[Hydrasin]

So Im planning on taking a road trip all over the western states this summer.... The trip is going to take approximately 2-3 weeks. I will be starting in Sandy Eggo CA, looping up to the border of Canananada and then returning to the point from which i started. What would you suggest that I bring? I plan on camping 2 out of 3 days and on the 3rd day spending the night at a hostel or hotel....

 

[saabsaviur]

check out sport-touring.net and advrider.com both great touring sites.

 

[koalaKid]

hello hydra.

there are a couple of threads on this section of the forum dealing with what to bring. but i'll save *some* searching and give my suggestions here:

-tools: your tool kit that comes with the bike is great for small things. Really, if you are travelling in "civilized" areas (major towns every couple of hours) you won't need much more. I carry an extra set of wrenches and some sockets because sometimes you need to hold onto the nut and loosen the bolt of vice versa. I carry too many tools, but I don't give a ****. So, i basically have the tool kit that comes with the bike doubled, plus some extra sockets for wheel axle or the like.

-camping gear: i have an msr multi fuel stove, and the fuel bottle doubles as emergency gas for me. I have a super light 2-person tent that I carry. I have a fire starter (flint stick), lighter and matches. There's my sleeping bag, and sleeping pad, and a towel. Then there's basic toiletries (always have at least two rolls of toilet paper). I have a hatchet and buck knife.

Oh yeah, if you're camping at camp ground, make sure you have a wine bottle opener. you'd be so surprised how many people don't remember a bottle opener. it's a great way to make friends with that group of cuties and you're the only one in the entire campsite with a wine opener. ccasion14:

-spares: if you don't have shorty levers, and your bike falls over on the uneven ground (it's pretty easy when drunk/hung over) then the last thing you want is a broken clutch lever. So, I travel with a spare clutch and front brake lever.

I started a thread with some general touring tips and other people posted some fantastic stuff.

before leaving, it's a good idea to have a general maintenance done, make sure everything's okay.

take a look at mileage, be prepared to buy tyres along the way. i've had a major service done half way through one of my trips in calgary, and i've also found myself 2000kms from home looking at a rear tyre that has 500km of tread left TOPS.

(i find advrider has too many people. it's so hard to find what i'm looking for, and almost any thread gets burried immediately)

once you have a route set out, let us know. i'd be more than happy to point out places to see (ie, roads to ride) in British Columbia.

I'd also suggest reading some ride reports on this forum to see what other people encountered.

hope this helps!

(welcome to the wonderful world of motorcycle touring!)

have fun, and be sure to post lots of pics!!!

 

[weasel]

...and, take your oldest, rattiest undies, and, just leave them when yer done with them!! lol makes more room on the way home for stuff you buy!!

 

[Hydrasin]

hello hydra.

there are a couple of threads on this section of the forum dealing with what to bring. but i'll save *some* searching and give my suggestions here:

-tools: your tool kit that comes with the bike is great for small things. Really, if you are travelling in "civilized" areas (major towns every couple of hours) you won't need much more. I carry an extra set of wrenches and some sockets because sometimes you need to hold onto the nut and loosen the bolt of vice versa. I carry too many tools, but I don't give a ****. So, i basically have the tool kit that comes with the bike doubled, plus some extra sockets for wheel axle or the like.

-camping gear: i have an msr multi fuel stove, and the fuel bottle doubles as emergency gas for me. I have a super light 2-person tent that I carry. I have a fire starter (flint stick), lighter and matches. There's my sleeping bag, and sleeping pad, and a towel. Then there's basic toiletries (always have at least two rolls of toilet paper). I have a hatchet and buck knife.

Oh yeah, if you're camping at camp ground, make sure you have a wine bottle opener. you'd be so surprised how many people don't remember a bottle opener. it's a great way to make friends with that group of cuties and you're the only one in the entire campsite with a wine opener. ccasion14:

-spares: if you don't have shorty levers, and your bike falls over on the uneven ground (it's pretty easy when drunk/hung over) then the last thing you want is a broken clutch lever. So, I travel with a spare clutch and front brake lever.

I started a thread with some general touring tips and other people posted some fantastic stuff.

before leaving, it's a good idea to have a general maintenance done, make sure everything's okay.

take a look at mileage, be prepared to buy tyres along the way. i've had a major service done half way through one of my trips in calgary, and i've also found myself 2000kms from home looking at a rear tyre that has 500km of tread left TOPS.

(i find advrider has too many people. it's so hard to find what i'm looking for, and almost any thread gets burried immediately)

once you have a route set out, let us know. i'd be more than happy to point out places to see (ie, roads to ride) in British Columbia.

I'd also suggest reading some ride reports on this forum to see what other people encountered.

hope this helps!

(welcome to the wonderful world of motorcycle touring!)

have fun, and be sure to post lots of pics!!!

Thanks for the helpful tips! For whatever reason my bike didnt come with the tool kit, but i think ill be able to get by without it. I have a bunch of tools which I think would come in handy (Allen set, adjustable wrench, and some sockets).

The lever idea is definitely a good one. I was out in the desert once and the wind blew my bike over. At the very least it fell onto the left side and only the brake lever was damaged so i was able to make it home.

So far I just have CA mapped out, but it only took me a day to do so. But ya, ill hit you up when i factor in the canadian route.

Thanks again!

 

[Hydrasin]

...and, take your oldest, rattiest undies, and, just leave them when yer done with them!! lol makes more room on the way home for stuff you buy!!

Haha good call

 

[koalaKid]

oh yeah, another thing....don't pack things super tight and neat.

if you pack everything the night before all nice and neat, you'll never get everything packed when on the road! haha

i always travel with an empty duffel bag, so that whatever doesn't fit in my saddle bags, i just throw in there.

are you sure your bike didn't come with a tool kit?

when i bought my bike, the dealer tried to tell me the same thing, the thing was he just didn't know where it was stored!

(it's on the left side, underneath the sub frame)

 

[Hydrasin]

oh yeah, another thing....don't pack things super tight and neat.

if you pack everything the night before all nice and neat, you'll never get everything packed when on the road! haha

i always travel with an empty duffel bag, so that whatever doesn't fit in my saddle bags, i just throw in there.

are you sure your bike didn't come with a tool kit?

when i bought my bike, the dealer tried to tell me the same thing, the thing was he just didn't know where it was stored!

(it's on the left side, underneath the sub frame)

is it under the battery???

 

[Hydrasin]

found it.... under the battery..... need 2 allens and a phillps to get to it lol. i see the little door but its quite a pain to get off. but i read that if you work it a couple times it comes off easier

 

[koalaKid]

tyre repair kit.

and compressor.

i wired in a cigarette lighter outlet on my sv.

luckilly, i haven't had to repair any flats on my bike, but on my ride across half of canada, i did repair a flat tyre for another stranded rider.

fixed the hole, and pumped up the tyre and he was good to go.

 

[RandyO]

One thing I have learned about touring on a bike is that I always tend to bring too much, every time I take a trip, I learn to weed out what I never use

cloths...... as suggested... only 3 or 4 changes of undercloths... NO Tee Shirts, I always buy 2or 3 as souvineers along the way. Bring a few rolls of quarters for the laundrymat, I recommend LD Comfort shorts if your going to be riding more than 250-300 miles a day

tools ... SV tool kit is fine, you can do almost everythng you need with it, but it's unlikely you will need to, SV's are reliable, plugs and an air pump, 1stgen SV add a 10mm allen to your tool kit in event you have to get your shifter off, doesn't hurt to have a spare shifter, but clutch & brake levers are pretty universal, and easy to fine at most bike shops , but if you have a broken one bring it along as a shorty spare, spare fuses, duct tape, zip ties, electrical tape, small amount of wire, the screw driver on your tool kit is the only one you want, it's a Japanese Phillips, slightly different than an American Phillips and fits screw heads perfect, I also bring my battery charger along, actually if your worried about spares, a regulator/rectifier is probably the most likely thing you would need


bike cover... I have a Nelson Rigg EV something or other, a half cover, packs small, keeps the dew or rain off the top of your bike

toilet paper as already mentioned, keep it in a ziplock bagie, wet toilet paper is worthless

rope -- at least a 25 ft coil, especially if your camping

 

[koalaKid]

rope -- at least a 25 ft coil, especially if your camping

haha, yeah, i always have rope. You never know when rope will come in handy

 

[Hydrasin]

tyre repair kit.

and compressor.

i wired in a cigarette lighter outlet on my sv.

luckilly, i haven't had to repair any flats on my bike, but on my ride across half of canada, i did repair a flat tyre for another stranded rider.

fixed the hole, and pumped up the tyre and he was good to go.

Very magnanimous of you to help the dude out, im sure he was very grateful. I have hand pump and plan on testing it out before i leave. Im by no means a electrical master so im probly gonna stray away from the concept of hooking up my own cig lighter, but koodos to u for doin it. any particular things/brands you would recommend for tire repair?

 

[Hydrasin]

One thing I have learned about touring on a bike is that I always tend to bring too much, every time I take a trip, I learn to weed out what I never use

cloths...... as suggested... only 3 or 4 changes of undercloths... NO Tee Shirts, I always buy 2or 3 as souvineers along the way. Bring a few rolls of quarters for the laundrymat, I recommend LD Comfort shorts if your going to be riding more than 250-300 miles a day

tools ... SV tool kit is fine, you can do almost everythng you need with it, but it's unlikely you will need to, SV's are reliable, plugs and an air pump, 1stgen SV add a 10mm allen to your tool kit in event you have to get your shifter off, doesn't hurt to have a spare shifter, but clutch & brake levers are pretty universal, and easy to fine at most bike shops , but if you have a broken one bring it along as a shorty spare, spare fuses, duct tape, zip ties, electrical tape, small amount of wire, the screw driver on your tool kit is the only one you want, it's a Japanese Phillips, slightly different than an American Phillips and fits screw heads perfect, I also bring my battery charger along, actually if your worried about spares, a regulator/rectifier is probably the most likely thing you would need


bike cover... I have a Nelson Rigg EV something or other, a half cover, packs small, keeps the dew or rain off the top of your bike

toilet paper as already mentioned, keep it in a ziplock bagie, wet toilet paper is worthless

rope -- at least a 25 ft coil, especially if your camping

well fortunately for me i dont mind wearing teh same clothes more than 2 days in a row. I visited my sister in australia and went all around indonesia, malaysia, and places of the like on nothing more than a pair of pants, shorts, 3 shirts, and a bathing suit for about a month. I wore the bathing suit mostly, but point is, I can handle it ;D

 

[darkhorse85]

If it wasnt already mentioned: Bring ZIP TIES!

Theyre so useful for everything. You can put stiches in your plastics to hold em together if you crash (fix cracks, etc). I helped out a buddy reattach his license plate after it just rattled off somehow. They make wiring cleaner and easier, etc. Theyre lightweight, and pack small, too.

 

[koalaKid]

Very magnanimous of you to help the dude out, im sure he was very grateful. I have hand pump and plan on testing it out before i leave. Im by no means a electrical master so im probly gonna stray away from the concept of hooking up my own cig lighter, but koodos to u for doin it. any particular things/brands you would recommend for tire repair?

Oh you have no idea, it was a long weekend, and the shops in the area wouldn't be open for at least two days and it was about 60kms to the nearest canadian tire.

The cig lighter is dead simple. You could always just talk to your local shop guy. I find most shop guys are really friendly, especially if you give them regular business. Or, do what I did, tack it onto a tyre change. I got my tyres mounted at a dealer and asked them to add on a few things while the bike was in the shop.

A hand pump would take FOREVER. Also, those little CO2 canisters are pretty useless too. My buddy and I once did the math and figured it would take about 16 of the little guys to get the rear to a decent pressure.

Anyways, the whole tyre plug thing came up in another thread, but here's a picture of all you need in the following post:
http://forum.svrider.com/showpost.php?p=1452149&postcount=21

Slime make really good and compact kits. Mine's a more generic one as the dealer was out at the time of my purchases.

Yes, zip ties. You can fix just about anything with Zip Ties. (I swear they hold the world together)I had a chain guard bolt back out on me, and zip ties fixed that.

If you plan on doing a lot of touring, I would also suggest getting a center stand for the SV. I'm pretty sure I got mine from twisted throttle.com, made by SW-Motech. It's SO HANDY. Makes chain maintenance on the road a dream. Plus, if you ever get a flat, it's a pain to work on with the tyre on the ground.

The aformentioned rider was on a cruiser (REALLY nice Intruder). I had to go into the bush to find some dead logs to prop up the bike so I could get the rear tyre on the ground.