Adventure Motorcycling

[Greg]

Ok, one more try...


Spence! It's not a 990, but it's hardly even broken in yet!! I'd love to pick that up... :freak::chris:

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8073140&postcount=1463


I'm doing an overnight ride this Fri & Sat, I'm going to ride from Fruita to Glade Park, then over the UT/CO border and out to Granite Creek. From Granite Creek, ride South, back into CO to Gateway and then head up John Brown canyon to the La Sal mtns. Probably camp somewhere outside of Moab, perhaps Sand Flats? From Moab, head up Hwy 128 to Cisco, then catch the Kokopelli trail back into Mack, Colorado in the afternoon. If you had a Adv bike, you could go!

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=393167

 

[Spork]

What about something like the BMW Xcountry?
http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=218&ad=4470807&cat=144&lpid=2

 

[Greg]

What about something like the BMW Xcountry?
http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=218&ad=4470807&cat=144&lpid=2

I know nothing about the X Country, but it looks cool. I'm curious what fuel capacity is on a X Country? I like the Adventures because they have massive tanks. I wonder if the Beemer would look bad with a windscreen? That's one thing I need to add to my DR650 for long road trips. The wind gets to you after about an hour of fighting it. There's only so low you can get trying to duck behind the headlight/number plate.

With my aftermarket 4.9 gallon tank, I get about 220-230 miles out of a full tank. Probably more if I ran it dry, but haven't cared to try that yet. If you're going to be riding lots of pavement and big trips, you probably want as much fuel capacity as you can get.

 

[spencurai]

I got extended at work through saturday morning so I am kinda screwed for that deal or I would follow you around on some pavement sections and buy you lunch at la hacienda.

I have to wait for the moderator to approve my registration over there before I can look at the classifieds so here I sit. What bike was it?

I posted my original post on myspace so I will cut and paste it over here again...

I think it is time to either sell the cruiser or ante up and buy another motorcycle. I have been watching the BBC shows "Long Way Down" and "Long Way Round" and I have decided that is something I want to do. I don't think I would go for the BMW bike but rather the KTM for reasons of which Iam not exactly sure other than I don't really care for the horizontally opposed twin.

I have a desire to do super long rides but I haven't been able to bring myself to screw up a perfectly good looking cruiser by putting ugly bags and a window on the front...anyway I have the schedule required for such a long distance lifestyle and the relative budget. I can get a screaming deal on a 990 KTM if I get an older model and I don't feel bad about putting bags on such a utilitarian piece of machinery.

From watching my old buddy Greg from Grand Junction and all his offroad adventures I know I don't want to go as far offroad as he has ventured. I did PSM/GBR/GS on an early 80's 550 Yamaha enduro and that was enough for me. I want to explore dirt roads and then hit the highway with some exploring on foot inbetween.

So who else has seen those TV shows and been inspired to hit the less beaten path? I started out on an enduro 15 years ago and I think it is time to get back to that!

 

[Greg]

I got extended at work through saturday morning so I am kinda screwed for that deal or I would follow you around on some pavement sections and buy you lunch at la hacienda.

I have to wait for the moderator to approve my registration over there before I can look at the classifieds so here I sit. What bike was it?

I posted my original post on myspace so I will cut and paste it over here again...

Hopefully there won't be much pavement... :greg: Still, that's too bad about work, it's always getting in the way.

That link isn't working now anyway, the Mods merged it with the official Flea Market thread. It's a 2003 KTM 640 Adventure LC4 for $6600 in CO. Here's the post-

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showpost.php?p=8073140&postcount=1463


Here's an amazing '07 KTM 990 Adventure, only $11k Also in CO (says SOLD, but it's not) -

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=392783


I'm loading my DR650 up for Friday morning, so far nobody has taken me up on riding, so it looks like it's going to be a solo trip. I was in Moab today and the La Sals have a good deal of snow on them! That ought make the trip interesting, looks like a 50% chance of storms on Fri & Sat and temps are going to be about 60* on Fri and 48* on Sat. Those numbers are for La Sal, UT which ought to be a decent medium of the area. Sounds like perfect riding weather.

 

[spencurai]

That is why that 950 on KSL has caught my interest...it is CHEAP and all I need is a new helmet and a jacket for the road.

http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=218&ad=4233346&cat=&lpid=
7200$ is a steal imho

 

[Spork]

I know nothing about the X Country, but it looks cool. I'm curious what fuel capacity is on a X Country? I like the Adventures because they have massive tanks. I wonder if the Beemer would look bad with a windscreen? That's one thing I need to add to my DR650 for long road trips. The wind gets to you after about an hour of fighting it. There's only so low you can get trying to duck behind the headlight/number plate.

With my aftermarket 4.9 gallon tank, I get about 220-230 miles out of a full tank. Probably more if I ran it dry, but haven't cared to try that yet. If you're going to be riding lots of pavement and big trips, you probably want as much fuel capacity as you can get.

The official site says 2.5 gallons including one gallon reserve.
http://www.bmwmotorcycles.com/bikes/bike.jsp?b=g650xcountry&p=specs&bikeSection=null

The BMW looks nice, you would probably want some fuel strapped to the back with a tank that small. I would love one but the $ is going to other things like diapers. :sick:

 

[Greg]

That is why that 950 on KSL has caught my interest...it is CHEAP and all I need is a new helmet and a jacket for the road.

http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=218&ad=4233346&cat=&lpid=
7200$ is a steal imho

Yeah, I could see that. I'd be curious about how well those bikes handle mileage. IMO 30k on a bike is like 90k on a car, depending on maint. Once you get setup on AdvRider, you ought to ask for details on that bike, what it's worth, what it may need in the future, etc. You know what KTM stands for, don't you? Keeps Taking Money. :greg:


FYI, looks like he's asking NADA high-book value, not including mileage-

Low Retail - $5,440

Average Retail - $7,155

Suggested List: $13,898

With that kind of mileage, I'd think you can do better on the price.

 

[Greg]

The official site says 2.5 gallons including one gallon reserve.
http://www.bmwmotorcycles.com/bikes/bike.jsp?b=g650xcountry&p=specs&bikeSection=null

The BMW looks nice, you would probably want some fuel strapped to the back with a tank that small. I would love one but the $ is going to other things like diapers. :sick:

That's about what my stock tanks was, just when you started having fun you were out of gas. Even with the aftermarket tank, I added 2, 32 oz MRS Fuel Bottle to my fuel arsenal tonight, just in case. Eventually the diapers end... then it's shoes, pants, etc, etc. So you can have that X Country in about 18 yrs. 22 if you're paying for college!

 

[spencurai]

Yeah I checked the NADA on it and realized he was probably asking that because of all the goodies like the bags, pipe, etc. I am never one to pay asking price for anything so a certain amount of haggling would have to take place before I booked a flight. If I decided to get it I might consider driving the work truck over there and picking it up since I am already 250 miles in that direction from my home and the price of diesel vs a plane ticket might lean towards the diesel.

I think I have been really spoiled with my Jap bikes because they are just so damn reliable and easy to maintain. There is a lot to be said about the price you pay for a bike that is not as prevalent as a KLR. When you planned a trip you would not only have to plan camping, food, and fuel stops but you would have to keep in mind where the closest KTM dealer is...which is getting more common in my travels but still...$$$$$

 

[cruiseroutfit]

There is a great article in the most recent Overland Journal about outfitting the KTM 950 for overland travel (by the guy that recently ran the TAT on it). Also an article about Copper Canyon Mexico on a BMW GS and DR650

 

[Greg]

Yeah I checked the NADA on it and realized he was probably asking that because of all the goodies like the bags, pipe, etc. I am never one to pay asking price for anything so a certain amount of haggling would have to take place before I booked a flight. If I decided to get it I might consider driving the work truck over there and picking it up since I am already 250 miles in that direction from my home and the price of diesel vs a plane ticket might lean towards the diesel.

I think I have been really spoiled with my Jap bikes because they are just so damn reliable and easy to maintain. There is a lot to be said about the price you pay for a bike that is not as prevalent as a KLR. When you planned a trip you would not only have to plan camping, food, and fuel stops but you would have to keep in mind where the closest KTM dealer is...which is getting more common in my travels but still...$$$$$

Yeah, always haggle. I've never been one to pay for aftermarket items on anything, that's just one thing that shouldn't count towards the asking price.

Jap bikes are hard to beat far as reliability. I was reading a Ride Report on AdvRider and a KTM owner was riding in Moab and had some electrical(?) issues, so he rode from Moab to Grand Junction to the KTM dealer to get it fixed. That's not always going to be an option... If I get another street-friendly Adv bike it will be a new style KLR. They look 10x better and are as bulletproof and reliable as you can get. That '98 KLR I had last year was dead-nuts reliable and it hadn't been cared for! Oh, the guy I sold my KLR to had a nice, high-dollar KTM but he wanted a bike to ride to Mexico that was cheap, breakable, easy to get parts for and reliable. So he bought a 10 yr old KLR.

There is a great article in the most recent Overland Journal about outfitting the KTM 950 for overland travel (by the guy that recently ran the TAT on it). Also an article about Copper Canyon Mexico on a BMW GS and DR650

Hummm... Overland Journal, huh? Where do I sign up? Copper Canyon sounds fun, I've heard a lot of people riding there and back. I still want to do a motorcycle Baja trip at some point.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

...Hummm... Overland Journal, huh? Where do I sign up? Copper Canyon sounds fun, I've heard a lot of people riding there and back. I still want to do a motorcycle Baja trip at some point.

http://www.overlandjournal.com/subscribe.html

:greg:

 

[Greg]

http://www.overlandjournal.com/subscribe.html

:greg:

Thanks!!

 

[Corban_White]

With my aftermarket 4.9 gallon tank, I get about 220-230 miles out of a full tank. Probably more if I ran it dry, but haven't cared to try that yet. If you're going to be riding lots of pavement and big trips, you probably want as much fuel capacity as you can get.

That's pretty good mileage! I have a 4.2 gal tank on the atk and I can only make it about 150 before i hit reserve! (but I do ride pretty hard):greg: If you were comming a bit closer I'd come with you but thats a bit further than I'm willing to go right now. Besides, I have to work on the Scout.

 

[Greg]

That's pretty good mileage! I have a 4.2 gal tank on the atk and I can only make it about 150 before i hit reserve! (but I do ride pretty hard):greg: If you were comming a bit closer I'd come with you but thats a bit further than I'm willing to go right now. Besides, I have to work on the Scout.

The DR650 is supposed to get 50+ MPG, but I've been know to ride at speeds faster than 'good mileage' speed. If I got 50 MPG and used all my fuel, including the 1/2 gallon in the extra MSR tanks, I should get 270 miles. That's a good bit of travel!

So sweat, I'm doing this ride because its so close to home and I want to explore that area more.

 

[spencurai]

Yeah, always haggle. I've never been one to pay for aftermarket items on anything, that's just one thing that shouldn't count towards the asking price.

Jap bikes are hard to beat far as reliability. I was reading a Ride Report on AdvRider and a KTM owner was riding in Moab and had some electrical(?) issues, so he rode from Moab to Grand Junction to the KTM dealer to get it fixed. That's not always going to be an option... If I get another street-friendly Adv bike it will be a new style KLR. They look 10x better and are as bulletproof and reliable as you can get. That '98 KLR I had last year was dead-nuts reliable and it hadn't been cared for! Oh, the guy I sold my KLR to had a nice, high-dollar KTM but he wanted a bike to ride to Mexico that was cheap, breakable, easy to get parts for and reliable. So he bought a 10 yr old KLR.





Hummm... Overland Journal, huh? Where do I sign up? Copper Canyon sounds fun, I've heard a lot of people riding there and back. I still want to do a motorcycle Baja trip at some point.

I might just have to go get on a modern 650 metric and see how it lugs my ass around. I like the idea of a thumper, lots of good low RPM torque and good mileage. I can't say that I pack light but I think I would learn to if it meant being able to pass those semis. I have a lot of test driving to do in the coming months.

 

[Greg]

I might just have to go get on a modern 650 metric and see how it lugs my ass around. I like the idea of a thumper, lots of good low RPM torque and good mileage. I can't say that I pack light but I think I would learn to if it meant being able to pass those semis. I have a lot of test driving to do in the coming months.

Go for a ride, dealers should let you on a KLR without hassle. See if you like it, if not no big deal. Ride the KTM. It'll be a world of difference, but they are both good bikes. If the KLR works for you, than you're into a bike that much less. I want to ride to Alaska someday and I'll probably do it on a new-style KLR.

I'm off to bed, have to get good rest for my big ride the next 2 days!

 

[Greg]

I had a little accident yesterday, laid the bike down at 35-40 MPH on Sand Flats road. Road surface was hard pack with pea gravel on top, totally my fault as I came into the turn too fast. I locked the rear up and wasn't loosing any speed, grabbed the front brake harder and the front tire washed out on me. That wasn't fun! After stopping by the Slickrock Trail parking area the wind was bad and I was getting sand blasted. I opted for a hotel room rather than camping and had a nice warm dinner in Moab.

I may write up a trip report later on, I've been home since 1 PM and I'm still pooped.

 

[spencurai]

So I rode the KTM 950 ....Holy crap...the thing is a ROCKET!!!

I can get this thing for under 10 grand...it is an '07 new on the showroom floor, they just need it off their inventory!! What a bike...WOW!!!