Stinky, Depending on how the driving shapes up I'll probably be coming through montana. I could pick you up and save you a tire. Way in advance I know but don't think you have to ride to the event if you don't want to. Unless you really are stinky then you need to ride in the truck bed Pete
This looks amazing and very tempting.... This may be a question someone has already answered, but why are there not more 450 rally bikes going? Seems like a bike from Dakar(with heat of course), since that rally is mostly speed controlled transfers, would work well in the Alcan? Are riders blasting road sections on Super Enduros at 100mph? Has anyone gotten ticketed? Arrested? Or is is just a matter of not suffering for 9 days...?
I have a fuel injected 511 that would be a rocket but doesnt have the juice for heated gear would require some major comfort mods like a fairing seat. Honestly the biggest reason for me is that I don't want to wring its neck for 5000 miles and risk blowing the motor. Dakar bikes have factory support I don't.
Plus the maintenance intervals are terrible. I change oil in my husky every ride which might be 50 miles of trail riding. This sounds like there could be 500 miles of sustained highway work. Plus it appears the conditions are not nearly as brutal as dakar
There is zero offroading...so why ride a small bike ? Maybe I am missing something. Sure some rain makes the roads slick but the amount of mileage of this situation is quite small (for me) to justify losing the comfort, reliability, ability to heat gear, etc Just my thoughts...and the reason I've chosen a large bike
That answers my question. Thanks I'm very unfamiliar with the format and might need to upgrade from my Ktm 2011 450... Maintainance would need like 5 gallons of rotella. Format seems like a timekeeper without hard sections but with realistic speeds? I'm sure I am missing something, how hard is it to keep on pace with a computer? Sounds great! Thanks for posting this, thinking seriously of sending in some money.
Some of the timed stages are hard to keep pace. For example, in 2006 we ran some forest roads in the Kispiox range that were rough and slow because of washouts. I bent both rims on my 950. We'll run that section again in 2014, but most are all about time keeping at what is called a 'brisk' pace. This means modestly challenging for a big heavy motorcycles with street tires, but not much more than that. DOT knobbys are smart to have up front on any bike you bring. And we will have plenty of mud, you know... The real fun sections are pure hooligan with no timing. For example, you'll be riding the South Canol as fast as you dare (2nd through 5th gear for hours). And you can do it faster on a smaller bike that you can spin up. The Denali and Dempster Highways were also as fast as you dare. In 2010 the Denali road was good so I could hit 90 regularly. In 2006 the road was so rough it was hard to go 60. We'll have Telegraph Creek, which is winding and slow, but very fun for a bike you can flick around. Just don't run off! It's a long ways down. The speed limits on the paved sections are about 60mph as I recall. But the big bikes hit triple digits plenty. Heck, even my buddy ran his KLR steady above 80mph,,,, until he started worrying about oil consumption. That brought him closer to 75mph. I don't know of anybody getting ticketed, but many deserved it.
Really plan on watching the speed limits in BC. Limit is typically 100 km/h (60mph) if you are caught going +40 km/h over the posted limit you will have the vehicle impounded and a whole bunch of fines/hurt attached! I spent over an hour "debating" with one of our LEO's last summer running back from Smithers. Bugger really wanted to put us on the trailer but could not prove we were over. He was pissed! I guess it gets boring for them. I am in Vancouver, if anybody needs help out this way let me know.. Still thinking about jumping on the wait list. Richard
What's the word on tires? Both choice, numbers of spares, tubliss. I'm getting some new wheels built by woody and I need to get rim width dialed.
You'll want sticker tires at the start. You'll need a spare set and the club will haul them for us. Most of us will use good quality DOT knobby's. Some will use a more street oriented dirt tire in back like a Scout of Mefo. Figure changing the rear in the hotel parking lot in Dawson or Fairbanks. Probably change the front around Whitehorse on the way back to Seattle. In 2010 I made the whole trip on a set of Mefo Explorers, but the front was just terrible in the mud, so I won't try that again. It ruined a good part of the South Canol road for me having to creep along in the slop, wobbling from rut to rut for 130 miles. . I don't know what to suggest for rim sizes, but if you ride that cool Kawi you are building, I'd probably select a rear rim similar to the large adventure OEM wheels. Maybe a 3.5 (140X17) or 4.0 (150X17) in back and a 21 inch front rim that would support a 90/90 tire. The BMW 800GS might be a good model. Large powerful singles like my 690 wear a 140x18 rear and a 90/90 21 front. Smaller singles wear a 120 or 130 rear. The major benefit of the smaller tires is ease in spooning and price. I don't think anybody ran the tubliss insert.
Check your Yahoogroups for regulations. Jerry posted them last night. Principal changes are that Rotopax fuel containers are approved; buddy groups must have one Spot device among us; and they have dropped the DIY TSD's which most of us never figured out anyway. Maybe upgrade my ride now that I have an affordable method of getting the extra fuel range I need.
Thanks I was wondering about actual tires too, I have used the dunlop 908rr with success and probably would use that with a good dot knob front. You think more street ish tire to start and more knob to finish off? I'm getting the rear in a 2.50" rim width I think. It's a dirt bike rear end so I can't go too wide. Front will be a 1.60" excel a60. I have a 2.15" on there now in the rear. Glad to hear about the rotopax I've based a lot on my build to using one
In 2006 I ran a set of TKCs on my 1150 GSAdv that lasted the whole trip. They were getting kind of thin, but made it the whole way. I did not do Telegraph or Canol. Changed them out in Anchorage for the ride back.
Woody would know your best options. Those are real dirtbike sizes. Can you get a 908 to fit that rear? I'm only familiar with the 150 size 908 for the KTM twins. Regarding what to start with, we'll have lots of dirt Tuesday, Wed, Thursday and Friday. This includes the Blackwater (mild but fun farm road); the Kispiox forest service roads (I think) past the K'san village (was rough in 2006), Telegraph Creek, and North Canol to NWT camp (135 miles in) and back again Friday morning. These will be trip highlight rides of the event, so you want your favorite dual sport tires for them. If you wanted a more durable street oriented tire in back, I would try to get as far as Fairbanks before changing to it. After Fairbanks we'll only have the Denali Highway, which was rough and slow in 06; and fast and smooth in 10. Any rear would work fine and it's only 135 miles end to end. I used Conti TKC 80's front and rear in 2006 on a KTM 950. This was an excellent tire in the mud we experienced, and fair on tar. The rear would slip on cold/wet lane paint. Nothing scary but enough to pay attention. My rear probably could have made it to Fairbanks, but I changed it in Dawson. The front went paper thin on the way back and I ended up changing it in a motel lot south of Watson Lake. Probably not a mile too soon. :eek1 While at Fairbanks we will have a one day blast to the Arctic Circle and back. I've never ridden the Haul Road, but the Dempster had plenty of mud and was fairly flowing through the ranges. I think the Haul road is better maintained, straighter, and more heavily traveled so probably a street oriented rear would be fair. I hear the Dunlop 908 lasts longer than the TKC80, but you might be looking at a 606 with the rims you are planning. I'm planning on using Pirelli MT21's on my 690. I can get 3500 miles out of the rear if I'm careful and air it up for the long tar sections. If I ride the 250, I'll use Michelin T63's. I have considerable all-terrain experience with both tires on those bikes, but I'll need a second set front and rear no matter what I ride. The main thing IMO is to have a good knobby front tire.
Thanks very helpful. I should be able to get the 908rr on the 2.50 rim. I'll pair it with a good knobbly up front. I was just wondering if it was worth it at all to run a tire like scout for a long road day back to back but it sounds like like I'd be better served running dot knobs the whole trip
I had planned to run a scout read and tkc front on my GS 12. Any reason a tkc rear would suit better with all that mileage?
I am planning on the MT 21s. I need to do some mileage tests this summer, but for the gravel and such here in Montana they are amazing. I can run my monster at scary speeds on the backroads here, and gravel and mud seem to have minimum impact. I plan to run different tires for the ride home, but that will be almost all paved. Granted my bike is smaller than a lot of those running, and I am not sure how it compares weight wise to the KTMs. Just my two cents.
IMO that is a good combo for a heavy bike like yours. If I was riding a twin again, I'd run a TKC in front and a Mefo in back with the hope of using only one rear tire. But if I'm going to use two sets anyway, I'll use knobby's on both ends. Very comforting when the going gets sloppy.
Yeah I love my MT21's too. Amazing tires and affordable. I'll be using them too, but the mileage will be close even if you behave yourself during the event. If you don't, two rear tires won't get you home. My first set have 3500 miles on them and the rear still has a quarter inch of tread block. That should be enough for 2 tires to make Seattle and back. I doubt Montana and back, though. You may need a 3rd tire to get home. 'Course that one doesn't need to be much of a tire. It could be one of your take-offs in your garage.
