All around South America
 

Hi amigos
I bought a Chinese 250 in 2011 and rode it all around every country in South America for 8 years, clocking up over 80,000 kms. It was this Ronco Demolition 250, which they sell in Peru. I recently began posting Youtube videos about my adventures. The day I bought the bike is in this video, the good bit begins at the 58 minute mark, follow this link

https://youtu.be/Gdd38WU0CBw?t=3479

More to come.

Wow 80,000 kilometers is impressive. I think I'm gonna look for a catholic priest to bless my bike.

Makes my life feel so ordinary now. Welcome to the site, I'll watch more of the videos later.

I did have my fair share of mechanical problems... but in the end I reckon I got my moneys worth. ps here is a trailer with a map of where I rode https://youtu.be/Z5L7MtOKUXg

heres a video from 2019

https://youtu.be/MQMmirCY83I

There was/is(?) a gentleman in Peru (ex-pat American retiree) who taught small engine repair at a local college and would source bikes for people wishing to have budget motorcycle adventures, provided they wanted to begin their adventure in Peru. He seemed to have many takers, mainly from Europe. I know he posted on Horizonsunlimited-hubb a lot, and seemed like a solid guy. Did you get your bike from him? Does he sound familiar? Is he still dealing in budget adventure bikes (aka Chinese dual-sports)?

I will continue watching your videos...so far so good!! :tup:

No I dont know that who that guy might be. I bought mine new from the Ronco dealership in Cusco. Or I should say "one of the Ronco dealerships" because there are several shops in the same street that have new Ronco models for sale in their showrooms. Because I wanted mine in orange, it was special order, and came disassembled in a box on a truck from Lima, the capital.

I like your storytelling style.



The Ronco looks interesting - it's the same CG-based bike as loads familiar to Chinariders. They're solid bikes, and I'm impressed you got such crazy mileage out of it.

Thanks Sullybiker! Actually over the course of 8 years and 86,000+kms, it had three different engines, not counting several rebuilds. The factory engine lasted over 20,000kms, if I remember correctly, and it was replaced at a cost of only $650 fitted (and I think I overpaid!) The original engine did fail early on, but I think it was because of my mistreatment of it. It was rebuilt fairly cheaply and lasted a long time.
A few years and many tens of thousands of kms later, I fitted a Honda engine, but it gave me a lot of problems, in hindsight it was a bad idea.
Here is episode 7, a bit long at 90 minutes, but I wanted to just finish all the pre-tour stuff and have it online. From now on the episodes will only cover a day or two and be much shorter. https://youtu.be/4q97kZT3GLc

New episode, this one only 14 minutes long

https://youtu.be/8g342Np2s40

Episode 9
 

New episode, only 17 minutes long. This was the day before I set off for Patagonia on my brand new bike. Also a bit about how the Incas sacrificed children, ironically in the main plaza, there is a statue commemorating the ruler who instigated this barbaric custom.
https://youtu.be/qdiUnK4ZZI0

Episode 10: Day one and the first 390 kms of what ended up being an epic 8 year, 86,457 km motorbike odyssey. I leave urban Cusco in drizzling rain on my brand new Chinese bike in the company of Angelo, an experienced motorcycle guide. En route we ride over the high mountain pass of Abra La Raya, before entering the altiplano and heading for Puno on Lake Titicaca. https://youtu.be/6jdeYzGchVg

Day 2 didnt exactly go according to plan....
https://youtu.be/sQd9nHO7EqU

New 11 minute episode, day 3, Puno to Arequipa:

https://youtu.be/juKaaJM1_SQ

Interesting vid/story. What on earth is all packed on that bike? I pack to travel indefinitely totaling 35lbs!

That bike looks just like the Bashan Brozz :)

A lot of stuff I never ended up using! Like sleeping bag, tent, roll mat (thats in the big orange cylinder-like bag. The roll mat was very voluminous but didnt weigh much). In 8 years, I only camped a handful of times, but, I figured, carry a tent and sleeping bag & roll mat just in case I get caught somewhere. I also carried a laptop, a DSLR, several lenses, a tripod, three GPS units (because I LOVE playing with GPS), two pocket cameras and several external hard discs which I triple wrapped in padded stuff to save it from damage. The topbox only had a Gigapan unit which weighs only about 1.6 kgs, but it takes 6 AA batteries so I carried a couple of dozen of them because my GPS also used AAs. I did weigh all my stuff at one point and it came within specs, about the same as a pillion passenger. But, in hindsight, I carried way too much, and later you will see overloading caused the first serious breakdown that nearly killed me, halfway down the desert coast of Chile.

The 2011 Ronco Demolition 250 used a generic Shineray engine. I saw virtually identical bikes sold under various names in several South American countries. You can zoom in and see more detail in this zoomable hi res gigapan. https://www.gigapan.com/gigapans/95964 and here is how she looked after 13,000 kms https://www.gigapan.com/gigapans/120401 (in the end I did 86,000kms)

Episode 13, eleven minutes long, descent from Arequipa to Moquegua, via the desolate Chala region. https://youtu.be/EqOfY2yu43I

Ep 14: bombs and murderers (sort of!) 17 minutes https://youtu.be/nrv_M__wZKM

New 80 minute episode, about the family that lives in an abandoned railway carriage https://youtu.be/GITctN8QyBY

new episode, 18 minutes long

https://youtu.be/QxA16EvCkyo

Episode 17, 28 minutes long

https://youtu.be/50l2lo7-ulY

madarumoto, :tup:

I really want to explore South America. Looks like you've had a wonderful time of it.

yes the trip took 8 years. Actually, 10 years and still counting, as Im still in Peru trying to edit all the hours of video while also waiting for airfares to drop. I was fortunate to finish the trip just a few weeks before Covid arrived.

Here is a new channel trailer that condenses 8 years into 33 minutes. It also gives a preview of what future episodes will contain:

https://youtu.be/u-8RK8kglcE

Episode 18, 12 minutes long:

https://youtu.be/DezcmnQ0-MA

Latest video, 24 minutes long: https://youtu.be/vqJJBWExTBM

New 10 minute episode: After spending my first night camping in an abandoned saltpetre plant, I pack up and continue to head south on the PanAmerican Highway in northern Chile, covering over 500kms in the absolute desolation of the Atacama Desert, passing the 3000kms mark, a hotel called "Las Bombas", a weird rock formation called tafoni, a shrine to an unofficial saint, the foggy coastal town of Chañaral, and then spend some time looking for, and finally exploring, the fascinating archaeological site of Viña del Cerro, where Inca-Diaguita coppersmiths reduced copper ore using an ingenious device called a huayrachina, and an Inca ushnu platform exists, in this case integral to the other buildings for use as a solar horizon calendar, and possibly human sacrifices.



https://youtu.be/JxhsWIaTjWA

Episode 21, 11 minutes long: Leaving Tierra Amarilla I rejoin the Pan American Highway seeing along the way huge mining machinery transport convoys, wind turbines, and cactus with red protuberances which indicates I am finally leaving the Atacama Desert. I cross Puente Juan Soldado and recount how he saved the town from pirate attacks, and how a later pirate, William Dampier, left his mark on the next town I visit, La Serena, where I explore on foot some interesting buildings before returning to the hostel to receive a distressing email.
https://youtu.be/2AlVIl-5SDI

New 15 minute episode- first half about interesting things seen in La Serena local museum, second half about my near-catastrophic wheel failure (BTW all my fault)
https://youtu.be/uqZYjK1lQiI

Epsiode 23, 17 minutes long.
Having had my bike's spokes replaced, I decided to take her for a test run before making the trip to Valparaiso. I heard from the Hotel Socos staff that Valle del Encanto, about 25 kms distant, was worth a visit. Once there, I found ancient rock inscriptions, "piedras tacitas" - (which literally translates as "little cup stones" ) that have been assigned all sorts of functions including sacrificial bloodletting and celestial mapping, trees and plants that provide medicines and hallucinogenic concoctions, plenty of cactus, plus I discuss the mysterious whistling pots and the area's alleged connection with UFO phenomena.


https://youtu.be/k_SjdoKz96I

Episode #24, only 13 minutes long. Unfortunately it doesnt contain any road footage as my action cam wasnt working that day, but I tried to make up for it by adding computer graphics and lots of local history.
https://youtu.be/tyTN-AAbrDI

Episode 25 - in Valparaiso, Chile Installed in the historic Villa Kunterbunt biker hostel, guest of the very amiable Senor Enzo and Señora Martina, I face a dilemma due my father's imminent surgery, unable to reschedule a flight home, and having no credit card to fall back on in any case. Yet, the charms of Valparaiso made me feel at ease, especially when coupled with the camaraderie of my fellow bikers, who came from Austria, Switzerland, USA, Ireland and several from Germany, mostly on BMWs. One rider was on his life's mission, which involved the death of his father, a motorcyclist. Another came from Mexico on a tiny 150cc budget bike. Not to mention the family’s mischievous but lovable Afghan dog. Experienced an earthquake and I explain the orogeny of the central Andes and San Fernández Tectonic Microplate. Visiting many attractions, including Pablo Neruda's La Sebastiana mansion, their vintage trolley busses, 130 year old cable railway funicular "asensores", and amazing street art, I also pay visit to a master moto mechanic in the capital Santiago, where I saw a vigil in response to a hate crime.
https://youtu.be/lqDv2E25-5I

Episode 26 just posted - 18 minutes long. Leaving the Villa Kunterbunt after almost 3 weeks, I wanted to take a route called Gunpowder Road, but ended up taking a different route. While leaving central Valparaíso I pass a sign saying "Welcome to Cyber Independence" which reminds one of how Chile was one of the first countries in the world to build a working internet - rudimentary and short-lived though it was. Covering 510 kms in just under 11 hours, Atwakey and I see very little traffic in central Valparaiso early on Easter Sunday, though later in the day there was a lot of traffic heading north along the Panamericana. I stop at the Rio Maule, a watershed river in more ways than one, before finding a camping ground at San Manuel, on the banks of the Rio Perquilauquen, a short distance from a place that will always hold a sinister if tragic place in Chilean history. https://youtu.be/GYyTVzJTtlc

Episode 27
 

17 minutes long
Leaving the camp ground of San Manuel by the Perquelauquen River, I ride northeast to rejoin the Pan American before turning south again. Along the way I see a Chernobyl-like structure, clock up 5000kms and bury a geocache to commemorate, see a perfectly formed volcanic cone, pass an extremely long bridge, give up trying to find a certain fire station in the town of Lautaro, so named after a Mapuche warrior whose incredible story deserves a quick retelling. I had a near accident at the village of Quepe that saw me lock up my brakes for the first time in 5000kms. Then southwards to the town of Freire, where a local hotelier takes me under his wing and shows me some local attractions, including a leaning cupola, a German enclave, and a shooting location for the classic film "The Motorcycle Diaries".
https://youtu.be/Y3fFkHQygBw

ep 28: 12 minutes long. Leaving the town of Friere I am frustrated by thick fog which forced me to ride with my visor open. Because of that I made the decision to ride east towards the Argentine border, on the other side of the Andes it should be drier. Today I rode 291kms, and saw some interesting things, including a house surrounded by unrestored classic cars and a mystery wooden machine, a separate motor museum brimming with Studebakers, some high voltage electrical workers, an unusual factory yard, and I briefly recount the tragic history of Galvarino and Janequeo, Mapuche warriors whose tribes held the Spanish off for over 300 years.

https://youtu.be/Ct-D00OPE1w

episode 29, 12 minutes long.
Leaving the lakeside town of Entre Lagos, I ride up over the Chile-Argentina border that looks like a disaster zone - because it is! Volcanic ash covered lakes and killed the forest. Some unusual mountains seen along the way, a strange bullet-riddled "Bridge of the Gringo", plus some history about the strawberry, native to this region, including how the humble strawberry patch was used as an ambush weapon, and then before I knew it Atwakey and I were in San Carlos de Bariloche, Argentina.

https://youtu.be/w4zK3xGzlcU

Episode 30, 31 minutes long. A few days spent exploring San Carlos de Bariloche, a mountain resort renown for its chocolate, trout fishing and skiing, also its curious past regarding a mad scientist's experiments with nuclear reactions, and the devastating fallout from the 2011 Puyehue volcanic eruption. A few tenuous links to Australia, also a ride up a funicular to see some amazing views, plus a bit about music censorship during Argentina's military dictatorship.

https://youtu.be/_AVK5agqluY

New episode, 18 minutes long. Leaving Bariloche I see graffiti sprayed on the road surface that is a reminder of Argentina's tragic past. Scooting around Lake Gutierrez, where wind has whipped up some small waves, I pass the 6000 km mark on my bike's odometer, riding through lovely Patagonian countryside and Ruta 40, after 303 kms arriving in the town of Esquel where I have difficulty finding a room for me and Atwakey, dental problems manifest (again!), and find my expensive cameras and GPS units are all broken. But a surprise is waiting for me in the form of an historic steam engine, the Old Patagonian Express. https://youtu.be/j961-ElgJc8