Three Friends, One Direction: West on the TAT! Giddyup!!

Beautiful bike! How much does that tank hold?
You might want to turn those mounting bolts on your rack, so that they are pointing down instead of up. Otherwise you'll have holes rubbed into what ever you have tied on there.

It looks like that spring is the seal spring. It also looks like the dirt/water seal is toast. If I were you, i'd replace bearings and seals before leaving. The wheel seals are a consumable, then get chewed up under normal use. WHen the are bad, they let water and dirt into the hub, which can then get to the bearings. I'd put fresh in.

Beautiful bike! How much does that tank hold?
You might want to turn those mounting bolts on your rack, so that they are pointing down instead of up. Otherwise you'll have holes rubbed into what ever you have tied on there.

Following this report! We are starting the trail next July and doing it in big sections (three or four). I am hoping to learn a lot from your experience. Good luck and have fun!

Burro driver. IMS TANK is 4 gallons. I will take your advice on flipping u-bolts to be less abrasive. Good Call.

What day are ya'll gonna be in Tellico Plains? I'm near the start of the TAT and will be here for a few days at Hunts Campground

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Nice job with the cable camera in the video.
Ill be out there in September, Im looking forward to watching your trip...

I'm in. I should be following you starting sometime in late June.

Hey Stuntheavy, We're leaving on Thursday, but have to Drive to Myrtle beach then spend 2 days getting to Tellico Plains so.... May 23 or 24th???

ETD ... Yes, I bought 300 feet of #mil rope to ge the unique perspective. Wait till we get to UtAH!!

ESP 41, You might run into us, I'm pretty slow!

Gotcha, you'll probably catch up to me in the TAT, broke down somewhere! Haha.

Leaving here on the 20th

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yeah.....matt go over your bike again and do as the others have said & replace the bearings seals in the hubs. (front & rear is probably a good idea) i'd also suggest lubing your swingarm bearings & linkage, they're pretty dry from the factory.

also, fix anything that you dont want to be tearing your flesh open in a get-off. like those ubolt deals....not good man. trim any zip ties flush, long bolt ends, wire, anything sharp that might bite you or your gear.

Going to be a little hot, in those, made in MN for colder weather, not enough vents for warm weather, great gear, I have a stich suit, but hot

Thanks folks for all advice. Yes. All of our bikes have been looked at by real mechanics. After that, I spotted my bearing issue and yes, of course I'm fixing before trip. Yes, Aerostich might be warmer than some others, but we chose the light version and we will unzip vents. The light weight version is supposed to be better in temps over 90f. I have a full mesh riding suit which is cooler but then I need to bring a separate rain gear. MY rear rack will have a large soft dry bag rubbery duffle, but I'm probably using just hose clamps. If bike falls over these brake instead of subframe.
Now I need to do 12,000 more things so I can leave Thurday...:eek1

It is funny how even when you think you are almost ready, there are still a bunch more things to do!

Have a great trip!! Everything will work out just the way it is supposed to.

have a great ride! post any obstacles/closures you run across please.

I'm in too. Just got back from a big loop through northern Nevada, 9 days and 1500 miles with Dustdevil club members. I did have a need to ride back to civilization for 2 days and went back out to meet the group. Part of our track was on the TAT. Two bikes were like yours, 600 Suzuki. They do the job well. <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><o></o>
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We did lose one of our guys, Tib/fib break. This was early in the ride and our safty guy was able to drive out and pick up his bike and take him back to town and to the hospital within a few hours. His break was just plain bad luck. Bike slid out while climbing a very steep, rutted jeep road and his leg was between his skid plate edge and the edge of the rut. Low speed too. <o></o>
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Also, best luggage for your bike was Giant Loop bag. Good luck on your ride, we had trials, a few dead ends, comradely and a good time. You will too. <o></o>
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Maybe a year or two away for me. I'll be watching and learning. Have a great trip!

I am looking forward to reading about your adventure!

I'm in here!

I'm hittin the trail on 5-31 for a 2 day run out then blast back to Johnson City on Sunday to be back to work on Monday. Ill be running slab from JC to Tellico that Thursday after work, get a room for the night then hit the trail Friday am.
When will you be at Tellico?

IBA #48298