fourth birthday, all the twiddling with adjusters will achieve little.

Words and images: Nick Dole

Suspension

Below: The Yacugar shock for Yamaha’s XT1200 Super Ténéré. You can see the larger body and shaft compared to the stock shock. It has a better dampening specification than the stocker, and like all the aftermarket shocks can be ordered with the right spring for you. The stock shock has a hydraulic preload adjuster, a nice feature and available on most aftermarket shocks.

Left: A stock DR650 shock disassembled. It’s typical of most Japanese shocks. Compare it to the opening pic, a disassembled Öhlins shock for the same bike.

Upgrade my stocker?

Renowned for being undersprung, the usual DR650 mods are a stiffer spring and some valving work. On the shock dyno the compression adjuster can be seen to be pretty ineffective, typical of its late ’80s design. While this isn’t a disaster, it does mean the shock has limited adjustability. The other option is a complete shock-shaft assembly with a rebound adjuster. While this looks good, some quick maths reveals $475 for the shaft assembly, $189 for a spring and a typical $200 to get the lot assembled will set you back $875. That’s well into aftermarket-shock territory as far as price is concerned.

A service, some good quality oil, dampening modifications (revalving) and the right spring will give you change from $500 on the DR, and in my opinion that’s all most folks need.

Why go aftermarket?

So you just have to have rebound adjustment? You yearn for high- and lowspeed compression adjustment on the ’ol DR? Perhaps the shock shaft is corroded and it’s just going to get too expensive to modify the stock shock once the shaft is rechromed. What should you buy?

I’ll go out on a limb and lump replacement shocks into two categories: ‘stock replacement’ and ‘performance’.

I’ve had suspension fluid dripping off my elbows for long enough that I feel qualified to make these judgements.

Stock replacement: Hagon (UK) makes a very extensive range of monoshocks for $550. They have spring-preload and rebound adjustment. You can order them with a stiffer spring and a hydraulic preload adjuster for about $350 extra. They’re a good alternative if you don’t ever jump the bike.

Ikon (Australian) also makes a range of monoshocks that are good value for money. There are others. Bitubo, Nitro, Works Performance…all have limited backup in this country, so if you buy one cheap off eBay it’s your headache.

Right: The bigger bore of the Öhlins not only holds more oil for greater resistance to fading, but allows a more complex dampening configuration for a more controlled ride in all situations.

Performance: top of the tree is Öhlins. There is no manufacturer who spends more money on R&D. Feature for feature they do cost more, but it’s the rock-solid development that you’re paying for. From Öhlins lead comes a host of European manufacturers that are pretty hard to split, as all use a 46mm-bore shock like Öhlins and are all comparable in price, feature for feature. The list includes Wilbers, Hyperpro, Yacugar, and Elka (Canada).

In simplistic terms, a basic shock, with rebound adjustment only, will be around $1000 for an Öhlins and $700-800 for the other brands. Add compression adjusters and hydraulic preload adjusters and you’ll climb through $1300 to about $1600.

Getting back to our DR650, what does a shock like the Öhlins have over the stocker? From a simplistic standpoint, if you compare the number of parts in the Öhlins to the stock KYB, you see where some of the money goes. Not only that, but the Öhlins will outlast the bike as every component is replaceable. It’s easily serviceable and all the adjusters will have a significant impact on the shock’s feeling. This DR650 Öhlins is $1250.

A considered judgement

All I’m suggesting is you have a think about what you’re asking of your bike. Are you an A-Grader who’ll punish that DR650 like it’s doing training runs for Dakar? Or are you likely to spend a lot of time cruising at sightseeing speeds, but still want a more comfortable and surefooted ride?

Ask yourself those questions, then line up the answers against your budget. That should steer you towards a sensible choice on suspension upgrades.

And of course, while I’ve used the DR650 as an example, the concept applies to any bike.

+ MAPS

Electronic and Paper

Where to ride has always been our focus

+ FACTORY AND AFTERMARKET ADV GEAR AND ACCESSORIES

Simply find your model bike and then Click

How to ride

There’s big ups and downs in them hills

There’s something about mountains that seems to make a ride that much more epic. The scenery, the variety and the challenge all come together to tick quite a few boxes. The more confident you are with hills, the more options you have, and the safer you are when your ride stumbles across that mongrel, steep section of track with the potential to bring you undone.

Having the confidence, composure and patience to approach it strategically can really make a difference.

Vision

Looking ahead is one of the most important skills, and one that many riders don’t get right. Whether you’re heading up or down a hill, looking ahead and knowing what you’re dealing with gives you a much better chance to manage the situation and make it up or down safely, or even abort your mission and turn around before you get too far in and possibly come unstuck.

When you’re heading up a hill, if your vision is focused upward you have a much

better chance to pick a line that will get to the top on the first attempt. Pick a dodgy line and sometimes you might as well just jump off the bike, because you’ll have basically no chance of making it.

On the flip side, looking ahead and linking the sweet lines together can make the same hill seem like a harmless bump.

The same goes with vision going downhill. As the pitch increases you get advance notice and can reduce speed, pick the better line and stay in

Words: Miles Davis

Body position and looking ahead – not straight in front of the front wheel – are two important factors in dealing with hills.

control. There’s nothing worse than seeing a rider misjudge the required speed for a steep descent and carry way too much speed into a steep, loose or rutted section. It can get ugly very quickly.

Uphill

Approach the hill in an appropriate gear. If it’s really steep and nasty, probably select first or second, depending on your bike and the approach. You need to be able to be proactive and versatile, and ready to adapt your line to the situation as it develops. Sure, you have plan A, but as many of you know, that can go out the window pretty quick, as can plan B, and so on.

My preference is to be in the standing position, leaning forward. As the bike begins to climb, let your elbows bend and the ’bars come toward you. Keep your knees slightly bent, but squeeze the bike between your legs to keep it tracking straight and avoid deflecting off rocks and roots. Generally you don’t need pure speed, as that can get you into trouble quickly. You want to approach the challenging section with good momentum. The engine should be in a torquey, grunty part of the rev range, not screaming its head off. Be ready to react to unexpected changes of direction and try to keep any throttle action smooth. Keep your fingers over the clutch to reduce drive partially if required, rather than shutting off the throttle and losing momentum (see issue #02 where we outlined the benefits of good clutch use for optimum drive).

If you over rev the engine you’ll compromise traction and therefore directional stability. If you get it right, you’ll probably sail up the hill with minimum fuss.

Sure, a bit of luck may be needed at times, too.

Keep in mind

Remember: “Momentum is your friend”, as this will almost always give the best result.

So many riders use too much throttle and lose control and drive. Too many times I’ve seen someone start getting

wheelspin on a hill, and their instinct is to add throttle. It seems crazy, but that’s what happens. Learn where your bike makes that sweet, tractable power and use it to your advantage.

If the attempt doesn’t go to plan, you’re losing momentum and it’s looking pretty dire, I’d suggest dropping to the seated position. This can help gain drive as it puts more weight over the back wheel, and that might make the difference in getting you to the top, even if it’s not pretty. The other benefit is, if you want to abort the mission you can decide to stall the bike and put your feet down quickly rather than just crashing.

The reason you stall is because a stalled bike will be far more stable pointing up a steep slope than trying to hold the bike there with the clutch in and the front brake on.

From this point you need to try and turn, get to the bottom of the hill and decide whether to try again or find another way (at BMW Off Road Riding courses the “Hill Recovery” drill is one of the most popular).

Hot tips

v Vision: look ahead. Did I say look ahead?

v Stay loose and ready to shift your body weight as required.

v Be ready to downshift instantly if you lose momentum and are about to get into the stall zone.

v Use the clutch to control drive and optimise traction rather than chop the throttle.

v Don’t underestimate how a lowrevving, chugging, adventure-bike engine can get you through a tricky section.

v Don’t give up too soon, but make sure you know when to abort safely and make your way back to the bottom of the hill.

v Don’t follow too close.

Downhill

Body position

As you approach the steep section move your body weight back. Depending how steep the descent is, you may need to get your bum over the pillion seat. If this is where your luggage is, you need to approach

Downhills present their own challenges, especially when the surface is loose.

things more cautiously as you won’t have the ability to move your weight as far back.

Line selection

There’s no substitute for experience when it comes to knowing the right lines to take.

Try to link a line together that will be the easiest for the bike to maintain stability. Sometimes you need to be creative. Try to watch more experienced riders and ask them questions.

Braking techniques

Whether you’re best to leave your ABS on or turn it off (if your bike allows this) will depend on your level of experience and familiarity with your bike’s ABS system.

If you’re not very confident and decide to leave your ABS on, you should approach very steep, loose sections with extra caution so you don’t end up carrying too much speed. A minority like to bag ABS, but really, you need to understand its strongpoints, make decisions on how to get the best out of it, or turn it off in situations where you decide it’s best.

If your bike doesn’t have ABS, or you decide to deactivate it, you need to use a high level of brake control to control your speed and minimise lock ups.

Very experienced off-road riders (motocross, enduro or adventure riders) will feel comfortable modulating front and rear to get the best result. Less-experienced riders need to be very careful. A bike can hit the deck very quickly without precise brake control.

Know when to reduce front-brake pressure so the front wheel can track over an obstacle without stopping the bike or losing stability. This will make life much easier.

Hot tips

v Control your speed relative to the steepness of the hill.

v Look ahead. I said it again!

v Try not to stop completely. It can be very difficult to start again once stationary.

v Don’t follow too close.

v Be creative. Don’t be a sheep.

ABS tips

If your bike has ABS and you leave it on when riding off-road, when your ride heads into steeper loose hills you need to be aware of how your ABS

may react if you approach a nasty section with too much speed. The best strategy is to keep your speed very slow, steady and controlled, especially if it’s exceptionally steep with a loose surface. If you approach a steep section with too much pace you may find it difficult to reduce speed because the ABS senses a wheel locking. The system then reduces brake pressure, and when you’re trying to wash off speed that’s not a great feeling.

If you approach the same section very slowly, your ABS is likely to work well and provide you good control and confidence. Some new bikes have ‘Enduro’ mode ABS that allows the tyres to skid slightly before the ABS kicks in. That provides a more natural feel as the ABS isn’t as sensitive and doesn’t take over during the descent.

Conditions change things

It’s important to understand how big adventure bikes are affected by steep, slippery terrain.

On a trailbike you can give your regular hillclimbs a go in rain, hail or shine. That’s because they’re light and

generally have aggressive knobby tyres. And most times it’s not the end of the world if your 250cc or 450cc enduro bike flops on its side. The same doesn’t go for most adventure bikes, especially bigger twins. They’re much trickier to get up steep, slick hills due to their mass and the types of tyres fitted to them. In many cases they’re expensive and don’t react well to a tumble down a steep hill.

Be aware of the terrain and how conditions may affect the grip. I generally steer well clear of wet, red-clay hills if I have the choice. In the dry a 1200 can climb crazy things, but in the wet it’s another story.

Get out there!

Depending on where you live and ride, it’s a great feeling to be able to navigate hills, and there’s something very satisfying about taking a big bike up and down hills more commonly attempted by trail riders. Like anything, you need to develop your skills and understand how your bike works up and down hills. Start off with basic slopes and go from there.

TAKE YOUR GS EVEN FURTHER.

BMW’s two-day GS “Adventure bike” training courses are the ideal way to learn and develop the skills to take your GS further off the beaten track. Courses are designed for riders of all levels and our world-class instructors will take your riding to a totally new level.

Just some of the topics covered include:

- Body position

- Throttle and clutch control

- Braking

- Uphill and downhill control

- Obstacles

- Line selection

2014 courses are planned for Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia. Spaces are limited, so register your interest to ensure you don’t miss out. Rental bikes are available at most venues. Email offroadtraining@bmw.com.au to be advised once 2014 course details are con rmed.

John Hudson

OLet’s get personal Rules to RIDE by

n the APC Rally rides

I’m sweeping the course so I’m always riding with the slowest riders in the group. The faster guys have gone because they’re using a GPS and there are no cornermen.

One of the most rewarding parts of my job is helping struggling riders with a few tips. On our rides I can spend two, three or four days with these riders, so the improvements can sometimes be up to 40 per cent. I watch them from behind and then I’ll just sit them under a tree and ask if they want to go faster. Since we have 2000km and four days, we have time to work some stuff out.

I explain to them there’s always someone faster no matter who you are, so forget about what other people are doing and just have fun.

Unfortunately, many riders worry about set-ups and bike selection and start making excuses in their mind as to why things will be difficult before they even twist the throttle.

“Chill out!” is what I say. Just buy petrol and give yourself some ride time. ‘Fast’ just comes to the rider who’s relaxed. They find a rhythm and just see things in a positive fashion.

Don’t stand for it I have some good news for riders out there. I have a terrible riding style and my mates laugh when they see me standing up because they know I am just trying to look as though I know what I am doing.

So yes, you can ride quick sitting down. Good ol’-fashioned bush riders can continue reading.

When I’m following slow guys on my rides these are the most common problems:

v Looking 10m in front of the bike and not 50m so their balance is affected and they have less time to pick good lines. Please look up!

v They’re using the rear brake too much and haven’t learned the front brake has to do 90 per cent of the stopping.

v They’re not weighting the outside ’peg when going around a corner.

v Rather than singing reggae songs, they’re worried about a million things that could go wrong. Relax and just do it.

v Everyone falls off, so wear the good gear and just deal with it.

Hard-won

knowledge

The next points I put forward in my safety briefings. I’ve lost some bark and broken 16 bones learning these lessons.

1. Ride with as little weight as possible. More weight means the faster you lose balance and the slower you can pull up.

2. When approaching a wooden bridge, lower your speed if possible, then do not try to do any braking, steering or gear changes when you are on the timber. Keep the throttle constant and look up and forward. Try to pick a line where there are no edges.

3. When crossing a concrete causeway with water over it, try to reduce speed so you don’t lose your feet off the pegs. Always pick a line where you think the car tyres have been because this is where the moss will not be.

4. When pulling up on a track to turn around because you’ve missed a turn, always pull up on the left side and never start turning around until all riders in your group have stopped where you are. Always pull up away from a corner so riders have plenty of warning to stop. Big bikes and big speed mean

Look ahead, not in front of your front wheel. You’ll spot obstacles like timber bridges early and be able to prepare.

riders can’t stop or change direction quickly. Don’t trust your mirrors.

5. When coming around a corner and being faced with a car, or any other obstacle, always focus on the gap on the left-hand side of whatever you can see and ride through that gap. Make a decision and stick with it. There’s no time for two decisions. Do some braking but do not try to pull up before you get to the obstacle. On most occasions this severe braking will mean you lose control.

6. Do your stopping before the corner. This usually means dropping a gear and using the gearbox. With practice you can weight your body so the back steps out to the outside of the corner and you are then set up for the corner early rather than late. Always look through the corner to see if you can see any movement.

7. When crossing creeks or any other obstacles always be positive. In most cases it’s better to enter the obstacle in a smooth motion. If this means turning around and going back 100m, do it. The reason is that the first 10m when you start is when you have the least balance and your body is not settled in a relaxed riding position. Momentum is the name of the game. Try for a constant throttle and don’t look at your mates. Look at where you want to be.

8. There is no right way to ride around kangaroos or anything else that has a mind of its own. The only cure is to drop your cruising speed as soon as you see anything. Kangaroos will often move from the scrub out on to open pastures in the evening and then be returning to the scrub in the mornings.

If you’re going to hit a kangaroo, do all the braking you can before the impact and then let off the brakes just before you hit it. The reason is your suspension will come back up and you’ll have more control of the bike when you hit the ’roo.

Once you know you are hitting the ’roo, don’t try and change direction. Just grip the bike with your knees as hard as possible and look up.

9. If you hit a jump or grid wrong and your bike gets sideways in the air, just worry about your front wheel hitting the ground straight and at the right angle. The rear wheel can do horrible things and you will still be okay.

Once again don’t try and brake as you’re hitting the ground, grip your bike hard with your legs. Your legs are the largest muscles on your body and should be doing most of the work. Riders who try to ride a motorcycle with their hands will never enjoy knowing what their bike is capable of.

10. Looking up gives a rider balance. When approaching truck ruts grip the bike with your legs and look where you want to be. Again, no braking can be done as you’re trying to smoothly angle yourself out of a rut. No two ruts are the same, but if the rut only goes for 10m most riders should be able to ride in the rut and exit without a drama.

11. Deep-sand riding takes momentum and courage. The more weight you have on board the more courage you’ll require. Worry about your speed and momentum more than the ruts when turning corners in the sand. Stand up and be smooth with the throttle.

12. If you fail to get up a hill on an adventure bike, 99 per cent of the

time you’ll need to turn around and start again. Doing anything else will be wasting energy.

Momentum is the name of the game. Always look ahead as far as you can. Grip the bike with your legs and don’t consider not making it. Speed and parts of the track that have good traction are the key to your success. If you’re leading and you make it, always ride out of sight from the riders below. Always pull up and make sure everyone makes it, just do it down the track a little. A rider who sees you waiting at the top has a 50 per cent chance of not making it because you have affected their confidence.

13. Always look after your mates. There’s nothing more important than getting everyone home safe. Never leave a rider behind and never leave a corner until the sweep or lead rider shows up.

14. Set your levers so you can rest one finger on them when you are riding. On adventure bikes you’ll spend a lot more time sitting down, so your levers should suit this position as well as standing. Big, bulky gloves can limit finger movement that can greatly affect your reaction time.

Practice makes perfect

Now go riding and remember to work on just one point at a time.

The key is to just keep enjoying it, your riding mates are the most important thing a bike rider has.

Just imagine the poor guys who are living in the suburbs who wash the car and mow the lawn on the weekends. They have no idea just how much fun we’re having.

The Flinders

Ranges

The Flinders Ranges in South Australia are majestic at anytime, but after the winter rains around the start of spring they’re especially spectacular. It was the ideal destination for a couple of old blokes with Tiger’s tales.

Both Pete and I had bought 800XC Tigers and we’d been hanging out for an opportunity to get them up into the Flinders for a tour.

It only took a few weeks and we had about 15 riders involved. Some had tipped in for two days and others for almost a week. Pete worked on some tracks and trails north from our hometown of Gawler, while I organised an overnighter at the Yunta pub and a few nights at the very moto-friendly Angorichina Tourist Village (Ango) in the Parachilna Gorge with hosts Dave and Caroline. We reckoned that was Flinders central!

Nailed it

Prep consisted of new tyres, filters, brake pads and anything else that might need attention or a once over, a new set of panniers and bags for me, and before we knew it, we were off. Talk about brass-monkey weather. The first morning was bloody freezing and the heated grips got a huge workout as we skirted the Barossa and headed for Pete’s favourite coffee at the Truro bakery. We were soon out in the

Words: Trevor Jenkins. Images: Pete B. and Claude P.

Author, Trevor Jenkins.

Above: ‘Steel Pony’ Pete tried to convince Neil and Fritz he was cut-off by a truck…out in the middle of nowhere.

Above: The blokes roughing it with meats, cheeses, dips and mates.

Left: Swannie on his XTZ660 Ténéré. He tried the ol’ “dribble some coffee on the Tiger so it looks like the clutch is leaking” trick.

Below: Beer o’clock at Blinman pub.

wide, open spaces and heading through some very scenic countryside.

Big Jace scored a flat tyre on the KTM640 thanks to a nail straight through everything. Everyone chipped in with great advice on how to best change a tube on the side of the road and watched him sweat it out. My bag of tricks helped out with a couple of full-sized tyre irons and a rubber mallet.

“Could ya work a little quicker there, Jace?” we encouraged. “The pub’s not that far away.”

Jace sped up, sweated some more, and it was soon done.

The cup runneth over Yunta pub came into view around beer o’clock, so we stashed the bikes, bolted to the front bar, and later tucked into a great country-pub meal with lashings of meat, veggies and gravy (man food).

The trucks and trains travelling within metres of my bedroom window reminded me we were alongside the Barrier Highway, and after a patchy few hours sleep we were up, fed at the local servo and heading north to the Flinders. Just before brekky I came out to the bikes and saw a dribble below the clutch on the Tiger. It looked like something was leaking and my heart skipped a beat. Then I spied an old workmate, Swannie. He’d joined us on his XTZ660, and he couldn’t control his teenage-girl-like sniggering as I looked around for a culprit. The silly bugger had strategically poured some coffee on my bike to worry me.

He knows I’ll get him back, and the smell of burnt Nescafé for the rest of the day helped maintain the rage.

Reader’s ride

Fired

Ruins, lookouts, windmills and trails all swept past as we headed for Wilpena, and the Flinders was looking as green and beautiful as ever when we finally made it to the Blinman pub for a quiet ale. The cold beverage set us up for the run to the Parachilna Gorge and the 45-bed dorm which was to be our home for a few nights. Dave had organised firewood, so a roaring fire kept us warm as we enjoyed ales, dinner, more ales and some fine Barossa Shiraz.

The next couple of nights at Ango were glorious. The big fire backed up with good blokes, plenty of refreshments and tucker to make us all feel very much at home.

Crews control

Over the next few days we hit some

fantastic Flinders tracks; the string of Public Access Routes around the region, the Gorge Roads – both north and south of Blinman and Parachilna – and anything else we could find, especially the very beautiful Moralana Scenic Drive.

Lunches were at Wilpena, cold beers at the Parachilna pub and steaks with veg around the Village fire pit – it was bloody awesome.

There was a mix of XTZ660 Ténérés, DR650s, a KTM or two, a X-Challenge, a WR250R with all the touring bits, and another old mate of mine, Bernie, who trucked his WR250F up there to try to get some enduro practice. Me, I was lovin’ the 800XC.

One serious complication to our ‘old man’s trip’ was bloody Greg ‘Kipo’ Kipling from Port Augusta. He’d been out and gathered a few mates to join us on their minibikes – 400s and

450s – but they stayed at the Blinman pub, about 17km from us (phew). It got worse for them when one of them put the intended trip on Facebook and Kipo soon had an almost unmanageable headache to look after. In typical Kipo style he did it with a smile.

Posted

Kipo’s group rode out of Port Augusta and had been going all of a few minutes when one bloke left the track and attempted to break a vertical stardropper in half with his bike and upper body. The ambos and local copper turned up to sort out the broken bones and bits of steel, and as it turned out, Kipo’s friendly face (usually described as ‘a busted arse’) convinced the cop to stay and look after the bent and bruised bike and wait for the backup vehicle so

Above: Pete (left) and the author soaking up the Flinders on their Tigers.

It’s a big country.

Above: Angorichina Tourist Village.

Above: Jace hard at work with ample advice from the onlookers.

Right: Fritz negotiating the backstreets of the Flinders.

everyone else could take off and enjoy the ride.

And you wonder why Kipo’s a real-estate salesman?

Anyway, his charm worked and the copper did the right thing, waving everyone off with a smile while he stuck around to look after the bike. No-one was dead, so there were grins all round, and many beers and pizzas were consumed at the Blinman pub that night.

It was a good crew.

Quornie

Our lot started to drift off back to suburban Adelaide on the Sunday, leaving a few to make the trip to Quorn the next

day so the local Mayor could officiate at our induction as full members of the Quorn Schnitzel Club.

Official business and photographs were over when the group tucked into the reds supplied by the Mayor (another reason to invite him).

A freezing-cold night left ice on the bikes in the morning, and the only way to fix that was with egg-andbacon sangers at the café. It was just like camping.

Howling wind and rain covered the trip home and I had a smile a mile

wide all the way as I reflected on great mates, both on the bikes and at the establishments we’d visited. The ride had covered almost 1700km of rich scenery and fine terrain. I love this adventure riding. We might not have been camping, but we had a whole lot of fun, and at least there’s no flies in our coffee and dirt in our dinner.

Even being accompanied by a Ural with a fridge in the sidecar filled with drinks, cheeses, dips and sliced meats is a little hard to take at times.

But not too hard.

Meggsie and Trev enjoying the scenery.

20 things you should know about

KTM’s 950/990

The LC8 motor first appeared in 2003 in the KTM 950 Adventure. The same powerplant went on to power the 950SE and the fuel-injected 990 Adventure. The motor hasn’t really undergone many changes despite the model designations, and this applies to frames as well. KTM dealer and keen 950/990 rider and competitor Craig Hartley outlined a few of the main traits on the tried-and-trusted Adventures.

Main: The 950 and 990 have a great deal in common. They’re both proven performers. Left: Craig Hartley knows how to build and ride a reliable, competitive 950/990.

Most of the habits of both the 950 and 990 are very similar apart from some minor fuelinjection traits on the 990. These traits aren’t a big problem once understood, so here are a few things that may help owners to better understand their machines.

1. Valves: On the older 950s, valve adjustment and wear was more frequent due to a more aggressive cam-lobe profile, so it’s been

Words: Craig Hartley

common to replace valves on a 950 in 35,000km or so, although I’ve seen some with up to 70,000km.

The 990 engine has a kinder cam profile which is easier on the valves. That means that even though you still check valve adjustment every 15,000km, the adjustment is minimal and it’s common to see 990 engines with original valves still within adjustable operating specifications with 90,000km or even 120,000km on the clock. Basically, we’ve never had to fit valves to a 990, so they could last indefinitely.

2. Waterpump seals: The LC8 motor has a couple of probably unintentional built-in alarm systems to warn when there are waterpump issues. The temperature gauge won’t always tell the story of looming problems, but the warning signs on many occasions are obvious. If the oil-pressure light flickers on/off at idle, the most obvious problem will be that the waterpump seal is leaking coolant into the engine oil, which then clogs the oil filter and limits oil pressure. A quick fix to get you home, or to a service centre, can be to remove the oil filter and preferably replace it. If there’s no replacement available, wash the coolant off with petrol poured over the outside. Remember this is the oil filter and it’s critical it stays spotless. The other tell-tale sign is lots of cam-chain noise at idle. This is due to the oil-pressure operated camchain tensioners having low oil pressure. Once the oil filter is partially clogged, the oil pressure is low at idle and the cam-chain tensioners don’t work as they’re designed to, allowing the cam chains to rattle. I think it’s good to replace waterpump seals and bearings at the 30,000km or 37,000km service to be safe. On really long trips I carry a spare oil filter and waterpump kit and Blue Max Loctite to seal or repair gaskets, be it for myself or someone else.

P clip holding the brake line on the top-rear of the fork protector.

3. Service intervals: Basic services are recommended every 7,500km. Major services (with valve adjustment) every 15,000km. Depending on use, some people change the oil every 5,000km.

4. Prefilters are a great idea for more reasons than just saving your air cleaner. The dirty air is directed into the airbox below the filter, before

drawing up through the filter then into the venturis. This means you have a mass of unfiltered air circulating around the throttle-shaft assemblies and linkages, and this can lead to wear in both these areas. In extreme cases this can allow air and dust to be sucked through the worn throttle shafts, and that can mean premature engine wear. It can be bad enough that the bike can’t be tuned, especially for smooth idling and backfiring on deceleration. Obviously the other benefit to running prefilters is the prefilter can be washed and lightly oiled pretty much anywhere in Australia.

5. Fork springs on all 950 and 990 Adventures are always too soft and should be replaced to get the optimum balance and performance from the suspension. My own bikes always have large fuel tanks, tank bag, full saddlebags and a swag, and once I have heavier fork springs I can always get the suspension working to a good level by controlling things just with the compression and rebound damping and spring-preload adjustment. The shock spring in all standard ABS, S and R models is more than adequate for 99 per cent of riders.

6. Steering-head bearings: Another serviceable item, especially for adventure bikes that have done a lot of back-road riding. I find that usually about 35,000km is all I get out of them before they start to get the old straight-line notch.

7. Fuel-injection filters: The main problem encountered with fuel

injection is the “teabag” 12-micron filter getting blocked. The symptoms are a motor with no power, that won’t rev over 3000rpm to 4000rpm, and that could cut out for no reason and restart but still not be well.

There are two filters in the fuelinjection system of the 990, and for the record the same pump and filter system is in the 1190. The first filter is the finest one that picks up the small particles in our fuel. This doesn’t necessarily relate to dirty fuel from the

service station, it’s just the quality of the fuel we have in Australia and some other countries. The larger, round filter inside the pump doesn’t cause problems and from memory is a 32-micron filter. I really don’t know why it’s even in there.

Once again I’d recommend fitting a new teabag filter every 15,000km.

If this filter stops you in the middle of Australia all is not lost. Simply remove the fuel pump, pull the filter out and wash it in water with detergent while kneading it through your fingers to work the fine particles out. Use compressed air if available, but if not, simply dry it out and you’ll get it good enough for the bike to run again.

The other option that definitely works is the KAA Purge Unit. It works by sending a reverse current of power to the fuel pump for 1.5 seconds after the ignition is turned off. This flushes the fine particles from the 12-micron filter. We know this works because of a great deal of field testing.

We also remove the original one-way valve in the fuel pump and put an external one-way valve just outside the fuel pump in the fuel line to the injector, giving more fuel to reverseflush the filter.

You may be asking, “Why push all the stuff back into the tank only for it to create the problem again?” The answer to this has a lot to do with how fine the particles are. It appears that in small doses these particles in our fuel don’t amount to anything, but after large volumes of fuel have passed through a small, fine filter, these small, black particles seem to join together to form a mat that doesn’t allow fuel to pass in sufficient quantity. If you want a better explanation you’d be best to contact a industrial chemist.

8. The front rims on large adventure bikes have been known to get the odd

dent. For the first 70,000km of use on my KTM 950, and this included when I rode the Australian Safari on it, I ran Bridgestone ultra-heavy-duty tubes at 18psi. I had great traction (for a 100-horsepower, 200kg bike), but I did dent a few front rims. It does appear the same combination, except with 24psi to 26psi makes the rims last longer. (Or could it be the new glasses I now wear when I ride).

On another note we’ve fitted many Excel Takasago 21 X 1.6 front rims in preference to the original 2.15 size. I believe, especially for dirt work, that the narrow rim makes the profile of the knobby front tyre more suited for what they’re designed to do. Our favourite front tyre for the large adventure bikes is the Michelin Star Cross HP4, maybe not the best for carving up the bitumen twisties in the high country, but for general longevity and a great feel on the dirt.

9. ABS: If you find yourself with an ABS-model Adventure and you’re continually forgetting to switch off the ABS, a simple fix is to follow the ABS power cable from the rear calliper up to the ABS unit in the toolbox under the seat and disconnect that white plug. That will bring a fault code up on the dashboard and you’ll have no ABS braking.

10. Rear subframe: I have a lot of mates all over Australia who have done tens of thousands of kilometres on 950/990 Adventures. These people travel with the likes of Andy Strapz Bags mounted forward on saddlebag racks and a compact swag or bag of camping gear on the rear carrier. I cannot recall anybody who loads their bike like this who has broken a rear subframe. These bikes don’t have a problem with the subframe unless it’s overloaded. A good rule of thumb is up to approximately eight kilograms per bag or swag.

11. The two-stage ignition plug is positioned between the rear spark plug and under-seat toolbox on the 950/990 Adventure. It’s a single plug wire that, when disconnected, retards the ignition so as to avoid pinging when only low-octane fuel is available.

Above: The 12-micron teabag filter in a 990 fuel pump.

Above: The trip master switch can make handling the gauge info a lot easier.

Below right: Don’t let anyone pump the clutch lever while the slave cylinder’s not in place.

This plug can be run in the disconnected position continually if necessary. Low-octane fuel and high-speed can cause severe engine damage. Trust me, I’ve seen the results.

12. Checking oil: This simple task can sometimes be a little confusing. Very often we’ve put the bike on the centrestand and run it for several minutes, only to find the oil level is either too low or too high. If the bike hasn’t had a history of using oil, run the motor for another three or four minutes to operating temperature. Usually you’ll get a closer reading second time around.

The correct reading is with the dipstick screwed in. To give yourself a bit of leeway, and taking into account they may use 100ml or so in an oil change, on long trips of 5000km to 7000km I’ll leave home with the oil tank full with the dipstick sitting on the thread, not screwed in.

13. Clutch bolts: Another minorservice schedule job is to check the six bolts on the clutch basket. Simply lay the bike on its left side, pull the pin out of the rear brake pedal, and remove

the clutch-basket cover. Another hint for the clutch is that it has 12 fibre clutch plates, the very inside one is a smaller plate than the other 11. If your clutch is getting a bit lazy there’s a very good chance that if you replace the small inner one, it’ll give the clutch a new lease of life. Duct tape one under your seat. If you’re away from home and don’t have the spare, try placing some washers under the six spring-retaining bolts.

14. Clutch slave cylinder: You know how when you’re working on your bike, people just have to walk up and pull the clutch lever or the brake lever in? Well, if you happen to have your clutch slave cylinder off doing a front sprocket change and this happens, you’ll be up for a new clutch slave cylinder. It’ll blow the circlip and retaining shoulder out of the cylinder. I know, it’s happened to me.

15. Fork bushes: Large-capacity adventure bikes, especially the 950/990 KTMs, just love chewing up mongrel roads at high-speed. This is all good, but you do pay a price. An example is the steering-head bearings, as mentioned earlier. It pays to get someone to check the fork bushes, probably at around the 50,000km to 70,000km mark. It’s not that the forks will fall off or anything, but the frequency of leaking fork seals and more wear on the fork legs could create problems later on.

16. Power outlets: Behind the dashboard are two power outlets named Access 1 and Access 2. These are perfect for GPS, some heated grips and other power needs. These are in all KTM trail and adventure bikes.

17. Trip master switch: The fitting of a trip master switch beside your left thumb is a great way to

access the different modes on your speedo without taking your hands off the ’bars. Trip one and two, time, odometer and switching off the fuelreserve mode are all useful options for this switch. Trip two can also be adjusted up and down with the switch, which is handy if you’re using a route sheet. It can be a good accessory if your speedo mode button stops working as well.

18. Best fork protectors: For many years we’ve been annoyed by not being able to buy genuine fork protectors to suit the 950/990 when fitting high guards. The latest idea we’ve tried is to trim the guard off of the original front guard/fork protectors and use these for our fork protectors. We simply run the brake cables to the outside of the forks and use an insulated P clip at the top rear of the fork protector to hold the brake line.

19. ’Bar risers: All larger bikes respond well to being ridden standing up, so for most people ’bar risers are a great idea.

20. Wide footpegs: Once again, due to the amount of standing up you can do on this bike, the fitting of footpeg extensions, or even lower and wider ’pegs like the Fastway Adventures, is a great idea. For many people when standing on the ’pegs they’ll find they have only half a foot on the standard peg.

Ten minutes with . . .

Sam Sunderland

Honda Factory rally pilot

Honda’s five-man team for the 2014 Rally Raids included a young Brit ex-motocrosser who took out the Merzouga Rally Raid in Morocco as a warm up in October. As we go to print Dakar is just setting up, and Sam Sunderland must be considered a contender.

AdvR: How did you get into riding bikes?

SS: I was always playing on my BMX when I was really young, and my next-door neighbour used to have bikes. He invited me along one day and it all started from there. I was lucky because my grandparents had a dairy farm which made it easier for me to practice.

AdvR: How did you find yourself in the Factory Honda Rally Team?

SS: In 2011 my rally career started with the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. I raced okay on a stock 450EXC and had some good results, then did the Australasian Safari with some stage wins. Then I was offered a ride on the Honda Europe team for Dakar 2012. I finished seventh on the first day, but had some bike problems and was out of the race on day two. Midway through 2012 HRC stepped in with a full factory effort and I was lucky enough to be chosen as part of the team.

Words: Craig Tarlington

AdvR: In past years you’ve demonstrated you can run with the guys at the front: Marc, Cyril, Ruben and the rest. But overall wins have eluded you. With your win at the Merzouga Rally do you feel all the hard work and training is starting to pay off?

SS: Absolutely. Winning a few stages is one thing, but to put it together over the course of the whole race is another story. I raced three times in 2013 and I won in Abu Dhabi. Then I got a 10-minute penalty for going the wrong side of a flag in the sand outside of the race, and another team protested. I accept it’s my mistake, and a costly one at that. It dropped me to third. I finished fifth in the Oilibya Rally with a few technical issues, and I won in Merzouga.

I’m pretty young in the rally world and I’m working my arse off to try and fast-forward my learning process with the navigation by making my own roadbooks and things like that, and I have a great team behind me, with good teammates, which helps hugely.

AdvR: Looking back at the Rally of Moroccco and the dominance of the Honda team, what do you feel is achievable at this year’s Dakar Rally?

Right: At 24, British ex-motocrosser Sam Sunderland is spearheading the Honda attack on Rally Raid.

Left: The support of a strong professional team has given Sam a big boost.

The 2014 bike has little in common with its predecessor.

Ten minutes with . . .

AdvR: Will Honda release a “customer version” of the bike?

SS: I’m not sure if this is the plan, but I believe it’s quite possible.

AdvR: By the time we go to print Dakar will be over for 2014. How would you like the headlines to read? In other words, what are your hopes for the 2014 Dakar for you personally?

SS: My first goal is to finish. I’m confident in my speed and happy with my navigation. I believe if I can do that then I will be more than happy with my result.

AdvR: What else do you do besides riding bikes?

SS: It’s HRC. It’s a huge name in motorsport and their goal is to win. It’s quite clear to see with the development of the new bike.

I feel there’s a strong chance a Honda will win, but it’s the Dakar and anything can happen. Morocco is a good test and has all the top riders and teams present and it’s a good indicator, but we need to work together as a team and limit the mistakes. I think this will be the deciding factor in the overall result.

AdvR: You have a new Factory rally bike. How is it different to last year’s bike?

SS: It’s completely different. The only things the same are the wheels. The new bike is great and works so well. It really makes our job a lot easier.

SS: I do a lot of fitness training. I compete in triathlons, road cycle a lot, and run. As far as sports go I enjoy free diving. It’s super relaxing and good training. I like rock climbing and tennis, too. I have a trials bike that I play about on, but I’m not so good at it (laughs).

Most of the sports and things I do are cross-training for racing the rally bike.

AdvR: Who are your heroes in rallying and why?

SS: Of course the top guys that have been winning year after year: Marc, Cyril and Stephan Peterhansel. When you see what goes on behind the scenes, and how much sacrifice is made, it makes you respect the guys a lot.

My teammate Helder Rodrigues is

great. I have so much respect for him. He was competitive with the factory guys for years on a ride he put together himself with his sponsors and family and friends. This is insane when you think of the logistics it takes for an amateur guy to even arrive at the start.

AdvR: What advice would you offer to the average person who wants to get into this sport?

SS: It’s kind of hard to give advice, but I would say read the roadbook, which is what I was told and helped me hugely. I also found it hard to make myself do that when there are tracks or dust upfront. It’s so much easier to just chase that, but when you do you take huge risks and don’t learn anything. I see guys now with good results, but they arrive at the finish and the roadbook is 60km behind on the route.

AdvR: At the 2011 Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge you were struggling to read the roadbook, but you still won a stage. You’ve come a long way in a short time. What has changed from then to now?

SS: The 2011 Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge was my first rally and I had no idea what the roadbook was. I received my race bike the night before the prologue and ran it in on the roads around the shop. I won two stages in 2011. I won Stage Two by five minutes and 10 seconds, and Stage Four by nearly 20 minutes. That’s a huge margin in rally, but I was starting from behind and following tracks a lot. That’s what I just advised not to do as you don’t learn anything – ha ha!

Stage Three of the Merzouga Rally Raid in Morocco. Sam on his way to an outright victory.

Arrows

Reader’s bike Stephen Evans’

2006 BMW HP2 Enduro

There’s a couple of questions that just have to be asked when you meet someone who takes an exotic BMW HP2 and then builds it specifically for the Finke Desert Race. The first is, Why an HP2? The model run finished in 2008, so why that particular bike? And then why the Finke?

“Out here you require a bike that’s a bit more dirt-oriented,” explained Steve, 43, a builder now living in the Northern Territory, “and I love the brand. BMW is the only brand of bike I buy.

“I found this one second-hand in Victoria and it was $5000 more expensive than a new one.”

Okay. So Steve’s a big BMW fan, and there’s no risk the HP2 is one powerful mofo of an off-roader. But with 200,000km or so of dirt tracks crisscrossing the Northern Territory and surrounding deserts, why would anyone choose to take that boxer-barreled ballistic bullet into the maniacal whoop-frenzy of the Finke Desert Race?

For a bet, of course.

“In 2009 a friend of mine decided to go in the Finke on a KTM, and he wanted me to give it a try. I said, ‘No, you go ahead. These bikes are too big.’

“Then in 2010 he said, ‘Look. I’ll bet you $2000 you can’t make it to Finke and back on that bike.’ I went, ‘Rightio. I’ll give it a shot.’”

Steve found the challenge a big one, but he’s not one for giving up easily. After training on the bike for a month he had a fairly clear idea of what was needed to get the 200kg bike over the notorious Finke whoops. He went looking around the world for the parts and technology he needed.

“I approached Touratech, Wunderlich…all the major suppliers of parts for BMWs, and nobody back then actually made forks or triple clamps for the front. I found a firm in Italy who was prepared to make a set. I changed the 45mm forks to a 54mm set-up, and I changed the rear suspension to Öhlins. The rear airbag was great on dirt roads, but across these whoops out here it just didn’t have enough to compensate for the weight and power of the bike.”

That was just the start, as you’ll see from the list. In 2012 Steve lined up at Alice on the June long weekend and missed out on the Finke arrival cut-off time by 26 seconds. In 2013 Steve and the HP2 made it 120km down the Finke track in 90 minutes (the total distance is around 227km that must be completed in four hours), when the clutch failed.

We wondered whether the new Wasserboxer might tempt Steve away from the HP2 for something lighter.

“Mate,” he laughed, “If I could afford to buy every HP2 in the country, I would.”

Will he keep trying to finish Finke?

“I’m going to keep doing it until it’s done,” said Steve. “As far as I’ve been able to find out, no bike of 1000cc or over has ever completed Finke. The other thing is, I’m after the top-speed record. In 2012 I was clocked at 233kph during the race.”

The record doesn’t count unless the race is completed.

Geebus! Lawks!

Here’s hoping Steve picks up the $2000 in 2014. He’ll need it to buy clean jocks if he’s going to ride that course at that speed.

We could use a new pair just thinking about it.

See more at www.advridermag.com.au/forum

Above: Steve Evans, a serious HP2 fan (not the kind on the radiator).

Main: An HP2 is exotic when it rolls off the showroom floor. Look closely. This one makes the stocker look like a bodgied-up bucket racer.

Details

3 2006 BMW HP2 Enduro

3 Wheels – Woody’s wheels. 18-inch rear. 21-inch front, plus new hubs $3800

3 Öhlins rear suspension $1600

3 Barkbusters $350

3 Set of Andy Strapz Expedition Pannierz $800

3 Set of Zega hard panniers $1200

3 Set of LED blinkers $320

Touratech parts

3 30-litre tanks $2200

Clutch and brake levers $360 3 Guards over the brake and clutch reservoirs $380

Wunderlich parts

Rally sump guard $620

3 Engine covers and guards $400

3 Protection bars for heads $320

3 Race slipper clutch including install $3500

3 Specialthings.it (Italy) 54mm forks $4000

3 54mm triple clamps $2000

3 Steering damper $1500

3 Front brake disc to suit forks $350

New Products

Motohansa Pro Tool Set

v Suitable for BMWs

v Professional quality tools

v Lifetime guarantee

v 61-piece kit

v All the tools required for routine servicing, front-and rear-wheel removal, spark-plug removal and more

RRP: $165

Available from: Motohansa Phone: (02) 9638 4488

Web: www.motohansa.com.au

Checkout

Andy Strapz KTM1190 luggage rig

v Hardly wider than the stock ’bars

v An Andy Strapz Traveller Pannier fits nicely above the stock pipe

v 1190 owners have a choice of a matched pair of Expedition/Traveller Pannierz, or one of each for a neat fit

v More pics and info on the website, or give Andy a call on (03) 9770 2207

RRP: 1190 kit: Expedition Pannier for the left side and Traveller for the right $355. Single Traveller for RHS $150. Pannier frames for 1190 $370.

Available from: Andy Strapz Web: www.andystrapz.com

RadGuard Caponord 1200 guards

v Radiator and oil-cooler guards available

v Easy to fit

v Stops damage from bugs and road debris

v Robust frame and expanded inner mesh

v Available in polished alloy or powdercoated black

RRP: $279. Special price $199

Available from: RadGuard Phone: (02) 6658 0060 Web: www.radguard.com.au

Forma Adventure boot

v Full-grain, oiled, Nabuk leather upper

v Anti-slip sole

v Injection-moulded plastic front plate

v Plastic gear-pad protection

v Adjustable velcro closure

v Replaceable/adjustable GH plastic buckles

v Waterproof and breathable lining

v Shin and ankle plastic protection

v Ankle reinforcement

v Stiff nylon midsole

v AdvRider Mag editor’s favourite

RRP: $399

Available from: Motorcycle dealers everywhere Web: www.formaracing.com.au

Dynaplug

v Made in the USA

v Puncture repair system for tubeless tyres

v Secure sealing for over 97 per cent of punctures 4.6mm or less

v Tested on both bias ply and steel-belted tyres

v The only tyre-repair tool where no reaming is required

v Repair will typically last the life of the tyre

v Kit includes Dynaplug tool, four plugs and the cleaner

v Dynaplug is not suitable for cuts, tears or sidewalls

RRP: Tool and four plugs $28.95.

Tool and nine plugs $35.95. Spare plugs $9.95

Available from: Rocky Creek Designs

Web: www.rockycreekdesigns.com.au

Adventure Rider Magazine polo shirt

v Sexy!

v Embroidered Adventure Rider Magazine logo

v Made from polyester/ cotton with a smoothlooking collar

v 100 per cent cotton

RRP: $29.95

Available from: Advrider Mag online store Web: www.advridermag.com.au

Touratech accessories for the R1200GS

Touratech now offers a comprehensive range of accessories for the new R1200GS Adventure.

v ZEGA Pro and ZEGA Pro2 panniers and pannier racks

v Comfort and sports seats in various designs and heights

v A highly robust engine guard “Expedition” (also in XL)

v A radiator guard that protects the sensitive ribs against damage

v Manifold, cardan, frame, and ABS-sensor protection

v Folding brake levers and rearview mirrors

v Headlight protectors and handguards, as well as spoilers for the original hand protectors

v Handlebar risers (15mm)

v A higher windscreen

v A custom-made crash-bar extension, as well as a luggage-rack extension

Soft-pack solutions, GPS bracket adapters or “Works” footrests – the accessory range for the new BMW R1200GS Adventure is available by contacting Touratech on (03) 5729 5529.

RRP: Depends on product

Available from: Touratech Australia

joins the Yamaha die-hards on their biggest ride of the year. Five days in the Victorian High Country on a Super Ténéré. Hoo-aah! Adventure Rider Magazine

The Cold War: everything you need to know about coping with winter.

v AND more bikes and stories from you readers than any other bike mag.

v All adventure, cover to cover.

v In your trembling hands early April. Brrr-illiant.

Issue 4 - In newsagents and letterboxes early April

4 Day Wisemans Ferry NSW

20th-23rd Feb 2014 $480

4 Day Brisbane QLD

20th-23rd March 2014 $480

14 Day APC RALLY

Multiple start points all over Australia

17th-30th May 2014 $1250 (early entry) no event in 2015

6 Day Bathurst 1000 to Gold coast

12th-18th Oct 2014 $790

For more information, contact John Hudson. Phone: 0414 457 455

Email: john@australianpropertycentre.net.au

Web: www.apcrally.com.au