I agree, ride Central America with your cruiser. Spend quality time instead of trying to cover too many countries without enough time.

In 2008-09 I rode CA with a BMW K75, a street bike, and only had problems getting to the hotels where my wife chose to meet me...miles and miles of rough dirt road with an overloaded bike and insufficient suspension. If you are content to stay on or close to the tarmac, you'll do fine.

In general, leave in the mid-fall, so you arrive in southern Mexico just after hurricane season. This way you'll be riding the dry season along the western coast of CA. Leaving later makes for a cold first leg of the trip. A short trip means you'll be braving the cold on the return leg. I picked up a one piece riding suit and heated vest on the road for the last leg of my return trip (think February in New Jersey...)

If you make it to South America there are all sorts of weather conditions and wet seasons to sort out. While January is the dry season in Central America, it is the rainy season in the Amazon. Few ride through central Brazil, but that is my plan. Most motorcycle trip go along the western coast of South America, where the rain is usually light. I was speaking to a Peruvian tour operator at a rally recently and he was saying in Peru there is a rainy season in January or February (I'm not 100% sure, so Google and find the websites that provide annual rain fall and temperature.)

My next trip will take roughly 4-6 months and I will be hustling through much of Mexico and Central America on my way south to get to Amazon between the dry and wet season (I can't leave earlier, but would if I could.)

Selling a motorcycle in a foreign country could prove to be a challenge, one that you don't want to do with limited time (you might end up giving the bike away...)

I think some of the mileage estimates shared in this thread are high, but this is something I am currently adding up, using route segments entered into BaseCamp. It is important to know your route and minimum mileage in order to calculate number of days on the road, hotels, meals, gallons/liters of gas, insurance, oil changes, tire changes... Or course be open to change when you hit the road. Over plan and be ready to adapt. =)

Final words of advice, take two months and ride Mexico, and maybe dip into a few Central American countries. Gather some experience riding in Latin America, then go to South America when you have more time and funds saved. No sense rushing through landscape and running low on funds, its no fun, unless you are trying to set a record.

__________________
Peter B
2008/09 - NJ to Costa Rica and back to NJ
2012/13 - NJ to Northern Argentina, Jamaica, Cuba and back to NJ
2023 - Peru, Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, Chile, Bolivia...back to Peru.

Blogs: Peter's Ride