Sep 22, 2012: Mark Twain Dualsport

[MrHix]

Watch a cat???

Just open a toilet, throw some food on the floor, and refresh the litter box. It'll be just like a boys weekend.

Cheers,

MrHix

[ajayhawkfan]

...If I can get someone to watch my cat,...

Reason #422 NOT to own a cat or most any pet. (Yes, I have a damn cat. )

Or children.

[Andy]

Well, my cat is old and lacks most of his teeth...can't eat dry food. But, I know two people that will feed him for the price of a beer, and one of them is free this weekend.

I also have a pickup truck, if for some reason we need it. Tire should be here tomorrow...

Is this ride more of a 14, 15, or 16 tooth sprocket kind of trip?

[troy]

Is this ride more of a 14, 15, or 16 tooth sprocket kind of trip?

Link is building the route, so I'm not authoritative on this subject. However, he has told me it will be an "easy" route. I recommend the 15 tooth sprocket. Of course there might be some paved stretches you'd prefer the 16 on, overall, the 15 is a good option.

I'll be on my BMW F800GS with stock gearing -- it's more that kind of a ride rather than a KTM 450 dirt-bike ride. But..if I didn't have the option, I'd ride my KTM 450, which is geared way down (14/52).

If it's just Andy and me, we can take my truck. If anyone else wants to come, we can still take my truck and I'll assume I can borrow safiri's trailer.

My number is 913. Six-Six-Nine. 095 Eight.

[Andy]

New tire is on, 15 tooth sprocket installed..I think i should be good to go.

[Rusty Jug]

Well I will be in Columbia at MU campus for the 4-H State Speech contest, but I think you guys have a better shot at seeing a cat!

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1348167807.885706.jpg (17.88 KiB) Viewed 2544 times

This was taking in south Mo. Last week!

Might want to leave your jayhawk shirts at home, cats attack those! Lol

[troy]

New tire is on, 15 tooth sprocket installed..I think i should be good to go.

Andy, I'm loading up tonight so I can drive to work and have the option of leaving directly from my office tomorrow. I assume you want to haul out with me.

I need to know when and where to pick you up. Or we can take your truck if you prefer. As of right now, my F800GS is getting loaded into my truck this evening. Since it's just the 2 of us, call me so we can coordinate.

Troy Wolf
913. Six Six Nine. 0 Nine 58.

[Rusty Jug]

I can't believe nobody commented on the mt lion they have on camera !

It was all over the local news!

Did the pic not show up?

[Andy]

I can't believe nobody commented on the mt lion they have on camera !

It was all over the local news!

Did the pic not show up?

Oh I saw it...and packed a really big bag of catnip.

[troy]

I can't believe nobody commented on the mt lion they have on camera !

I've been hearing about big cats caught on film in the Mark Twain for about 2 years. They are definitely out there and increasing in number---no lack of food for sure.

[troy]

I'm sitting in my office, bike loaded in my truck. I'm picking up Andy after work and we are heading out for an adventure. I guess the rest of you can work on your scrapbooks and catch up on your Facebook.

[troy]

Andy & I had a GREAT TIME! ...but I'll let Andy list the items he broke on his KLR650! I've never seen someone break so many things on their bike in 1/2 mile!

What was supposed to be an easy dualsport ending up taking us down a relatively rough "road" after the first 30 miles of easy forest roads. The Mark Twain in this area has been logged extensively for many years. It is criss-crossed with now abandoned logging roads in various states from easy 2-track to washed out, overgrown, crazy-steep, KLR-eating trails. WOOHOO!

Andy can tell the gory details, but after a spill, his KLR would not start. No spark. We traced everything we could think, replaced a blown fuse, but no spark. CDI unit is probably dead, and the only way to fix that is with money for a new CDI.

2 riders went back to Link's resort to get his Jeep and trailer. The other 3 of us worked Andy's KLR down about another 2/3rd of a mile to a hillbilly campsite at the end of a Jeep road. Lucky for us, it was all downhill or flat from where the bike broke. We rolled it, pushed it, and I towed it for awhile with my F800GS--Andy did great being towed, which is no easy task--especially in deep rock, over tree roots, etc.

You could not have asked for more perfect weather! After the 3 of them headed "home" with the KLR on the trailer, Gene & I took off for another 50+ miles of rugged logging roads. Gene is a VERY good rider, and we moved along at a fast clip as we wound around through the forest.

During the weekend, Link took us out in his Jeep a couple times to crawl through some nasty logging roads and hill climbs. Chilly night, campfire, the brightest stars you've ever seen, and a pan of brownies (just brownies). Good times.

[ajayhawkfan]

Something on a KLR broke and could not be fixed with duct tape or bailing wire? Never heard such a thing.

[Rusty Jug]

I love it! I can't wait to have a weekend off to do that! Sounds like you guys had a ball , maybe not Andy!

Any pics?

[troy]

Something on a KLR broke and could not be fixed with duct tape or bailing wire? Never heard such a thing.

That's not far from the truth. The KLR's simple, rugged design is one of the things that make it such a great dualsport machine. We had 5 guys and one is a seasoned motorcycle mechanic. We spent over an hour trying to figure it out on the trail. That's why I suspect it's simply the CDI died.

On the contrary, if my F800GS breaks on the trail--especially any kind of electrical or fuel delivery issue, I'll be screwed.

I love it! I can't wait to have a weekend off to do that! Sounds like you guys had a ball , maybe not Andy!

Any pics?

Andy had a great time regardless--he has the right aptitude and attitude for adventure. I did not take any pics, but Andy took some including video. No pressure, Andy, but if you get around to processing and sharing....folks are waiting!

Rusty Jug, unfortunately (fortunately?) the fall "riding season" is also "BBQ competition/catering" season. I bet you are busy!

[ajayhawkfan]

On the contrary, if my F800GS breaks on the trail--especially any kind of electrical or fuel delivery issue, I'll be screwed.

Not if I'm along. I'm sure I have the "right" tool.

[Andy]

By the measure of "how sore am I the following monday?," my standard measure for weekend fun, this weekend easily topped every other weekend this year. I had entirely too much fun, and learned a lot. I wish I would have been able to continue the ride and not hold everyone else up, but hey...these things happen.

Here is the list of stuff I broke ( in order of appearance )

-Pride
-2 front spokes
-odometer cable
-bent front brake rotor
-rear taillight housing
-right side cover by the tank (well, more broken than it was...)
-kill switch
-2 fuses


...and a CDI module.

Just spent some time with the meter and the ignition system checks out, except for the CDI. Several of the values on CDI compared to the table in the Clymer manual are way out of spec. Worse yet, I'm pretty sure it happened when we blew the fuses trying the wrong wire when we were blindly trying to hot wire the kill switch .

On a lighter note, I couldn't ask to have been with a better group of people. Everyone there was helpful and knowledgable, and willing to share. Gene even offered to let me ride his ATK 605. Special thanks to Troy for taking me a long, he's a great guy to travel with.

Anyway, here's pictures. I never got the camera turned on before my first wreck, and the mount for it broke in said wreck, so no video.

Saturday morning camp:


End of branch I caught in front spokes:


Spoke damage:


spoke repair:

[troy]

Some of you might enjoy these pics from a previous ride at the Freeman Off-road Resort. This was an off-road ride.
https://picasaweb.google.com/1149614835 ... SpringRide

[Rusty Jug]

Love the pics! Major good times!

[Andy]

Important notes to remember:

-don't cross the brown wire and the black/yellow wire or black/white wire on a KLR kill switch .
-25 lbs of crap in your top box is too much. At least for me.
-EBC oversized brake rotors are soft and flexible. This could be either bad or good, depending on your point of view.

And...

if you go down there, you may have the opportunity to drive this, which may be the best thing ever:



Found a CDI unit for $80 on ebay. Considering the dealer wanted ~$400, I think I can live with that.