VENTURING SOUTH on DRZ's

Yeah, I’ve got a lot of breath on the first page but I’ll keep it in check with more photos than words in days to come…

So about 4 months ago I’m sitting in a bar drink’in scotch with my buddy in southern Oregon griping about life in general (i.e. direction this country is headed, politics, work, false freedoms, false reality of retirement for newer generations, lack of adventure, lack of love, lack of LIVING). But this is a Ride Report; So I’m staying away from that stuff and getting the hell out of dodge!

During the conversation my buddy asks me what I’d do if money/time were not an issue. I love the outdoors, I love adventure, I love the feeling of the unknown where anything can happen and I love motorcycles. I guess I’m basically just tired of the way that my world has become a predictable, homogenized system devoid of any life-professing challenges. On top of all this I enjoy travel and have always had a desire to see South America (no idea why).

So I told him (Alex) that I would probably pack up and ride a dirt bike to SA. Alex thought this sounded “Kickass” and he said we should just go for it. I tried to make a bunch of excuses about work/career, money, etc… but eventually I agreed. I really felt that we would do this…..someday.

Over the last 2 months some other events occurred and I talked to Alex and we agreed to do it NOW. Right around X-mas we set the departure date for January 15<SUP>th</SUP>, 2013. Cool&#8230;.a whole month or so.

Short Background on myself:

My name is Andrew and I&#8217;m in my late 20&#8217;s. I&#8217;ve been riding dirt bikes/atv&#8217;s for the better half of my life. I was introduced to supermoto bikes about 2 years ago. For some reason I didn&#8217;t even know they existed. &#8220;Dirt bikes with street tires&#8230;.get the F*ck outta here.&#8221; Picked up a DRZ400SM about a month later, fell in love, rode the piss out of it for the next 2 years with no problems at all. So I picked up a Husqvarna 510 Supermoto for a little more getup. After 3 miles I blew the engine. Rebuilt to a 530&#8230;.wow&#8230;.WOW! Just last spring a buddy of mine invited me on a dual sport ride out of Hood River. Bought a set of 21/18 for the Dizzer and hit the road. Had an absolute blast. Did some research and found this thing called the OBDR. &#8220;Trails all over Oregon where you ride mostly off-road&#8230;..get the F*ck outta here.&#8221; Decided I had to do this with one of my good friends who used to ride but doesn&#8217;t own a bike but enjoys camping and what not&#8230; Sold my &#8217;81 XS650 that I rarely rode and picked up a 2001 DRZ400S with 600 miles on it in September. We rode Route 3 from Hoodoo to Ashland. I loved it and wanted more of it. Started farkeling the 2001 which was going to be my dedicated enduro/adv bike and started reading ADVrider.com&#8230;&#8230;.Oh the possibilities&#8230;which brings us to where we are.

Anyway, Friday is my last day of work for a while. Monday we are loading a pickup and driving to Ashland. Tuesday/Wednesday we depart for South America.

I might put up a complete list of accessories, mods, gear, etc.... but for now you can check out the website in my signature below for most of that stuff.

Mine is the first one and only lacking the rear medium wolfman duffel. Alex's is the 2nd lacking the same luggage as mine.

gotta subscribe to a fellow Oregonian adventure...

Oh hell yeah! I'm in!

I am in for the ride.

As another drz owner, I look forward to this. Have a great time... so I can vicariously!

You guys Rock! I&#8217;m not even on the road yet. I really appreciate knowing that there are some folks to turn to if needed. And in return I will try to keep you entertained.

Here is the gist of the trip:

We are rather beginners at this and have done our best to prepare as far as gear, vaccines, bikes, paperwork goes&#8230;.what we have not done is look at a map. We have no destinations or really any plan whatsoever. We are going to ride the Baja Peninsula and take the ferry out of LaPaz&#8230;..that is all we know. Suggestions/Recommendations are VERY welcome however this is being done on a tight budget so nothing too crazy/expensive.

This will be a mix of serious Adventure, serious Relaxing, serious Reflection, and in the meantime serious Partying. Welcome aboard guys!

Alex and I made it to Ashland, OR. We also secured a ride south through our craigslist ad. We are getting picked up by an Excursion with an empty 25' enclosed trailer.....with satellite TV. PERFECT!!! Hopefully this isn't some sort of scam.

They pick us up Wednesday morning and take us all the way to San Fran. Then we'll saddle up for the remainder.

2Kewl!

I'm in. (in a 'popcorn' kind of way )

I like the idea of 400cc bikes for SA, I'm thinking that is about the perfect size to be able to really venture off the beaten path in SA and still be able to get down the slab when you need to.

Did you look at trying to add the kick starters for backup? I think the DRZ or a modified Honda XR400R with electric start added of 400EX are the perfect ticket, I just really like the idea of electric start plus the back-up kicker. Just have to do some more research into gear choices...

Really like your choice of the see through safari tank on the dizzer

This looks ripe for adventure

I like the sound of this one so im in))

I'm in!

What's in the tubes?

Thanks dude. I heavily debated the DR650 against the DRZ but since I already had one that has been good to me I went with it. The only reason I considered a larger bike was for pounding the long paved sections. I just threw a kickstarter on my bike 2 days ago....haven't used it yet and hopefully I don't have to.

I love the tank. I had a Clark 3.9 and sold it for the 17L. It is much narrower and not so steep as the Clarke. Happy I did it. I almost wish I would have gone with the 28L but was afraid it would be much wider. Oh well....we both have similar ranges now.

Can't wait to get on the road tomorrow

One side has tent poles. They are cumbersome to pack because they are rigid....everything else (sleeping bag, pad, etc...) can just be stuffed. Not sure if it is worth the extra weight but very handy and accessible.

The other tube has tire irons, parachute cord, compass, electrical connectors/wire/tape, latex gloves, and a few other odds and ends. Alex is packing a Wolfman rollie with most of the tools.

Looks like you two are set to have a blast with those bikes, I think it would be very tempting to sail over to Topo. instead of Matz.(cheaper and faster ferry ride too) and take a look at Copper Canyon if you haven't seen it already. Hope you have plenty of time to enjoy Latin America.

Glad to see we are well represented here on ADVrider , I'm in cant wait to see how it goes

Alex and I loaded up and left Albany on Monday morning. Uneventful all the way to Ashland.



We put our spare tubes in plastic bags, added baby powder, and taped them up. I used duct tape...Alex only had brown packaging tape...hopefully no one sticks a knife in it.


Did some last minute prep work. It was freezing outside so.....



The adventure began on Wednesday morning. We secured a ride with Casey and Bill through a rideshare ad on craigslist. We met at Albertson&#8217;s in Ashland:<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><o></o>
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We quickly learned that Bill was one hell of an interesting gentlemen with enough BS to entertain your crazy uncle. He also learned that he can&#8217;t drive or see for shit. As we go through the corners of the Siskyou pass he jerks the wheel hard, then straightens it up until almost going into the next lane, then jerks hard again until you almost hit the guardrail, and then repeat&#8230;. This is how Bill corners. This is what happens to your bikes when Bill corners:
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It wasn&#8217;t until we stopped at Taco Bell for lunch and Bill removed his glasses that we found the culprit. One of his eyes was literally looking at the upper outside corner of his eyebrow while the other is looking at the corner of his mouth. <o></o>
The PROBLEM: My new tires were sitting on the left side of my bike. My boots were on top of the tires, my jacket and pants were on top of the boots. I lost about ½ gallon of gas that was supported by the cellophane wrapped tires. Boots were submerged and new KLIM gear soaked! SHIT!!<o></o>
I geared up in gas soaked clothing and made it to our buddies place in San Fran. Ran the KLIM gear through the washer twice and it still smells terribly. All you can do is laugh about it.<o></o>

Bummer dude. Shake it off, have fun - will be looking forward to the rest.

And stay away from CL.