South America on a DR200

[MatBurn]

Originally Posted by Salsa

Not a problem. just do what the locals do.

Pull out the shoes and ride without a rear brake.

yeah, i did that. not a big performance difference compared to new brake shoes on a loaded dr-200

matt

[MatBurn]

Here is a link to the latest ride report of crossing Southern Bolivia on the 2003 DR200. About 350 dirt miles in temps around 10 degrees and altitude as between 13,000 and 16,500 feet. Good stuff! Enjoy!

http://www.spokecount.com/2012/07/so...n-bolivia.html

[chelo5sur]

Nice RR.
Now i can see DR200 is a good option for my wife ´s first motorbike.
Thanks for pics.

[Nomomo]

That was one hell of a trip. Good on you. Shit breaks, you fix it, you continue on. Thanks for sharing your adventure.

[spress]

Hello Matt,

What a fantastic adventure. An inspirational ride and a story well told. Thanks for the great report and best of luck in your travels.

Regards,

Stuart

[AirborneAndy]

Originally Posted by MatBurn

Wow! I think I recognize this shot! Is it on the road from Tupiza to San Vicente?

"every morning i had to run my stove under the motor to get it warm enough to push start since the battery is dead."

Now THAT'S Adventure!!!

I've been thinking about going to a smaller bike too - mainly just to be more economical. But, it makes sense for a lot of other reasons as well. Many countries don't even get the big bore bikes. Great report... keep it coming

[EmilianoXR650L]

Gran reporte, viaje, impresionante moto .... gracias por este buen reporte-aventura !!!!!

[MatBurn]

Thanks guys-- glad you like the write-up. The DR200 is great for those heinously rough backroads. It turns out the battery isn't dead but I shook the magnets loose in the starter motor and they cut the windings in a few places. So, off to get things rewound in Sucre, Bolivia. They welded up the frame for 3 dollars but they want 25 to rewind the starter motor? You never know down here...

And Yes, that shot above is on the road betwen San Vicente and Tupiza!

Stay tuned, it is still 6000km back to Colombia and I'm not taking the Panamaerican highway..

[MatBurn]

So I got some mechanical issues sorted, changed the 1 to a 9 on the insurance expiration date, and roared out of Cusco. The bike has plenty more power with new rings and the Keintech mods. Thanks to Jesse for the help on the exhaust mod! 12 days later I rolled into Quito. Lots of passes over 14,000 feet. Dust, gravel, 6 lane, gumbo mud, it had every type of riding to enjoy. I spent at least 8 hours on the bike every day. If you every have a chance to do this ride, I recommend it. Especially the northern Peruvian Andes. Most riders avoid this route and take the Panamerican highway because there is a section with some enduro riding in there. Worth the effort. I will post some pics here, but the full report can be seen on my webpage: www.spokecount.com.


Things were a bit dirty inside!


suzuki parts are hard to find in cusco, so i adapted this yamaha starter. Thanks to OldPete and Benesesso for the advice.


Rolling through the high plains


my machine in all her glory


frost in the early morning


guard dog on an old honda xl125


paved altiplano


winding up into the cordillera blanca


fixing a puncture from a twisted tube. not worth the 2 dollars i paid to have the mechanic mount my new tire.


canyon riding is some of my favorite i think


another morning on the road. dealing with amoebic dysentery makes it all the more fun!


really nice riding in the cordillera blanca. i wish i stayed longer



stoppin in for a pork sandwich from this cutie. i wouldn't mind a double helping


lots of tunnels in the cañon del pato


lots and lots of switchbacks near pallasca


nice name for a town.


take it slow!


caught up with olli, the german, rallying through the gumbo on his honda 70cc, bought new in pakistan last year


we made it to ecuador!


sharing the church porch with a british cyclist, steve, 3 years on the road since england. also headed around the world. i was the noob with just under 2 years out. ollie left in 2008 from Germany.


gonna be a good day


he averaged 19mph through the andes over 2000 miles! brutal.


ecuador is so green!


another dawn on the road


got my carhartts cleaned up on the front half


then it was wearing out the mt21s on the panamericana for a couple hours to get to quito

This one's for OldPete and Benesesso. Cheers from Quito!
I'm headed for the Amazon jungle. Probably won't post a ride report for a good while. But I should be around for another week or so. Lots more pics on the blog and my picasa web album
Over and out.

[Benesesso]

Originally Posted by MatBurn

This one's for OldPete and Benesesso. Cheers from Quito!

What an adventure. Stay safe! Way back ~1964 we flew into Quito in a USAF C-130E. I was a loadmaster. Bought a hand painted gourd of some kind for 25 cents, IIRC. Unfortunately no pics of it.

We also flew into Bolivia, somewhere on a mountain top. Was ~13 or 14k' altitude. All the colors faded to pastel or grey, got winded just walking around the airplane. Just made it off the dirt runway, sure could have used some JATO bottles.

[OldPete]

A well spent two hours on this thread.

Best to ya MatBurn and why am I not surprised you are a crazy ginger?

Like the pic of you road-ripe hugging the pork samitch gal.

I know a gal that retired to Ecuador this past July, really need to email her.
She is blond, under 5', heavy Irish accent and was a high school teacher working with Latino gangster types here in SoCal.

[betitolara]

Originally Posted by MatBurn

lots and lots of switchbacks near pallasca

Hey that road looks familiar! we had a BLAST that day going down from Mollepata and up to Pallasca.
Cheers amigo,
Alberto.

[Kurro]

Good RR, buena suerte y saludos desde España.

[MatBurn]

hey guys. thanks for the feedback. glad you liked it. that other pic of those switchbacks is way sweeter than mine. they are currently paving it, so bring the supermoto!

the motorcycle propeller drive is almost complete. hopefully next week we will begin installation and testing down in the jungle! i wanna waterski behind my DR!

[betitolara]

Originally Posted by MatBurn

...they are currently paving it, so bring the supermoto!

That's too bad for adventure riding ... what made that road so sweet it was that is was a dirt road IMHO.

Cheers,
Alberto.