Desert Ramble
Sep. 17th, 2003 05:29 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tugrikAfter a good bit of pacing in a circle after my own tail, I think I'm going to do it. Thinks are underway to enter my first desert dualsport tour/rally. If I'm ever going to become the overland rider that I want to be I need to start doing the entry-level events like this.
The idea is to put brand new knobbies on the GS-ADV and point myself south towards Lancaster on a Thursday night in late November. Crash in a motel (or possibly with friends down there) and be at the start point by 7am. From there I follow the GPS and rally-sheet over a pure-offroad course (though it's one designed for big bikes like mine -- streetable dualsports) through the deserts of Southern California, ending up in Barstow. We crash in a motel there and start out the next morning to do it again, this time through Red Rock canyon and on to the finish line in Vegas.
While ~240mi/day is nothing when it comes to street riding (I've done 720 and can comfortably/repeatably do 500+)... on dirt it's another matter. Judging from the offroad work I did during the ADVRider campout I should be just fine, even with my knees acting up. Goodness knows I'm decently equipped for back-country safety, with the satphone, PLB, first-aid and survival stuff and other bits I use for my travels. This will be a well-staffed event run by the American Motorcycling Association so stranded riders would be lost for mintues to hours, not days, anyway. Still... it's far longer than I've ever gone on dirt.
One huge advantage is the two-day nature of the thing. If I do half and it kicks my sorry blue butt, then I can bail at Barstow and head home from there. If I total my bike I have local friends there (*waves at Mom-Of-Revar*) and a roomate (*waves at![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
revar too*) who could help. Yes, I plan to ask them waaaaay in advance first and have others I can contact if that doesn't work for them. No worries there.
With luck, if Revar has enough time-off available, we could turn this into a fun Vegas weekend. Spend Sunday and Monday in the well-lit desert funouse and head back on Tuesday. A rally and a weekend with buddies in Vegas? Heck, sign me up.
Checklist of things to prepare:
Schedule time-off from work (Done! Verbal anyways.)
Work with Revar to see about support-truck duties and vacationing together
If Revar is cool with it, set up the Bat-Truck with Dusty's motorcycle trailer
Sat Phone (make sure service is on and phone is in working order)
PLB (get it ordered)
First aid/survival kit (make sure supplies are ready)
Bike service (get the 16k done early)
New set of TKC80 knobblies
Borrow a tracker from work. Heh, gotta geek-it.
Maybe get in s'more offroad practice withdustykat once he gets his Katoom fixed.
The idea is to put brand new knobbies on the GS-ADV and point myself south towards Lancaster on a Thursday night in late November. Crash in a motel (or possibly with friends down there) and be at the start point by 7am. From there I follow the GPS and rally-sheet over a pure-offroad course (though it's one designed for big bikes like mine -- streetable dualsports) through the deserts of Southern California, ending up in Barstow. We crash in a motel there and start out the next morning to do it again, this time through Red Rock canyon and on to the finish line in Vegas.
While ~240mi/day is nothing when it comes to street riding (I've done 720 and can comfortably/repeatably do 500+)... on dirt it's another matter. Judging from the offroad work I did during the ADVRider campout I should be just fine, even with my knees acting up. Goodness knows I'm decently equipped for back-country safety, with the satphone, PLB, first-aid and survival stuff and other bits I use for my travels. This will be a well-staffed event run by the American Motorcycling Association so stranded riders would be lost for mintues to hours, not days, anyway. Still... it's far longer than I've ever gone on dirt.
One huge advantage is the two-day nature of the thing. If I do half and it kicks my sorry blue butt, then I can bail at Barstow and head home from there. If I total my bike I have local friends there (*waves at Mom-Of-Revar*) and a roomate (*waves at
revar too*) who could help. Yes, I plan to ask them waaaaay in advance first and have others I can contact if that doesn't work for them. No worries there.With luck, if Revar has enough time-off available, we could turn this into a fun Vegas weekend. Spend Sunday and Monday in the well-lit desert funouse and head back on Tuesday. A rally and a weekend with buddies in Vegas? Heck, sign me up.
Checklist of things to prepare:
Schedule time-off from work (Done! Verbal anyways.)
Work with Revar to see about support-truck duties and vacationing together
If Revar is cool with it, set up the Bat-Truck with Dusty's motorcycle trailer
Sat Phone (make sure service is on and phone is in working order)
PLB (get it ordered)
First aid/survival kit (make sure supplies are ready)
Bike service (get the 16k done early)
New set of TKC80 knobblies
Borrow a tracker from work. Heh, gotta geek-it.
Maybe get in s'more offroad practice with
dustykat once he gets his Katoom fixed.
