Making Your Dream Ride A Reality - What To Pack

Making Your Dream Ride A Reality – What To Pack

Packing for a motorcycle trip takes practice and it will depend on where you’re going, how many days you’ll be away and how much room you have to pack.  The reality is that you’ll end up finding the room to take what you need and that may turn out to be less then what you thought you needed.  Here are the items that I consider essential.  The rest is up to you.

Packed for a 14 day tour

Documents

1. License.
2. Credit and debit cards.
3. Motorcycle registration and insurance.
4. Health and travel insurance.
5. Passport and visa, if traveling to another country.
6. Emergency contact numbers.
7. Important health information on yourself and anyone you’re traveling with.  If you’re traveling with a group, make sure they either have this information as well or know where you keep it.

I would suggest that you keep an extra copy of your license, motorcycle registration and passport / visa in a separate area of your luggage and email these documents to yourself and keep a copy stored in a web based email folder.  The originals should stay with you at all times.

Riding Gear

1. Your riding gear.
2. A spare pair of gloves.
3. Rain gear, if your regular gear isn’t waterproof.

Clothing

1. Underwear.  You may laugh, however the value of clean underwear is underrated.
2. Socks.
3. A few shirts and at least one pair of pants.
4. Light walking shoes.
5. A hat or cap.

Essentials

1. Tooth brush and tooth past.
2. Sunscreen.
3. Medications.
4. Other personal care items.
5. First aid kit.
6. Water.
7. Snacks.

Tool Kit

1. Tire repair kit.  Find out if your motorcycle is tube or tubeless as the repair kits will be different for each.
2. A way to inflate the tire.  I prefer a small hand pump.
3. Tools to perform basic repairs.  Most motorcycles come with a basic tool kit, however you may choose to add to this or make up a kit of your own.
4. An auto club membership that includes motorcycle assistance or one that’s specific to motorcycles. 

Other Items

1. A cell phone or another method of communication if you’re lost, hurt or stranded somewhere.
2. Maps of the area you’ll be riding.  Feel free to ad a GPS to your kit along with your maps.

If you’re camping, you’ll need to make sure you’ve got enough room to pack this gear along with the other items you may need.

Well, these are the basics and you’ll refine what you need with each ride.  

Packed for a weekend get away

Gerald Trees

Making Your Dream Ride A Reality - Gear Choice

Making Your Dream Ride A Reality – Gear Choice

Choosing which gear to wear is as individual as choosing which clothes to wear.  When I talk about riding gear, I’m talking about protection, gear that’s designed for riding and for giving you a fighting chance of surviving in the event of an accident.  With this in mind, here we go.

Choosing gear is an individual thing; however when you’re planning your ride and the gear you’ll be wearing, keep these in mind.

1. Where are you going? 
2. What time of year is it?  Keep in mind that if you’re crossing the equator the seasons will switch.  I’ll be riding the Andes in Peru in the middle of July and it’s considered winter and the coldest time of the year.
3. What’s the weather like?  Yes, predicting the weather is a fools game, however trends and averages do hold most of the time so look it up.
4. What type of riding will you be doing? 

 

Here are a few things to consider when choosing riding gear.

The Helmet

This is the most important piece of gear so choose well.  You have choices that include Full Face, Full Face Modular, Full Face Crossover, ¾ Helmet and the “Beanie”.  My favorites, and the one’s I use are the Full Faced and Full Faced Crossover.  The keys are to make sure that the helmet is comfortable, fits you and has the required certifications.

The Jacket

There are almost as many choices of jackets as there are helmets.  Materials can be leather or textile and styles range from classic to adventure.  My advice is to make sure the jacket fits, is comfortable and will match the elements you may encounter on your trip.  I own several jackets and I’ve finally found one style that works in most riding conditions that I encounter.  It’s an adventure jacket that’s waterproof, has a warm, removable liner and plenty of vents for those hot riding days.

The Pants

Pants are pants in the style department, however there are options.  I usually take a pair of protective riding jeans as well as a warmer pair on long trips.  If packing space is limited, I’ll wear my adventure riding pants, as they’ll do it all. 

The Boots

There are so many styles, designs and uses for boots so you’ll likely find more then one pair will end up on your boot shelf.  For long rides, comfort, support and the ability to walk around comfortably when you’re off the motorcycle will be features to look for.

The Gloves

Often overlooked and yet, very important.  I usually take two pair with me in the event that one pair gets wet or if you happen to lose a glove.  If you’ll be riding into cold temperatures, make sure one pair is designed for the cold.

Rain Gear

If you’re regular gear is waterproof, then your set, otherwise purchase rain gear that can be slipped over your regular gear.  These items are light and compact and you’ll be glad they’re with you because you will encounter rain if you ride far and long enough.

When shopping for touring gear, keep these three things in mind with everything you’re considering.

1. Protection
2. Fit
3. Function / Versatility

Enjoy the ride.

Gerald Trees

Makeing Your Dream Ride A Reality - I Forgot Something

Making Your Dream Ride A Reality – I Forgot Something

For those who have been following my blog, you’re probably the next installment in this series, which would be What Gear To Take, however I forgot something.

I’ve been on the road this week, visiting with family and re-connecting with friends and during this trip, something hit me and hit me hard.  Who we are and the actions we take are a sum total of what we choose to hear, read, see and who we hang out with.  This is reality and has been written about by countless self-help authors over the years. 

The part that hit me hard is that most people know this and know they can change who

and yet they choose to be comfortable where they are, even though they want something different or better and are frustrated. 

OK, that’s a long sentence, but please read it again.

How does this apply to Making Your Dream Ride A Reality?

1. Read about the place you want to go and about people who’ve made the same or similar journey.  This will give you inspiration.
2. Find people who will give you moral support and encourage you in reaching your dream and hang out with them.  You’ll find these people see the possibilities in life and this will give you energy.
3. Switch off the negative and find the positive!  News and current events are loaded with negative because it sells.  Negative does exist, however there is significantly more positive in this world so find it.
4. Change your words.  This one is a challenge and challenges are difficult and fun at the same time.  For example change “I want” to “I will have” and “I should” to “I will. 
5. Understand that the subconscious part of our brains will ignore negative words like “don’t” or “do not”.  So the request to “don’t slam the door” usually results in the door being slammed, where the request to “close the door quietly” usually results in the door being closed quietly.  So, make the conscious effort to frame sentences in the form of what you want.  It will take some thinking and yet, you’ll begin to see a difference very fast.
6. Make small steps each day in the direction you want to go and you’ll get there faster then you realize. 

OK, now for the fun part.  The more read, hear, see and hang out with people who are positive, the more fun you’ll have.  Trust me!

Gerald Trees

PS:  To add to the proof that any any motorcycle will do. The Himalaya mountains on a Royal Enfield.