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As a life long MC rider and maybe one of the older guys here, there are few things that popped up in my mind on this subject. Those big adventure bikes are rather top heavy , once they start failing over they go. Then you must follow a specific process to pick it up unless you are the hulk.
Correct, Boorman and Billy Ward showed us "the process" in the Cederberg Mountains of South Africa last fall. See below. We had two 65 y.o. guys in the group who did it just fine. All of us were pretty spry, from youngest (mid-30s) to me (nearing 50) to the aforementioned. What of it? Behind Boorman in the first picture is one of the guys who competed in Paris-Dakar Rally in 2015, too. He added much to the discussion and demo.
Always surprised when something is mentioned as a big deal in the forums, that seems to sound like rocket science. When it isn't: just leverage.
We had those BMWs at the ass end of nowhere in Namibia, Botswana, and SA. Lastly, Zimbabwe. We picked them up out of sand and gravel, including me about four times from fairly-soft sand dumps. With sufficient skill, they can be ridden in remarkably tight quarters. Been-there, done-that, will be heading to Morocco early '18 to do-same again I suspect. Something for OP to consider, if big distances are part of the equation.
My day-to-day ride is a Ducati Multistrada, also highly competent on and off-road for distance.
Regarding the size argument, I personally would not use anything less than a 650cc single (KLR or G650GS) for ADV/tour riding in the US and Canada and probably would lean more towards a 250-300cc bike if I was riding in Latin America. You may be able to get by with something less but you'd be sacrificing comfort and running the engine to its limit.
GS is one of the easier to pick up since they never fall all the way over =D
That said, it's not really that hard unless you're in mud or sand or gnarly rocks in an awkward position... and then it sucks. On solid ground it's not that hard. That picture makes my back hurt just looking at it.
GS is one of the easier to pick up since they never fall all the way over =D
That said, it's not really that hard unless you're in mud or sand or gnarly rocks in an awkward position... and then it sucks. On solid ground it's not that hard. That picture makes my back hurt just looking at it.
Yeah, those GS's rolled on the crash bars so were not, strictly speaking, down flat. Now THAT would suck.
Really: Boorman and Antonio (P-D guy) made us all look like complaining girls when they tossed that GS down and had it back up in seconds. We all tried it and made sure we had the drill down cold. And, all but a few of us needed it in the coming weeks: Boorman and Billy, our wranglers, knew it would be so. Really, you turn the wheel, heave in with your arms and *legs* coming in low, those suckers were back upright in no time.
I'm a strong man but no Hulk, all of us were as i mentioned "spry" and reasonably tough, but there is absolutely a way to do this without destroying backs and not even really straining your legs much. I've hit an age to be well aware of that back thrown-out danger, too, no laughing matter.
I tossed mine down in sand and by the fourth time (I think) I was like, "no more of this !@#$! " Amusingly enough, I refused to crash after that, and did not, last week of the trip. But those sand washes in Namibia and SA, man: you plow one, you're either skating on it (hit the gas) or plowing in, and if the latter you're freakin' ass-over-teakettle in two seconds flat. My Dainese is fully armored and I was glad for it.
And yes, being tossed onto sand and grass is far better than rocks or pavement, though no picnic.
GS is one of the easier to pick up since they never fall all the way over =D
That said, it's not really that hard unless you're in mud or sand or gnarly rocks in an awkward position... and then it sucks. On solid ground it's not that hard. That picture makes my back hurt just looking at it.
Oh I am laughing here, cuz I have managed to put one over on the side over the jug, if you can imagine, which made hefting the Rubber Cow back onto its feet ever more fun.
I haven't seen much mention of the F800's here, I watched a guy hoist a fully loaded one back up in a snowy roadside pullout before I could get off my bike to help him.
You know, thinking back, I don't know about getting my Tiger back up as it has never fallen over, unlike the GS I used to have, It's a big bike and just never feels like it's that well balanced.
If a person could find the GS650 or eeven better, a an Aprilia Pegaso, there's a great in between bike. Those will push up over 100 if need be, will roll all day long at freeway speed and then do dirt like a champ.
I am reviving this thread so I can get a few thoughts from more experienced riders. I am thinking of an adventure bike instead of a sport touring ride for some commuting/weekend fun in central TX. Occassionally may head out on longer trips to midwest. Friend has BMW 1150ST and i like it, but really think an 800 Triumph or a VStrom 650 will do what I want for less money.
For a 20 mile commute a few times a week and a friendly chase through the hill country a few times a month, what are the pitfalls of and ADV bike that i don't know since I have only a couple short test drives on them?
Coming off of two decades of sport bikes (only), including three seasons roadracing with AFM in California, I shifted to ADV bikes in 2010 due to the then new, and revolutionary, revised Ducati Multistrada. I wanted something that would behave like both a sport and ADV bike.
As one might expect, it did four things corresponding to the four electronic modes "very well" but none as well as purpose-built machines for each. The four modes: electronic selector that changed various aspects of power delivery, suspension, and more: City, Offroad, Sport, Touring.
I promptly took a 2,700 mile road and gravel adventure after breakin. The modes worked fine and noticeably changed delivery of power, braking, and more. That trip included blazing fast sport riding in northern New Mexico and slower fire roads in Arizona. Plus a lot of freeway slogging. There was little true city driving.
If you think they'll carve corners like sport bikes, you're half mistaken. They can be ridden very hard and will handle great, but the leverage and center of mass are off for true hard-core track action. No surprise. I've noticed however a skilled rider can leverage just about anything into quick lap times. As John Lennon once said, "I'm an artist, and if you give me a tuba, I'll bring you something out of it!"
A plush tourer has many amenities, all the while looking like (and handling like) a couch. Great, if that's your thing.
A spry dirtbike will handle trails, gravel, sand, and more. Yes, there are different bikes and tires for different conditions, but they do all have certain similarities.
Lastly, a scooter or moped can't be beat on city streets, with tons of cars and little advantage to going over c. 50mph. India has thousands of bikes in big urban areas, none over about 350cc. For example.
A good ADV bike will hit the above bases, and do all "well enough." They are compromises. I personally prefer liter bikes, but that does not in any way disparage the middleweights. Two guys on my African trip the other year were on BMW 800s and did fine, though they were in pain for the multi-hundred mile day slogs on fast, 100mph+ gravel roads with great sightlines. In any conditions requiring more agility, though, they were at obvious advantage to us 1200cc guys.
I use my Ducati as an occasional commuter, and obvious weekend tourer with a little sport riding tossed in (see "modes", above). It can do a thousand mile day (a "SaddleSore 1000") drop of a hat, and I've done so a couple times in seven years. It can tear up the corners and hang with most other bikes. It isn't bad offroad, and with real offroad tires is a genuine joy. And as a city bike, well, it's overkill but also has extremely interesting balance points and the right gearing for low-speed work. I'll never again own a bike I can't ride while standing up. Sounds odd, but keeps you limber and really improves the sightlines and low to mid-speeds.
I couldn't be more pleased swapping sport bikes for ADV bikes, and don't intend to go back in the foreseeable future. That's one perspective, hope it helps. BMW for example also has bikes that ride that fine line between sport and ADV like the new S 1000 XR, which looks amusingly like a direct knock off of my Multistrada Pike's Peak. In a couple years, I will take a real close look at that, and other bikes, that are crowding out what Ducati temporarily owned as a field of one: ADV bikes more "sport" than "offroad."
Last edited by Blondebaerde; 02-27-2017 at 10:41 PM..
I am reviving this thread so I can get a few thoughts from more experienced riders. I am thinking of an adventure bike instead of a sport touring ride for some commuting/weekend fun in central TX. Occassionally may head out on longer trips to midwest. Friend has BMW 1150ST and i like it, but really think an 800 Triumph or a VStrom 650 will do what I want for less money.
For a 20 mile commute a few times a week and a friendly chase through the hill country a few times a month, what are the pitfalls of and ADV bike that i don't know since I have only a couple short test drives on them?
For the riding you're describing I'd suggest taking a look at the Honda CB500X. More street than dirt oriented but can do the fire roads and trails quite easily without the riding on a bar stool effect a lot of ADV bikes will give you. The smaller size makes riding a lot more fun but the 500 still has more power than you'll probably ever use and because of its ADV stance it's more comfortable than the similar street styled models. If you look closely you'll discover a lot of long time riders transition from the bigger bikes to the smaller ones as they get older, they're just a lot more fun to ride.
I am reviving this thread so I can get a few thoughts from more experienced riders. I am thinking of an adventure bike instead of a sport touring ride for some commuting/weekend fun in central TX. Occassionally may head out on longer trips to midwest. Friend has BMW 1150ST and i like it, but really think an 800 Triumph or a VStrom 650 will do what I want for less money.
For a 20 mile commute a few times a week and a friendly chase through the hill country a few times a month, what are the pitfalls of and ADV bike that i don't know since I have only a couple short test drives on them?
It really depends on just how you will use the bike. Will you be riding a significant amount of dirt roads, or mostly pavement? And if dirt, will they be smooth, graded roads, or rougher roads/trails? For "commuting 20 miles", any bike is fine, and really anything will do fine for "chasing through the hill country" on pavement. For mostly pavement and smooth dirt, a VStrom 650 is a great value, especially if that fits your price point. As is the above mentioned CB500X or NC700X. If you get into (or might want to get into) rougher dirt conditions, things change. The Strom (and actually many of the Japanese "ADV" or "dual sport" bikes) feature budget suspension components, often cast wheels and smaller, street oriented tires (19" or even smaller on the front). If you want to ride rougher dirt fairly quickly and still have a pretty performance oriented bike for street use, the Tiger 800 XC/XCX/XCA, BMW F800GS or Honda Africa Twin are a significant upgrade in all aspects. However-if they are your first ADV/dual sport for dirt use, they are overkill and expensive. If this is your first dirt experience, you will dump/drop/crash. Probably several times. In which case, look for used, cheap and don't stress about the perfect bike. Think KLR, DR650, XR650L, WR250R or DRZ400. Lots of history, knowledge and they are available pretty inexpensively.
The more you can tell about your use, your experience and budget, the better recommendation we can make. Also, how tall are you? A tall ADV bike and an inexperienced, short rider isn't a comfortable experience.
for longer rides you are going to want the comfort and reliability of a shaft driven bike.
In this regard, the BMW R1200GS is the top in it's class. Sure they require special care and maintenance, but they are a completely different animal than the chain driven japanese clones.
Dealers are usually pretty good with loner bikes, and even if the closest dealer is an hour away, you make a day of it and meet other like minded riders once there.
The KTM 1290 R and Triumph Tiger are going to be your best bet if you don't mind a chain driven bike for long distances. Even the GS650 and 800's are nice, but the R1200's are extremely popular for good reason. Because shaft drive is what Motorrad does best.
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Help me plz
