Off Road

[Patrick]

Thinking of trying a bit of off road riding.

How good is the TA for this?

Do I need to change anything?

Where abouts? (I live in South Hampshire)

Have I left it too late? fairly fit 50

[Sharribee]

nope I was forced to take old twinkletoes off road by the wales ride out a little while ago, it was either follow them or get hopelessly lost

As a complete novice on a standard 04 transalp on Avon Distanzer tyres I managed although it was dry and a fairly easy route. Here is the proof

Twinkletoes offroading,



All the bikes that played, although I apologise if the GS spoils the photo


and heres one of Twinkletoes again off road so yes Transalps can go off roading even if it is light stuff

[Chad]

oh sounds like you need a trip to sailsbury plains the alp will cope nicely with that just make sure you've got fairly decent kit . tyres like tourances are fine for the gravelly stuff but not so good with mud

continental TKC80s are the best road offroad compromise

oh and most important a camera cos we love to see the pics here


and welcome to the site mate

[Chad]

All the bikes that played, although I apologise if the GS spoils the photo


oi stop that talk you saucy mare

[Rubberchicken]

Nice rd03 though.

(I absolutely love the look of that big dual headlight, damn this gs with its lousy lorry lamp...)

[Chad]

Nice rd03 though.

(I absolutely love the look of that big dual headlight, damn this gs with its lousy lorry lamp...)

yup they are pretty piss poor but hey thats what spots are for

[Mudwiz]

They are fab, if a little slow!
Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Crash bars might be a good idea, depending how into it you get a proper engine guard can help too. After that its just down to making the bike fit and work for you, and the list is as long as your arm, but most of the bits can be sourced cheap!
As has been said, TKC80s are a good compromise, but for serious unmaintained road action you need something more serious, but I'm looking into what at the moment. It may be MT21's or Michelin T61s??
I'll let people know when I've tried them. (The issue is getting good tyres for a 17" rear wheel.)
You can ride any Byways, red crosses on an OS map, but be careful if you try it on your own, the bikes are quite heavy to pick up.

[Patrick]

Thanks everybody will give it a go soon, when's the next ride at Salisbury Plain?

[RickSkye]

Not at all!!!
As my nephew said, Its the riding that keeps you young.
I'm 50, just got a TA, just finished running it in now I shall be going up all the lanes , tracks and hills I can find.
I live on the Isle Of Skye, plenty of scope for off roading.

Crash bars probably a good idea though.

Rick

[Lord Stig]

Patrick,

As others have said, tyres are the biggest limiter. After that it's the front mudguard which catches all the mud and locks the wheel. This time of year is pretty bad for that. However, there are a few short flint tracks up towards Horndean (I think) that might be good to try in the short term. My 600 TA handled them and the Ridgeway fine on ordinary hybrid tyres. Chalk tracks are horrible when even slightly damp, and that's mostly what we have here. Where are you in south Hampshire? I'm based in Portsmouth, but when I get out I normally head towards the West Country, because that's where my friends are. Plus there's no chalk!

The only other thing that would concern me is if you have the 650 - the collector box looks a little vulnerable, especially on flint tracks....

Stig