Hello from NH

[PointmanNH]

Hello group, new member from NH. About to put a deposit on a 2014 ST. Currently riding a klr650 and doing adventure riding and BDR routes in after coming from the Harley world. Looking to learn more about the ST from you veteran rider/owners.

 

[bimota]

welcome

from S Wales UK

Rob

 

[Sierra1]

Welcome, from Texas. I used to live in the Portsmouth/Kittery area back in the late '80s. Would ride up into the mountains on my FJ. The Kancamagus was one of my favorite roads.

 

[PointmanNH]

Welcome, from Texas. I used to live in the Portsmouth/Kittery area back in the late '80s. Would ride up into the mountains on my FJ. The Kancamagus was one of my favorite roads.

I lI’ve right by the Kanc and the NEBDR route. Awesome riding just outside my door!

 

[POG]

Hey Pointman, welcome. I'm in the Portland, ME area and have a 2014 ST as well. I've not done the BDR, but would love to give some sections a go. I've got my bike torn apart for a valve check at the moment. Hopefully not for very long.

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[PointmanNH]

Hey Pog! The NEBDR is a great route. Ive only run a couple of sections of it so far but enjoyed every mile. I recommend going to the BDR website and downloading their gos tracks to your gps (if you have one) and your smartphone. I also recommend getting a Butler paper map with the BDR routes on it. I grabbed a map at the Dirt Daze Tourtech rally at the BDR booth in august which is held annually in N. Havehill NH. If you haven’t gone to Dirt Daze, it’s a must. At the end of last week we ran a partial of the VT section from Wells River to Chelsea VT. Beautiful back roads starting right off route 302. Some challenging sections too! Good luck on the valve check and get some more riding in before the snow flies. My goal is to get at least 1k miles on this ST I’m getting next week before the snow. Next spring I want to run some of the Mid Atlas BDR thru NY into PA. Check out YouTube if you haven’t for videos on the various BDR routes and folks who’ve run them.

 

[barkingllizard]

a simple hello, PointmanNH ....

 

[TenereGUY]

Welcome from Northern Illinois. Some people in Alaska told me that they found the KLR to be top heavy. What say you?

 

[PointmanNH]

Welcome from Northern Illinois. Some people in Alaska told me that they found the KLR to be top heavy. What say you?

Thank you. I’d say mildly top heavy but the seat height is also about 34 inches. The “S” model is 2 inches lower. I test sat on one at the dealer. The center of gravity is definitely lower and less too heavy. I went with the regular height because the one I bought came with engine guards, panniers and led fog lights. I’m 5’8” and I manage the bike fine on the trails.

 

[Sierra1]

. . . . they found the KLR to be top heavy. What say you?

It's funny, I thought it felt top heavy. But it doesn't make sense because it's not a heavy bike. It just carries its weight oddly. Unlike the Tenere that carries hers better than expected.

. . . . The “S” model is 2 inches lower. . . .

So, I'm guessin' you're talking about the latest generation? Because when we got the '11, there was only one version.

 

[PointmanNH]

Yes,, the Gen 3. Great bike. Vibrates like the space shuttle re-entering orbit over 50mph but it goes everywhere. Put on almost 5k miles on her since May.

 

[Sierra1]

Yeah, it's a good solid bike but it still amazes me how people take them to Alaska and the Artic Circle. My youngest had put over 30K miles, in a little over 3 years, on his just riding around here before he got his FJR.

 

[TenereGUY]

Thank you. I’d say mildly top heavy but the seat height is also about 34 inches. The “S” model is 2 inches lower. I test sat on one at the dealer. The center of gravity is definitely lower and less too heavy. I went with the regular height because the one I bought came with engine guards, panniers and led fog lights. I’m 5’8” and I manage the bike fine on the trails.

Wymbly1971 is 5'7" and he handles the ST on trails well. So you ought to be fine... and it's a lot nicer on the road too.

 

[SkunkWorks]

Welcome! from Colorado.
Hopefully planning on touring through your area in about a year.........We'll see how that pans out......

 

[PointmanNH]

Some great riding around here. I’m blessed to have the BDR right outside my door. If you’re here in August, attend the Dirt Daze rally sponsored by Touratec. Daily guided rides along the BDR and other routes. It’s great time.

 

[POG]

Pointman, I appreciate the BDR lowdown. I am a fickle character, like many here. My S10 has been shoed with 50/50 tires, but presently have Michellin Road 6s on it. I live on inpaved roads, but don't ride offroad much. All of the folks I ride with are on road only. As a result, my off road rides have been limited to local dirt (but public) roads. I'll have to give the BDR a go. Can it be done with road tires? Or should I plan on something more aggressive. I have no problem with road tires on unpaved roads that are maintained (even on my goldwing), but don't have a sense of the BDR conditions.

Hope you get 1k plus in before the snow flies. I added a heated seat pad to my stock seat.makes a big difference in cold weather. Also have some heated gear :

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[PointmanNH]

Pog, an all street tire is not a good choice for those class 4 roads. I’m running Motoz Tractionator GPS’s on my KLR which I believe are 50/50 and they are just sufficient for the soft dirt and loose gravel. They’re are great on pavement. Most of my other riding pals are running 20/80 tires and have no issue. One guy is running Michelin street tires on his Africa twin at the moment as he just came back from a X country trip. We ran a section of the Bayley Hazen military road in VT and his a steep descent on a very loose gravel section and he also dumped it. i think you could likely do 80% of the route with what you have in ideal conditions but avoid the real challenging stuff. I would just research each section you plan on running and look at the topo lines on the map. Any ascents or descents on those class 4 type roads through those areas my require alternate route, which is doable in the sections I’ve run. Just download the latest maps from the BDR page before you run it as they make changes due to current conditions.

 

[POG]

Funny. I had the tractionator GPS tires two years ago. They were great but cracked some. I got great mileage out of them - again, mostly pavement. Thanks.

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[PointmanNH]

Almost 5k miles on mine (combined street/off road) and holding up well. Will check for cracking as time goes on.

 

[Wenisgoodenuf]

Greetings from Canada