Tobi, I like your style - jeans, t-shirt and broken bearings. I also broke my steering bearing the last time (the only part I did not bring). I machined a new part and used a bicycle as a donor. As for t-shirt though, riding 12 hours a day, day after day, can quickly lead to the type of exhaustion that causes accidents. I would be asking for it if I didn't take precautions on this one, padding my body with cordura and pads.

I must say though, Cape Town to Nairobi in three weeks was a joy. Got up early and rode 300 to 350 kms a day without too many problems. Roads were mostly good, and I could keep a nice cruising speeds. I don't think I could have done it much quicker on a beefy motorcycle. But add another 200km/s to that a day, with some poor roads every now and then, I will quickly find myself riding in the dark... with a far greater need to think about safety.

And backofbeyond... 40C for someone living in Norway is Extreme!

Mark - I think I understand the sweat bit, I just lack the mental capacity to make myself understood sometimes :P It is ofcourse entirely as you say. And as for cold, I experienced zub zero temperatures in South Africa (Prince Albert to be precise) at 08:00 in the morning, and scorching heat in the afternoon - like having ones feet in the freezer and ones head in the stove - not a comfortable average when wearing the same clothing the whole day.

But Mark, for my purposes, would you bux MX-boots or something else?

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Me, I'd not take a little scooter on a long trip. Given the scooter I'd probably opt for hiking boots rather than m/c boots. But I'll repeat that I don't think the heat is going to be too bad, really.

The prevalence of foot and lower leg injuries among riders is clear--you dab a foot for balance and it twists or gets stuck, you drop the machine on your leg, etc. I don't really know how that translates to scooters, but I bet it's not that different. The happiest I've been in about a hundred thousand miles (160k km) about my boots was when I dropped my loaded 650 on my right leg at no more than 10 mph on a remote road in southern Chile. The bike bounced off my boot and left me a bit stiff for a few days. Absent the boot: broken leg, more than likely.

That single incident made the other 99,000 miles of heavy, sweaty, stanky boot-wear worthwhile.....to me. Your mileage may et cetera.

enjoy,

Mark

https://www.bike-design.com/article.php?id=664

easy does it!

enjoy the trip, stay cool!

Willem

Hi,

I would say "proper" Motorcycle cloths with all the protection stuff will have exactly this effect that you get exhausted. They are to hot, to uncomfortable and to big if you dont wear then. The other problem is you cant sleep in them if its cold because the protection stuff is to uncomfortable and last but not least you look to rich if you go to africa with more then jeans and a old jacket so people beg at you insted of being friendly.
Anyway I needet long sleeve Shirts and cheap working gloves in Mali and Mauretania otherwise i would have get sunburned even i used sunlution. I userd the waterpumps along the road to get my clothes wet to cool me down. When i reached Marocco i had snow in Atlas...

Have fun, Tobi

Hmmm,

The risk of hurting ones feet from getting a scooter dropped on it is not as great as on a motorcycle, and I am not so concerned about this. Nor do I think there is much risk from getting my feet run over by other vehicles. But, if I eat dirt or pavement, it would be nice to not get my flesh torn off my feet or get too badly bruised. I'm thinking working boots with hard leather, like Caterpillar or Sketchers, or maybe some softer lighter army boots or Dr. Martens. What do you think?

As for jacket I am starting to think a regular Cordura Jacket with removable protectors. It might be a bit uncomfortable riding in cordura, but the risk of taking a digger is quite large on this one - 10 inch wheels, poorly distributed weight, useless shockabsorbers, useless breaks, useless handling, poor grip, and very long and exhausting days. Bruises is one thing, but loss of flesh is entirely different, especially in a situation like this where there would be a high risk of infection.

As for Pants, I really have no clue at all. This is where I am at the biggest loss. I started thinking Cordura here as well due to the protection from road rash, and the option to wear pads if I could bear it. I've used zip-off Draggin Jeans cargo pants before, and lately I've been thinking I'd go for this option again. They are comfortable to wear and walk around in, but the pads are useless and extremely uncomfortable. Also, they are quite hot due to the kevlar lining in the seat, thigh, knee and upper leg. This material resembles the look and feel of a towel, and makes you really sweaty. Also, pockets are useless. But in terms of comfort, I really don't know what will be best? Cordura will offer better protection. Do you guys think there will be a significant trade-off in comfort? What about protection? If I don't have to do much of a trade-off in terms of comfort, I'm thinking Cordura. I won't be doing any ball dancing on this trip and will not require casual wear.

I guess a strap-on back protector would end up in the luggage rather quickly?

Choice of helmet, I'm thinking a flip front full face with sun glass that can be flipped up/down. Used this the last time, and I was very satisfied.

As for gloves, I've got a pair of light weight summer gloves from Dainese with a really snug fit that I really love. They don't offer much protection from the sun in the wrist area though... Is this a problem you think?

Underneath, I will without question use a button down synthetic shirt that allows me to regulate body temperature efficiently. Synthetic t-shirt, and synthetic undies with long legs and few seems (tight fit that don't bunch up). Synthetic hiking socks. I think this outperforms any other option, and they dry quickly after a hand wash. In addition, a warm layer for the legs and torso - i.e. a fleece jacket and tight long johns and a thicker pair of socks. I remember sub zero C mornings in Africa, and I am very glad I had this with me in addition to a pair of all season gloves.

Going the street wear route is out of the question. I don't want a digger to keep me from getting to Bamako within the Rally time limits.

Please keep the discussion rolling.

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