In my last article I wrote about the preparation and modifications I made to my motorcycle before I set off on my adventure, in this article I will cover tips and tricks on the road including packing lists, equipment and resources to help get you on your way.
So you’ve chosen your dream machine, learnt where to put the petrol and spent some of your hard earned cash on modifications to strengthen your ride. Now it’s time to think about what you’re going to take with you.
Motorcycle Clothing
Choosing what gear to wear is about as subjective as deciding what bike to ride. Let’s start at the top and work down and I’ll talk through some of the factors that will help shape your own decisions.
Helmet
We all have a preference for a brand usually based upon which lid actually fits our odd shaped heads, but for all you tight arses out there or those of you yet to hit a brick wall at 70mph make sure you spend good money on it. I’ve noticed that many long term motorcycle travellers have a preference for either a flip face helmet or peaked MX helmets. Flip faces make for easy interaction with people whether they be border officials or a friendly local offering you directions, however I opted for an MX helmet with a peak. Having now ridden along high altitude mountain roads, through the deserts of Utah and into the Caribbean sun I love the fact that my MX helmet has a high peak similar to wearing a baseball cap when riding.
I chose the Arai XD3 and complemented it with a pair of Oakley goggles. My only disappointment is that the expensive replaceable lenses for my Oakley goggles lose their protective layer all too easily after wiping away dead insects.
Suit
It’s almost certain that you are likely to face variable weather conditions on your journey. During my recent visit to Colombia I endured searing coastal heat, high humidity and cold torrential downpours in the mountains. You will need a suit that is vented and has a detachable lining; it should also have lots of pockets for easy access to money, documents, cameras, sun glasses etc. Detachable linings are good for easy cleaning of the suit, you’ll be wearing it nearly every day and I am frequently amazed at the smell my body manages to produce and deposit in my jacket; nothing that a handful of Ariel and quick spin cycle can’t fix.
In the U.S. Aerostich produce a good range of endurance suits; in Europe Hein Gericke is a great option or you can break the budget with a BMW Rallye 2 Pro suit. I looked at both the Hein Gericke Tourag GTX III suit and BMW’s Rallye 2 Pro, although I think it was probably vanity that directed me to the BMW suit.
Don’t forget to pack some heavy duty waterproofs too. In a preparatory trip to Italy I found out to my horror how poor inferior waterproofs are after I rode for seven hours in freezing alpine rains.
Oh and whilst we’re at it I recommend wearing a neck gaiter, great for keeping chill winds out and also for preventing the back of your neck from getting sun burnt. In hot climates I run it under a cold tap before wearing it, the wind as you ride helps cool the blood to your head which in turn helps keep you sane.
Hands and Feet
For my trip I knew I’d be facing differing weather conditions so I invested in both summer and winter gloves, as well as a pair of merino wool glove liners that can double up as normal gloves when I’m not riding. When packing for a long trip you should try to get dual use from as many items as possible
When it came to footwear I spent far too long procrastinating over MX boots versus touring boots. I ended up opting for the latter on the basis that I could walk in them should I dismount and go off on a hike. Other people would prefer the protection that MX boots offer from your bloated machine when you have your inevitable spills.
Packing
There are a few toys out there that can really help make the most out of your limited space. Invest in some high quality compression sacks to squeeze air out of your clothes whilst keeping them drier than a kangaroos pouch. For my moneySea to Summit make the lightest and toughest compression sacks.
Eagle Creek make some great packing cubes that I’ve used on both previous back packing trips and my current adventure. They make stuffing underwear and T-shirts into my panniers a much easier task.
I have all my camping equipment tied down to the rear rack of my bike in an Ortleib heavy duty dry bag. The shoulder strap on these bags help to make transporting your gear up flights of hotel stairs that much easier.
Wardrobe – packed in my left pannier
You’re going to have to get used to making a few personal hygiene short cuts if you’re on the road for a while; wearing underwear for consecutive days, and putting back on that t-shirt that’s threatening to run away from its own smell. Washing your clothes in a hostel sink and drying them over night is a great way of avoiding turning them into the world’s most effective contraceptive but the bottom line is you have limited space so you’re going to need to make some sacrifices.
Start with three changes of underwear and t-shirts, although I have to confess that I also pack ski socks and light weight socks in addition to my everyday socks.Layering is the key for clothing in colder climates and my top tip for warmth and efficiency is Icebreaker’s range of merino wool gear, the clothes aren’t cheap but this is about the best you can buy. Snow & Rock in Covent Garden have the most comprehensive selection of Icebreaker clothing in Europe; they have a concession on the top floor of their store in Mercer Street. Icebreaker produce garments with long arms and thumb loops, extra long bodies for protecting the kidneys and high neck lines too. Merino wool is a fine weave wool, it doesn’t itch, doesn’t hold smells unlike man made fibres, and when layered it appears to me to become exponentially warmer.
Packing List
Eagle Creek packing cube 1: 3x boxer shorts (Lowe Alpine quick drying) 4x socks (differing weight from skiing socks to summer slips) 2x sports vests (quick drying for riding in underneath jacket) 2x wrist sweat bands (useful when loading the bike and preventing sunburn when riding)
Eagle Creek Pack-it Folder: 3x polo shirts (sorry, I know this is a luxury but when I arrive at a hotel and have a shower I want to feel normal again) 1x smart cotton shirt (again, you never know when you might need to scrub up to impress, although this too is undoubtedly a luxury item)
Camping can save you a lot of money whilst on the road but in some countries it will be a necessity purely because of distances between towns. My tent is a British made Terra Nova Laser Large 3 on account of its world beating size to weight ratio. If it’s tipping with rain outside you need a vestibule at the front of your tent large enough to store and keep your gear dry, and you want space within the tent to keep both your bike clothing dry as well as keeping you sane should the weather keep you locked inside your canvas home.
Ants love the salt that accumulates in your clothing so unless you want to spend your morning pulling your crash helmet and clothing apart, as I recently did in Mexico, don’t store your clothing outside the tent. I have also woken to find a black widow spider making its home in my crash helmet; if that’s not an incentive to keep your clothing inside the tent I don’t know what is.
If you know you’ll be camping make sure you get a sleeping bag fit for purpose. Compressing your sleeping bag is bad if you opt for a down filled sack but for me it’s a necessary evil to keep its bulk down to a minimum. Make sure you know what climate you’ll be travelling in, if you buy an expedition sleeping bag you’ll be sweating like a scouser in Dixons when you pitch your tent by the beach, but you’ll be colder than an ex-wife in the divorce courts if you wrap yourself up in a three season bag on the Himalayas. I’ve gone for a three season bag and I complement it with a sleeping bag liner for extra cold nights. The liner is also an ideal substitute for a sleeping bag during hot steamy nights camping in the Caribbean and it offers protection from the occasional grotty hostel bed.
You’ll be wanting a sleeping matt too, I bought a Thermarest which is surprisingly comfortable, and whilst you’re at it seriously consider purchasing a travel pillow too. My inflatable pillow was donated to me after many sleepless nights with back pain having previously used varying amounts of clothing stuffed under my head as I attempted to get a comfortable nights kip.
Kitchen – packed in my right pannier
If you plan to camp you will most likely need to cook, and if you can cook at home you can cook on the road. Unfortunately my culinary skills are pretty poor but I recently spent three weeks with fellow motorcyclists Simon and Lisa Thomas who’ve been riding around the world for six years, and let me tell you Lisa rustled up the best food I’ve eaten on my entire trip and all from a one ring stove!
I recommend buying an MSR or Optimus multi fuel stove, and remember to pack a length of plastic tubing so you can siphon off fuel from your tank to cook with.
When it comes to pots and pans you can keep weight down by purchasing titanium cookware. Try to buy items that fit inside each other and pack out any space left over with condiments that help flavour a bland noodle or rice dish.
People have laughed at my option for crockery so take or leave this suggestion. I bought an origami plate, bowl and mug set from Orikaso. They pack flat and take a few seconds to fold into shape and I like the fact that they take up so little space.
Pretty much wherever you go in the world it is likely that there will be someone who can fix bikes. Outside of the industrialised West a motorcycle is an affordable family vehicle and repair shops are plentiful. In fact if you chose to ride a Japanese bike life on the road will be a doddle, for my Beema I need to rely on overpriced dealerships in the major cities.
For my tool kit I did a lot of research to establish the very minimum that I needed to carry to repair my bike. It’s not necessary to bring a complete socket set; you’ll find that your bike uses only a handful of the sockets in your box. Do your research and only pack what you need, after all this stuff gets seriously heavy. I would recommend that you include an electrical screw driver, a small torque wrench, a volt tester, a blade, electrical wire and of course a set of tyre levers and a good pump.
Workshop and Spares:
Inner tubes
Puncture repair kit
Front fork seals
Front and rear brake pads
Bulbs
Spark plugs
Assorted bolts, washers, screws
Brake, clutch and throttle cables
Brake and clutch levers
Assorted fuses
JB Weld
Radiator repair solution
Copper Ease
Grease
Epoxy resin
Cable ties – it’s amazing how many I’ve got through
Gaffa/Duct tape
Electrical tape
Electronics
There are two things that have consistently broken on my trip; anything with a zip (zips just don’t like the aggressive compression required when packing), and electronics. You can choose to go with or without your modern day luxuries but just remember that anything you do take will be put to the test with bike vibrations and extreme climate changes.
Digital Camera
I bought a Pentax W60 waterproof camera. On a previous trip it had proven to be virtually indestructible, on this trip one dip in the water rendered the camera useless and I soon learnt that warranties on the road are about as useful as a chocolate teapot. If you’re serious about your photography my opinion is bring whatever you need to record your trip, this is a once in a lifetime experience and it will be a luxury worth taking.
Camcorder and Helmet Camera
I decided I wanted to record my trip on video and ended up buying a Panasonic AG-HSC1U camcorder because it records in HD widescreen using 3 CCD chips and stores it all onto those useful SD cards.
I did a lot of homework attempting to find a robust point of view camera to attach to my crash helmet. The VIO POV 1.5 is waterproof, also records to SD card and has loads of mounting options for your bike and helmet. If you want to get some good ideas and advice look no further than Adventure Designs based in California. They are rapidly building a reputation for being adventurer camera specialists.
Laptop
If you want to write articles for the Londonbikers website, watch movies on the road or just maintain a blog it can make sense to pack a laptop. I protect my laptop in a custom made case I cut out of a cheap foam roll matt and Duct Tape, the laptop fits perfectly inside my panniers.
Many major manufacturers now produce affordable ultra compact laptops; shop around for the one that best suits your needs.
GPS & Maps
For my trip detailed commercially produced GPS maps are only available for Canada, U.S.A and Mexico, the same is true once you’re outside of Europe. Step forward Bob the Smelly Biker and his Wanderlust maps. Bob has been putting together a series of GPS maps from publicly available data and GPS tracks submitted by community conscious adventure bikers. His latest set of maps are the best out there, although I also refer to Garmin’s WorldMap to plan routes. For £50 the maps are yours, see the links at the end of this article for details.
While you’re buying your Icebreaker gear from Snow & Rock in Covent Garden why not pop over the road to Stanfords, just about the best place on the planet for getting hold of maps which whilst on the road can be virtually impossible to lay your hands on.
Borders and Officials
Inevitably you will have run ins with officials, usually they simply want to ask the obligatory “how much, how fast” questions about your bike before they wave you on your way, but its not uncommon to have an encounter with an over zealous official hoping to boost his pitiful wages with some of your hard earned. The best advice I can offer is to stay calm, take off your helmet and smile.
Here’s more advice I’ve picked up from other travellers, there should be something here to help you devise your own strategy of dealing with these inevitable encounters:
Never be in a rush; officials will often realise that having an uncooperative gringo hanging around is stopping them earning from someone else.
Perhaps this is also time to regress any language skills you’ve picked up; again officials have a tendency to get bored with you after a while.
If you’re riding as a couple let the woman deal with the situation. Our more egalitarian approach to the sexes is not always replicated on the continent and dealing with a female can help you out of a sticky situation.
If you have sweets or cigarettes offer one to the official, it’s a lot harder to play hardball if these people actually like you.
Before an official asks you any question look relieved and ask directions to the next town. I’ve had many positive experiences with police using this strategy which plays up to their authority and ego.
If you see a road block pull up just beyond the other vehicles. If you manage to negotiate your way out of a situation the official involved won’t lose face in front of his colleagues
When stopping don’t pull over to the side of the road but remain in the middle of your lane and switch your engine off, this way you’re helping to draw attention to your plight.
Final Word
My final pieces of advice… Buy a copy of Chris Scott's Adventure Motorcycling Handbook; join ADVrider and Horizons Unlimited websites and read through the forums; look through tips and tricks on Simon and Lisa Thomas’s 2ridetheworld.com website and dig deep into Steve Crombie’s loston.com website for more great advice and inspiration. When on the road ride slowly and cautiously, you never know when an animal will walk out in front of you or when a large pothole will rear its ugly head. Don’t forget to get spare keys cut and stash them somewhere on your bike and if for some reason you need an address on the road or want to have direct interaction with people in the community join up and participate in the Couchsurfing phenomenon.
I’m off to Peru now but in my next article I'll be sharing some of my stories from the road.
Don't forget you can follow my trip by subcribing to Youtube or by joining the Brainrotting Facebook group.
