Off Road adventure, on a first gen Venture (advice?)

[Ipleedthe5th]

Hey All,

 

I'm about to take a trip up in the the Yosemite area (wild fires permitting) and am looking at some mountain peaks I want to get up to, but there area lot of fire roads up there and google maps does not differentiate between what is paved and what isnt. So I am wondering what you all's experience is with riding on dirt roads and if you have any advice should I decide to make a go at it, or more importantly end up on one I don't want to be on.

 

Thanks,

-Zach

[CaseyJ955]

I've tried it a couple times with the Venture, only to turn back. Not where you are/wanna go, but I got some silty slick dirt roads in NE, and some heavy gravel. Venture did not appreciate any of that, almost dropped it a couple times, ended up turning around. I also know that others have used these obese giants as ADV bikes, I'll bet puc has a few dirty miles under his belt haha.

 

I think the Dunlop E3 tires not being suited for offroad use were a big factor. This bike just not designed for that sort of thing, BUT, I'll bet with a good ADV tire choice it might be passable. Personally I would be comfortable choosing a different tire and sticking with easy double track or plain ol' dirt country roads. With 100% street tires I would think real hard about how far into the trees/across the plains you really wanna go. Packed dirt roads or light gravel I can pass, nothing more with current tires, at least not for any real distance.

 

I've never ridden in CA, I was only 11 when we fled to the Midwest, but I hear tell that where your headed is one of the most splendid parts of the whole state.

[OutKast]

I know I have seen a few 1st gens fitted with adventure bike type tires. I was considering it living on 2 miles of dirt road.

 

But I would still think soft silt, mud, etc. would be a problem. A dry semi maintained fire road should not be a problem, I have done that both on a first gen and a 1200 wing several times.

 

Hey All,

 

I'm about to take a trip up in the the Yosemite area (wild fires permitting) and am looking at some mountain peaks I want to get up to, but there area lot of fire roads up there and google maps does not differentiate between what is paved and what isnt. So I am wondering what you all's experience is with riding on dirt roads and if you have any advice should I decide to make a go at it, or more importantly end up on one I don't want to be on.

 

Thanks,

-Zach

[saddlebum]

I have seen some nasty roads and even backwoods footpaths on the venture 1st gen and came through Ok. Make sure your comfortable riding standing up on the foot pegs for the really rough stuff and as mentioned earlier though I did only have E3 tires and managed OK only because the terrain was dry a more aggressive adventure tread would definitely be advisable

[WRIDR]

Hi Zach:

 

We have only a single sentence to offer, in terms of advice on your query: DON'T DO IT.

 

Rgds, WRIDR

[cowpuc]

These are heavy honkin great big touring bikes with zero aptitude for woods riding.. If they land on you they can snap a leg or ankle and mouse trap you and your passager without even thinking twice about it.. To some of us,, myself included,, that challenge is what makes it so worthy of such nonsense

You got any woods riding experience Zach? If so,, read on,, if not,,, dont do it.. If you still want to do it but have no woods riding experience,, my advice is grab yourself a decent dirt bike and spend some time in the woods learning woods riding skills on a bike that wont eat you alive when (not if,, when) the two of you go down.. This is extremely important advice if your gonna be doing it two up..

Personally,, I have found the MK1 1st Gens to be extremely capabile woods bike of the touring bike means.. My wife/kids and I have spent many many enjoyable off road adVentures together aboard ours many miles in the outback of the western states.. Have snake trailed many times thru the forest surrounding the Grand Canyon and tented miles from anything on the edge.. Utah has endless mountain opportunity of the same type.. One time I short legged my 1st Gen on a mountainside when following a goat trail and ended up with the bike on its side with the handlebars facing down hill and there was no way we could lift it.. I ended up rolling over 1 flip to get it uprighted.. This pretty much destroyed a saddlebag, a set of mirrors and a windshield - it does happen.. Below is a vid of a repair of a repair on that saddlebag years later.. Ye be warned,, its gonna happen.. On another trip we road across the Black Hills of South Dakota from the water falls down in Spear Fish Canyon on two tracks and snake trails over to Sundance Wyoming.. Tossing the tent in the Black Hills on a deer run and listening to ELk bugle at night and riding that single track out to an opening that looked just like something out of really good Tom Selleck cowboy movie was unforgettable so yeah,, I get your thirst for quest..

I would not trade my off roading years on these 1st Gens for anything!! The memories are endlessly priceless.. I will say this though,, IMHO, if my bikes were not prepped for such and had already not taken my fair share of lumps getting beat up on MX tracks and racing the back woods on dirt bikes,, I highly doubt this would be the case..

In that vein of thought,, please allow me to suggest that you, at a minimum make sure your scoot is in good repair suspention wise.. A good set of Progressive springs up front with 3/4 to 1 inch of preload is a must.. Running the rear fully inflated to 70 pounds and set the dampner to 4 is another must.. I am sure you get what I am talking about,, no need for advice in all this..

Here are a couple short vids of some of our experiences doing exactly what you asked about.. Definite proof that it is doable.. As far as whether you should or not,, that answer is yours and yours alone..

Puc

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[RDawson]

Aha I knew Puc couldn’t leave this one alone.

[Ipleedthe5th]

These are heavy honkin great big touring bikes with zero aptitude for woods riding.. If they land on you they can snap a leg or ankle and mouse trap you and your passager without even thinking twice about it.. To some of us,, myself included,, that challenge is what makes it so worthy of such nonsense ...

 

Thanks for that great advice Puc! I was hoping you might chip in here. The videos are a huge help to see it in action. I dont have any bike off roading experience so I think i'll avoid actively seeking out those trails this time but feel much better about the prospect of accidentally ending up on one. I do have great gear and will be riding mostly empty as I'll be leaving my gear at a base camp and ill be going single, dont wana try doing all the for the first time with my lady on the back and risk her getting hurt. I also have survival skills and day gear to survive a few days should something go horribly wrong, Though I hope the SPOT satellite tracker I just got will allow my family in the area to come get me if I need a hand. Would you recommend airing the tires down as well? Thats a common practice for me when 4 wheeling. I'm not to worries about getting a puncture from doing so since I put "Ride-on" tire balance and sealant in my tires when I replaced them a few months back.

 

And thanks to everyone else for your input, its great to hear all sides of this idea and is making me cautiously confident that I'll be alright out there next week.

 

-Zach

[Marcarl]

My thoughts are with you. Done a bit of that type of riding,,,, trail looks good, maybe even passable, and then it goes to,,,OOOoh sh*t!!!! but we carry on. Can the Venture do it?? There is enough power for sure,,, maybe too much, and gearing helps a lot. But just as you exit that spot of impossibility and clap yourself on the back,,,, over she goes because of a 'small' imperfection on the surface of mother earth. It's grand though, going through what seems to be impossible, but also as I mentioned, dangerous!! One little rock in the wrong place or one little pot hole and the whole business is laying on top of the one who is normally on top and now cushioning the machine that couldn't care less.

One thing to keep in mind as well,,, ground clearance is nil!!!!

[cowpuc]

Thanks for that great advice Puc! I was hoping you might chip in here. The videos are a huge help to see it in action. I dont have any bike off roading experience so I think i'll avoid actively seeking out those trails this time but feel much better about the prospect of accidentally ending up on one. I do have great gear and will be riding mostly empty as I'll be leaving my gear at a base camp and ill be going single, dont wana try doing all the for the first time with my lady on the back and risk her getting hurt. I also have survival skills and day gear to survive a few days should something go horribly wrong, Though I hope the SPOT satellite tracker I just got will allow my family in the area to come get me if I need a hand. Would you recommend airing the tires down as well? Thats a common practice for me when 4 wheeling. I'm not to worries about getting a puncture from doing so since I put "Ride-on" tire balance and sealant in my tires when I replaced them a few months back.

 

And thanks to everyone else for your input, its great to hear all sides of this idea and is making me cautiously confident that I'll be alright out there next week.

 

-Zach

 

You are more than welcome @Ipleedthe5th,, it is always a pleasure to share info and opinion.. Here is another quick shot of Tweeks (our bike) hauling Tip and I on another off road adVenture in the extremely sandy conditions of Michigans State Lands.. Loose sand is also totally doable on a Venture but, IMHO,, riding technique in sand is best practiced on a dirt bike first IMHP. This is over one of Michigans snowmobile trails,, minus the sleds of course, often over looked for their summertime exploration fun.. Enjoy!!

 

 

[cowpuc]

Aha I knew Puc couldn’t leave this one alone.

 

:biker::no-no-no::no-no-no: