Panama and back on a 250 Super Sherpa Minimalist Adventure

Hi Sourjon,

That is a nice toolkit you've got there! You've got all the bases covered that I do. I just didn't put it all in one picture like you did. I like it! Especially the patina on those tools.

These are the other tools I carry:



I carry a Motionpro chain tool and spare links and masterlink like you do.

Needlenose vice grips are handy and can double as a clutch or brake lever when clamped to the stub you have left if a lever breaks off when you dump your bike in the boonies. Little vicegrips are so handy most farmers and ranchers around here carry a pair in their overalls or jeans along with a pocketknife.

And a Leatherman in my pocket is so handy for its many uses. From making Peanut butter sandwiches and cutting up mangos to opening cans, cutting and stripping electrical wire, filing, sawing, etc. Sort of an ADVrider swiss army knife with screwdrivers, sidecutters and pliers thrown in.

I have to go to work, but will also post pictures of the spare parts I consider essential for a long trip into the unknown when I get a chance.

Thanks for following along and posting that nice pic.

Cheers,
John Downs

Hi Harry,

Thanks for the kind words. I am glad you have found something you can use from this report.

I had such a great trip. And owe a debt of gratitude to ADVrider, having picked up so much useful info here over the years. So I am including this epilogue of what worked for me in my travels in the hopes that others will benefit in some way.

Sort of a Motorcycle Consumer News for ADVriders.
Or in my case MCN stands for Minimalist Consumer News.

Best,
John Downs

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Thanks for the reply John and Candohome, I honestly think that is what I am going to do this winter or early spring. My biggest concern for now is security. Being on a BMW, even a 9 yr old one concerns me because I will stick out and I will have my wife with me. If I were alone I wouldn't care because I don't have a problem walking away from what I bring if something bad happens, and I have spent some time in a much more dangerous situation overseas. I think I can negate the risk with two or three of us (my friends) together. I would love any advice on that. I have heard lots of stories about all the crime in Mexico. However it all seems to be on the border towns gang on gang and way south in countries like Guatemala and Columbia. Also is the threat at night just the threat of robbery from poor people steeling or gangs or what?<o></o>
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I have a small compressor but I don't carry it anymore. I use this pump I got from the Harley dealer. It is meant for low pressure front forks and has a lossless valve and a guage. About 10 inches long and very light. A little more work but the tires will operate very well at 15lbs of pressure. It will get there pretty quick. To get the bead set I keep a small travel bottle of baby powder in the tank panniers (good for other things too). Even with the hand pump I have gotten pretty fast doing trailside changes.



Here it is opened up.



I made a tool tube out of PVC and test caps to keep most tools in. Took some trial and error. It fell off in WVa. 1/2" SS bolts and it has survived a bunch of off road without a problem.



In it I have the tools in an electricians bag (there is your patina :)) with the space on each end stuffed with a couple of rags. Very heavy canvas and zipper. The stiching on it is from forgetting to put the cap back on and it being run over in the road before I could retrieve it.



Here's what is in it. The tire irons, Master link and assorted chain pieces, spare plug and wrench, duct tape rolled around a piece of copper, wire, zip ties, locktite, roach clip er... hemostats, screwdriver, rear wheel bearing retainer removal tool (two allens welded together), and a few assorted clamps, nuts and bolts that fit various places on this bike.



On the rear fender Honda provides a small case that originally had the oem tool kit.


This helps keep everything in place



Various metric wrenches, the pump, JB Weld, spare clutch and front brake lever and the owners manual in double ziplocks







In the left tank pannier I have the rear tube in the bottom, and R-L first aid kit, multimeter, patches and glue, bulbs and fuses, and because it is a known issue on this bike a spare CDI unit I picked up off the flea market. Ziplocked and rubber bands made from an old inner tube.




In the right tank pannier lives sunscreen and baby powder (for the tire changes),chain lube and a leatherman multi-tool. Under the seat I have a shifter and throttle and clutch cables that I picked up off the flea market used. Who cares they are spares and emergency use only. All this stays on the bike all the time and I don't even notice it is there which was part of my goal. I really should weigh it but it's surprisingly not that much.

Now I know all this is way over the top most of the time but I like being self sufficient. Too many times I have lent parts and tool to unprepared riders and was glad to do it. Just glad it wasn't me that was stranded.


John

just came across this RR ... wow ! ride on my brother !!

Keep your eyes open and be aware of what is going on around you. I do both and was picked twice. Once at the Pan American Nicaragua/Costa Rica while sitting down to lunch. One guy distracted me while a kid unzipped my bag that was one me and to the side. Then again here in Quito. A guy spilled some mustard or something on the back of my jacket in the door way of a market and got me to take that same fanny pack off and set it on an ice cream freezer. He spun me around like a $2 whore and he and the bag where gone that fast. Standing outside the door where he should have been was the local beat cop. Another team take. 5 months 5000 miles two rip offs. Dont carry a fanny pack and the less you have the less you lose.

Do not believe the hype about Mexico, and so as not to jack this thread cut up used inner tube material in various strips, they make great rubber ties for everything.

Hey John,

That is a really cool hand pump. What brand is it? I want one! And thanks for the pics of your tool and spare parts set up. Nice! Well thought out and that XRL looks lean and loaded for anything. Good stuff!

Cheers,
John Downs

One interesting insight I heard WRT theft in South America.

BMW's were considered 'safer' because there were not too many, and therefore no market for parts, and therefore less theft.

Riding a Kawi, Honda, Suzuki or a HD and you're more likely to get offered the opportunity to give someone the bike at gunpoint. Dunno if it's true or not, but it does actually kinda make sense.

Hey Xyotic,

Where did you hear that? It sounds like a good excuse you tell your wife to get an expensive European bike. She wouldn't know that there are very few Kawasakis or Harleys in Latin America so it might work.

I have been reading your most excellent ride reports cruising around on your Husky. That is a nice bike.

No chance you will be held up. They would see that Husky crown on the front fender and realize you are royalty.

I keed. I keed.

Lots of paranoid Latin American stories. It makes me smile. I will continue to ride the world and report back what I find. People keep telling me it's dangerous out there over the next hill. It might be. I haven't found it yet. I'm still looking though. That's what puts the ADV in ADVriding!

Best,
John Downs

Great post! Skimmed some, but will spend the next couple days looking at it more.

Love your approach to a home. It's gotten so ridiculous to see where prices have gone for what you get (you start spending more money the second you step inside) that we're considering a less expensive area, and then lots of travel to the places we want to go.

Great RR!!! Love the pics, and info. Ride on!

Thank you very much

Finally! Just the excuse I need to change the front fender I was trying to be 'low profile' sounds way better than "I kept driving into rocks head on and finally broke it."

I agree, I have felt much safer in MOST of BAJA than I have is MOST large US cities. I haven't been past cabo on a bike yet, though I have been to the southern tip of mainland MX (as crew in a million dollar sailboat) and I had one instance walking around a town with a SLR on my neck that I felt a little weird, but the guy turned out to be fine and had I spoken Spanish I'm sure my paranoia would have melted away.

Anyway I heard the remark at a seminar/talk at the BMW dealer by a dutch gal who traveled the length of South America. So Like I said I dunno if it's true, or if it's what the salesman at a BMW dealer in Buenos Aires told her

Candohome and John

I have spent decent amounts of time down town, in remote villages in a truck (just the one) with just 4 people total in Afghanistan, so personally I am ok with whatever is thrown my way in Mexico. My concern is taking my wife with me. The dynamic changes then, (pluss I am unarmed in Mexico). Anyway I am going for it probably next August, ya it is hot, but that is when I have the time. The best information I feel I could use, is where to absolutly not go (El Salvador?). For now my list is, don't go play around in boarder towns just drive right through. Go to the less traffic infested towns. Don't take it if you don't want it stolen.

So I am not hyjacking this thread, it has been an amazingly written piece of work. I used to have a TW 200 that I played with in the dirt that I had to sell. It was an amazing bike, and until now I couldn't have seen taking it all the way to Panama. I now however think that idea of flying to Panama and buying a thumper and driving it home is really a good idea and the thought has crossed my mind a couple of times lately.

Thanks for the responces and great thread.

Hey Chickenlegs,

Nice handle! Thanks for the kind words. I have had so much fun writing this ride report. It is therapeutic after getting back from a long ride to the end of the road and back. I just can't wait to head down to South America on my next adventure! I am saving my money. So many people have written me and I am finding lots of fellow riders in the area. So writing a ride report is a fun way to get to know the folks in your area.

Just finished a siding job and the lady was so pleased, she paid me three hundred dollars extra as a tip. HOLY COW! That is a week in the Andes!

And then I notice that this ride report has five stars! How did that happen? I am humbled. I don't even know how that works. I am not worthy.

I will have to write another one of these puppies. Its a HOOT!

Kindest regards,
John Downs

What I love about your ride is:
1. You took a small displacement bike which shows you dont have to spend big bucks to obtain an iconic adventure.
2. You have a minimalist approach with both gear and spending, again, making this seem doable for most anyone with enough drive.
3. You took off by yourself against popular belief that south of the border is an invite for nothing but bad things.
4. Your trip was centered around a dentist appointment (somewhat out there, but I like it)

Excellent ride report.

Love your prose.

Thank you John.

Looking forward to your next one to south america.

Awesome RR! I'm only on page 2 but will finish it tonight!

Hey,

Thanks for the kind words. I am totally stoked. I am saving my money for my next adventure in South America. I am checking out Chileautos.cl online. Looking at little ripper Honda thumpers. Big bux for the Honda Tornado 250. What a sweet bike though. 4500.00 is out of the question for me though. I am focusing on the Honda Storm for 1700.00 brand new, or the Honda Broz for a grand more. I am working hard and saving my money. Already have enough for the flight, a cheap thumper and a couple months travel in South America. Will redirect this thread when I head out for a South American Minimalist Adventure in a few months.

Kindest regards,
John Downs