Tedious bike prep information. Part #2

#New Tyres: Heidenau K60 scouts. Very hard wearing and genuine 50/50 tyres which should last the trip. Even though I managed to split my rear Heidenau in Uzbekistan in 2012, I still think they are just about the best available tyres for this kind of trip.                

#Head Race Bearing: On a recent ride: the front end didn't feel right:; to the point that I turned round and went home because it just felt unsafe. My guess was wheel bearings. Wrong. The head race bearings were completely shot. A known problem on the Ten (insufficient grease from factory assembly). I had them checked before the 2012 trip. OK then, but 16,000 odd thousand miles later they need replacing. Who knew?

#Headlight protector: maybe a bit unnecessary; but it certainly makes the bike look more "adventure" (although not a term I like; its just going on holiday on a bike!)

#Chopped tail: mainly to reduce weight and to stop the number plate falling off (again!) as it is more securely attached to the new shorter tail section. Because of the exhaust pipe, the number plate is not in the centre and the rear indicators are asymmetrical and at an odd angle; but it just makes the bike more unique.



#Battery and Regulator/Rectifier LED warning thingy: I actually installed this before the 2012 trip as an early warning for a failing battery and /or regulator/rectifier. I carried a spare reg./rec. last time as some were reported as failing on the Ten. Although I did the fix on mine before I set off and it has been fine. But it is still good to now if the battery is losing charge before it leaves you stranded. Only cost a few quid and installation was so easy, even I could manage it.

#Metal Mule Radiator guard: again, actually installed before the last trip. Maybe useful, maybe not? Had no radiator problems, so probably done it's job.

Booked!

The flight is booked; the trip is on!

Bogota to Buenos Aires by Bike

After some more research, it seems that the best, easiest places to freight to/from in South America are Bogota and Buenos Aires. So that is the new plan (and new blog title) "Bogota to Buenos Aires by Bike", if only for the alliteration. Now there are 6 countries on the itinerary:
Colombia,
Ecuador,
Peru,
Bolivia,
Chile,
Argentina
I will have 3 months total to travel between these two cities on a route yet to be decided. There are lots of places I want to visit; it's just a case of finding the best, most scenic and interesting routes with which to link them up. I have been re-reading Dan Walsh for inspiration. Whatever happened to Dan Walsh? I have also been reading through my 2012 trip blog; not a very good attempt at blogging, but it brought back how great that trip was and how much I enjoy long distance biking. As Dan says " the road works......."

The South American Option

Major change of plan! After failing to generate any interest from other bikers to share costs in China and Burma and failing to get a reply from the guy who can (allegedly) get you and your bike into China legally but without a guide; a change of plan (and blog title) has arisen. The more I think about it, the less I like the idea of paying money to be babysat through various countries en route to Thailand. It should be about the freedom of the ride; not the bureaucracy and red tape. So, South America beckons:

NO visas
NO carnet
NO babysitting by paranoid regimes

Already had a quote to get my bike in and out of South America: expensive and no doubt cheaper to buy a bike there and resell it at the end. But this is leg 2 of my RTW trip; so I have to do it on my beloved Tenere (she would never forgive me if I left her behind).

The very vague plan for now is to fly myself and the bike into Colombia or Ecuador in September and spend up to 3 months meandering south through  Peru, Bolivia and Chile to Santiago where I will return to the UK. Maybe add on a bit of Argentina if time permits. The weather looks good for this: Springtime most of the way, so avoiding extreme heat and cold (excepting the high bits). So, time to learn some Spanish.

Hola South America!

Tibet, Tibet! Where is everybody? Anybody?

A rather belated update. It seems the options for the traverse of Burma are good; many bikers are keen to cross at around October next year. However, as yet, I've had no interest from anybody about crossing Tibet. No doubt due to the cost; but I think it is a relatively small price to pay in order to ride on the roof of the world. Hopefully some like minded souls will make themselves known soon.

Meanwhile.........................................
In October 2014, I rented a Honda CB500X for a few days riding in northern Thailand (Chiang Mai, Pai, Nan and around). Good to get out on a bike in South East Asia again, would have preferred my own steed, but the Honda is a good bike; plenty power for the Thai road conditions (and my limited riding ability!). Tried out my new Drift Ghost helmet cam; very happy with it so far. Here is a piece of random footage from the trip. Don't bother with the volume, it's mostly just wind noise. I don't know why the quality of the film on Youtube is so poor; the original footage on my computer is crystal clear.

Basic route plan.

The above map shows the route I would like to do. What the final route will actually be is still open to question. The plan is set off around late August 2015 and take a total of about 3 months to complete the trip. The obvious problem areas with my planned route are:

Iran: criteria for entering Iran with your own vehicle are in a state of flux at the moment. I hear that a compulsory guide may be necessary for UK passport holders (among others). Coupled with the necessity of a carnet; dosen't make Iran straightforward. But, there is more than a year to go, so rules and regulations could change many times in the interim.

China: expensive compulsory guide and paperwork as before. Also, because of political problems with Tibet (and, increasingly, Xinjiang), even pre-approved routes can be withdrawn without notice. So, a plan B to detour to the KKH and Pakistan and then on to India, may be a good idea.

Burma: after recent successful crossing(s), Burma seems to be opening up to overlanders. Still early days, so very hard to predict the situation next year.

Tedious bike prep information. Part #1

My Tenere 660 as used on the 2012 trip was pretty much standard, apart from:
#New Yacugar rear shock and progressive fork springs.
#Barkbusters hand/lever guards.
#Centre stand.
#Alu. bash plate and engine bars (Adventure-Spec).
#Scottoiler
#Radiator guard (Metal Mule)
In my opinion, the Ten is very well set up for overlanding "out of the box" (with the possible exception of the suspension). I was very happy with it on that trip, but I started tinkering, and once you start tinkering, it is hard to stop! So, I am a good way through a few modifications to the stock bike:

#Renthal 613 high bend bars. If Mongolia taught me anything, it was that standing on tricky off road sections is advisable. The stock bars were just a bit too low for a tall fella like me when standing. The 613s give an improved riding position when stood on the pegs. I could still do with a bit more height on the bars, but as I don't like bar risers; I may go for the lower (adjustable footpegs) at some stage.

#Kahedo high seat. The stock seat is crap; OK with an airhawk, but still crap on any long distance ride. So I shelled out for the Kahedo high seat (I am tall!). In all honesty, I wasn't convinced at first. But after several months with it, it has improved comfort considerably (just as well, as my airhawk has a puncture and I can't find the repair kit that came with it). The flat profile of the Kahedo allows you to shuffle around while riding and alleviate any pressure areas.

#Exan single exhaust. The stock set up is VERY heavy, and that was my main reason to switch to a single can. The improved exhaust note is a bonus! The only downside was that the popping/banging on deceleration was crazy loud. So that lead on to the next mod:

#AIS pipe blocking. Simple enough procedure in the end. I couldn't get to the clamp to remove the AIS pipe to plug it. But a recommendation (by the ever reliable Pleiades on XT660.com) to use a Hoffmann clamp to block the pipe worked a treat and now, no more popping!

#Kev Mod and O2 sensor eliminator. Two magic electronic boxes from Australia which are plugged in to the existing wiring to improve the fuelling and.....................something!? Whatever the technical explanation; they improve the responsiveness, fuel economy and overall "feel" of the ride. Very worthwhile investment for anybody who rides a Yamaha XT.

#12V power supply. Not really a mod, bit I drilled the fairing to make a more secure and tidy home for the 12V power supply. Its' previous position of being zip tied below the clocks wasn't ideal.

That is where the bike is up to now; but there are more mods to come. Probably.