Adventure Bikes
Adventure riding is one of the growing segments of the motorcycle industry. Adventure bikes are similar to Dual Sport (DS) and Enduro bikes, two segments that have been popular since the 70's. The primary difference I see between adventure bikes and DS/Enduro bikes is that DS/Enduro bikes seem as if they began life as a dirt bike that was adapted to be street legal, where adventure bikes seem like they began life as street bikes that were modified to be mildly off-road capable. Current offerings in each segment are making the grey area between the two segments quite blurry. In my mind, an adventure bike should be comfortable for all-day riding on pavement, have long service intervals for things like oil changes, and should be capable of carrying a passenger and some
luggage.
Many experienced street riders will tell you that dirt and gravel are to be avoided. To a street rider, these represent hazards that add risk to the ride, and they are correct. This isn't because dirt and gravel are dangerous to ride on, just that you ride differently when on a low-traction surface. If you ride on gravel the same way you ride on pavement, you will crash. I enjoy adventure riding because it reduces one of the biggest risks in street riding: four-wheel traffic. Adventure rides may have challenging terrain, but most of the routes taken will have little to no car traffic at all. They are usually public roads off the beaten path - sometimes paved, usually gravel, and occasionally dirt. Often they take us to the same place that a highway would take us, but there is an intimacy experienced with one's environment when taking it slow and going the long way. An adventure ride rarely has the destination as its focus - rather it is the experience that is desired.
Kari and I started up a separate site for documenting our adventure rides. In this section of my site, I will document the various adventure bikes we have had, why we chose them, and modifications done to them. I will also try to describe the good and bad traits of each.
luggage.
Many experienced street riders will tell you that dirt and gravel are to be avoided. To a street rider, these represent hazards that add risk to the ride, and they are correct. This isn't because dirt and gravel are dangerous to ride on, just that you ride differently when on a low-traction surface. If you ride on gravel the same way you ride on pavement, you will crash. I enjoy adventure riding because it reduces one of the biggest risks in street riding: four-wheel traffic. Adventure rides may have challenging terrain, but most of the routes taken will have little to no car traffic at all. They are usually public roads off the beaten path - sometimes paved, usually gravel, and occasionally dirt. Often they take us to the same place that a highway would take us, but there is an intimacy experienced with one's environment when taking it slow and going the long way. An adventure ride rarely has the destination as its focus - rather it is the experience that is desired.
Kari and I started up a separate site for documenting our adventure rides. In this section of my site, I will document the various adventure bikes we have had, why we chose them, and modifications done to them. I will also try to describe the good and bad traits of each.
