Prepping for the TAT

[deputygene]

"I encourage you to start a new thread for them and share your adventures with us. We love photos! Very Happy
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Weldangrind

Ok here goes. I started on this site several years ago with the purchase of a Tank Trail 200. Hadn't ridden in years, had a project bike in the shed (73' TX 650) but figured some riding would be good. Bought a Tank Trail 200 for myself
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and a Lifan QP 100 for my son
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I found these China Bikes to be ok, engines great, had a lot of fun riding with my son. I soon found out about the TAT
http://www.transamtrail.com/
A cross country trip on mostly dirt roads. I briefly considered trying to ride the China Bike on the TAT but the complete unavailability of parts from Tank made me re-think that Idea. Motor wise, I think the Tank would make it, but if a break down did occur in the back country I would be out of luck. I found a great deal on a used 07 XR650L locally. The bike had less than 2000 miles, 1400, I think. Smog stuff was already gone.
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First mod was a rear rack
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Followed by side racks and saddlebags
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All the while I have been reading the adventures of Dr Rock and his wife LDF as they did the TAT in 2 week increments on DRZ 400's.
http://www.advrider.com/forums/showt...95297&t=344776
http://www.advrider.com/forums/showt...344776&page=35
With Dr Rock riding a DRZ 400 I thought the Pitster Pro 400 might be just the ticket and contacted PP about using a PP 400 for the TAT but there didn't seem to be that much interest. All the while, with the BRP and new parts my wife is like "what's going on?" I showed her the TAT website and declared that I was going, no discussion. She said "ok, I'm going too". Wow, it is hard to explain the turnaround here, until the Chinabikes she had maintained a No Motorcycles policy in my home. So I started looking for something for her to ride. Found an 07 DR 650 close by and got her riding. First thing was to have some side racks made.
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To fit the tourmaster bags I got for her bike
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We first tried making due with some old Mad 330 gps units. Long out of production, they still work fine for local cruising. I will say this, the mapping CD is much easier to use than Garmin's. We started cruising to the Nat Forrest Uhairre nearby, exploring the forrest service roads and trails
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During these excursions I found the fuel capacity of the Honda to be totally inadequate. 2.7 gals, sheesh. I found I would hit reserve right at 95-100 miles. The DR has a 3.4 gal tank and will go further.
I started looking for something better and settled on this one.
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Red Acerbis 5.8 gallon tank. Had to move the rectifyer though.
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With the bikes coming along we went on our first overnite camping trip to Valley Crucis, NC.
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It was very cold that night, winds blowing like you wouldn't believe. I just knew the tent was coming down, but it didn't. Cheap Walley world tent, has held up well, no ventilation in warm weather is it's only fault.
We also found that my old Coleman stove didn't like to work when it was cold out. Worked fine the night before while cooking steaks
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Took forever to get it to pump up the next morning
Can you tell it had gotten cold out?[img][/img]
Next, i'll show some pics of our next multi day trip up the outer banks.

[deputygene]

Our next excursion was a trip up the outer banks. We trucked the bikes to her parents place near Moorehed city for a run up the outerbanks. I had gotten a Garmin 60CX (on sale at Costco) and wanted to ride a route tracked out using the Garmin software. We started at Wards creek
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went up hwy 70 towards the ferry
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Passing many little coastal fishing towns along the way
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Left to the ferry
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We waited in line with a Harley Guy riding from FL to PA
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and finally boarded the first ferry. No tie downs, just chawk the wheels
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Finally made it to Hatteras
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Stopped for a bite here
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The second ferry threaded it's way through some shallow water. Those are kids playing near the duck blind, pretty far out in the water
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[deputygene]

After checking out quite a few campgrounds, we then found Oregon Inlet campground and made camp for the night.
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After a long hot day with two ferry rides it was nice to set up for the night. Previous camping excursions had shown me that I am to old to sleep on bare ground. The little blue foam pads hadn't been any better so this trip we are trying out something different. A Thermarest self-inflating pad for her, a Big Agnes blow up pad for me. The Thermarest is heavier and takes up more space, but the convienance is nice. The Big Agnes is a quality mattress, but you better have strong lungs.
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The campground at Oregon Inlet was sparsely populated. No electricity, and the bathouses only have cold running water. Perfect for us.
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The beach was nice
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That night the wind blew hard. It was hot and the lack of ventilation on the cheap WW tent convinced me that something else was needed. Around 2 in the morning it started raining, and the tent leaked in the corner. Enough is enough, time for a new tent. Packed up the next morning it was still raining. We would ride in and out of the rain the whole day.
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We crossed back onto the mainland today. I had routed a trip back to Wards Creek using secondary backroads to explore. Interesting sights like this old church
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and then onto some dirt roads
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Only to run into this
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Crap! Now it was time to re-route. The night before when I had tried to save the days track, I had accidentally deleted the detailed maps from the Garmin 60 CX. Only option was to head west to the main roads, and back into the rain. The original plan had been to camp out again tonight, but we decided to make a long day of it and head back. We rode in and out of rain all day long. Roxanne, still being a new rider managed well.
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Stopped here at Andy's for a great cheesesteak. Wish I would have taken pictures of the 50's interior decor
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Finally, last bridge to cross
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Went back to her parents place to dry everything out.
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Lesson for this trip was to get a better tent. Also, I now have a seperate digital card for the GPS units I keep in the battery compartment. She was using a non-hardwired Garmin Vista CX with City Nav loaded. However, the Vista CX locked up and lost satelite so often as to be useless. I had Roads and recreation loaded on the Garmin 60 CX but deleted the mapset accidentally. I found a Garmin 60 CSX from Cabellas on sale and have gotten that for her. Both units are now hard-wired with a cigarette plug that will run our other accessories.[/img]

[katoranger]

Okay. When do you start the TAT?

[SpudRider]

Thanks for the great post, and the great photos, Gene! How do you compare the XR650L to the DR650SE?

Spud

[Cal25]

Thanks for the great pics and trip reports!

[Weldangrind]

Wow, great write-up. Thanks!

Can you pack a small 12v pump to blow up the mattress? I realize that space is at a premium, but it saves the lungs.

I've never used saddlebags on a dual sport before. Thanks for the shot of the frames that support them.

[deputygene]

Katoranger, I don't think we will be able to do the TAT non stop. I make enough vacation to do it, but my wife doesn't. Also, I want to make this a coast to coast trip. There is a TAT like route through SC that can link up to the TAT in MISS. I would like to start this in the spring, while it is still cool and ride 2 or three weeks. Like DR Rock, I want to store the bikes and come back in a few months and continue. So, official answer, spring of 2011. We were going to start our first segement this past summer, but an illness in the family cancelled that plan. Plus, the more we ride, the more stuff I find needs to be changed.

Spudrider, if I had to do it again, I think I would go DR's. My wife has to ride a DR, as even a lowered Honda would still be too tall. The suspension isn't as good, but I do like the DR's oil cooler. I have had some temp problems riding hard and long here in NC heat. We will not be riding singletrack (or not much of it) and the DR's suspension is good enough. I think the DR is more capable and comfortable on the street (except the seat) Her DR has more top end, but the Honda will lug from almost a complete stop where the DR will stall. Both bikes have just over 5000 miles on them, time will tell which is more durable. I am interested to see this myself. The Honda is said to have counter sprocket wear and CDI failures, earlier DR's had a problem with a soft 3rd gear in some years and a starter clutch gear problem. Both bikes are good, quality motorcycles, I have a way to ride a 05 DR 650, but I think I will stick with the Honda.

Weldgrind, good idea on the 12v pump. I have been thinking about that myself. I have an electric pump that came with a slime kit that has been reliable. But, it is a little big and heavy. I had a smaller one that crapped out on me fairly quickly. If I could find a smaller, lighter, electric pump that worked I would definately carry it. As it is I carry a small bicycle hand pump. I haven't needed it yet, due mostly to my insistence on using heavy duty tubes.
Cal25, your welcome, brings back nice memories as I sit here today, snowed for the first time today.

[katoranger]

All the info I have seen pretty much agree with your impressions. The honda takes it on off-road ability. The DR is good, but alittle more street friendly and kawasaki is more street with some dirt ability.

My preference would be the DRZ400. I rode the KLR650 and it just seemed like too much bike.

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by deputygene

...Spudrider, if I had to do it again, I think I would go DR's. My wife has to ride a DR, as even a lowered Honda would still be too tall. The suspension isn't as good, but I do like the DR's oil cooler. I have had some temp problems riding hard and long here in NC heat. We will not be riding singletrack (or not much of it) and the DR's suspension is good enough. I think the DR is more capable and comfortable on the street (except the seat) Her DR has more top end, but the Honda will lug from almost a complete stop where the DR will stall. Both bikes have just over 5000 miles on them, time will tell which is more durable. I am interested to see this myself. The Honda is said to have counter sprocket wear and CDI failures, earlier DR's had a problem with a soft 3rd gear in some years and a starter clutch gear problem. Both bikes are good, quality motorcycles, I have a way to ride a 05 DR 650, but I think I will stick with the Honda...

Thank you for your impressions, Gene. I was also considering buying a used, DR650SE, but I am very happy I found my Honda XR650L. I acquired my used, 2005, Honda XR650l with 7,800 miles on the odometer. The bike was very clean, and I bought it for $2,000. I was looking for the best deal I could find on either bike, and the XR650L was an exceptional deal.

Spud

[FastDoc]

I am awed by your pictures. I love the idea of being able to tour off road as well as on. The Gold Wing is not so good off road, you know! :wink:

[deputygene]

If you guys don't mind, I'll post a few more picsof our trip up the Blue Ridge Parkway. This was our last overnite excursion this year.
We started at a family reunion in Valley Crucis. Her uncle owns some land on a mountain top there and he as built it up into a small campground. I think it would be a great place to run dual sport rides from. There are several spots with power for RV's
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a fire pit and covered dining area
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a couple of cabins
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I like it so well that my winter project is to build a cabin there myself. Here it is as of last weekend
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This is her Uncle Boyd, mountain man.
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Anyway, the plan was to ride from the campground to the BRP, ride for a day or two, then ride back. This trip we are testing a new tent, a Eureka Crescent 3 tent I found on closeout.
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It is a 3 man tent with cross flow ventilation. Both bikes now have Garmin 60 series GPS units. Both are now using cigarette lighter sockets for power. I would find out during this trip that cheaping out on the GPD holders were a bad idea, and both bikes now have Ram Mounts.
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Both bikes packed up ready to leave. I had forgotten my tail bag and wrapped my sleeping bag in a plastic bag which turned out to be a good move.
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As we entered the BRP we encountered heavy fog.
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The riding the first day was slow and wet, the fog was thick
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We continued on a slow pace
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Even with the fog, she soldiers on
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We stopped at a parkway restraunt to eat. Nice place, reasonable, been here since the 40's if my memory is right
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special here was BBQ in cornbread pancakes, just ok.
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Tired of riding in the fog we stopped at one of the parkway campgrounds.
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The Eureka tent was dry, and the ventilation was great. Slept better that night than on previous camping rides. The fog was really thick all night long, the condensation dripped off of the trees all night long, you would have thought it was raining, but it wasn't.
We found an old aluminum percolator coffee pot at an antique store. Light, makes 4 cups, coffee creamer and sweetner fit inside. Perfect. This is the last time using the Coleman stove, which continues to be hard to pump up in cold weather. Replaced now with an MSR Dragonfly stove.
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The next morning we left, still foggy out. Roxanne had enough and wanted to head back.
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I convinced her to go a ways and see how it looked. Sure enough, it started clearing up.
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The day turned out better, along with Roxanne's spirits. We are both wearing dual sport jackets. Hers is a NexGen, min is a Tourmaster Transition II.
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I really like these jackets, armored for protection, vented, can be worn in hot weather, and removable liners that make downright cold weather riding tolerable. [/img]
The weather cleared up, and warmed up. There are fantastic views along the BRP
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Plus overlooks, parks and other attractions every few miles. Mabry Mill was a must see
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One of the little parks we stopped at
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Fence info
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We decided to head back after a fun day of riding and exploring. We pulled off the parkway to Lakeview Restraunt to eat
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Food was good, this place has also been in continuous operation since the 30's.
One last overlook
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No problems with either bike. I did have another GPS problem, about halfway up the BRP I ran out of my detailed maps. The plotted track was till there, but the detailed maps were gone. Apparently I didn't load enough or ran into a tile limit while loading them. I have since found that I can load the digital cards as mass storage and get away from the Garmin tile limits. Still working on that. Planned upgrades for the bikes this winter are:
new pipe from XR's only for the Honda
Skid plates for both bikes
new chains and sprokets for both bikes, drop a tooth on the countershaft sprocket for both bikes.
Both bikes now over 5000 miles, oil has been changed on both bikes when purchased every 2000 miles since with valve adjustments.

[deputygene]

One last thing for Spudrider. We put the Givi box on the Suzuki as a trial thing. I will definately leave it there. We usually only carry a couple small items in it, but find that it is waterproof for food stuffs, and, it is excellent for stopping in more populated areas. The GPS units come off and go right in there. Still not theft proof, but the valuable are at least out of sight.
Also spud, don't take my comments on the DR and XR wrong. I like my XR and will ride it. Just that for a long trip two of the same bike would make sense, parts interchangeability and all. I think either bike is good for long distance adventure touring and either could be beefed up where needed. The zook's suspension can be made better. The Honda can be lowered. I think the Zook's oil cooler will make a difference in longevity, but time will tell. I didn't choose DRZ because of the water cooling. I know there are many DRZ's that go upwards of 40,000 miles, but DR Rock had off and on problems with overheating on his TAT adventure. Plus I know I read at least 2 ride logs of other water cooled bikes losing a hose and dumping coolant. Probably not a huge deal as both me and Roxanne both carry camelbacks. But, lastly, I am approaching old fart status and bikes in my day were air cooled. Just something less to worry about. Also Spud, great deal you got on your XR 650L. I paid over three for each of our bikes. Still if you think of it, DS bikes are a great deal! You can find a barely used XR or DR for between 2-4 grand. That is a steal if you ask me, with what you can do on these bikes.

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by deputygene

One last thing for Spudrider. We put the Givi box on the Suzuki as a trial thing. I will definately leave it there. We usually only carry a couple small items in it, but find that it is waterproof for food stuffs, and, it is excellent for stopping in more populated areas. The GPS units come off and go right in there. Still not theft proof, but the valuable are at least out of sight.

Thanks for posting the great ride report, Gene! Almost everyone recommends reducing the stock gearing on both these motorcycles. I have reduced the countershaft sprocket on my XR650L from 15T to 14T. I am also going to raise my rear sprocket from 45T, to 48T.

The lockable travel trunks are great, for all the reasons you mentioned. I love my J.C. Whitney, large travel trunk.

P.S. It seems very appropriate to ride a BRP (Big Red Pig) on the BRP (Blue Ridge Parkway)!

Spud

[Weldangrind]

Again, thanks for the ride reports Gene.

I use a small pump that probably came from Wal-Mart for our queen size camping mattress, and it's very quick to fill a lot of volume. It isn't really a pump, but more of a fan, and it has a few interchangeable tips for various fill stems. I think it was less than $10.00, and it's quite small.

Is there a heavier flywheel option in the aftermarket for the DR? That might control the low speed stalling.