grantzilla

The TKC's do come in tube and tubeless, but the TKC-80 knobbies I like that fit the 800GS are tubeless.

The supermoto guys do it all the time, I'm sure it will work. Check around. Did you get your Aerostich and flip up helmet yet? It's mandatory in the BMW club. Let me get this straight, since I don't know that much about tires. You can use tubeless tires on a spoke rim with tubes provided they fit?? I'm going to start spelling it tyres now that I have a BMW. I told you, I have no money left over for cool, mandaotry BMW gear. I'll just have to be an outcast and shunned by all the other wealthy, dressed out riders in that click.

a 606 should be ok for the front, but I remeber the 606's wearing very fast on my DRZ400S. I thought they would wear super fast on this. Unless I read it wrong, the TKC 80's (I believe) were tubeless. Not gonna work with my rims. the front size is pretty common for tube type, but the rear is not. So a matched set is tough. Yep, I'll be on the GS at the ride, but can't justify changing the perfectly good Battlewings without trying them out first. Have to stick to hardpack and no sand washes for me.

Bikeslut and I bashed the wee for being a pain to get to the air filter. The 800GS is not that much better. You don't have to take off the gas tank like you do on the strom (cause it's under the seat) but you do have to take off the top body panel, disconnect the electrical outlet and then remove the airbox cover. Not too bad, but not as user friendly as the average dirt bike. I'm also having a hard time finding knobbies for the tube type tires on this bike. 90/90 21 front and 150/70 17 rear seems to be an odd size for tube type knobbies. Also have to consider the weight and hp I'm dealing with to choose a knobbie that will last.

Well, I "predict" that Strega will have Heated Grips on his bike by then! Regardless of temps, EVERYONE should bring a primary and back-up pair of "SKI" socks (not those wimpy cotton moto socks), a Balaclava, WARM gloves, and some sort of wind/rain protection.....the ride will be much more enjoyable if you can keep the temp of the feet/face/hands under control..... It's likely to be especially chilly when we LEAVE HINKLEY AT 7AM SHARP TO BEGIN THE RIDE Ave Temps Barstow I'm just north here in Lemoore and it has been balls cold. Not sure the elevation we will pass through, but the snow line goes down as far as 1000 feet at some points and they were predicting snow on the valley floor even. We are supposed to have a hard freeze tomorrow with temps below 29 degrees for over 12 hours.

The Bass Lake/Miami Trails area is fantastic but it's often not ready until July depending on the snow pack......the 2002 Bass Lake 250 was the first "organized" dualsport ride I entered.......and I've tried to get back there once a year ever since..... The Bass Lake 250 is an awesome dual sport. We just got 16" of snow in the Bass Lake area and the snow line down to around 1000 feet. Not sure if it will be clear by mid Jan, but I seriously doubt it.

Put me on the "in" list. I'm there!

If my family ski plan to go to Sierra Summit that weekend changes, I'd be very interested in going and doing a two day.

Very cool topic. OK, here goes. Naval Officer. Aviation Maintenance. I used to be an enlisted Corpsman so I'm not totally useless. Born, 1971 Umpumalanga South Africa. (true) Yes my picture shows me as caucasian, there are caucasian Africans, not many, but a couple of us. 1st bike 1986 Yamaha Seca 400. Katana 750 GSXR 1100 Yamaha Virago 1100 Raptor 660 XR 400 (first dirt bike at age 33) DRZ400S Yamaha XT 225 Honda Valkyrie KTM 625 SXC DR 350 Wee strom F800GS

whomp, here it is. cheezy reflectors, gone. charcoal cannister, gone. money, gone. all good will built up with wife, gone. physical and mental withdrawals for not having a bike for two months, gone. ahhhhh.

You crazy bastard! Do you want to buy your helmet, ramp and other stuff back?? Now I really need to go visit you up there, finish paying off my bike too so you can start paying off yours. Picked her up today! Probably sleep in the garage and spoon her tonight.

You instigating SOB!!! Hope you enjoy German bike ownership. Me instigate! I hope this works out too. If not a used or wrecked 800GS soon to hit craigslist. I hope German bike ownership was better than the Austrian bike ownership I experienced. I told you I don't instigate.

I have tried heorin derrivatives several times after moto crashes on the way to the hospital. Not as much fun as you would think. Wanting the next best moto thing out there is a sickness. I need help. On the other hand, if you can swing it and it makes you happy.

I know, I know. I catch strife on a regular basis too. Thank God I'm married to a wonderful, understanding woman (have to put this in here) who lets me do my bike thing despite all the expense, time away and injuries. OK, to really be a prick about this I'll let the cat out of the bag. I should be picking up a 800GS tomorrow at Fresno BMW if all goes to plan. I'll have some good ride reports soon I hope. Looking to do the D-37 High Desert 250 Adventure ride in late Jan if any SDAR types will be there.

Don't get me wrong, I've never had as much fun on fire roads as I did with the wee. second gear on the throttle coming out of a bend, drifting the back tire, shifting to third and drifting it still, is a hoot on the wee. It's a pretty tough bike to beat for the money if you want a street oriented dual sport. I added a good bash plate, fender extender, KTM hand guards and fabricated an oil cooler guard. Even the wee felt a little top heavy and like all the weight was in the front with that wide gas tank. Tough to get the front end up over offroad obsticles with the stock tires. For offroading, getting to the air filter to clean it is a pain. No one tells you you have to remove a bunch of body panels and the gas tank to clean the air filter. It's also a good cruising bike as long as you get the windshield buffeting issue sorted out. I ended up chopping mine down about 4 inches and it worked well. Nice clean air to the helmet, but I did notice some air to the chest too. From the very limited experience I had with the 800GS, it seems like it's everything you would want the wee to be for a more offroad worthy dual sport, but the wee just can't pull it off in close to stock form.

I got the chance to ride the F800GS last week and WOW. I've ridden and owned plenty of bikes (que tntmo's jab) but this one was the best ride I've ever been on. Sat on a 1200GS Adventure and it felt like an Oldsmobile. Rode the 800GS and it felt like a DRZ400 with tons of power and good suspension. I have no skills to speak of, but it felt like the perfect big dual sport bike to me, if you can afford it.

that is what I was afraid of... damn you! Sounds expensive Yep they are pretty pricey. But what a bike! If you are prone to impulsive moto buying like I am, steer clear of this thing, don't even go look at one. I checked one out, now the damn thing consumes my every waking moment.

Take a picture when you do, I know it will be soon ya damn goof! I'd rather be addicted to crack than motorcyling. Crack would so much easier to give up.

Thought I'd chime in as a previous wee owner. I dumped mine a few time in rocks and gravel and the only thing that ever hit were the KTM hand guards and the front turn signals. Not a single scratch on the tank, ever. The stock tires are limited for the weight of the bike and crappy in sand. The front washed out on me on some steeper rocky downhills. Did things on the wee its probably not designed for like small jumps, sand and some rocky stuff. It really is not an offroad bike. Great for fire roads, gravel and some double track stuff. Bulletproof and strong engine. The suspension is not set up for offroad and I thought the breaks could have been better. The wee is fantastic for the street and commuting. Good gas mileage and a kick in the pants to ride. I can't say I miss the ol girl though. That being said, I did ride a buddies F800GS and HOLY SH!T is that thing, the perfect big bore dual sport! Wow. Real offroad capability for a big bike and strong motor, suspension and brakes. As TNTMO knows, I'll probably have a 800GS soon.

Tom, sounds like a great time, I miss Superstition, it's the best. The only way this trip would have been better is if someone would first get their RV stuck in deep sand for hours, then crash and hurt themselves, then almost overflow the crapper in the RV and get splashed with dookie when they attempted to dump it, wait, that was me a couple years back. Glad you had a good time and everyone was safe!

Dude, you are the coolest dad ever. Got to focus on whats important. I'm missing the riding, but will make up for it once I get back. For now I'm languishing in Bahrain, no riding in sight. Give me a call at the Aviation Unit if you end up around here. Later. Grant

For my 2 cents...House of Motorcycles is the worst. Sent my XR400 in to be jetted and when I picked it up it still had the snorkel in. I pointed this out, they said oops and had me wait around while they remedied the problem. Their service is not very good in my opinion. National City Motorcyles has EXCELLENT service/prices. Rob is super great and I have always had perfect results there. Fast, friendly and economical. I keep going back there for everything. 1504 National City Boulevard, 619-474-2025. (no I don't have an affiliation with them) They are just a cool old school motorcycle shop with great service.

Ran out to Superstition this Wed and pretty much had the whole place to myself. I did run across a couple of guys on quads, but that was it. No one around and perfect conditions. Still cool air around 65 degrees, plenty of sunshine and fresh sand with hardly any tracks in them. It was heaven! I could fly up dunes and crest them without fear of a truck or quad taking me out. Nice change. It was dead quiet except for the occasional pass of the Blue Angles practicing. Strange to not see anyone else in this place, but nice. The ol DR worked like a champ and never let me down. It was probably the best conditions I've ever had there and I ended up going around the area about three times, but played mostly in the sand. The Navy has a set of orders in El Centro for me if I want em, but I'm not sure the family would like the freakishly hot and long summers. Not sure I can handle the summer there either, but the winter is fantastic!

Mauricio, have never seen the Kawi before, but it appears very street oriented. I have a 07 Strom 650 and it is probably the best all around bike I've ever had. It depends what you are looking for in a bike. The Strom can go all day in medium difficulty dirt, but you can also go to Palomar mountain and scrape the footpegs in the twisties. I cruise on the freeway at 90 and it aint even breathing hard. You can also get both wheels off the ground (not too far) and have some fun in the dirt. Adventure bike describes it the best. Attached is the Strom in some sand, which I don't recommend unless you get knobbies, but it can do it all.

Would love to go, but have Tae Kwon Do at 12. Probably hit it Sunday as long as the weather is not total junk. Superbowl aint got 2 wheels and a motor so I aint interested.