Adventure riding short rides and BS thread

[Double-D]

Does this mean that you rode Hwy 101 north from the junction with 198? Inexcusable.

We rode from Santa Maria to Hunter Ligget, then took the coast.

What gearing are you running, out of curiosity? Those Gobi bags look like they must be quite the parachute on a 640. They seem like they are on my 950, and I didn't think the 640 could take that sort of load. The adventure probably has a better subframe than the enduro, though.

I'm not real crazy about riding the 640 on the freeway either. And I've gotten in the habit of checking my tail/brake light every time I get gas, it goes out quite often, and I'm paranoid about getting smacked from behind on that bike.

zak

It's got the stock gearing. I hate hard bags in general and the Gobbis are the worst I've ever used. Unloaded they weigh about what my camping stuff and tools weigh. They really affect the handling of the bike and makes it feel like a turd. The engine scoots along just fine with them mounted though. Oh, I've also twice now almost gotten my leg caught under them, which could've resulted in a broken leg. I have a set of Wolf Mans being shipped to me as we speak.

 

[flying_hun]

We rode from Santa Maria to Hunter Ligget, then took the coast.

A number of possible alternatives that offer nicer riding were missed, but at least you didn't ride all the way through the Salinas Valley on 101.

 

[boney]

What gearing are you running, out of curiosity? Those Gobi bags look like they must be quite the parachute on a 640. They seem like they are on my 950, and I didn't think the 640 could take that sort of load. The adventure probably has a better subframe than the enduro, though.

I'm not real crazy about riding the 640 on the freeway either. And I've gotten in the habit of checking my tail/brake light every time I get gas, it goes out quite often, and I'm paranoid about getting smacked from behind on that bike.

zak

Zak, the 640 sub frame is pretty weak. What makes the Gobi bags and the Touratech bags able to carry more weight is the rack system, which braces against the passenger peg mounts. There are other ways to reinforce it as well, which I suggest anyone do if they're going to carry a load without the rack. I only know of one common rack, though IIRC it is (was?) sold by both KTM and Touratech and I'm pretty sure they were made by Hepco-Becker.

 

[slackmeyer]

Zak, the 640 sub frame is pretty weak. What makes the Gobi bags and the Touratech bags able to carry more weight is the rack system, which braces against the passenger peg mounts. There are other ways to reinforce it as well, which I suggest anyone do if they're going to carry a load without the rack. I only know of one common rack, though IIRC it is (was?) sold by both KTM and Touratech and I'm pretty sure they were made by Hepco-Becker.

Hmm, I'll look into reinforcing the subframe, but I pack pretty light, especially on that bike. I'm not interested in hard cases. I've got the gobis for my 950, and I use them about 3 times per year- they're just too big for most of what I do.

zak

 

[boney]

Hmm, I'll look into reinforcing the subframe, but I pack pretty light, especially on that bike. I'm not interested in hard cases. I've got the gobis for my 950, and I use them about 3 times per year- they're just too big for most of what I do.

zak

If you poke around ADVRider long enough you may find the thread where someone had done some reinforcements that looked pretty easy and stout.

 

[WoodsChick]

If you poke around ADVRider long enough you may find the thread where someone had done some reinforcements that looked pretty easy and stout.

Eric had our local guy (Dennis Etcheverry) weld some fish plate to his subframe and he's had no issues since. Of course, he's using the far-superior fancy high-tech cutting board rack hoseclamped to the top of the teensy stock rack so that might add to the robustness of the system

I did the same thing with the little mini-subrame bracket thingy under the fender of my 610 and it's been a trooper. Dennis basically welded another layer of aluminum all over it so it's twice as thick as before. No issues since




WoodsChick

 

[slackmeyer]

Eric had our local guy (Dennis Etcheverry) weld some fish plate to his subframe and he's had no issues since. Of course, he's using the far-superior fancy high-tech cutting board rack hoseclamped to the top of the teensy stock rack so that might add to the robustness of the system

I did the same thing with the little mini-subrame bracket thingy under the fender of my 610 and it's been a trooper. Dennis basically welded another layer of aluminum all over it so it's twice as thick as before. No issues since




WoodsChick

Cutting board huh? Fancy, but too rich for my blood. I just made something up with some plywood I had sitting around. . . .

And I've got some beefed up dirtbag racks on the sides to keep stuff out of the wheels/exhaust.

zak

 

[Double-D]

Coming to a Cross Roads and Passing the Point of No Return

This was a section from Jarbidge to Winnemucca NV on my last big ride when I went through NV, OR, and ID. I had planned the whole route out using a combination of Benchmark map books, Garmin Map Source, and Google Earth. There were a couple of times that the route went through private property, or in one case a road on an Indian Reservation that they didn't want white people on, and I had to figure out alternate routes, but for the most part the route had worked perfectly. This was the first time I had made tracks and followed them for such a big ride.

The Cross Roads. My route told me to go right on the less used road, but being as I knew gas was gonna be tight, I was on mile 130 and I had about a 240 mile range, I was wanting to go left and stay on the more developed road.

I finally choose to go right and follow the track on the less used road.

This was the only sign of human activity I saw for awhile.

I've done a lot of solo riding in remote places, but this time felt different. I knew I was really far away from the nearest help if anything went wrong and the road obvioulsy wasn't used much. I was actualy getting goose bumps and my mind was starting to go to worst case scenarios. At one point I got into a panic as the road seemed to end at a cattle watering station. After a bit of searching I found the route to continue in the direction I needed to go.

Finaly I crested a hill and saw a main dirt road! I still had many miles to go before reaching Winnemucca, but I was back on a real road finally.

I was so stoked to see this road maintained by the local mining comapny!

Anyway I'm not sure if there's anything to be learned from this story or if it's even a good one, but that feeling when I was out there thinking I might be getting myself into big trouble is something I think about a lot since. I've had people tell me I was crazy for riding through Death Valley solo. I wonder what they'd think if they knew about this ride?

 

[slackmeyer]

Very cool Todd, thanks for posting. A topic that every solo traveler spends time pondering. On the one hand, I think Reinhold Messner said "Without the possibility of death, adventure is not possible." On the other hand, it's more crazy than adventurous to go off to the boonies without preparation.

I never really feel as prepared as I'd like in the desert. I'm pretty at home in the forest or the mountains, but I just haven't spent that much time in places like your pictures. Sometimes that feeling makes the experience more exciting, sometimes it limits what I'll allow myself to do while I'm out there.

 

[slackmeyer]

At home sick today, so I spent some time working on panniers for my 640. It's got Dirtbagz racks on it, but I didn't really like the dirtbagz I had for my DRZ, so I'm trying out a small rolltop bag for the sides, and I'll use a duffel bag or drybag on the top rack.

Here's one of the side bags just about ready to sew up:

Back view of a mostly finished bag:

The fabric patch over on the right side is to go over a loop on the rack, the strap on the left side tightens to a loop up by the footpegs.

Front view:

Still need to buy some 2" webbing for the over the seat straps, and then trim threads and straps. Not sure yet if I need something to add stiffness to the bags- I built a little aluminum heat shield to keep the left pannier away from the exhaust.

Nothing fancy, but that's kind of the point. I've had enough dust-clogged zippers and torn open pockets that I wanted something simple and easy to repair. These aren't going to be waterproof, so important stuff inside will be kept in drybags, or in the top bag.

zak

 

[slackmeyer]

Finished.

 

[WoodsChick]

Finished.

Bravo, Slack! Nicely done! Now you gotta take `em out and see how they do What did you use to stiffen them up on the backside?




WoodsChick

 

[slackmeyer]

Bravo, Slack! Nicely done! Now you gotta take `em out and see how they do What did you use to stiffen them up on the backside?




WoodsChick

I put in a piece of 1/8" acrylic in there right now, but I think I'll replace it with 1/4" plywood- the bag has sleeves for the stiffeners, and I'd like to use something that I can take out and use for table/cutting board when I'm at camp. Nothing too heavy though.

Should be putting them through their paces this weekend.

 

[Double-D]

I wasn't at all impressed with Dirt Bagz myself. I broke the frame on my first big ride with them. Luckily it was the exhaust side, so it just hung on the pipe for the next 1000+ dirty miles. Those bags look cool though man... You might have a new pannier system to market for us cheap bastards!

 

[slackmeyer]

I wasn't at all impressed with Dirt Bagz myself. I broke the frame on my first big ride with them. Luckily it was the exhaust side, so it just hung on the pipe for the next 1000+ dirty miles. Those bags look cool though man... You might have a new pannier system to market for us cheap bastards!

Interesting you should say that. . . . . My bike came with the right (non-exhaust) side bracket, but it was missing the left. I went over to a friends house, borrowed his welder, pipe bender, and skill, and made up the left side bracket. It looks like a dead ringer for the right side, but it's a heavier gauge steel tube, and the brackets are welded on plate, not just crimped tubes. So, hopefully it'll last a while.

You've got the gobi pannier racks on your bike, right? If that's anything like the 950 rack, it's beefy. Maybe I'll get around to making a set of these for my 950 as well, since I never use the Gobis.

 

[WoodsChick]

I put in a piece of 1/8" acrylic in there right now, but I think I'll replace it with 1/4" plywood- the bag has sleeves for the stiffeners, and I'd like to use something that I can take out and use for table/cutting board when I'm at camp. Nothing too heavy though.

Should be putting them through their paces this weekend.

Smart! I mostly use my medium doggy panniers on my Husky, but when I use the large ones my little BBQ grill (slipped inside a padded mailing envelope) serves as the stiffener on the exhaust side. It's nice to carry something that will prove useful on the trip instead of dead weight

I admire your sewing skills and resourcefulness




WoodsChick

 

[slackmeyer]

Some pictures

Some pics from last weekend riding around in the sierras between Yosemite and King's Canyon.

 

[flying_hun]

What a great time!

 

[slackmeyer]

What a great time!

It was. Summer just doesn't want to start this year though.

Leaving tomorrow at the crack o' dawn to ride the 640 up to washington- won't have time for much dirt, but I always like riding through the oregon desert anyway. Hopefully it doesn't rain the whole way.

zak

 

[DefyInertia]

Know the spot? Gathering fire wood...

Same trip, different area, M3 MNF

Night