Sibirsky Extreme 2012 - The Toughest Ride of Them All

Sorry i,m a bit late.. i was using a secondhand ktm 525 front wheel, which came with a rim lock.I wouldn,t use one on overland trips,.. unless i was using a powerful bike like Prudsters ,with a rather aggressive back tyre.....

With the crew back in Aktash ... I briefed them on the updated news from Rod. I estimated he would be with us in about 3-4 days.

Prutser and Beamster were keen to get as much off road riding as possible done in their 5 week holiday. They wanted to do some more riding in the hills near Aktash. Me, I figured I had done plenty, and had plenty more I would get to do this year ... so I told the guys I would enjoy a few rest days in Aktash and stay at the hotel. For the first time in the trip I was actually feeling a bit tired. The first time I had felt any exhaustion. Terry and I had been on the road 3 days short of 2 months now. We had left on 12th May.

It also gave me a good chance to keep in touch with Rod, and also to go thru a lot of the video we had shot so far in the Altai.



Terry decided he was up for more Altai magic and would join Prutser and Beamster in a couple of days exploring.

I will leave it up to those three to tell the story of the next two and a half days of travel.

Hi Guys, i have been following your report from the start and i am absolutely loving it, logging on at least 3 times a day looking for updates .
A short question for Terry about your tyres; i plan to ride in Central Asia in the summer and like the looks of the Mitas E09 Daker; what sort of milage were you getting? how was the grip? and how liable were they to puncture compared with the rest of the teams tyres? Thanks for the journey Andy

Hi Guys, i have been following your report from the start and i am absolutely loving it, logging on at least 3 times a day looking for updates .

thanks a lot for your replies!!
as i'm thinking of going on LC4 640 Adventure and using Pirelli Rally Scorpion or Michelin Desert, these tires seem to be very tough and hard to puncture, I think I will put rim locks for safe going on pressure 1,5-1,7 bar

this RR is awesome, checking it everyday multiple times!!

Hi Andy,the mitas e09s turned out to be a good choice,i could have got away with one less tyre change quite easily, although the front tyre seems to wear faster than the back,the only problem i found was in really muddy conditions...., but its always a compromise with tyres.
I would say 6000mls. on a set is about right.

If i was to do this trip again i would use the same back tyre with a more aggressive front tyre, with a slightly higher mudguard.
Hope this confuses you as much as it did me, theres just too much choice out there......:huh

Hope you have a great trip.

Terry

thanks for the tip!
first I will contact to ask if it will fit my bike for sure, if yes these will my next sprockets for sure

Having riding through both the Altai and BC this year, the landscape is very similar. I think BC is a little prettier, but it would only be marginal.

First of all let me say that the prose and the pictures vie for First Place awards in the RR category. I also like the technical details about Rod's problems with the KTM - this could happen to any fuel injected machine so valuable lessons absorbed.

I'm subscribed and a devoted fan.

You guys are killing me. This is one of the best RR, and i think we havent seen the best of it yet. Reading it makes me want to ride as far as i can, the problem is i recently sold my 950 to pay my taxes here in Greece, so it feels like

Beamster,Tee Bee and me decided to explore a bit more of the Altai near Aktash.
After checking the map and the GPS we wanted to try a track that started a few km's further down the M52.



Because it was Beamster's birthday that day Terry and me gave her a mountain full of flowers

Earlier in the RR the age of riders and the suitability to tackle an adventure like this report was mentioned. Until last Christmas at age 65 I was as fit as a lop (flea) ie very healthy, since then I have been diagnosed with irregular heart beat and recently that my kidneys are deteriorating. These aren't serious, I'm the fittest poorly guy you will meet but mean I have to take medication (warfaring,betablockers, statins, ramipril) which would make a long distance ride somewhat more complicated.
As my family situation prevents me from tackling a long distance venture it isn't a problem for me, unfortunately. I only mention this situation to raise the thought that if you want to do adventure like this do it soon while you have the health and fitness to tackle it.
Thanks for a great report!

Phil - in a cold, wet and flooded UK

As we carried on the track was getting steeper and steeper.
Because it was so steep and the the track was covered with big loose rocks Prutser decided to change my front sprocket for a smaller one.

After some km's of climbing the track was getting harder to see.



All around us the floor was full of tree trunks because of forest fires. And even the GPS could't find a track anymore



So we decided to just drive through the forest until we found some other tracks to follow.



After this ride that was full of beautiful views and some nice technical riding we went back to the hotel in Aktash to hear if there was any news from Rod.

^^^ do the airhead cylinders snag obstacles much? as in the deep ruts above?

The bike is high enough to keep going through pretty deep ruts. The footpegs are the first things that get stuck. And mine are on the same hight as the X bikes.

As long as there is no deep water involved the boxer is not the first bike to run into trouble

Walter was running 1,7 bar or so. At such pressure, no need for rim locks.
Grip offroad is also like on eggs and suspension work affected by the bouncing, but barely a risk for pinch flat or rim damage.
In run down to 0,7Bar in soft ground/mud, 1.1 in rocks, with my lighter EXC, all on the opposite lower edge.

Ya kiddin´ right? Changing a sprocket on track, just like it's a lightbulb? Odd....
Otherwise great RR and beautiful pics. Y'all look like a group of military motorcycle scouts, with your dark suits and muddy bikes, remind me of piccies of G.I.'s on WLA's Liberators...

I can't say how much I've enjoyed reading this -----These guys and girl are real Adventure Riders and I've learned a lot from them about a whole bunch of things. I have a couple comments:

I've found a way to run the lite locks with minimum mounting problems. I run two of them at 180 degrees but don't put them in until your have the tire fully mounted on the rim ---just spoon the tire back on the bottom side of the rim in the area where the rim lock is to be placed. Let the spoon lay on the ground under the rim and the pressure will hold it in place. Then, on the top of the tire you will want to use two spoons about 8 inches apart---and spoon the tire over the rim in those eight inches. Then insert a small block of wood----something like a short piece of 2X4 between the tire and the rim as you pull that 8 inch piece of tire outward---twist the block to gain the 3.& 1/2 inch space across the wide part of the block -----then move over 8 inches and do the same thing with another block of wood. Now, with the space created between the wood blocks and with the tire pulled back on the bottom side you have plenty of space to reach in there and set your lite lock-----then simply spoon the tire back in place. Same procedure on the second lite lock if you use a second one on the other side of the tire. Obviously this works only if you have taken the tire off the machine. The advantage of two light locks if first---for balance and second you can ride the bike for a short distance to find a place to effect a repair without the tire coming off the rim.

Then, I noticed that Walters mechanic was using what we here in Utah call "An Idaho torque wrench" on that clutch. I think the Idaho guys call it a Utah torque wrench--- ha ha

Rod----Man I am a fan of yours now----humor----that's the key. I know that wasn't what was inside you but that's what was coming out. Your posts added so much to the RR----and I have to admit that I got wet eyes every time mention or pictures of your dog---been there---done that.

Terry----the quiet one? A real man's man. Prutser and Beamster---Good companions and good ADV riders.
Thanks Walter-----You are the man.-- especially -loved those pictures of the lassies---added so much to the report. -

Changing sprockets on most dual sports is easy. On my DR650 I can do it trail side in about 10 minutes. I don't even have to loosen rear axle nut. I too frequently change front sprocket for more technical or steep terrain. It helps quite a bit. Once back on fast highway ... back to bigger sprocket = higher gearing.

Sounds like the DR, the BMW 's are also a doodle to swap sprockets on in situ.