Crappy slow bikes are so much more fun than fast bikes, if you are into that kind of traveling.

You will see more. Meet more people (you may be forced to stop in odd little towns for repairs) and have a good time if you have patience.

For me the slower bikes are so much more what motorcycle adventuring is about than big bikes.
Hell, anyone can buy a big GS and a BMW suit and call themselves "motorcycle adventurers" but the true adventure is in yourself and a quirky choise of bike will bring memorable experiences.

Personally I drove Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia on a 125 Minsk and it was so much more fun than the KLR 650 trip from LA to BA I have just completed now.

Big bikes have little personality, small bikes have lots. Sometimes at least. And always on sundays...


Driving long boring distances on a small bike makes you feel the distances. When you just crank the handle on your big bike to "make the distance go away" you also cheat yourself a bit.

So bottomline is:

Buy whatever you find that looks good to you and GO RIDING!

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Peter Kongsbak
South East Asia, USA, Central and South America and Scandinavia.

I think that is what I was trying to say Peter, but be aware of the strengths and weaknesses first. Put Jock on a 125cc and he would probably not have enjoyed his trip. For me, I wanted reliability first, everything else came after.

If you can remain calm and focused if your bike has just fallen apart in the rush hour traffic of Quito, it doesn't matter what you ride, you will handle the situation. Same applies if you are on RN40 in the middle of nowhere. But if those scenarios give you nightmares you may need the extra comfort that a trustier steed brings. However things will go wrong whatever you ride and that is when boys become men, even old boys like me!

Remember though that Hecate says he (she?) is a novice rider and no mechanic, so needs to think a bit harder than those of us who have been riding for years.

In your situation Hecate, I think I would look for a friend to come along, you can support each other in times of crisis, and there will be times of crises no matter what you ride. My friend Roger was riding a brand new Buell and a pot hole wiped out his front wheel and rear subframe, so as I said don't matter what's under your bum really, it's what's in your head that matters.

Oh and the bad moments turn into great stories afterwards, it's just at the time that they look hopless, and the good times are 99.999999% of the ride.

You won't know if you are right until you do it, but let us know how it works out, you could teach us all a thing or two in the end. Good Luck

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Happy Trails

Stagbeetle

It is not the Journey nor yet the Destination, that is the Prize; it is the people you meet on the way.

Blog on http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/fairless/

My last quirky ride was Ural. Purchased new in Moscow, wanted the military model but Saddam had bought them all. Settled for the "tourist".

It had alot of personality. So much so, it was abandoned in Uzbekistan after much misery...and some good stories.

I would point out that my VSTROM has provided me with literally an order of magnitude more distance than the quirky machine with very little trouble.

I want a bike that is on my side, that works with me not against me.



The Strom is programmed to retard timing at 130 mph. Tried that, and neither Southern Patagonia nor the Atacama desert "went away".

They in fact lingered for a painfully long time.