In the words of Ted Simon: The interruptions are the journey.

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TBS.com

I agree. When My moto was stolen in Ireland.. I thought for 1 night it was the end of the trip. The next few weeks it seemed like all of Ireland and all of the motorcycle community wanted to help me. I welcome the excuse to stay in a town for a while. You can always get parts. You can always figure something out.

Even something like a crash isn't the end. My friend Craig and his girl Patty were in Tajikistan this summer and they had a HARD off.
ADVrider - View Single Post - Going Walkabout on an 800xc through Russia & Central Asia...and maybe beyond...

(full thread here)

They regained their wits, fixed the bike an continued the journey. I was supposed to meet up with them in Mongolia but plans changed. Anyway.. the point is.. just about anything can happen on your trip. Its your ability to continue in the face of adversity that will make the best memories... Especially when you are helped by a local and that was what made the make or break difference.

I experienced blowouts, crashes, bad border crossings, damaged bike parts(oil pan, starting motor, cables, windshield). Nothing so serious I had to quit and go home. I stopped in places I would have blown pass and not even noticed, got to ride in a potato truck, and really met the locals. Also some of my best memories. If you worry about what could happen, you will do nothing. Eric

Ditto on the overloaded potato truck - my truck ride had only front brakes that worked, kind of, on a narrow dirt Peru mountain road heading down hill...7 hours to go 40km, and we all made it alive - moto on top of the load. A disaster becomes an adventure once you figure out a solution.

A couple of people have mentioned this before but I would like to stress it out even more. Have plenty of water on your person when you go remote. You can survive for weeks with enough water. In remote breakdown situations survival skills are more important than finding someone to help you out with the bike.

I had to ration in Australia when I got in trouble because of a slipping clutch. Looking back at videos of day three I look intense and slightly nuts. With every passing day your capacity to make sound decisions decreases. Started cramping up too then because of all the exertion with the bike. Made it back to the roadhouse with the bike but left most of my gear behind by the sea (picked it up later). Once there my behavior of the past days felt dramatic but while I was in trouble it all felt very real. Made me realize too then how loose I had played it in Mongolia at one point.

Water and a little survival handbook. I still do not have the latter but since a few weeks I do know how make a water purification system. Learn how to do that and maybe bring water purification items. I know cyclists always carry those. The hot sun is out. Wait until it goes down before you start walking. Things like that.

As for the breakdown. When the motorcycle stops running you go from being king of the world to being a heavy large barely movable object handler. It is frustrating at first. Sit down and think, assess what you have and what your options are based on the severity of the situation. I had plans a b c, ended up using c, used up energy and water trying plan a and b. It was a bit tough to accept defeat while swallowing my pride earlier on could have saved me time and effort.

As long as you stay alive you will find a solution for your bike.

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VIDEO Series YT - '91 Transalp RTW: Europe, Middle East, Central Asia, East Asia, Australia > New Zealand

I've had a few issues in the past, nowhere remote, but both in the South of France, so still a good distance from home. The first was leaving Marseille on the motorway I came across a guy on a DR650, broken down, bike covered in luggage. This was the late 80's, no internet/mobile phones/European recovery. It was early on a Sunday morning, in other words, France was shut. I stopped, it was another Brit. His chain had broken, and bent the open link. By chance my Ducati used the same chain and I had a split link under my seat. We got him going using bits of rocks and wood from the side of the road, a great effort.

My own breakdown was generator failure, again near Marseille. We worked out that if I ran with no lights it would just about power the fuel injection and pump, but no more. We decided to head for Calais but hadn't got far before dark. Sat in a motorway services in the middle of nowhere and a couple of Welsh fellas pull up in an old Mk4 Cortina. They offered for me to follow close to them and they would lead with lights on. The next 500 miles were covered at about 100mph average, with a constant smell of some strange 'Herbal' cigarettes coming from the Cortina, great fun!

So, as has been stated, a breakdown is as much a part of the journey as anything else, and someone will always help you out :-)