5 years ticks by

I sold the XT400 a few years back.
So I have been a few years now without an adventure bike.
I recently bought a 1988 Yamaha TDR250.

It is in fairly mint condition with 18,800 kms on the odometer.

I have always liked these bikes and have been on the lookout for about 3 years.
I got this Jap Import one in fairly mint and standard condition for NZD$5,850 in a road legal state.
The idea is to do a bit of gravel "adventure" riding around the South Island of New Zealand this summer.
Perhaps have a look at some of the earthquake damage while I am at it.
(NZ recently experienced a 7.8 magnitude earthquake in the Eastern-central-ish South Island and I am curious to see some of the tears in the earth if I can.)
I will need to add an additional 7 litre fuel tank somehow, as I need to be able to cover at least 280kms of gravel between fuel stops.
It currently does about 14.5 km/litre.

In some ways I feel that the bike is now somewhat collectable and possibly some might feel that using it in anger in the gravel is not what should be done with such a rare and fine example?

Oh well.

1 year of inaction

Well one year has gone by since my last post.
I haven't been up to any adventure riding.
I have been a bit boring really. Just working and plodding along in the global recession.
I guess I have been more focused on rebuilding my Honda NSR250R. (My other blog)
I still use the XT most weeks just for commuting.
Some of my friends have bought adventure bikes so maybe this summer I will get back into it a bit more.

60k kms reached

It is the winter months and not too much has been happening with the XT400.

I have been using it for a bit of commuting and general use, nothing particularly adventurous.

I have moved from Whakamarama to Te Puke and have found a fun way to get from Te Puke to Welcome Bay over Rocky Cutting Road which incorporates a tight twisty hilly gravel road.

Today I clocked up 60,000 km on the odometer.

On Sunday night (4th July 2010) I left Wobbly's about 1am at night after watching the Catalunya MotoGP. It was dark/cold/very windy (and windy) and raining, so I took the Rocky Cutting /Reid Road track just to make things a bit more interesting.

The XT seemed to be losing power. This was quite worrying at 1:30 am on a dark wet and windy night on a single lane gravel road. However, I made it home OK. I need to adjust the headlight to point up a bit as it was difficult to see very far ahead in the dark, especially when under brakes with a visor splattered with raindrops.

Change Needles and jets

OK, well I went into GP Honda in Mt. Maunganui and rummaged through their jetting containers.
I got 2x95 main jets and 2x90 main jets. ($7 each)
I also got 2x needles[needle number reqd].($5 each) These needles seemed exactly the same as the original XT CV carb needle, with just the numbering now different (and sensible).All Keihin stuff.

I put in the new needles and 90 jets.(down from 100)
Took it for a spin down the road and it all seemed very similar.

I think I really need to try advancing the ignition in the upper midrange to top end, to get it to have decent response up there.

Dusty Butt '10 SBC: Overview

Well the little 125cc four stroke Honda did extremely well.

About 3700km over 6 days. And a lot of that was at full throttle, and near max revs.

The engine did not miss a beat. It used about 1.2 litres of oil over that distance (it holds 800ml) which is not too bad I suppose. I do not know if the oil is getting past the rings or whether it is exhausted out the crankcase breather into the airbox. Probably a bit of both.

Also, the suspension and drum brakes were surprisingly good. I guess by "good" I really mean "not crap". I was able to blast along over all sorts of terrain with no major complaints in the handling department at all.

I ran out of time to check over the engine before going on this ride, other than to set the tappets. I really had no idea if it was in very good condition or not. However the Honda NXR engine (XLR125 engine) is pretty tried and tested. The big "H' came through for me on this ride. I am not a Honda fan in particular, but I am very impressed with this little Honda.

The Dusty Butt route was unbelievably amazing. A really excellent trail. The NXR was pretty slow on the straights and up the hills, but was overall enjoyable enough. As soon as the route got twisty I was having a ball. The bike comes into its own on twisty downhill gravel. I caught and passed many much more powerful bikes on the downhill gravel sections. I guess the light weight really helps in that situation.

Overall the bike and the route combined to give me a much more fun experience than I was expecting. Really fun!

The other factor of course is the people. On the 1 dayer you don't really get to interact with very many others. However, the 2 dayer is great for meeting new people and making friends. Everyone is just so positive in attitude and willing to help out, no matter what the issue. It seems a shame to waste the opportunity of experiencing the 2 day environment just to do the 1 dayer. If was ever to do the 1 dayer, I think I would do the 2 dayer first, and then give myself a 2 day rest. Then I would happily have a crack at the 1 dayer.

Would I do the Dusty Butt again on a 125cc machine? Well,.. one guy rode around on a KDX125 two stroke with a max speed of about 130kph. This is much better than the NXR at about 90kph. I think that if I could get something like that KDX125 and tune it up to the max, then I could be interested. In general, I would be happy on something that can sit on 120kph on the gravel into a strong head wind. If a tricked up KDX125 could achieve this then I would definitely be interested. On a bike like that, I could imagine that you might just be in with a chance of winning the DB1k outright. Probably a very slim chance though.

Having said that, the whole idea of the Small Bore Challenge is to ride around on a gutless piece of crap. I have done that once, and am not all that keen to do it again. It is just a bit too boring on the straights and open uphills.

Receipts from the trip:

Thursday 14 Jan 8:25 BP Te Puna 5.10 litres 98 Octane $9.74 122km

Thursday 14 Jan 10:54 Shell Edgecumbe 2.00 litres 95 octane $3.65 (filled up 2 litre jerry can) Pie $3.80

Thursday 14 Jan 12:02 Murapara GAS 8.19 litres 95 octane $16.38 196 km

Thursday 14 Jan 13:52 Gull Hastings 11.92 litres Force10 $21.57 296km Picnic bar $2.19

Thursday 14 Jan 18:21 Dannevirke McDonalds $10.20

Thursday 14 Jan 20:59 Caltex Rimatuka 11.47 litres 95 octane $20.98 279.1km

Thursday 14 Jan 22:29 BlueBridge $100 (Ferry crossing)

Friday 15 Jan 6:43 Blenheim McDonalds $6.90

Friday 15 Jan Peter Grinter M/C Blenheim 17" Tube $20.20, Weld Exhaust $25.00, 1litre Spectro Oil $16.00 Departed 9:10am

Friday 15 Jan 12:32 Cheviot Garage (Caltex) 13.53 litres 95 octane $25.56 311.8 km

Friday 15 Jan 16:49 MGL Caltex Fairlie 11.73 litre 96 octane $21.69 294.6km

Friday 15 Jan Accomodation (HoT) $35, Tolls $10, DB1k Sticker $5, Beers approx $30

Saturday 16 Jan 10:25 Kurow Auto Services ?? litres 95 octane $16.25 203km Pie $2.80

Saturday 16 Jan 12:47 Challenge Ranfurly 3.95 litres 95 octane $7.34 103km

Saturday 16 Jan 15:49 Fax's Auto Services Lawrence 6.41 litres 91 octane $11.71 151km

Saturday 16 Jan 16:00 Lawrence Video Gold, weld exhaust $20

Saturday 16 Jan 21:03 Caltex Alexandra 8.22 litres 95 octane $15.70 183km

Saturday 16 Jan 21:11 Thai Crom Alexandra (Dinner) $30.00

Saturday 16 Jan 22:11 Alexandra Holiday park (Accomodation) $30

Sunday 17 Jan 9:42 Shell Cromwell 3.42 litres 95 octane $6.13 79.1km, Sandwiches $5.99

Sunday 17 Jan 13:43 Omarama Caltex 8.18 litres 95 octane $15.94 178km

Sunday 17 Jan 16:38 BP2GO Fairlie 7.04 litres 95 octane $13.03 146km, Picnic bar $2.50

Sunday 17 Jan evening at the pub including roast meal approx $45

Monday 18 Jan 10:14 Challenge Oxford 9.55 litres 96 octane $17.46 206.5km, Pie $4.30

Monday 18 Jan 14:06 Culverden Caltex 8.07 litres 95 octane $14.92 177.8km, Pie $3.50

Monday 18 Jan 19:00 Shell Picton 11.66 litres 95 octane $21.32 275.6km

Monday 18 Jan 18:56 Picton Plaza India (Butter Chicken + 2MacsGold) $31.40

Monday 18 Jan 20.26 InterIslander Picton $122 (Ferry crossing)

Tuesday 19 Jan 9:23 Levin McDonalds $7.30

Tuesday 19 Jan 11:48 Caltex Waiouru 11.31 litres 95 octane $20.80 271.4km

Tuesday 19 Jan 11:52 Fastlane Restaurant Waiouru, Piece of fried fish and ham roll (Yuk!) $9.30

Tuesday 19 Jan 16:30 Arrived home. etimated use of 13litres, 300.8 km

Totals:

Petrol: $303.18

Food and beer: $195.18

Accomodation: $65.00

Tolls & Ferry: $232.00

Other: $86.20

All up: $881.56 But this is just costs incurred on the trip. It does not include setup costs or post-event costs or tyre wear etc. I need to buy a new Fr brake perch, replace a rear spoke, do some welding work on the pack frame and probably some other little things.

Tyre wear:

Rear tyre (Pirelli MT60 110/90 17): started off with 8.5mm of tread depth and ended up with 5.5mm of tread depth. The trip covered 3686km, so this gives 1229km/mm of tread wear. The Mitas E-09 on my XT400 usually gives about 650-800km/mm tread wear.

Front tyre (Pirelli MT60 90/90 19): I did not record the tread depth when new. Tread depth after 3686km is 5.0mm

Fuel works out at (3686km/$303.18 =) 12.16km/dollar

Trip works out at (3686km/$881.56 =) 4.18km/dollar (although true cost is higher)

Dusty Butt '10 SBC: Day 6 Wellington to Tauranga

Tuesday 19th January 2010

Left Pete's (Thorndon) at 8:00am.

Pack rack was starting to look a bit weak so kept off the bumpy stuff and just headed along the main roads to home.

Made a pack rack repair at Waiouru with some coat hanger wire that Alane gave me.

Got home at 4:30pm and put in a quick post on the forum.

I was tired, but my body had handled it well.

Arrived Wellington 13411km 01:30 hours

Slept at Pete's 02:00-07:00hours

Departed Wellinton 08:00 hours

Arrived Tauranga 13983km 17:10 hours

572km over 9:10 hours

Dusty Butt '10 SBC: Day 5 Fairlie to Picton

Monday 18th January 2010

Depart fairlie approx 7:45am

Took inland scenic route to Oxford and then on to Lees Valley.

Chain came off mid-crossing of the Okuku river.

Other bikers on hand gave some help.

Then on to Hanmer and Jollies Pass into Molesworth/Awatere.

Rained heavy for about 20 minutes and made the ride a bit more interesting.

Just missed the 7pm ferry at Picton and got on the 10:30pm sailing.

Crashed at Pete's in Thorndon at 2:00am.

Start Fairlie 12743km 07:45 hours

Finish Picton 13411km 18:45 hours

Caught ferry at 22:30 hours

Arrive Wellington 01:30 hours

668 km over 11:00 hours

Dusty Butt '10 SBC: Day 4 Alexandra to Fairlie

Sunday 17th January 2010

Second day of the DB1k

Set off with the Jatz's and The Boy.

The first pass was fantastic. I was blasting along and soon was well ahead of the Jatz's.

Quick stop in Cromwell and on to Thompsons Track.

Gate tag with TransAlper, but bike fell off stand and broke front brake perch.

TransAlper went on to catch up with others and I repaired brake perch with some wire. The fix lasted all the way back to Tauranga.

Didn't know about the pub at St. Bathans so continued on to Omarama. HoT and QOTH were waiting there and were very surprised to see me come in 6th on the 125cc machine.

On to Benmore where I forgot the lock code and had to throw bike over a fence.

Benmore back road was amazing.

Then out of Black Forest and along the straights to Fairlie.

Got back to the Gladstone Pub at 4:30pm. Talked with Woodman (RedKLR650) who had been there a while.

Back to camp for a shower and change of clothes.

Back to pub for a meal and spin shet/debrief.

Got to bed approx 11pm

Start Alexandra 12341km 07:50 hours

Finish Fairlie 12743km 16:40 hours

402km over 8:50 hours

Dusty Butt '10 SBC: Day 3 Fairlie to Alexandra

Saturday 16th January 2010

Started off on the DB1k approx 7:10am

See forum links here and here for general discussion and pics.

Travelled with Alane (XT600), Underground 2-up with Ms Underground (Africa Twin), and Mountie (F800GS)

Coffee break at Kurow.

Alane was great and slowed up for me so I could stay on route. Top man!

As a side note, it was great to watch Alane kick start his old 600. There is just something about kicking over big singles that I love.

Had a beer with Alane at Clarks Junction pub

Had to reweld exhaust header at Laurence. Alane rode on. This involved going to the local Video hire shop (of course) and asking to get my exhaust welded. Forty five minutes and $20 later and it was done.

Met the Jatz's just out of Laurence.

Had to find my way with no proper route information but did it. Wheel marks left by previous riders helped a lot.

Gave Shrek my front tube just out of the Lake Onslow Rd before the Serpentine to fix his front flat.

Chain came off on Serpentine right next to Racing Dave's abandoned NXR125.

Pulled in to Alexandra approx 8:30pm.

Brilliant day.

Thai resaurant with Jon24 and Aslan.

Start Fairlie 11700km 07:10hours

Finish Alexandra 12341km 20:30 hours

641km over 13:20 hours

Dusty Butt '10 SBC: Day 2 Picton to Fairlie

Friday 16th January 2010

Got off the ferry at 3:30 am

Rode out along the Port Underwood road for about 30 mins but was too tired.

Stopped and lay down on the side of the road to sleep for about an hour.

Rode on at 5:00am.

Exhaust header became detached just after Rarangi.

Lost 2.5 hours in Blenheim getting exhaust header welded up.

I now had to flag the idea of doing the Molesworth/Awatere section and just headed straight down along SH1

In Blenheim I also checked and topped up the oil, replaced a now missing engine mount nut and tightened up a bolt holding on the rear pack frame support.

Arrived at the Gladstone Pub in Fairlie 4:45pm. Met "XF650" and had a beer with him as others arrived. Great turnout at the Pub BBQ. Really good.

Got accommodation organised thanks to HoT. ($35 for Fri and Sun night) This saved me having to pitch my tent at the local camp ground.

Start Picton 11130km 03:30

Sleep 04:00 - 05:00

Arrive Blenheim 06:30

Depart Blenheim 9:10

Arrive Fairlie 11700km 16:45

570km over 13:15 hours

Dusty Butt '10 SBC: Day 1 Tauranga to Wellington

Thursday 14th January 2010

I rode off at about 8am and went via Waikaremoana, Napier, Masterton to Wellington.

Initially had problems with the kick start lever always flicking out at high speed.

Also, engine seemed to be running really hot. I removed the front mud flap and it ran a lot cooler.

Arrived Wellington 9:30pm

Caught the 11:30pm BlueBridge ferry to Picton

Start Odometer 10297km Time 08:05

Finish Odometer 11130km Time 21:30

BlueBridge Ferry: Midnight to 03:30

833 km over 13:35 hours

Dusty Butt '10 SBC: Preparation

OK this does not include the XT400 but it is one hell of an enjoyable adventure ride.

The Dusty Butt 1000km is to be held in the lower South Island this year.

There is a Small Bore Challenge sub group for those that do the ride on a bike with 125cc or less.

On November 10th 2009 I bought a '04 NXR125 off TradeMe from Gisborne for $900 with the intention of riding it down to do the DB1k SBC.

I did a bit of work on the bike to get it ready:

Replaced farm knobblies with Pirelli MT60's Fr and Rr ($170 from Coastline Honda)

Got rear rack welded up to take Top Box and Pack rack ($100 Wobbly)

Bought second hand indicators and 2 new lenses.

Replaced rear shock lower bearing and regreased swingarm bearings

Closed up tappet clearance from 10/7 thou to 5/4 thou

Checked and re-greased steering head bearings

Lubed the cables and freed up the throttle

Attached front bikini fairing properly

New front sprocket and chain. Used old alloy Rear sprocket off my CR (13 tooth front, 49 tooth rear)

Installed chain guard off my XT400

Bought spare tubes for puncture repair

Swapped out the standard cardboard air filter for two dish washing sponges.

Replaced the broken gear shift shaft.

Changed oil (Motul 3100)

Added an after market Front brake perch clamp that had thread in top for rear view mirror ($28)

Added rear view mirror from wreckers

Checked front wheel bearings.

Replaced rear wheel bearings

Checked and cleaned Fr and Rr Drum brake pads

Replaced front fork fluid

I ran out of time to pull the head and barrel off to check the engine out properly, so I just hoped it would be OK. It is basically an XLR125 engine with 10k on it so should be sweet as these engines have been truly tried and tested.

Work commitments really piled up near the time of the DB1k and I actually posted in the forum saying that I wasn't going to be able to make it due to stupid workloads.

However, I managed to do a lot of trouble-free productive hours in the lead up to the DB1k and amazingly was able to depart in time to get there after all. I was a bit disorganised as a result, but at least I got there.

The NXR weighs 123kg with 2 litres of fuel on board

When fully loaded up :

Tank bag 7.5 kg

Rack pack 13 kg

Top Box 12.5 kg

it weighs 156 kg. With a full tank I guess this goes up to about 165kg.

Then I sit on it and it is 267kg rolling along the road.

At DB1k I lose the tank bag and top box resulting in a bike weight of about 136-145kg depending on fuel level.

BMC: Overview

Start 53943 km

End 58392 km

Total Distance = 4449 km

The best day was from Fairlie to Invercargil. The strong wind made the high gravel passes a really fun challenge. Combined with the magnificently scenic visual impact it was a totally exhilarating day.

Otago and Southland have many roads suited to adventure riding, with amazing scenery. Hopefully I will get to travel a few more of these roads in the future.

The XT400 did not miss a beat. All I did was fill it up with gas and oil the chain. I did check the valve clearance on one valve but it was fine. I really need to clean the air filter now!

If I do another trip like this, I will sort out a better, more comfortable seat. My sore bum was the only really limiting factor that I struck during this little adventure ride.

Petrol Receipts

I kept all of my petrol receipts just to gather a bit more information.

Here they are:

25 Nov 08:22 Shell Riverslea (Edgecumbe)10.13 litre 95 octane 208 km $17.51

25 Nov 12:18 Shell Wairoa 11.65 litre 95 octane 227.5 km $20.37

25 Nov 15:58 BP Connect Taihape 14.08 litre 98 octane 264 km $25.76

25 Nov 18:04 Caltex Woodville 6.07 litres 95 octane 123.2 km $10.50

25 Nov 20:05 Faulknors Mobile Masterton 6.31 litres 95 octane 117.2 km $10.84

26 Nov 02:30 Ferry crossing $73

26 Nov 7:27 Geoff Noad Energy Centre (Blenheim) 8.5 litres 95 octane 178.5 km $14.78

26 Nov 10:36 Caltex Kaikoura 12.56 litres 95 octane 133.1 km $12.56

26 Nov 14:06 Lewis Pass Motors (Springs Junction) 11.66 litres 95 octane 220.3 km $22.27

26 Nov 17:39 Springfield Service Centre (Caltex) 13.93 litres 95 octane 266.8km $24.77

26 Nov 20:12 Fairlie Gateway Top 10 holiday park. Accomodation $60

27 Nov 10:40 MGL Caltex Fairlie 9.87 litres 96 octane 180.1 km $17.26

27 Nov 12:55 Kurow Caltex ?? litres 91 octane 125.2 km $9.82 (1 litre oil $10.95)

27 Nov 14:42 Danseys Pass Coach Inn (Beer and toasted sandwiches) 23.50

27 Nov 15:16 Challenge Ranfurly 5.05 litre 95 octane 100.6 km $8.94

27 Nov 18:33 Mobil Gore 11.07 litre 91 octane 192.1 km $18.36

27 Nov 19:30 get to Oreti Beach.

29 Nov 10:38 Kingston gas Ltd 12.74 litres 95 octane 225.1 km $22.67

29 Nov 13:29 Cardrona Pub (Beer (Pint of Speights)and pasta of the day) $25.50

29 Nov 14:09 BP 2GO Wanaka 8.9 litres 98 octane 171.2 km $16.82

29 Nov 15:15 Johnston Motors Haast (Caltex) 10.43 lites 95 octane 184.2 km $20.02

29 Nov 19:21 BP Hokitika 14.68 litres 95 octane 274.1 km $26.12

29 Nov 20:27 The duke Backpackers $40 accomodation

30 Nov 10:19 BP 2GO Westport 7.45 litres 95 octane 139.1 km $14.07

30 Nov 14:29 BP 2GO Westport 11.39 litres 95 octane 223.5 km $21.52

30 Nov 15:49 Murchison Tearooms (Ham roll) $6.10

30 Nov 17:30 StarMart Bishopdale (Caltex) 11.73 litres 95 octane 218.0 km $20.40

30 Nov 20:47 Rumba cafe Picton Coffee and pasta $19.50

30 Nov 22:30 Ferry crossing $73

02 Dec 11:24 BP Connect Levin ?? litres 239.2 km $21.82

02 Dec 14:40 Caltex Raetihi 9.47 litres 95 octane 202.8 km $16.76

02 Dec 18:35 BP Connect Te Puna ?? litres 280.1 km $23.68

BMC: Day 8 Wellington to Tauranga - Home.

Wednesday 2nd December 2009

Departed Wellington approx 9:00am

Rode to Wanganui and went along the Whanganui River to Pipiriki. Then over to Raetihi.

After so many miles on the bike, my bum was starting to ache. Usually the ache went away when i got onto gravel roads as I have to continually shift my body weight around on the bike to maintain good steerage. However, I had got to the stage where it was really quite sore.

I did have more adventurous plans to go elsewhere, but due to my aching bum, I decided to take the main roads straight from Raetihi to Tauranga.

I stopped off in Oropi for 15 minutes to see Dave's very recent purchase, an NSR250, and then home to Whakamarama.

Google maps link

Depart Wellington 9:00am odometer 57800km

Arrive Home 5:15pm odometer58392km

592km over 8.25 hours.

BMC: Day 7 Wellington rest day

Tuesday 1st december 2009

I was knackered!

I slept for about 4 hours in the afternoon.

Had pizza for dinner.

Wet windy day although did go for a bit of a walk around central Wellington during a fine spell of weather.

BMC: Day 6 Greymouth - Karamea - Picton

Monday 30th November 2009

Departed Greymouth approx 9:00am

On to Westport [rock falls] and up to Karamea and to the complete end of the road at Kohaihai where the Heaphy Track starts. Light rain most of the time but was still fun.

Talked to an Israeli tramper who had hiked back out after hiking in for one day as he had forgotten his raincoat. D'oh! He was soaked through but in reasonable spirits.

Then back to Karamea pub for a beer and a vege soup.

Then back to Westport and on to Nelson.

Went part way over the Maungatapu track only to find that it was closed. I wish they could put up a sign telling you so at the start of the Maitai River Rd.

So back into Nelson and over the Queen Charlotte Drive to Picton.

I had a green Thai curry and booked my ferry ticket. $73

Set sail at 10:30pm and arrived Wellington 1:30am.

Crashed out at Pete's at 2:00am.

Google maps Link

Depart Greymouth 9:00am odometer 57111km

Arrive Picton 8:00pm odometer 57800km

689km over 11 hours

BMC: Day 5 Invercargil to Greymouth

Sunday 29th November 2009

Got up about 7:00am. had another pre-paid $11 breakfast.

Packed up my tent and oiled the chain.

Departed the campground approx 9:10am.

There was a toy run organised to go out to Wyndham where the street racing was to be held.

However, due to the nasty looking weather forecast I decided to make tracks back up North.

I went through Winton and on towards Frankton. Then up the Coronet Peak Rd to Skippers Rd and out to Skippers Bridge. This is a very narrow twisty gravel road with totally blind single lane corners. It would not be so bad except for the number of tourists and small buses travelling it.

On to Wanaka. Here I diverted off to Treble Cone just to have a look. Then back to Wanaka and over to Haast. I made sure I got to Haast before 5pm just in case the petrol stations were shutting early to force people to stay the night. However, upon arrival I noticed a sign that said 24 hour card operated pumps. I did not need to check this out as the petrol station was open.

Up the West Coast Rd to Hokitika. I decided I did not need to fill up at Fox Glacier, as a result I VERY NEARLY ran out of gas before Hokitika. I must have pulled into Hokitika with less than 100 ml of petrol left. I was going to stay the night in Hokitika but decided to press on to Greymouth as I was feeling quite good.

Google maps Link

Depart Invercargil 9:10am odometer 56293

Arrive Greymouth 8:10pm odometer 57111km

818km over 11 hours

BMC: Day 4 At the Rally.

Saturday 28th November 2009

I had a good sleep-in in my tent.

The wind was up and was bitterly cold. It stayed like this for the duration of my time in Invercargil. I got in the queue for my $11 pre-paid breakfast and by the time i got to the servery they had run out of bacon and beans. Watched the road racing at Teretonga and then took in some of the speedway racing over at the speedway track. Both within walking distance of the camp ground.

Spent the evening in Jonno's campervan talking to an ex British Army helicopter pilot who used to fly around Southland doing live deer capture. Very interesting converasation.

BMC: Day 3 Fairlie to Invercargil

Friday 27th November 2009

Slept in till about 8:30am. Washed a few clothes. Checked the valve clearance on the noisy tappet (RH Exhaust). It seemed perfectly fine at 4 to 5 thou.

About 11:30am took off to Burke's Pass and headed along Rollesby Valley Rd then onto Mackenzie Pass Rd. Then along the Hakataramea Pass Rd. Fantastic scenery. Came out at Kurow where I gassed up.

Then on to Duntroon and over Dansey's Pass. It was blowing a gale and it was difficult going. I adapted my riding to suit the blustery conditions and really started to enjoy the ride immensly.

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The Dansey's Pass Pub was an unexpected but completely welcome sight. What a great Pub! I stopped and had a beer and a couple of toasted sandwiches. Appriox 1:00pm.

I gassed up again at Ranfurly and headed off to Patearoa and through Paerau, along Upper Taieri Paerau Rd onto Linburn Runs Rd and then onto the Deep Creek Rd which leads onto the Lake Onslow Rd and through to Roxburgh. This was a pretty cool road!

Back onto the seal and through to Raes Junction, Tapanui, Gore and Invercargil.

I rode out onto Oreti Beach at 7:30pm to find that the beach racing had been cancelled due to high winds and also high-ish tide due partially also to the high winds. This was a bit of a bummer. I had just ridden for three days solid. I had really been looking forward to seeing the beach racing.

I went back to the Rally campgound near Teretonga racetrack and checked in and set up my tent. I went into the main marquee and got myself a couple of whiskeys. I started to look for Jonno, and almost instantly found him amoungst a few hundred bikers. Sweet.

Crawled into my tent at midnight. Job done!

Google Maps Link

Departed Fairlie 11:30am odometer 55797km

Arrive camp ground Invercargil 8:00pm odometer 56293km

496km over 8.5 hours

BMC: Day 2 Picton to Fairlie

Thursday 26th November 2009

On the Wellington side at the ferry terminal there were about 10 other bikes all heading down for the Burt Munroe Challenge. I got talking to them all as you do. One guy had put some Ducati 1098 mufflers on his VFR800. Looked pretty cool.

I got about 2 hours sleep on the ferry lying on the lounge bar floor with my ear plugs in.

Set off from Picton about 5:50am along the coast road to Rarangi and Blenheim. I had a major front end slide on a patch of gravel on seal just as the sun hit me with blinding sun strike at one point. Quite dangerous but I came out of it totally OK.

On towards Kaikoura and stopped to see if the Awatere Valley Rd through the Molesworth Sheep Station was open. It wasn't so I had to carry on via the Inland Kaikoura Rd stopping at Mt. Lyford.


Then along the Lewis Pass to reefton and through to Nelson's Creek and Inchbonnie. Riding along the Lewis Pass into a head wind at times I found the power of the XT lacking a bit. I was often down to 90km/h in 4th gear. To be able to ride fast enough to enjoy the more open sweepers on tarmac roads, a bit more horsepower is required. I can see why 600-660cc single cylinder 4 stroke adventure bikes are quite popular.

The Nelson Creek to Inchbonnie back road is quite open hardpack dirt/gravel and I was able to cruise at 90-100km/h quite safely. It was a bit of higher speed non-tarmac fun.



Back over Arthur's Pass to Darfield, Geraldine and Fairlie. Stayed the night at a Fairlie camp ground. Met 2 other bikers. One was Peter Steadman from Te Puke (GPz550) and his mate Carl (XJ1200?).

Depart Picton 5:50am odometer 54918km

Arrive Fairlie 8:30pm odometer 55797km

879 km over 14.5 hours

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