Off roaders - RESPECT - you are all insane!

[miss P]

In preparation for my taking part in EnduroAfrica in November I have been getting as much off road time as I can.

I have aquired a lovely little 225 serow which I trust implicitly on the steepest of slopes and the most rutted of roads. I have also tried the @ on some of the less challenging tracks. What a horrible squirmy beast! She's manageable at 30mph (in a kind of hang on, hold tight, close your eyes and pray kind of way) but sooo hard to handle on the slow speed stuff.

Much as I love the @ for road use, all you dedicated off road @tters deserve huge respect for taming this leviathon.

Paula
http://www.rideafrica.co.uk

[captaincaveman]

i love mine off road, its the first bike ive green laned since doing it on a 125. it is heavy but fun. now i got the crash bars its not such a worry. i took it a couple of times without and was over conscious about dropping it but no worrys now.

thats the appeal to me that i can take it off road and then ride back on the duel carriageway and still have fun on the fast bits(once ive flung all the mud off)

[Chad]

theres no doubt about it its a heavy beast but the more you try it you will gain confidence its getting over the fear of dropping it thats the hardest part

[Whealie]

huge respect for taming this leviathon

Er... taming it? Not me. It went where it felt like on the last Salisbury Plain trip and I bailed out mid-air.
But.....once it's all back together again, I shall be back..

[Maverick]

Practise makes perfect landings Miss P Just remember to look up ahead of you and not at the front tyre and let the bike steer itself in the ruts gently - don't fight it

[Whealie]

and let the bike steer itself in the ruts gently

But, at the end of the day, it is better to stop and put your feet down in the mud (or even drop the bike gently there) than to fly off the side the track as I did (well they said we were going off-road!).
Always go with someone else who can help you pick up the bike - they are heavy enough anywhere but wet and slippery and caked in mud, they definitely require at least two people.

[raigo]

few pictures of offroad in estonia. http://www.asfalt.pri.ee/metslased/

[Jenna]

few pictures of offroad in estonia. http://www.asfalt.pri.ee/metslased/

where in Estonia are you?....

[raigo]

tallinn-the capital city

[Jenna]

lucky you!... worked in Tallinn and Tartu for nearly a year back in 2000/2001 for EOS/SWRT. Has to be one the the most stunning cities in the world, think Disneyland without the Disney dross! ( only blighted by some f~cking wa~nker who knicked my phone in molly malones when drunk one night... ) and the growing stag party crowds.

hope to be back soon for a meeting in Tartu with a client, buy you drink if your about!...