Dirt Road On New GSA

[Dave Wolf]

Heading off on holiday, about 900 kms of tarmac but then some rough twisty bendy dry gravelly bits uphill for the last few. Still getting to grips with the new GSA, which will also be fully laden with tent, kitchen sink etc - just wondering if anyone could give me some tips on tackling the last bit, take it slowly or full throttle and eyes closed ?

 

[Wreford Miles]

depends.... will you be wearing a twat suit?

 

[Farmboy]

defo lose the twat suit

stand up on the pegs look as far ahead as you can keep the front end as light as possible using the throttle but use the rear brake to control your speed, if its loose gravel the keep all movements smooth and look where you want to go and on corners and if you want to turn then mostly all you need to do is to weight the inside peg slightly and keep upright as the bike moves so in essence you feel as you are standing upright as the bike turns. And watch for piles of gravel pushed out by other vehciles

On the straights though you can gas it safely upto about 40-50mph depending on the track, the rear will slide around but its all good until you hit a big rock then its not quite so much fun

This comes from someone who has to negotiate my twisty narrow driveway ( track ) which is made up of shallow to shin high deep gravel everytime I go out on my bike - good thing its only 400 yards long

I havent fell off yet on the GS but did manage a lovely slide resulting in me wheelying my Old KTM Supermoto bike into the adjoining field last year

took some getting back from the field I can tell thee

Thats the best advice I can give

 

[Dahoum]

stand up on the pegs look as far ahead as you can keep the front end as light as possible using the throttle but use the rear brake to control your speed, if its loose gravel the keep all movements smooth and look where you want to go and on corners and if you want to turn then mostly all you need to do is to weight the inside peg slightly and keep upright as the bike moves so in essence you feel as you are standing upright as the bike turns. And watch for piles of gravel pushed out by other vehciles

On the straights though you can gas it safely upto about 40-50mph depending on the track, the rear will slide around but its all good until you hit a big rock then its not quite so much fun

Wot 'e sed.

Plus - if you have ABS dont forget to turn it off

 

[Jon P]

Here in Vermont more than half of the roads are unsurfaced, most you can do at 40 - 50mph with a little moving around............some of them get very little use and are not maintained at all - for these it is often first gear and go gentle. I leave the ABS on and let it do it's job - I no longer require to be able to slide the bike on the brakes through turns

I just took a great trip up to Northern Maine where none of the roads are paved (- in fact there are large areas wher bikes are not allowed) and you actually have to sign in at certain check points. With the amount of moose, deer and bear that run out in front of you I find ABS is a great extra.

Of course tires makes a huge difference - the knobbies make an amazing difference.

Good luck...............

 

[aspad]

defo lose the twat suit

stand up on the pegs look as far ahead as you can keep the front end as light as possible using the throttle but use the rear brake to control your speed, if its loose gravel the keep all movements smooth and look where you want to go and on corners and if you want to turn then mostly all you need to do is to weight the inside peg slightly and keep upright as the bike moves so in essence you feel as you are standing upright as the bike turns. And watch for piles of gravel pushed out by other vehciles

But the general idea is to weight the outside peg on bends.
ie the opposite of what you do when road riding.

The basic idea is to lean the bike over on a corner, but not yourself. Try to stay as vertical as possible and weight the outside peg e.g. on a left hander tilt the bike and push down with your right boot.

If you want to apply the same principle when sitting then shift your bum to the outside edge of the seat (again the opposite of road technique) and push the tank with your knee to tip the bike into the bend (moto cross style - but avoid putting your leg forward or it will end in tears).

You could also drop your tyre pressures a bit as well

Remember
'bike in , body out'

 

[Phil Clarke]

And go through your stuff and remove half of it before you set off. The lighter the bike the easier it is to handle. (obvious really but particularly true off road)

 

[Farmboy]

When I was talking about weighting the pegs I was really giving advice on how to steer the bike without leaning or moving the bars - it works well ooon gravel but only when stood up.

If you are stood up on the bike then either release pressure on one foot or put more on the other and you will see how the bike turns almost immediately without your body moving out of its upright plain, once practiced you can ride in a straight line with the bike leaned over quite a bit

I should have explained it better the first time but im crap at explanations on the whole

ABS switched off is a good tip which I forgot having never had ABS before and the weight is also of upmost importance not so much when moving but if your trying to pick our bike up often it can be a right pain.

enjoy it though coz once you get used to it, its really fun.

 

[Dave Wolf]

Thanks very much - lots of useful stuff.