Addicted to this trip, need an update!!!

All is well and the trip is over. Thank you all for reading and the concern. The last post happened May-June 2011 I have just been delayed.


Here is a brief synopsis of events since then:

We headed on to the Bolivian border at Guayara-Mirim from Puerto Velho. We camoped a night on the side of the road on the way or tried to, before being woken up by inch long ants who had eaten their way into the tent. Waking up being chewed on by hordes of angry ants is not the nicest and after a quick evacuation of the tent I realised we had unknowingly pitched the tent a meter or two from an "ant highway" and they didn't like intruders. We decided that was enough camping for the night and headed on towards Guayara-Mirim. After an hour and a half ride with half an hour to go in the middle of the night we run out of fuel. Should have been carrying extra. Oh well. After half an hour so the first car going past stops to help. Thankfully he is very helpful and siphons a few liters out of his near-empty tank for us. We make it to town and at the only hotel with a vacancy, no one answers at reception. Tired, we put the ten up on the lawn and go sleep.


After an hour or so asleep I wake up with someone yelling and shining the light at the tent. It's the police. I try to explain the situation in my very questionable Portuguese and the police try to find the owner or manager. They can't find them either so they just shrug their shoulders and leave us to get what sleep we can.






Almost time for new boots.


The next day the manager apologizes and gives us breakfast before head down to customs and find a boat to cross over to Bolivia.





We spend the next few days riding through the thick dust of the roads to Riberalta and Rurrenabaque, camping along the way and almost running over an anaconda crossing the road once.





From Rurrenabaque we went over to Coroico for a few days relaxtion before heading up 'the worlds most dangerous road' to La Paz.












In La Paz Kyla and I decide to go our separate ways as friends. She heads back to Canada and I start working for "Gravity Assisted Mountain Biking" in La Paz. For 10 months I work as a guide taking backpackers down 'the worlds most dangerous road' and a few other more adventurous rides. I bought a couple of mountain bikes and the motorbike is relegated use running around town.





Working Hard.


The plan was to get back on the road after working for a year but that didn't eventuate. After a crazy 9 months or so I heard my older brother at home discovered he had a heart condition and I was told to get checked up. I got some tests done in La Paz and it showed an issue. This was most likely why I had 'fallen asleep' while guiding a month earlier and ended up with a dislocated should and a lot of missing skin. I sorted my life out in La Paz, sold my motorbike for about $400 (4 times less than one of my mountain bikes), and flew home. I went straight to hospital on arrival and ended up with a defibrillator/pacemaker put in.





Final Goodbye.


Now I am doing fine, living in Brisbane, Australia. No bike or motorcycle licence(yet) but Dreaming of and Saving up for the next adventure...

Glad your home safe,I'm in Emerald C.Q. if your ever passing through.pm me i'd be happy to put you up.Noel

Thanks for finishing the report. That's a bummer with your heart condition, but it looks like you've caught it in time. Good luck with your future adventures.

It was great reading your adventures.I am from India and if you ever plan for a trip here you can contact me, wud be happy to help.

Glad you made it to the hospital. Sometimes a guy gets lucky. And thanks so much for the last update. It is good to bring a story around to a fitting end. I'll have to do that myself, now that I am home. I very much like your style of adventure and the no frills reporting. I am glad things are going well with you. ratbikemike

How many miles do you think you put on the old Chinese Junker?

Thanks guys, I think by the time I sold it I had done about 20,000 km/ 14,400 miles.

Wow! Just read this through in one sitting! First of all, I want to bow in admiration of your persistence and strength, pushing through every obstacle as you two did!

I live in Peru and have alot of experience on riding Chinese bikes in South America (even 2-up), and the worst thing you can do is just buy a bike and head out on a long ride! I recommend:

Seat the engine in (about 100 kms on these models) with a good quality non-synthetic oil before you load it and head off. Then change oil to a FULL SYNTHETIC 20W50 (made for 4T motorcycles) and use only that! It is AMAZING how long the engine will last! Top off oil (if needed) every morning. Just in case, carry an extra (next oversize) piston kit and cam chain (you can have both for less than $40 !).

Take it all apart (yes, new!) and putting it back together with alot of locktite and the correct torque (like those steering neck bearings! I recommend even replacing them with conical needle bearings).

Take some foam strips and pad the battery (they are always bouncing around loose!). Take some Dielectric grease with you (you won't find it in South America) and put it in every electrical connection. This will keep water and corrosion out. Secure good strong connections on the battery posts and then cover them with Dielectric grease

Gutting the exhaust to give more power and allow you to ride almost all altitudes on the same jet is very important.

Great rear rack but it probably added quite a bit of weight by itself. A steel one actually would have been lighter, but... THE MOST IMPORTANT THING is to triangulate the rear of it down to the rear footpeg mounts so the frame and rear rack don't keep breaking.

The stock rims on some of these bikes are paper mache! Best to find some tough steel or decent aluminum ones and have them laced up with thicker spokes.

Change out the stock 15/45 ratio sprockets with 17/43 ratio. Otherwise you will be screaming the engine at 50 kph. When you are going to do the tough spots, just put the 15T back on the front and adjust the chain! O-Ring chain. They are tough and quite inexpensive compared to back home. Don't leave home without one. And as they have much thicker links they don't stretch much! Use good chain lube every morning. Again at noon if it has been a wet day or many stream crossings.

KNOW where and when your rainy season is!

As your clutch wears the cable will get tighter. Make sure you always have some play at the lever or you will burn the clutch up! Carry an extra set of clutch plates with you (they are only $4 for a full set!) and know how to change them.

I've ridden Chinese bikes 5,000 kms at a stretch, well loaded (and me at 105 KG) and never had a mechanical issue the whole way!