TAT-2016 Post 20 – Sunday, 28 February 2016

First I would like to thank all those who posted positive comments on my last Post 19. It really reinforced my opinion of how great adventure riders really are. I was a little reluctant to continue to post my Blog on the TAT Facebook groups but not anymore.

Things are moving fast now. We had a TAT-2016 meeting a few days ago with all four core riders participating; Mike, Steve, Terry & Woodrow. Primary topic was setting a launch date for Leg 1 from Charleston, SC to Little Rock, AR. As I mentioned in an earlier post that we all work for the same company and have several projects in critical phases. Finding a 9-day window in March or April was getting very difficult which would have delayed our Leg 1 to middle of May. We are all anxious to get going so after much discussion we picked a launch date of 16 Mar 2016.

We now have a lot of last minute tasks to accomplish including:

1               Getting our bikes to Charleston. Our plan is to load the 4 bikes in a trailer and Woodrow will take bikes and gear to Charleston on Tuesday, 1 Mar. Woodrow has family in Charleston so will store the bikes in a family garage until we get there on 15 Mar. We actually loaded the bikes onto a flatbed open trailer today (pics below). There was a lot of doubt by some members (me included) that we would be able to get all four bikes onto the trailer. Our back-up plan was to put one of the Hondas in the bed of the truck and three on the trailer. After lots of dragging and realigning we got them all secured with multiple tie downs for the ride to Charleston.

2               Install new tires on my CRF. I ordered new Dunlap D606 front and rear tires through the Honda dealer in Charleston. Woodrow will drop my bike off at the dealer next Wednesday to mount tires and do an oil change. Woodrow will also have his CRF get its 600-mile break-in checkup. He will be in Charleston for several days so will get the bikes back to his folk’s garage before he drives back to Little Rock.

3               Accumulate gear and clothes for the ride. All four riders have until tomorrow to do this anticipating shipping the bulk of the items out with the bikes.

4               Do last minute route planning. Once we reach Tenn we will use the TAT maps plus GPS tracks I downloaded from GPSKevin. The route from Charleston to Tenn will be on two-lane roads following the most scenic route through the Smoky Mountains. I did a mile-by-mile comparison of the TAT maps to GPSKevin track and they are about 90% the same. We will use the maps as the master route but use the GPSKevin tracks where they are the same.

5               Get four riders to Charleston. Our original plan was to fly out but in an attempt to save a few bucks we are renting a large SUV and driving out. We will leave around 6 pm on Monday 14 Mar and drive straight through to Charleston. Expect around 13-hour drive but with four drivers we can switch off driving. The advantage of this approach is we will have all day of the 15^th to pack bikes, get our pictures riding in the Atlantic Ocean and have a big dinner with Woodrow’s family that night anticipating an early start on Wed 16 Mar (Day 1).

I will be taking a small notebook and wifi with me so will be uploading reports and pictures every evening as long as I get good upload speed. Most of the TAT doesn’t appear to be real close to large population areas so connection may or may not be reliable.

As a side note, M&M whose crash video I posted recently is having surgery next week to fix a broken bone and pulled tendons in his hand. Followed by wearing a cast for a few months plus 6 months of rehab per his doctor. The injury wasn’t identified by is GP doctor but after still having pain and numbness, he went to a specialist who found the damage. He was never going on Leg 1 so at least he has some time to heal before Leg 2 in the July/August time frame.

All for now but the adventure is about to begin.

TAT-2016 Post 19 – Sunday, 21 February 2016

Lots have happened since my last post; some good but mostly bad. This will probably be one of my wordy posts so reader is warned.

Good:

Tank Bag - I received my GL tank bag and installed per the pictures below. I really like this tank bag for a number of reasons:

1               GL bags are excellent quality and are constructed to last. External bag should be water resistant but they provide an internal dry bag if you really need to ensure everything stays dry. BTW it appears you only get the dry bag insert in basic cost if you buy direct from GL. Be sure to ask if you buy from another source because it is an extra $30 in some cases.

2               Mounting system is very user friendly. Mounting straps stay on bike with access to gas tank cap while bag is easy on/off using zipper on both sides.

3               Bag top zippers work smoothly, unlike a $70 bag I bought from CycleGear that has a very stubborn zipper.

GPS – During my AK1 and AK2 rides I used a pretty expensive Garmin 665LM GPS. It had lots of capability including XM radio and weather (Wx) maps. I only discovered after crossing the Canadian border that the XM Wx maps don’t work in Canada and where did I have most of the bad Wx, CANADA! I still loved that GPS because it had a great mounting system and the GPS is waterproof plus had a bright display for day viewing in the sun. I sold the 665LM with my Yamaha Super Tenere after I completed AK2.

In addition to my Garmin GPSMAP 64st (off road and TAT tracks), I have been using my car GPS while on roads and to find gas, food and motels. Problem is my road GPS isn’t waterproof plus it has the typical USB power connector that doesn’t last long on a motorcycle. In addition, it is useless in bright sunlight. I recently had a little extra money to spend on my bike so decided to get a real motorcycle GPS to replace my car GPS. I’m a Garmin loyalist so after a quick search found a good price on the 660LM which is a cheaper version of the 665LM. Primarily no XM capability but it uses the same mounting/power system with most other capabilities the same. I installed the 660LM on the CRF yesterday and include pictures with this post.

Bad:

A week ago I got out of bed in the middle of the night to go to the facilities and passed out. At that point I took a nosedive into some piece of furniture and was knocked out and received a concussion. I now have a big scar on the top of my head. My wife rushed me to the ER but I have no memory from Friday till sometime Saturday afternoon. Even when I did start to get my memory back I could not tell you what year it was or many other details for a couple of days. Really pretty scary to not be able to recall the most basic information. After many tests including MRI I was released on Sunday but told to not work and to “rest my brain” for at least a week and maybe two; even got a doctors note I sent to my boss. I just finished setting at home for a week doing absolutely nothing. My headaches have stopped but I still feel like a drunken man sometimes when I get up to walk. That is getting less and less so I plan on going back to work on Monday.

Cause – I’ve been dealing with mild hypertension (high blood pressure) for several years. I’ve actually had several episodes of passing out after standing up quickly and the Dr has changed my meds several times trying to get it under control. This latest incident was actually a good thing if you don’t consider the concussion, headaches and feeling like a drunk anytime I walk. It highlighted that I was on the wrong meds for the wrong problem. I am now dealing with specialists who are focusing on getting my blood pressure under control so I can continue with my quest for adventure. Prognosis is that I will be back to normal, whatever that means, in time to continue with our TAT-2016 adventure.

This brings me to the third subject of this post. For those easily agitated by anyone doing the TAT in anyway not considered traditional, please stop reading now and save yourself further aggravation. Traditional in this post means end-to-end non-stop using fire breathing hard core dual-sports with mega power and suspension.  Throw in camping only and no motels. It also means taking every hard route along the TAT and never backing down from any challenging mountain pass.

I have to say that if I were 40 or even 30 years younger I would be with you on that difficult TAT ride. Anyone doing it that way has my full respect and envy but I must face reality. I’m 68+ years old and I know my limitations. I’m still doing long distance rides (AK1 in 2012 and AK2 in 2014) but my days of hard-core all out riding are over.

As result of my last post I received several scathing comments from one reader on my TAT-2016 approach. Just an observation, if you start out a comment with “Why would anyone spend money on a cheap, low powered Honda CRF250L with terrible suspension, blah, blah, blah” you aren’t looking for a response, you are basically calling the writer a dumbas_. I actually tried a simple response and received another attack so quickly decided his was a rhetorical comment and did not require a response. Something in my Blog clearly agitated this reader and I’ve spent way too much time trying to figure out what it was. Therefore this is not written to the one blog reader out of 193,000+ views that felt it necessary to provide negative comments but to all the rest of the silent majority.

Everything I write here is repeats of my previous Blogs but I figure most readers aren’t going to read all my previous posts so here are a few stats.

I’m no novice to motorcycle riding or long distance adventure rides. In 2012 I rode to the Yukon Territory on a Harley Davidson Ultra-Classic from Arkansas; 6500 miles in 15 days (AK1). We didn’t make it to our destination Alaska only because the Alcan Highway was washed out due to heavy rains.

We were finally successful in 2014 when I rode a Yamaha Super Tenere (1200cc) to Alaska and up to the Arctic Circle on the Dalton Highway; 7700 miles in 23 days (AK2). AK2 included getting the Iron Butt; 1037 miles in 16.5 hours, St Louis, MO to Rawlins, WY. BTW I was 66 years old on AK2.

I’ve made numerous other long distance rides over my 50 years of motorcycle riding and have owned too many different motorcycles to even remember.

Another key fact is that I’ve worked my whole life including 9 years in the military through most of the Viet Nam War and raised 4 fabulous kids to adulthood. Most of that time I worked paycheck to paycheck so know what it’s like to not have money to spend on the best or even 2^nd best motorcycle and gear. For those who still do adventure riding on minimal income, I feel your pain but admire your persistence. You’re the real deal.

What I am now is one of those senior citizens you see riding down the highway in a bus size RV pulling a Toyota going from RV park to RV park on an “adventure”.  The difference is that I prefer to see the world from a motorcycle seat as long as I’m still able. I’ve finally reached a point in my life where I have surplus income to spend on my adventures so the cost of the motorcycle isn’t even a factor on what I elect to ride.

I say this because the primary point of the negative comments was that the Honda CRF250L is a cheap, low powered, terrible suspension dirt bike so why spend money equipping it for the TAT when a KTM is the only bike worthy of making the trip. The funny thing is all his basic comments are true. The CRF250L is the cheapest dual-sport on the market; someone will say there are cheaper but you get the point. It is underpowered and I even commented on that in a previous post. The suspension is mediocre at best and has no adjustments. I clearly know the limitations of the CRF250L but for my TAT ride, it is perfect.

As part of my pre-TAT research I looked at every dual-sport and adventure bike available including BMWs. I could have afforded any one of those bikes so price was not the deciding factor. I have to admit I did not consider KTMs past an initial look because of several reasons but primarily because I have no experience with them. I understand they are great bikes but they do much more than I will ever attempt so I eliminated them early. Plus I couldn’t even reach the ground from their seats! I focused on the 4 Japanese manufactures of which I’ve owned many.

I actually wanted the Yamaha WR250R but none were readily available so I picked the Honda CRF250L. I originally had chosen the Kawasaki KLR650 because of its excellent reputation but eliminated it as soon as I sat on one. My key concern was weight. I’ve ridden heavy touring and adventure bikes in less than ideal conditions and I decided I wanted a bike that I could man-handle through mud, sand and rocks without dealing with the weight of a 450lb + gear bike. The CRF250L is considered a heavy 250 but at 300 lbs it is something manageable plus it is so much fun to ride.

As for all the gear and modifications I’ve made on the CRF, I do it because I enjoy upgrading my bikes and I can afford it. In the end I may have several thousand dollars of add-ons on a cheap Honda but that is my choice and most of the gear is transferable to my next bike. A Sydney to Perth, Australia ride has been discussed as a possible follow-on to TAT-2016.

As a side note, I’m not loyal to any one bike or manufacture. Even when I had my Harley Davidson, I sold it because I knew it wasn’t the best bike for my AK2 ride. If halfway across Oklahoma on the TAT, the ole CRF gives out I will replace it with something else, maybe a DRZ400. If at the end of the TAT when (not if) we make it to Oregon and the CRF is too worn out to have it shipped back to Arkansas, I will sell it cheap or give it to some deserving young rider who can’t buy a bike of his own. Of course I will keep all my expensive gear.

In summary, our TAT-2016 ride is 3 middle-age and 1 senior citizen riding across the country on cheap dual-sports and having a great time doing it. We have nothing to prove and not trying to impress anyone. We will not be taking unnecessary risks and have all agreed that if it gets too tough we will find an easier way around the obstacle. At our age even a minor injury could end our motorcycle riding forever.

Anyone who feels that our TAT approach makes us posers or whatever else comes to mind, let it go. Nothing in my post says ours is the best answer or even the only answer, it is our answer based on many factors. I share my blog with like-minded riders because I’ve gotten lots of great ideas and incentive from reading other folks Blogs. Maybe someone will get something useful out of my experiences. I welcome questions and even constructive input but out right attacks are not welcomed so please save yourself a heart attack and go find someone else worthy of your criticism.

As for the CRF250L selection, I read a lot of blogs and the best response I read to the question “What is the best bike for the TAT?” was “One with two wheels”.