Climbing Trips Via Motorcycle

Has anyone ever gone Long Distances on their bikes with climbing, camping gear etc? My friends and I are planning to hit Moab spring break and i'm just trying to figure out a way to cram everything on my little bike before i'm forced to organize a support car.

tips? tricks? thanks folks.

I've never done it, but you could get a trailer. Sounds like a fun idea. Just don't strap the crash pad to your back or you could go air born.

You should read "Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance"

hahah we were having a conversation about the crash pad scenerio.

One of my favorite books although it took me a few years to understand some of it. One of the reasons I own a motorcycle as well.

Evan1984 wrote: You should read "Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance"

I was gonna' suggest reading "The Stetnner Way". Those guys rode motorcycles from Denver to the Longs Peak trailhead back in the 30's when all the roads were dirt and it took 3 days to get there. Maybe not chock full of tips, but definitely inspiration.

Thanks Hank, i'll have to check that one out for sure.

wow John you have a fast Trail 90 haha! I don't think i've ever rode one that could touch 30

my grandpa used to have several trails that he used on his farm and i suppose there was something wrong with them because they were not that fast and I probably weighted 80 pounds when i was riding them

that could very well be a possibilty. either way i think you should figure that trip out and keep a day to day blog while on the 'trail'.

The Stetnners actually rode all the way from Chicago on their Indian motorbike.

. . . and mostly on dirt roads (with basically no suspension) - when men were men, eh?

I've packed down my KLR with a heavy climbing pack and all the goodies for a few trips. Don't know what you're riding. . . but t'aint no way you'll be able to match scores with Langston!

So, you'll want your panniers (for lighter foods, rain gear, maybe your whisperlight and bottle, etc.). And it may be good to build-out your rear rack a bit for added support. I carry my climbing gear on my back (med. waterproof haulbag), and keep my straps a bit loose so that the base can "sit" on the seat (takes the load off of me). And then I have a tank bag as well for the smaller items and a water bottle etc. The rear can hold your clothes, food, pan and tent/bag/pad. Of course, you can also strap your pad and tent to the front if you have the bike for it.
I found that keeping the heavier gear (climbing) on me allows me much more control on the bike - when it's latched to the rear it becomes "squirrelley". I highly suggest playing with your load in the neighborhood before taking a 6 hour ride out-of-state.

Any KLR geeks out there ready for a desert climbing tour??

I used to do it all the time. The only transportation I owned from age 16-22 was a CB750 Honda. I traveled all over back then Alaska and all over the western U.S., just working wherever season to season. First trick is to mail some of your stuff ahead of time general delivery or to a gear shop that's cool in the area your heading. 2)get saddle bags (cheap nylon ones are fine), a tank bag, and a basic seat rest for the back (if that's an option). If you can get some kind of seat rest w/ a frame you may be all set, cause you can take a Webber grill and bend it about about 3/8's of the way and zip tie that to the rack to give yourself a lot of space to hook things on with bungee cords. 3) if you're not taking a passenger, I used to alway fill a duffel and put it behind my seat to lean against. You can fit a lot on that seat if you need to.

Honestly I'd say drive a car. It's safer, less wear and tear on your body and more social.

thanks guys. I have a 2000 Buell Blast (500cc) I just ordered saddlebags and a tail bag and i'm Bidding on a tank bag on Ebay. I know a car is the way to go but we just want to hit all the back highways and such on our bikes just for something different.

Hi Chase - I rode my Kawasaki 400 from Boulder to Zion in 1990 (spring break trip), and my Yamaha Vision 550 from CO to CA and back later that year (Oct to late Nov).

Some tips from my experiences:

1) I had a high sissy bar and a narrow rack over the back wheel on the K-400. I strapped my haul bag (grade V wall bag) horizontally across the rack, and then attached an overnight backpack (vertically) to the sissy bar. Tons of gear... I almost didn't make it out of Boulder: with so much weight on the back, the front wheel was like a demon with a mind of its own. Cameron mentions that the bike will become squirrelly with that much weight on the back, and he's right. It's most problematic at low speeds, and can really catch you off guard when you are gearing down from highway speeds to stop for gas and a leak. On my return trip from Zion, I had been riding all day (through two brief snow squalls in northern Ariz, and then through NM), and was very tired. I pulled into a gas station and dumped the bike on the pavement just as I neared the pump; the front wheel was dancing all over the place and I couldn't control it. This dude at the next pump over looked at me like I was from outer space (no shower over the last ten days); didn't even help me pick my bike off the floor. I was fine, but rather surprised; glad it didn't happen in traffic, or at anything over 5 mph. The point, of course, is that you need to be extra vigilant at low speeds with a lot of weight on the back. Highway speeds should be OK (physics helps you out in that regard; it's hard to push over a wheel rotating at high speeds), but I second Cam's advice to test it all out in your back yard.
I also had a small sissy bar on the Vision, but no rack, so I wore a huge backpack, leaned against the bar, and sat on a duffle bag of clothes and soft gear. I was riding a little high, but the front end wasn't as badly behaved on that ride. You'll very much benefit from being able to lean back into your backpack and ride with a relaxed pose if you've got the backpack sitting on the passenger seat, resting against the sissy bar.

2) Spring break -- as in late March, or early April? Dress warm. Looks like you'll be driving from Wyo/Logan, UT to Moab, so maybe you'll have better odds than I did avoiding chilly weather, but it gets cold out there once the sun goes down. I had winter overmitts over gloves, and wore many layers for the rest of my body (pretty much had it all on, including my rain gear, once the sun went down). I didn't even attempt to go over Vail Pass on I-70 on my spring break trip because I knew I would freeze to death (partly because I was leaving Boulder in the afternoon and would be hitting the high country in the evening), and couldn't risk a snow storm. As mentioned above, I experienced some snow anyway, in the high plains of Ariz, on the return trip (last days of March). I did drive I-70 in mid Oct in the day hours on the trip to CA, but recall it was very cold. I guess if you stick to riding during the daylight hours you'll do better than I did (and it's a lot safer).

3) It's not a bad idea to pack some extra gasoline. Maybe the range on your bike is fine, but all I could get was 110 mi on a tank with the K-400. I had 4 liters of gas in soda bottles that I was very glad to have when I pulled into Las Vegas, NM at 10:30 pm and found everything closed up for the night. Probably ought to pack the gas a long way from your climbing gear and food.

4) Doesn't sound like your trip will be as long as mine, but you may experience some hand problems. I had to bail off the first attempt of my wall of choice in Zion because my hands had suffered minor nerve damage after holding the throttle wide open for 1100 mi of riding over two days. Couldn't hang onto my aiders after one aid pitch. They came back to full strength after a couple rest days.

5) You're going to have a blast. Excellent memories from both of those trips, despite some serious fiascos.

Thanks aton for your insight Bernard! I was wondering about the weight on the back being and issue. I'm hoping the fact that the Buell's center gravity being at the bottom of the bike and right behind the front wheel will help but i can't be sure until i load it up. I was wondering about a compact way to haul gas so thank you for the soda bottle idea! My bike has a range of about 210. (that baby gets 75 a gallon but only hold just under 3 gallons) but i'm a worry wort when it comes to running out of gas so thats great.

I'm actually worried more about my friends bikes one is an 81' Honda cx 500 and one is a 08'Kawasaki KLX 250 Dualsport. so it'll be an adventure to say the least! i'm very excited.

I haven't seen this in a while, so I can't remember if they camped the whole way but, you should check out the Documentary

"The Long Way Round",

if you have not already. It's Ewin McGreggor and a pal riding around the world on dirt bikes. I think it took them almost a year. Has me wanting to go to Mongolia for sure.

Chase Gee wrote: I'm actually worried more about my friends bikes one is an 81' Honda cx 500 and one is a 08'Kawasaki KLX 250 Dualsport. so it'll be an adventure to say the least! i'm very excited.

I'd worry more about the Buell than the Jap bikes myself. There is a reason they are so cheap.

I loved having the sleeping bag on the tank myself, makes for some comfy riding positions. Dont forget to close the tent bag all the way, I learned the hard way on a seriously rainy night on the Natchez Trace parkway.

Fuel: MSR fuel bottle might be a safer solution than a soda bottle. There is a safety bulletin out about failures in Primus bottles where the top blows off. (Don't over-fill.) The MSR design gets high praise.

-Just remember not to wear out your arms so much when climbing that you can't pull in the clutch :0)

Since you ride a Buell i dont think you can pull a trailor. If you are riding alone, bungy a few things to the passenger seat and yes you will deff want the saddlebags you just ordered and the King Pack. Do your best to not have a backpack on for the ride, it will make your body happier when you get to Utah.

I ride a FJR 1300, and have taken my girlfriend with full camping/ climbing gear to Moab in the past. The bike weight was not an issue, but it was a little ruff for her sitting on the back with a bag on.

We have done many day trips to sport areas with no problem and thats a good way to go if you can, but when you need to carry lots of gear you should ride alone, just for the comfort and ease of carrying gear.

Ride Safe, see you on the road.

Jon

Chase I got nothing helpful to add but just to have a blast. Plan a little bit and go for it. I drove my 600cc sportbike across the country in February and all over CO too so I'm probably not too bright. I didn't climb back then but if you pack light you can easily fit what you need on a bike.

Bring extra spark plugs, especially for the older bike. The changing of elevations can mess with your fuel/air mixture and can tend to foul plugs.

I concur with the comments and observations cameron made above - I also ride a KLR; I try to pack as little hardware as possible to keep the weight down, then take anything that is heavy and wear it in a pack that is loosely straped on my back. This gets old after more than a few hours, though...