Inappropriate bike????..or what!

[Sparky]

Im in the latter stages of trip planning (Europe Turkey,Iran,Pakistan India,Nepal,Thailand,Laos,Cambodia,Ausand NZ) and had intended taking a Yam XT660 when I leave(early May)I`ve riden Yamahas for years and reckon they are the best of the Japanese manufacturers IMHO!I also have a FZ1 Fazer that I bought last Autumn and I love it.To throw a spanner in the works one of my friends suggested that instead of the XT why not take the FZ1 and at least when I get to NZ i`ll have something good to run around on(I intend on spending at least 3 months in NZ) before coming home(May /June 09 )Is it a feasible option?I know people say you can tour on any bike,but can you really!!!Im not intending doing any off roading as such,the occasional dirt /gravel road.The more I think about it the more of a challenge it seems.Appreciate any opinions.

[stevesawol]

Hey Sparky,

I would think the XT would be the Duck's nuts for NZ! National speed limit is 100km ( and the highway patrol will get ya, not to mention the un-signposted hidden speed cameras!!) so the longer legs of a road bike will be not so helpfull and there is a world of rough gravel roads, foresty roads, firebreaks, off road etc that a XT was made for!! I think you'd have a lot greater options and fun on the XT. And if you can that far on the XT, it can't be that bad on the road eh!?
(i'm not a xt fanatic, i'm about to buy a GS, so don't think I'm bias, just living in Europe these days. If i was still in NZ it would be a single of some kind for sure!! )
Steve the kiwi

[Simon Kennedy]

FZ'd do just fine. Not many people's first choice (or even top twenty) but you couldn't really say *unsuitable*.

If you are looking for a challenge then there are plenty of more radical options. It's been a while since any one took a monkey bike that way for example.

The biggest issue I reckon is damage to the bike. It is not going to be very shiny z z z zoom zoom fazer thou by NZ. Otherwise, why not?

[Martynbiker]

USE THE XT!

[Birdy]

I test rode the old style Fizzy a few years ago (pre FI), and it didn't seem a bad bike, it just didn't excite me. On the other hand, I've been riding an Xt for a couple of months now, and I think it is brilliant - probably the most non-sports-bike fun I've had on two wheels. Take the XT - more fun, more of the time, and you can get away with utter stupidity on any surface (useful for someone like me, no aspersions being cast on you!)

Still love my 636 more than a man should ever love a lump of metal, but learning to love the single throb, after a luke warm experience with my old DRZ.

Happy riding

Joel

[Walkabout]

Leave the FZ1 at home, clean, tidy unscratched and wreck the XT.

Then, when you get back home, you can get a better trade in of the 4 cyl for another single!!

[normw]

My Kawasaki ZR-7S bears some significant similarities to your FZ1 in that both are essentially four cylinder, standard-ish bikes which run on 17 inch wheels mounted with fairly meaty tires and both lean somewhat towards the sport end of the spectrum. Having ridden the ZR-7S a fair bit on gravel and dirt roads during trips to the Yukon and Baja I would say that this type of bike does not fair well off pavement. The wheel size (particularly in front), the width of the tires and the power pulse of the multi cylinder engine do not make for a secure feeling on gravel or dirt surfaces.

I found that I needed to slow down very substantially on these surfaces while my friends on a GS650 and a KLR blasted right by me. Add some rain or sand and the issue intensifies. I could have deflated the tires somewhat but there was enough switching between pavement and gravel that it would have been a pain to keep re-inflating.

Hope you find this useful.

Norm