r/AdventureBike

What do you like ?
Motorcycle rental Laos

Struggling to find the unicorn ADV tire? Just go ride a stock adventure bike on street tires at 40psi. It will make an Anakee Wild feel like a hard enduro tire. I say this as somehow who spent months obsession over tire/mousse combos on my Kove 450 leading into my first rally race only to absolutely fuck it up and destroy 4 rear mousses and 1 tire in 1400 miles. I borrowed this transalp with the original Karoo 4 street tires and couldn’t stop giggling on these fire roads and some rocky two track. Would I keep these tires if it was my bike? Hell no! But it was a nice mental reset for me and reminded to not overthink it the next time I need new rubber.

Hola a todos, siempre me gustó el mundo rally, dakar y todo ese ambiente, tenía una moto china, y dije, en lugar de venderla, porqué no le doy un poco de cariño? Sé que podría estar mejor, [ojo, la moto es una enduro]. Y bueno, ya con eo tiempo le he ido agregando cosas, le puse la torre de navegacion y otras cosas más. El punto es que ahora quiero ponerle un carenado a la moto como las moto rally de los dakar, y que se vea mucho mejor la moto, hace tiempo lo había pensado, pero ya me puse las pilas y me puse a fabricarlo, en las fotos verán cómo se veía la moto sin su carenado, e incluso hice un edit en la foto con color rojo jaja , para ver cómo se vería, me animé y empecé a hacerlo,primero tenía que hacer un molde, y para eso usé cartón, papel y cola, primero el cartón para empezar a moldear y cortar, terminado eso, empecé a taparlo con hojas/papel y cola, para endurecer el cartón, luego de eso pasado un día ya debería estar duro y que me sirva de molde, ojo, estaba pensando en hacerlo de fibra de vidrio o de mica gruesa, aún estoy en esas, la última foto es ya terminada a mi gusto, incluso le agregué un cubre carter más grande para que vaya acorde con el carenado, pero así va quedando la moto, si te gusta ver este tipo de proyectos, puedes suscribirte a mi canal en YT: JAS_MOTOR, esta moto la estoy convirtiendo en una moto adventure con el look dakariano, y pronto tengo que irme a otro país con esta misma moto, espero les guste, nos vemos pronto para más avances.

One of my goals on a recent Morocco trip was to see how far I could push my V-Strom 800DE in the Erg Chebbi dunes near Merzouga. L

Not for the bike it self alone, but because it was a dream I had since I was a kid and the Dakar was what it was in the 80's and 90's.

I wasn't carrying my travel luggage that day, but the bike was otherwise in its normal setup, running Mitas Enduro Trail+ tyres. I had the suspension on almost all hard position, and the rear pre-charge setup for 20 kgs luggage, didn't change it thinking I had to put more ground pressure on the rear.

Before entering the dunes, I dropped the tyre pressures by roughly 20%, which made a noticeable difference, it's what I usually do for off road riding.

The experience taught me something important: riding sand on a 230 kg adventure bike isn't really about horsepower, it's almost entirely about technique.

Momentum, body position, looking far ahead, trusting the front wheel and committing to the throttle all matter much more than I expected.

Every time I hesitated or looked down, the bike immediately reminded me who was in charge.

Eventually, I buried the bike in a soft dune. Check picture. That wasn't the bike's limitation, it was mine.

What impressed me most was how predictable the 800DE remained. Even in deep sand, it never felt nervous or uncontrollable. It simply demanded the right inputs from the rider.

The biggest lesson, however, was psychological. On another section (Trans Morocco Section L start) I dropped it.

After watching a couple of riders (less experienced off road) in my group drop their bikes in deep sand, my confidence disappeared.

Instead of approaching the next section thinking "I've got this" and send it, I was already thinking about crashing. That hesitation changed everything.

A few minutes later, I lost momentum, tipped the bike over and ended up with my foot trapped underneath it.

Fortunately, nothing serious happened, but it was a clear reminder that in sand, confidence and commitment are just as important as throttle control.

Also, so glad I had soft luggage! For a moment I twisted my foot but keep cool and came front that with soft pain only, not hurt.

The rest of the day was equally memorable:

Riding to Gara Medouar ("Portuguese Prison

Attempting Section L of the Trans Morocco Trai

Turning back after losing confidence in a particularly sandy section (and later losing navigation when my phone overheated!)

Riding through the spectacular Todra Gorge and Dadès Gorge

Climbing the Atlas and finishing the day in Agoudal after around nine hours riding.

I came away convinced that the V-Strom 800DE is considerably more capable than many people give it credit for.

The limiting factor, at least in my case, wasn't the motorcycle, it was my sand riding skills and mindset.

I'll probably consider some training on this kind of terrain.

Has anyone else here taken a V-Strom 800DE into proper dunes? Or any other 200 kgs +.

I'd be interested to hear what tyre pressures and tyres you were running, and any sand-riding tips you've learned.

I filmed the whole day if anyone is interested in seeing how the bike performed, including the mistakes:

https://youtu.be/xxKVPdBwhmY?is=J5g\_eLr2vExW5c6N

Hope you like it!

Hey everyone,

Ran into a weird electrical issue with my CRF300L this morning and could use some help diagnosing it.

Turned the key, dash lit up like normal. But when I hit the starter button, the starter relay just clicks super fast (like a machine gun) and the lights dim heavily. There's definitely a massive voltage drop because the dash actually resets itself every time I try.

We tried to bump start it. It took a lot of effort but it finally fired up. However, it runs absolutely terrible—the idle is super rough, it won't hold RPMs properly, and the dash lights (including the ABS indicator) keep flashing like crazy.

What I've checked so far:

Battery: I thought it was a dead battery right away, but I tried swapping it with another known good battery and got the exact same result.

Fuses: Checked them all, none of them are blown.

Has anyone dealt with this before?

Any advice?

Thanks

Just got a KTM 390 ADV R for 90% forest road, double and singletrack...and hopefully no more than 10% pavement on two-lanes. I've been riding a two-sroke 300 for 10 years without any navigation, but I'd like to use Gaia or OnX with the 390 via car play with my Cardo.

I'm hesitant to mount a Carpuride or similar unit above the OEM screen since i'm assuming it blocks the view ahead. I wonder if it's in my face up high if I'll be tempted to look at it instead of what's ahead. Conversely, if I mount it on the handlebar, then I'm probably looking down instead of the trail.

I'm 5'11 and like to stand up the trail calls for it, so maybe mounting the nav screen up high rally-style won't block my view in technical sections. Hoping to avoid mounting the unit multiple times to sort this out.

Appreciate any insight!

I started along the coast and stopped at Kannon Rock, which was a pretty wild spot. Beautiful views, monkeys around the road, birds trying to attack my drone, all the usual Japan countryside chaos 😂 Also passed through the Oki Beach area which is a great surf spot and the coastal roads around there are just unreal.

One of the nicest random stops was a waterfall in the forest with a little shrine beside it. No big crowds, no crazy setup, just one of those places that makes you go yeah… this is why I ride.
Stayed at a rider’s inn/cabin near the ocean called Nakatsawaya, run by proper bike people. Really cool place, and I kind of regret being too tired to drink with them that night.

Next morning I hit a local fish market for Kochi bonito, which was seriously good, then rode up to the Shikoku Karst road. That road is ridiculous. Big open mountain views, good surface, cows, sky everywhere. I nearly had to keep reminding myself to look at the road and not the view.

Nakatsu Gorge was another highlight. It felt like something out of a fantasy film, with the water, rocks and waterfall at the end. Probably one of the most beautiful gorge walks I’ve done in Japan.
I also went into Kochi city to check out the Ryoma Sakamoto museum, then somehow ended up at the Kaiyodo hobby museum in an old school building out in the countryside. Super random, but actually really cool, especially if you’re into figures, anime, monsters, dinosaurs etc.

Finished down around Cape Ashizuri and the cave area there. Long ride, but totally worth it. Kochi is massive, wild, and not really a place you can rush. The coast is great, the mountains are better, and the roads are just ridiculous.

If you’re traveling Shikoku, don’t just pass through Kochi. Give it time. It’s one of those places that keeps surprising you 👍

Bought my first vstrom this year. 2025 800de. Love this bike. After 140 trail ride, I decided to swap out the stock tires. Everything was going well until I looked down and saw a part in the grass. I cannot for thr life of me figure out where it goes. It is from the rear axle. Everything seems fit up and I am at a loss. I am prepared for the tongue lashing of not being organized enough. Any help is greatly appreciated!

Sorry for maybe stupid question.
Im about to do my first big trip - about 1200km. (750miles 🦅). From them 900km will be on a highway and 300km on such roads as i attached above. What should i take with me regarding service of the bike? I run tube tires, 21/17. Also its gonna be +32C/90F hot. My main concern is that place where im going is really far from any cities or even villages, so relying on help or even thinking about some service shops is not an option at all. Im pretty handy, plus im not a novice regarding riding, but its gonna be my first real outdoor exploring trip. Any advice welcome

Building my first toolkit-https://youtu.be/49y2WrnWI8U?is=-oxMu32LIP\_K1x0c
Anything else you would recommend I add? Trying to keep it lightweight.

Looking for any comparison or suggestions on these two tires for mild sand/gravel/mud off roading and on street performance.