5547 sm ....

[Semper Gumby]

...is the Garmin distance from Key West to Prudhoe Bay. At first I was thinking about taking one of the BSA's but I really already have the bike for the trip - the R65. It's got the seat and the long range fuel (Tempo Boat tank) plus the alternator. I think I only really need a GS front end. What got this started was a family friend is thinking about buying a BMW 1200GS. He has a history of going long distances on two wheels in the past. I mentioned the IBA and the Key West to Prudhoe Bay thing and his eyes lit up. So I'm soliciting advise: my departure date is July 2009. IBA says it's a 30 day ride. My brain says this is quite doable. (My lizard brain is currently mum on the subject.)  Anybody else interested in this kind of madness?

Hmmmm....

[Ed Miller]

My friend rode up there from WY with his brother and nephew but they were all on Airhead GS bikes.  I'll ask him if an R65 could make it.  I don't even like riding mine on gravel but I need to grow up someday.

[Justin B.]

I went almost that far on a stock R100/7.  Ft. Hood, TX, to Fairbanks, AK.  Put on a little over 5k miles...

[Rob Valdez 79 R65]

Might want to consider what major spares you could have lined up in advance "just in case".  Talking transmissions and final drives, really.  Overnight shipping...

Make sure your splines are like new.

[not-so-fast-ed]

Like I said, Bill...."Don't think I'll be into camping & trips at my age".......
You never know..

Which one of us needs to pack a spare transmission?

Ed

[Ed Miller]

I checked with my friend Tom, who rode up there on an R100GSPD.  He said no problem for an R65, and his experience with them is probably just mine.  High speed street tires, etc.  

There's still a lot of crud to ride through, but go for it if you want.  

[Rob Valdez 79 R65]

Don't forget to clean the mud out from the bottom of your fins!  [smiley=thumbsup.gif]
Don't want to over heat!

[Justin B.]

I was still digging mud out of places I didn't even know existed three years later...  But, Rob speaks truth, I got on a particularly bad stretch and did have to stop a couple of times and rake mud out of the cooling fins with a screwdriver.  I was also wearing so much mud that it became increasingly difficult to find a place that would rent me a room as it was too wet and nasty to pitch a tent.

[Rob Valdez 79 R65]

And when your front wheel/fender fills with mud ... watch out!   You are no longer in control of your destiny!  :-/

[Justin B.]

Strangely enough I never had that problem.  I guess I just removed the wheel often enough to fix flats that it never became an issue...

[Rob Valdez 79 R65]

LOL!


The only time I got in that situation was with my /2 sidecar rig (with which I was afraid of nothing!).

It didn't steer well at all!

And that /2 fender was hard to clean out with a stick on the side of the road, too!

[Semper Gumby]

All useful advise!!  I know about the Wheel fender having been "down" that road before.  But the mud in the bottom fins is a new one on me.  Thanks for the info.

What else Ya got?

TTFN,

[Justin B.]

Take a bunch of inner tubes and patch kit and either a good pump or 12v compressor.  

[not-so-fast-ed]

Tubeless repair kits???   :-/

[Justin B.]

Not everybody is blessed with a mono-shocker, Ed!    But, I carry one of those plug-gun kits from Cabellas and a 12v compressor in my '95 RT and feel quite safe.  Only had to use it once, though...