Departing 30 June 2010, Tenere 99% ready to go. Any suggestions?

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Good luck and make sure you enjoy yourself....

Nice looking bike I must say. Should get you safely there and back. Keep us all informed of your progress...

Stay safe
Neil

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Triumph Bonneville 800 (2004), Yamaha XT600E (1999), Honda XBR500 (1986).

Hi Rui,

All the best for your trip. What is your route, roughly, and how long are you planning to be on the road?

I've got a suggestion: Take pictures and have fun

Suggestions? Take me with you

Good luck, and keep us posted

THEE ticket for a trip like that!!

Have a Heap-O-Fun & take LOADS of pics!

Thanks for the notes guys. We leave on 30 June 2010...51 days and counting! Our route will be Cape Town to Windhoek, Namibia, Caprivi strip east to Zambia, via Lusaka into Malawi. North along Lake Malawi and then into Tanzania, North to the Ngorogoro Crater, north into Kenya (stop in Nairobi for a few days for bike servicing, changing tyres etc), THE HELL ROAD, North of Nairobi from Isiolo to Moyale, into Ethiopia via Addis Abbaba north to the Symien Mountains where we then loop the mountains to see Laibela, Axum etc, then west into the Sudan up to khartoum, then east to the meroe pyramids and then north along the nile up to wadi halfa where we have to get the compulsory barge to Aswan in Egypt (Beuracratic nightmare on both sides!!), north to Hurghada on the red sea, north to cairo...56 days of Tenere Bliss!!!

56 days! Blimey, it took me 11 months ;-) Enjoy

Pictures, Pictures and mores Pictures.........!!

I did the North to South route (West Coast) and got somewhat annoyed with a riding partner taking what I thought too many pictures. BUT I WAS WRONG!! You can never take too many pictures no matter how boring, banal, stupid or any excuse you think for not taking them, you may be taking pictures of something that may be of great use to fellow bikers in the future..! (nudge nudge... I intend to ride from CT to Z-Bar this year!)

As for practical, I'll definatley be taking a torque wrench and welding rods (1 Doz) on the trip, something to think about maybe?

All the best mate, have fun and I'm looking forward to hearing how the bike holds up.

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Geoffshing

'Security is a product of one's own imagination, it does not exist in nature as a rule, life is either a daring adventure or nothing.'

Hi Rui,
Regarding the air filter in dusty conditions, here's something you might be interested in, & be sure you read the Questions & Answers at the bottom.
Yamaha XT660Z Tenere 2008 for sale - TradeMe.co.nz - New Zealand
Good luck with your trip.
Bob

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Remember that Assumption is the mother of all f**k-ups.

Hi Rui
I am from Cape Town and will also be travelling to Cairo by motorbike on the 30 June 2010. Could you please send me your contact details. You can amail me at work on achmat@bergstan.co.za or mobile 0823355653

Looking forward to hear from you.

Regards
Achmat

Will definitely be taking loads of pics.
When I said 99% complete I was wrong! Took the Tenere on a 3500 km roundtrip around SA (1000km of which was dirtracks and gravel roads through the karroo) and have found the standard suspension on this bike inadequate for the nature of trip that I am doing in 4 weeks. As a result, I have had a specialist rebuild a complete new rear suspension to be more suitable for some of the offroad conditions that will be encountered and had emolators put into the front forks and front and rear suspension materially stiffened....HUGE DIFFERENCE Offroad!! It now feels more like an XR650 when you hit the dirt/rocks/potholes etc and less like a vespa! Yamaha obviously came up against budget problems when dealing with suspension.

Hey Rui
I did the trip on a much older Tenere in 2004- Give me a call if you feel like a - I still live in Cape Town.
Jim

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"If we don't find something good at least we will find something new." Voltaire

Hmmmm...I fear this post is going to get me into a little trouble on the "Yamaha Tech" site!!

I have been unable to come to terms with overall ride quality on the Yamaha when fully loaded.

The suspension issues that I made reference to above have proven to be more challenging than originally anticipated. The offroad ride became great after the suspension mods however, made the onroad ride hard as nails and felt like I was going to pass a kidney or two.

In addition, when the bike is fully loaded (panniers and top box) and running at above 130kmh, the front wheel becomes so light that a VERY uncomfortable wobble develops to the point of nervousness.

There have been some other minor but niggling items which have contributed to my ultimate decision...whilst I still depart on 30 June (2 weeks time), I changed bikes 10 days ago. I am now the proud new onwer of a KTM 990 Adventure. Did the run in in 3 days in the cederberg and KTM CT have been working like madmen to get the mods and add ons completed.

I know this sounds like a cop out however, considering what a big trip this is for me I wanted to be sure that I was doinbg it in the best possible way and the KTM has proven to be chalk and cheese when compared to the Yamaha. FOR ME.

So, now the Yamaha is for sale. If anyone is interested in a seriously kitted out new Tenere, send me a pm to discuss.