Outback Motorcycle Adventure - 4000 km test 2022 Triumph Tiger 1200 Rally Explorer
thank you the 2022 Triumph rally Explorer has hit Australian Shores and we want to know does this bike have what it takes to be classed as a dirt oriented super tourer and if we want to know that we've got to head into the Australian Outback Big Sky big brown land and thousands of kilometers of dirt roads and tracks that very quickly reveal the strengths and weaknesses of Machinery not designed for purpose our goal is to punch out around 4 000 kilometers with a substantial proportion of those miles on the dirt the plan is to ride from Triumph HQ in Melbourne into the Flinders ranges onto Cameron corner and then head Southeast back to Sydney through some of the most interesting back roads we can find but there's one challenge that will keep us on our toes a wet weather system called La Nina that dominates our continent for the third consecutive year and turns the Outback tracks into sticky impassable mush we arrive at Triumph HQ and wonder how in the hell are we going to fit all our stuff in a dry bag in a tank bag we blast out of the city and spend the first two days mile munching on the tar to get to the good stuff it's about ready to go this is day two we haven't recorded much of day one because all we were doing in transport miles what's going on Clubby? somber start this morning Dave don't normally do that on our rides little Memorial just around the corner here that we're going to go and see at Sunrise mate pay attribute yeah so I always wanted to start this ride by coming straight to a little town called Keith in South Australia it's just across the border from Victoria but it's uh we're all known for two things the hometown of Andy Caldecott who's a champion Aussie motorcycle racer uh he started out in junior Motocross won the local State's level Junior Motocross titles competed nationally top performer in National Motocross for Mr Motocross one vintage Motocross titles transferred his career into Safari and rally racing won the Australian Safari got all the way to Dhaka did so well over there impressed the KDM team that you got a factory ride and as life happens sometimes and we're just going to wait for this big truck to roll past because we're right on the highway here where you can't whistle Memorial the poor guy crashed and and tragically lost his life while racing the Dakar in 2006 um so what's that like 16 years ago and I can still remember the guy clear as mud he was just big tall lanky dude long hair but just the most nice cool down to earth guy who just always had two feet on the ground and just had the best time riding a motorcycle and if there's anything about his passing past while he was doing what he absolutely loved to the most and so they've had a memorial here for Andy here in Keith in his hometown and it's just cool for anyone guys like me that just know the guy from Forever it's just a fabulous tribute to him his family is still hearing Keith he had businesses here in Keith and South Australia and it's just a cool place to stop and just remember the guy for just one of he was just one of motorcycling's gentlemen and just a just a fabulous fabulous guy who was just taken way too early I wasn't supposed to film today but Clubby had his eye on canola but have a look we've just gone down this road honestly it doesn't look much does it and this is the problem look at that mud oops I think my bike's gonna fall over have a go at the mud oh not possible to turn around without Clubby's help then to make it worse I've got a cramp oh God look at that back wheel guys just it's just like there's one mil of crust on top that looks like it's dry yeah and the rest of us just bloody slop in it do you think this is a premonition of what's to come or we're good no no no no we're going north from here mate okay I know we're going closer to the Equator it'll be good up there right just remember what he said foreign look at that life on the road with Clubby endless cafes pies pasties milkshakes where are we opposite some whopping great big piece of artwork over there we're in and look we're at The Silo Cafe at um Coonalpyne that's right we call Clubby the human GPS it's an earned reputation and he's not disappointing today our goal for the night is a small town at the southern end of the Flinders ranges he's wending his way North and where he can he's picking up interesting dirt road and twin Trail to get us to our destination and his first selection of twin Trail is a cracker we're skirting along the banks of the Murray River Australia's longest river stretching over two and a half thousand kilometers foreign including five of the six longest rivers in Australia form a water catchment that is about a seventh of the area of our continent it's bloody huge and at the moment with La Nina the water is Flowing fast and it's not the only thing moving fast we've been heavy on the throttle over the past couple of hours and Club is appreciating that has consequences cubby you got some fuel anxiety I don't know what's going on Dave yeah like we've done 400 kilometers yeah and the bike's tire is flashing at me yeah getting my stress levels up saying I've only got 40 kilometers to go yeah after 400 kilometers on a 30 liter tank so I wonder is this Triumph's way of promoting ride responsibly oh right we have been a little animated for the last hour or so we have been giving it a bit of stick and this morning we were making rapid Pace across the paddocks yeah I will admit to that but yeah I think it's just having a little hernia what after those last little playing up there with a bit of throttle action mate well after all it is a Australian Adventure it is an adventure but he's the mess all right he's telling me 40 kilometers yeah and we've got 31 kilometers to Blanche town okay I'm just gonna see ya and if that how the plan works or you've got the tow ropes I've got the tow rope so I wouldn't like you to wingman me all right just in case all right I but I think we're safe mate I'm safe okay mate all right now let's get this [ __ ] on the right all right so upright I want to go to off-road Pro traction control off ABS off that's what I want all right let's go gungadin yeah for some reason I thought you could do that on the Fly you can't the country's changing so dramatically as we head north you know we're in the Murray River Basin now back on the tar I wonder how Clubby's going with his fuel anxiety I would have thought that time after he stopped giving it a hammering there it'd be a recalculation he'd actually be gaining fuel do ya I think he thought this place had fuel I think it would though on freeway Maybe yes he found it he's found it he'll be happy we're pumping out about 5.8 liters for 100k and um so the warning if you're wanting what the Clubby came on at 420. now so that's it's dropped and the reason for that drop is near the Murray River there we're giving the bikes a bit of stick there's one section that we do on this ride and it's quite a long stop between drinks and I think what we're going to be is very cautious on the throttle so it seems if you hold it around a hundred kph 100 kilometers an hour you're gonna get around yeah mid fours High 4.7 liters per 100K so I'm going to guess and the second you get up around 120 it's uh the fuel economy goes up disproportionately so exponentially which I mean isn't a drama I mean it's got a 30 liter tank don't make too much of it but you know we've got to be smart about this too in the coming days when we've got that big long stretch and I think I mean I'll have to pull Clubby up but I think it's something like 440 kilometers which if we ride like we did today we would be coming in empty so those Hills are coming out of the Horizon now have a go at this road just the black ribbon disappearing into the horizon so that's a pleasant change isn't it there's Rolling Hills we're there we're at the getting close to the base of the Flinders ranges starting to see those Folds you know we're driving along here and I'm just thinking to myself this reminds me of Mongolia you see the name of that station mongolata mongolata this is what Mongolia looks like I've never seen South Australia so green actually parts of Kyrgyzstan as well that's what we're heading well club before I go on that my friend I'm going off-road off-road Pro for me on screen oh wow Clubby you've done it Adventureland huh how good is that come gotta go and have a look we have got the piece this guy's on and on yeah that's what I love you know there's spontaneous decisions where you go oh let's just I love the spontaneity of motorcycle Adventure Clubby had spotted this stunning track and we went with our hearts and explored cost it would mean riding in the town well after Dark the southern end of the Flinders ranges is jam-packed with Kangaroos and spending a few hours in the dark on the roads is potentially not good for your health well through our accommodation Mill Rose one of those places you'd like to come back to um spend a few days there probably day planned out let's go and see him up at the pub here heated seat on heated grips on high basically in the Flinders ranges and that's where we ate last night again lovely Pub and great food Mount remarkable Hotel excellent food stunning this is gorgeous isn't it hey yeah anyway come over here I think it's time to get serious now all right we're gonna go off the Beaten Track right okay and uh head right into the Flinders I'll get the maps out come on over and let's just make a plan we'll start at the bottom today this morning we're going to finish at the top tonight and then basically the whole run is our it's the day is our oyster like you've got all the Gorges of the Flinders national parks proper yeah but then you've got awesome country either side of all the ranges that run north and south so for our International Friends these are planes out here that's just straight into the Outback to the left and and this is all plains on this other side and how this was formed Australia kind of got crunched like that yeah like from left and right and crunched and this is the kind of how ranges were created from that geological pressure yeah there's clubby's canola have a go at that it's funny you know these rides they look isolated if you don't look it's going to get taken out by a big truck oh there's some sheep.
it's great to be out on the bikes in this big space you know I think tiger territories the the best way to describe this it's it's great for 1200s you know you got the capability to do the dirt but you've also got to do tire you've got to do gravel gotta do everything we're doing this right you can stay on this bit or you can thread the needle get up your speed you've got a really slippery gravel edge off to the side and you've got ruts on the right Clubby and I are heading to the old ghost town of Hammond and Ever After with the dream Hammond was founded on past releases in the 1840s and officially surveyed in 1879 it was a thriving little town a place for raising families and having the odd drink check out the size of the hotel it also had a railway station bank and a range of other stores but Hammond's time in the sun was short-lived by the early 1900s unpredictable ferocious droughts a depression and a relocation of the Railhead saw to the relative quick demise of the town I couldn't help but think when a drought struck how difficult it would be to raise a family let alone to survive the history of the Flinders ranges is Rich a fabric of Hope and despair as Farmers attempted to harness mother nature and she wasn't having a bar of it foreign for riding we're in the Flinders ranges right down the southern end of it but the air is cool and crisp and so clear and look at the colors they're so vibrant you know those acres and Olive greens that we come to know that represent the Flinders and of course these beautifully manicured travel roads it's just brilliant look there's some kangaroos oh some little Joey and his mum come on don't come across just come on come on come on let's get past them interesting new power sliding around those corners my range is 80 kilometers what's yours I think I'm gonna have to be very so how far we've got to go 54 kilometers 80.1 let's just say the computer Gremlins are still thinking I'm riding like a Hoon all right let's wait and see I'm gonna be very gentle now oh come on I'll just push it to get started John Berg population of two God all right it has gone down to 79.5 see I'm seeing on 73 I'll gradually get it up to about 90. but um if your economy is coming good for me again see 4.2 4.3 lires per hundred ks I'm just gonna hover along that um I'll just gradually build to 90ks and that'll do me I think I've been driving very conservatively 72.6 what I can't believe it could it have been 71 points this
is a big country and if you stuff up out here it could cost you your life calculating fuel range is critical and what I've discovered if you're light on a throttle these big triumphs will reward you with long fuel range but if you get heavy-handed fuel range plummets now while it looks dry we bump into Cam at Hawker and he tells Tales of being up to his armpits in mud in the Simpson desert and there's rumours another rain front is coming that could compromise our trip into the Outback so the Hawker fuel Saga ends with success 19.7 kilometers rain so just ease off the gas it's a good lesson for Cameron Corner probably isn't it oh absolutely and it makes a massive difference isn't it for those 15 kilometers an hour yeah between 100K and 115 kilometers an hour look at this discovered Camis tried to get the Simpson doesn't mean flogged by rain and mud and crap never made it no it was a bit soft yeah okay so we had a few guys up there have a really hard time and a couple of guys have uh turned around and come out and a lot of cars caked in some very red mud so yeah we decided to turn around and head back over to the east coast instead yeah so this is the thing I mean you've just got a you know Australian weather conditions can change in a second so yeah just be careful too because there's another front coming through the center as well yes over from Western Australia so yeah we're going to try to knowing Clubby's weather watching we're going to try to weasel our way between both fronts Good Luck Good Luck yes I think we'll need it a magical place getting in just opposite the small village of Parachilna this is a lovely way into the Flinders and we're heading over to Blinman and then on to ARCA ruler it's dirt roads like this that really get you appreciating the effort that's gone into designing this bike you know the gear ratios just match with the engine those Brembo brakes are so strong I mean it's a one finger job there suspension it's going great for a super tourer you know and wind our way down I think if I owned this bike I wouldn't use a tank bag the bike kind of demands of you to be over the tank more in the tank bag just gets in the road a bit the other thing I would do if I had this bike and I was touring as I'd have soft paniers a little bit lower to um take care of the center of gravity and keep it as low as possible Australian Adventure motorcycle riders Blinman is the epicenter of some brilliant trials there's a pub to stay at and there's a bit of accommodation around here they're bike friendly well worth well worth coming through even now New South Welshman and even Queenslanders need to come out here it's that good it's brilliant writing okay so we're leaving heading to Arkaroola it's about 160 K's away most of our days on this ride are around 500 K's 500 plus three our mated Hawker was saying the weather conditions in the Simpson and that are atrocious a wet weather front had come in and it was mud and mayhem and everyone was being turned around the roads were closed and they were heading either South around Broken Hill now at this point in time limarkaroola our Akaroola's own finakarula to Innaminka four-wheel drive Arkaroola to Copley open now that's interesting because there's two weather fronts one has passed there's another following through we've you know today tonight is decision time in terms of Arkaroola from there we're hopefully heading to Cameron corner but you know if that weather front's too close I nor Clubby want to get stuck in that sort of mud I've been there it put me in hospital and I do not want to return so let's see what happens at ARCA ruler it might be an easy day in Arkaroola or we'll try to get to the top or you know with our hands of our our destiny is in the life of the Gods and we might very well end up in Cameron Corner sleeping in a little dog box well that covers all the options well mate there's a few options after all it is an adventure yeah yeah this starts to get fluid now with that looks good at the moment but they can go red red red in the flesh we have wandered through the desert chasing after what's behind but you're doing a new thing what yeah so we're well over another 500k day heading into Arkaroola probably about I don't know close to 60 K's out and we're making good speed good conditions just got to watch these um flood channels and it can be a little bit asleep sometimes I've bottomed out on a couple of the day with the bash plate and uh yeah just a couple of times I've got in the rear shock gorilla so this is takes us to Innaminka good morning welcome to Arkaroola Australia's ultimate Rock Farm have a look out there Dave it's not red is it just is brilliant Arkaroola is a Wilderness Sanctuary situated on 620 square kilometers of Freehold and past your lease land its stunning geological formations offer a range of environments for the local Wildlife to thrive the weather is generally fine and with little air pollution it's also a great place for astronomy Clubby and I do some climbing to take in the view but the weather is on our mind and by the looks of those charts we won't be riding the camera and Corner our destiny has been set by the imminent rain we're going to have to be riding well over a thousand K's of blacktop to get home Cameron corner is just gonna have to wait heading to Copley the nearest Hard Road and from there a couple of shortcuts across to Yunta and onto broken Hill and finally home our dirt road experience on these bikes for the most part is coming to an end time to reflect on their performance and what they bring to the super tourer class that is jam-packed with well-equipped highly competent dirt oriented mounts you went on a bus mate look 1200 it's a broken Hill right God what a day so we're going to have a quandong tart yeah real soon yeah uh and then we're going to have to loop around South to still get to Broken Hill tonight is the mission yeah yeah and I think the emphasis is on the word night oh mate it's going to be scary a Long Afternoon mates yeah but that's the cool part adventure riding it's just a rich tapestry of good bad and indifferent yes I've broken Hill next yeah and uh uh maybe some time to talk about the bikes what do you reckon we're going to be jumping through big yeah let's get it while it's fresh now mine was we've got what 100 meters to go before we get get onto blacktop and slab it for what 1500 kilometers oh yes we'll make some deviation deviations along the way yeah but um yeah tell us about your tiger experience well I think the overriding factor with me all these big leader plus bikes they are just awesome for bashing through big miles tarmac gravel dirt and they'll go off-road when required but that's the thing that always comes back to me when you get right the way down here to the off-road scale everything gets tempered and to me the reason for that is you're dealing with a bike that on the spec sheet is what 250 to 260 KS yeah okay Triumph they've taken 20 odd kilos out of the weight of the existing 1200 Explorer model into with this new model yep but the rod we made for our backs is it's it's it's a 30 liter tank which is awesome for range awesome for mileage but it's still positioned up at and above your knee levels yeah okay for the location of them when it's full you're noticing it we're both running tank bags which then impedes on getting the body weight forward plus we've then just got the good old giant Lube dealer milk bag strapped up on the seat yeah high and weighty as well and from the moment we've dropped off to the gravel that's been the overriding determining factor in my mind in terms of the way you ride the bike if you want to make Pace on the gravel yeah you know is my call and and this is such a bike and I thought every time I write it out of big 1200 I always say get up over the front end get your weight here your head here above the hit the screen the bars and get all your weight on that front wheel to push down on that front suspension to give you traction and drive into Corners when you're trying to get into it the minute I put my and you would have seen it this morning I put my thumb back down when I start getting tired weight comes back I'm coming in the corners hot okay the weight my weight and there's another 95 kilos of weight there in working into all the inertia it's in the wrong spot and it's pushing the front yeah and that's why I'm backing off hard but I'm still running why I say it's a bike that responds to being ridden aggressively for sure but it's Forte I just say Dave is is in dead set touring mileage mate yeah and Big Range mate if you keep your you know what have we seen on six days of riding I've calculated between a vest of 20 kilometers a liter yeah so potentially there's 600 kilometers of range out of the fuel tank down to a low of 15.7 which brings it back down to the low 400s yeah and you and I both had sessions of fuel anxiety yeah on this ride on a bike with a 30 liter a tank but the trade-off is we were motoring when it starts sucking that juice you get up to 115 120 130 it starts sucking the fuel and that becomes a factor um comfort wise I reckon it's awesome that you know for the big tank it's just so much protection the screen is just awesome with that easy adjustability it's an awesome cocoon up here on front the bars and they've got big high raised mounts and lifted well up love the bend love the shape all of that in terms of ergonomics the screen is big clear awesome easy to read yeah um all the other backlit switch gear oh yeah yeah the other night you know and tonight we're going to be riding the dark again yeah it's only a little thing but it counts my when you yeah exactly um suspension I'm gonna make the call that it could still do with more particularly in the rear end when we're plowing into those floodway dips out on these gravel roads at over a dollar I'm you know the back end's going through the stroke and again I've got all that weight on the back there yes it's semi-adjustable semi-active suspension boosting it right up there in the in the the off-road settings but I'm still getting the G out effect on the back end particularly and I do out the front end once today yeah in those dips this morning but again motoring hitting them hard um otherwise Comfort I can say the seat is a ripper haven't even thought about my butt cheeks in six days at all um brakes super super strong I said to you probably was a day two yeah no the third day when we got onto long dirt I'm just this front Brake's so so strong and I'm finding that those really modulating and being course careful of my action on the brake lever is just that strong rear brake yep definitely strong as well I'm going to make a call that I love all the protection that comes on the bike with the crash bars Etc kegs could be a little bit bigger like they're actually a good length Peg but you'd love a bit more whipped on them for a big bike where you need to be standing up so much Center stand is included um jury is out on all this technology of the rear swing arm set up now yeah triangulated swing arm to me it just seems to bring so many more components I mean the rear end action is fine and good and dandy and all of that but it to me it just seems like a lot more componentary in Parts bearings bushes Etc compared to a standard single swing arm or the previous model which had a single swing arm with the shaft drive but there's a performance increase there that's absolutely agree with that yeah for the technology yeah um shaft drive mate we haven't even had to think about lube and chains any of that palava and I don't think it's from a riding experience what's the difference what there's what's the negative about having a shaft when it comes to like it's a positive for maintenance no negative with regards to the right experience thirty four thousand dollars ish I mean that's all competitive with bikes in the class um and there's a lot of competition now big BMW 1250 the Cato 1290 um we rode the Africa twins yeah I still reckon that's an underrated bike that Africa twin isn't it yeah I I thought about that bike a lot on this particular ride it would lap it up as well mate but listen it's just been awesome to be able like how good you know we've had what now I think the best part of four days in and around the Flinders and how good do you feel mate we've been cleansed oh well it is that's exactly right isn't it you know exactly so yeah it's it's right there it's right there in the ballpark in amongst all those big you know leader plus capacity Adventure bikes it'll just do everything you know we've got another 600 K's ahead of us it's 2 30 in the afternoon going to be riding in the dark it's going to get cold it's going to start raining tomorrow and it's the type of bike that you know you can just climb on and just Chomp through those miles and come out the other end with minimum aggravation I've loved it yeah it's been a great trip great trip so we've had four days in the dirt with these bikes and it's been fantastic the the 1200 triple it's an engine that's very flexible is it up there in terms of the power no it's not it's about mid-range in terms of 1200 cc bikes out there at the moment but it does the job well it's a a very um Dependable uh responsive engine that just gives you the you know when you feed on the power it just comes on really smoothly but strongly and you know in this last section you know I've been power sliding around corners and you can just feed it on gently and or if you want to get more aggressive you can you can do that and the bike responds to that well but like Clubby said you've got to ride this like a dirt bike when when you're on the dirt and you want to get motoring um body weight right over the tank now that was something if I had this bike I don't necessarily think I'd have a tank bag if I was doing the sorts of dirt that we did last couple of days I think it gets in the roadway I'd prefer my body you know to be forward like this and I don't think a tank bag or if you're going to get one I'd just consider something smaller if you like riding the dirt if you don't if you like sitting it's not a problem um but it likes being up and aggressive with those uh handlebars hanging onto the handlebars good positioning forward and and everything sweet the second in the dirt the second you get a little bit lazy you'll you'll get this um squidgy feeling at the back and it starts to move a little bit it's not it's not disconcerting but you know you're a little bit top heavy and the reason you're top heavy is the fuel range and and this is the compromise you know if you want big fuel range on this bike you've got all that fuel range but it's way up high and the bike feels a little bit top heavy not too much but it's noticeable when the tank is full and the way we had the bike set up with the our giant lit bag at the back here which is quite High if I own this bike I'd have the panniers low and centralized and I have plenty of racks I think that would be a recommendation for me in terms of the positioning you know in terms of your road gas are strong um I could sit on this for weeks this seat it's so comfortable uh it's got it's heated the reseed is heated and you've got your heated grips as well and when you combine that with this great screen you know you're really protected very easy to move up and down and it's very effective like when you've got that up like that very protective uh no uh buffeting with your helmet just really smooth riding and you know when we're we're getting up over those 100 kilometers an hour it really it's such a comfortable bike yeah I can sit on this all day sit on it all day the off-road Pro mode where all tracks in control and abs is disabled is my favorite go-to place in the dirt for a big bike I'd consider its handling to be nimble and reassuring in the dirt with the Proviso you're up on the pegs with your body weight over the tank there's a temptation to start playing in off-road Pro but it means you're going to wear out rear tires really quickly but more importantly fuel range plummets I don't have any doubt you can get 600 K's out of a tank but if you're heavy fisted with a throttle fuel range can easily drop into the 400s the Brembo brakes are amazingly powerful with one finger action for me in the dirt the activation of the front bikes is predictable and they have good feel and reassuringly you know the power behind them in a case of emergency the rear brake wasn't grabby and I felt confident using it to slide the rear out a little to set the bike up for cornery in the dirt while standing the rear brake foot pedal is adjustable and I kept it raised in the dirt and that contributed to my confidence in rear brake activation the dirt orientation of this bike is right up there with its 21 18 inch wheel combination the shower suspension is a highlight for me for the types of dirt we were covering it provided a balanced performance that absorbed the unpredictable unpleasant hits but was sufficiently subtle to allow for a 500K plus stay on gravel and not feel beaten up this bike looks after you and Rider Comfort is a strong feature I didn't observe the falling through the stroke at the rear that Clubby did I did bottom it out occasionally in some dips and it was definitely coming to the end of its stroke but it felt controlled and it certainly wasn't falling through the stroke maybe our setup was different as we're still getting to know the bikes and I certainly didn't get any jarring in terms of dirt riding if I was buying this bike there's not much I'd do to it in order of priority I consider looking at a more robust bash plate a broader rally style Peg is a must for this bike as in the dirt it needs to be ridden standing with the weight over the front wheel I'd either remove the tank bag I had or have a much smaller one to ensure I could comfortably get my weight over that tank soft panty racks are a must to get the center of gravity as low and as centralized as you can the obvious question that I considered was would I abandon the bigger tank for a lower center of gravity and it's a resounding no from me the bigger tank gives flexibility and range and from my perspective is essential for a big mile muncher that you want to take into the Outback in summary the Triumph rally explorers dirt manners and dirt comfort and capability have been strong and a notable feature of the buy it's true we didn't write anything too technical but from what I've experienced I'd be willing to go there but the journey isn't over yet we're about to punch out a couple of 800k plus days that will highlight other features of the bike we were safely on the blacktop and the rain front was on its way if we were lucky and punched out two 800k days we would keep our Tails relatively dry Chloe had one dirt shortcut up his sleeve as we headed to yonta it was a track that would be forever known as kangaroo Lane the night would be filled with death and destruction as the fast-moving trucks mowed down the kangaroos with monotonous regularity the name of the game for us was to hook him behind a truck with good lights and use it to take out the ruse that would otherwise take us out through the back roads and most of it were done on blacktop coming down the western side of the Flinders ranges this is a shortcut that takes us to yunta and yunta is only 200 kilometers from Broken Hill because Clubby said this road is packed with Kangaroos and we're coming right into kangaroo time so I've shaved back our speed see how we go oh how gorgeous is it though hey sure isn't it look at that view Oh Black Rock mate it's always an impressive spot here it's a shame there's Cloud on the horizon to mess the sunset yeah look at it here we got some kilometers to do yet though clubbing we're pretty experienced Adventure Riders and you know we always talk about not doing what we're doing now and uh I don't know how many near misses you had but there were more kangaroos there than in Adelaide Zoo that's an understatement isn't it how can I just confirm that's you there Dave I can't see you yeah I know I can't hear you yeah yeah like did you get all the ghosts I didn't see a goat mate I had two families of bug goats the cutest little blokes and didn't we say before goats never walk on tarmac but they did in there on the gravel weren't they yeah bloody things in kangaroos how many ruse made yes anyway we still got 200 K's to go in the dark uh the last 100ks has just been death and destruction ruse dead everywhere I um introduced Clubby to a new strategy for dodging ruse I I'm I'm looking forward to seeing how he thought it went Now Dave okay our next comment will be in the form of a question yes okay all right and I want a straight answer yeah hang on and we have to keep fueling while we talk yeah to multitask all right because time is of the essence tonight yeah yeah those last hundred kilometers as you mentioned yeah I noticed an interesting Dynamic taking place to borrow one of your Expressions yes I'm going to examine that Dynamic with you yeah now I understand the dynamic of tucking in behind a big b triple yeah all right and I could see you sitting out to the right yeah to gain maximum advantage of your light throw and his and his of course yeah I sit there in another 50 to 100 back yeah and I get the maximum benefit of everybody's light throw yes now my question to you is when the leader of the troop the Big B triple yeah and he takes all 38 axles that he's got there yeah all packed with Mighty Goodyear Tires yeah and he runs straight over the top of poor old skip get right my question to you is you get to where to eat the kangaroo steak dinner and I score the free fur coat or is it vice versa I want a straight answer though my theory on that is that mace kangaroos end up on the left or the right so that's what I'm going to say to you I don't know how that theory goes not many end up in the middle of the road they really get flooded so that's my theory okay but then my other extension of the question is yeah how fast do you come up on the Dead Black roadkill in the middle of the night I know you know like it's just off it's another Dead one you know what every time I come to yonta I I swear that I'm never gonna ride in the dark to Broken Hill ever again like imagine if you had the golden chain franchise every adventure bike rider will book in they would they would anyway he's turning around you noticed I picked the big fast truck all right let's go and get some food we arrived at Broken Hill around 10 p.m it was a huge day in the
saddle with another to follow in the morning the weather was on our tails and that motivated us to push ourselves all the way to Forbes to keep our backsides dry two huge days in the saddle on the blacktop was a blessing in terms of assessing this bike's potential as a dual purpose smile muncher we were satisfied its dirt manners were good but these two days cemented its position as a capable dual Sporter that looked after the Rider by providing a cocoon of comfort so necessary for punching out big miles the dirt oriented super tourer class has some stiff competition in the form of the KTM and BMW and to a lesser degree the slightly more road-oriented Ducati they all leave the showroom floor jam-packed with a strong range of standard features but for me those features are just a distraction as is the relative power outputs of these bikes at the end of the day if a 1200 cc buy can't give me a power slide on the dirt there's something pretty wrong Joy comes to me from feeling as one with a bite that strikes at the heart of handling and feel and how the bike responds to my instincts and that is a personal thing it's got nothing to do with reviewing and comparing specifications it's got to do with how you feel on the bike and the only way to do that is to ride it and feel it through the seat of your pants so that's up to you but what I can tell you from the experience of extensively writing all the competition is the Triumph Tiger 1200 rally Explorer stands amongst its peers and the dirt oriented super tourer class just became a little more competitive civilization below you didn't quite get the Cameron corner but that's we're not going to let that go are we oh that'll just be the next trip Dave yeah it's just another destination to look forward to isn't it mate yeah oh look it's all good this is what two hours from Sydney you've got this yeah and then what two two days ago two days from Sydney we had a whole nother world didn't we out there in the Flinders yeah just fabulous there's so much good country to be had out here and for adventure Riders this year with that uh La Nina we don't want to RAB it on too much about it but you're really going to have to plan your trips you're going to have to be thinking flexibly and you've got to try to avoid getting stuck in that dirt if you're in that dirt and it pours rain you will be in it for four days to a week so you've got to have your Alternatives and you've got to have your tar exits okay but it doesn't have to pour no no every time that we ventured off those two times we ventured off onto the dirt roads that look dry yeah yeah mate they barely had millimeters of rain 10 mils they had 10 mils and it was just Babushka over Red Rover yeah there's just no going anywhere in that weather now we found some great little discoveries which you know in terms of accommodation and that one last night that was great I've grown to love dongle life Dave you did I don't mind donga life the one thing I did wonder about if we had been in that dongma say for another two days and then the rains came yeah my level of comfort of being in that donga in pouring rain and Howling Gale yeah better than a tent no no imagine a tent you'd be walking in with mud on your feet oh I love that rock Farm oh you can have that donga life hashtag Donna life yeah I'll follow that it's a bit Chardonnay but I don't care I'm a pensioner all right let's get home thanks for watching Tiger Territory our motorcycle Adventure into the Outback if you've liked what you've seen please subscribe as Mad TV is jam-packed with movie length motorcycle adventure and reviews for those Mad TV die hards there's some interesting outtakes including catching up with the Honda Australia team in Arkaroola to discuss the imminent arrival of The elusive Transalp there's more commentary on the bike and some fun until next time thanks for watching you need to get off the road come on come on I can see you go that's it we found how good is this look it's a straight line either to pleasure or to pain I predict climb aboard Dave if you trust me driving don't you oh Jesus hang on you want the back there Dave are you on hang on just let me get the all right hang on I'm on three three one got holy cow there's a lot of lighting us yeah I gotta go backwards see mate foreign just inside there and have that beautiful big yellow background right behind me for a photo mate yeah here they are the Honda test team they're in they're in look at this my God what a broad range of Hondas we have here from the 250 Africa twins a dominator I went out when Abba started singing Waterloo and we've got a trans out this bike's a brave black doing sand on a transout probably needs to probably needs a medal for that I'd reckon he's right mate look at those boxes you could put a library in them mate that it's got some serious carrying capacity here's the truck where's the new 750 no there's no news we've been sitting here for four days and they freaking Mountain waiting for you guys yeah spooning each other oh did you eat that Chloe just just film this guy's face he says there's no new 750 750. what is that then I don't know but it should weigh under 200k oh you're a drink and then you only want to play 16 grand for it yeah at least 25 liters of fuel yeah I agree and you're right on two points so far mad TVs out knockarilla for a reason Chloe we thought this was them Honda's let us down but anyway yeah all right so how many how many days you bought Stony what's going on I know we're on here we're on our way to Alice then we spent the last couple of days zigzagging in the fins be off to another major station today and we camp up and have a tub there and uh do a few laps around each place and then head up there in the data track yeah so you've been here before you boys or what I haven't been here yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah Flinders isn't it yeah you could just be out there for a week and just never cover all of it no no it's a good camping we've got it where's the Dominator he's got the Dominator where is he he's the brave boy he kind of looks like Bjorn doesn't he remember I saw Michael got I'd win the Australian Safari in 1985 or six or seven on one of them so how did he do it I'm sure you could do it today couldn't you hang on hang on let's just go through this come on what's your name mate Harry Harry come on Harry tell us tell us your setup tell us your setup what do you got here a lot of shitloader fuel you got a dominator yeah what are those camera cases yeah yeah funny Bunnings Bunnings camera cases that they work a bit of Rio Rod ladies framework she's got aftermarket pipes so that means everything is a real flat spot because you can't go in through January so how are these um hang on this is pretty important how are these that you might have come across a discovery Harry how are these panties going are they doing the job are they dust proof yes easy they really are desperate 17 aren't they no no they're about 50 bucks 50 bucks each because I got similar ones for my camera gear right mate that's that's uh Discovery adventurous what's a normal set of panties worth about a thousand bucks and you've done it for a tenth oh you've got the the triple seat yes yeah nugget used to lose his and I'd have to pick it up all the time yeah and uh lamps will Harry how's this going for you oh this I just touched where your ball sacked there's no Skitty set no that's good how's that what else you got you got your hat clipped to the handlebars doesn't come off no she stays there how many cars is this done too many hang on 62 000 okay yeah mate so how long have you had it for it's not even mine all right he's all man-made so this is Father's Day this is the Father's Day ride these two boys hang on this is a Father's Day ride these two boys between these two boys they would have at least 25 or 30 Hondas oh my God yeah all right and Harry how you going with an open-faced helmet at speed all the time you're being driven mad you still got your hearing yes he's still there all right okay you're all right that's good all right what's next what's coming up next over here with the old African queen mate what about it eh yeah Technic suspension so he's been to Nick dial it was all done all right yeah even come with three different windscreens though that particular but these are the bargains you can get aren't you the people have these aspirations do one ride and then he sits in the shed and yeah it's not bad it's just quite as a ton twice a ton but it does the job doesn't it come to the oh it's comfortable on the gravel in that yeah plenty of hair so your panty is the panties came with it everything everything came with fully set up okay so how are you finding there's a couple of things that interest me this petrol container here when you hit sand you get this whack in the back of your car you can't put your feet down no you'll get run over you'll just get cleaned up the second you put yourself down yeah so yeah if it was then I'd turn them around put them on the other side yeah when it's um you know like these gravel roads not too bad no no they're all right and and are you finding a bit top heavy what you got up here yeah okay sleeping bag and um so all your weights down low yeah go go we did have a vapor Grog in there that's nearly gone oh that was sensible and we're nearly had a Tucker I hoping someone needs to go the next couple this morning yeah so how many cases she done she's dark she's got 42 000 42 000 Oxford grips that's another one of my favorites I don't like this you know this one is spins changing that get a bit of wire or something all right engine bars and you oh you got water on one side and fuel on the other they better not get those mixed up no you're going to pull up next to fire all right who's next he's got 250. he's this guy here coming in here okay what's your name Jake Jake all right Jake come and show us because we've done oh I'm excited already what this Jake yep aftermarket light no all right go through it for us if you bought one of these yeah first thing you need to do is delete the soap all right delete the seat get the aftermarket straight up yeah okay got the bars yeah you got the heated grips GPS system up front yeah USB stickier hang on let's come behind you Jake let's have a look you go there and I'll just get this cockpit all right you got your TomTom there all right got us Oxford heated grips yeah put your phone in the Air charger up yep soft seat beautiful got these you've got a real system oh oh they just pop off so when you get to Camp you just do that so you can oh mate don't don't buy people don't do another one but that's amazing they're rum got the toolkit there oh yeah yeah up under there I don't know if you can see it but there's spare fuel up under there and I'll just have a look up your rear end all right yeah you can see it but yeah yeah I got it I got it and this is pretty light this stuff and you've got all your heavy [ __ ] down like I got the clothes in there got the camp gear in this one and the food and this side so yeah so I keep saying that to our new adventurers because you keep your heavy [ __ ] low and forward and your lights [ __ ] up the top yeah all righty I think that looks good I'm very impressed but that light guy's got me what else you got oh it's just an aftermarket engine temp guy do you really need that do you really need that that's this point those big balls yeah what's he done with the spring rates oh yeah what have you done with the spring rates here you've got it oh he's very quiet very quiet he hasn't touched it no they are soft but what do you do when you get to a dip 120. you just lean back and hold on I'm just gonna yeah I'm concerned he goes for this little bit of bling and yeah but anyway it looks good it'll happen it's all in a process it's a process development process make those engine crash bars good they would have been handy for me the other day yeah would hurt with some Highway pigs Highway pigs Easy Rider yeah going down the highway well with the suspension like that you're probably like a chopper anyway so mate yeah I only just got me lost motorbike license about two weeks ago oh yeah I'm on the Hills I'm on your else not displaying them and dear old Dad's here no no that's not my dad oh they told me that was your father he's my uncle all right this is your uncle is he your brother from another mother family yeah very close oh God we'll leave that alone those kiwis will be jumping up and down oh God no sheep jokes all right who's next he's got this African twin Big L all right all right tell me about the I just bought it 15 000 K's on it when I got it mate how much did this 15-man tent cost oh that's me swag all right mate that seems like a lot of luxury what's that pop out and it's got a pool room in it crikey's holy Smoky but it's not heavy bulky yeah okay what you got a deck chair that looks like it's from the Titanic yep mate that is huge and uh anything else so it's some crash bars anything else or you're a standard oh no look at this light Mark yeah that was that one thing I've done was change the seat on it all right okay to see what'd you do with the seat what sort of seat did you get to Bagster there's supposed to be a gel seat all right pretty hard I won't touch your nutsack that's all right that's good right so you're another guy who's just looked around the internet saw a bike that was all set up and said I'll have that yeah well I ride a Harley and I was coming with these boys on the trip so I'll get myself a adventure bike and yep mate now you got to tell me what's better a Harley or an adventure bike now if you answer this wrong I'll punch you in the face kill me kill me all right all right so who's got the Prototype new Transit up is it cool this is it the new bike it's going to be in October this is where it all begins remember we said that that's why we're here all right sorry mate what's your name Ian Ian so how long have you had this bike uh three or four years all right did you do a similar thing pick it up I just bought it off a local bloke that had it yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah looks like you've already crashed today fell over in the Gateway all right was that with a helmet on or without a helmet I wasn't even on it all right that's a dangerous crap hang on Danny you're tripping on his mate's chair and hit a gate all right well potentially rum was it yeah so mate what's your uh so what's your gear what what they're like packing cases what are they I don't know they're actually Germans Jeremy he made them and I only had toolboxes right soft tool boxes yeah they suck up all the water yeah so I made a frame and put them on and he uses his so your frame's lasting your frame's holding up seems to be oh it's good yeah Hondas you never have to tow you've got to go with a few other brands to get the tablet rope out yeah so how many are they going to sell are these in the next five years as a new model no no it's a new adventure bike new Honda's coming in October that's what it'll be it's a new transaction that's why that's why that's the same as that I don't reckon they will I think I agree with you and what scares me is they're going to make a new bloody Trends out the same as the old Transit if they do that and like like I said before grave man to attempt to go anywhere near Sand or yes exactly just chops in straight away yeah Ian how's it going there on these gravel roads though the open Gravel Road it's pretty good pretty good yeah as long as you don't hit a rut or something the front wheel's got a tendency to to move around a fair bit but on the on the seal and that just really smooth and just go go yeah yeah really but there's a fair few ruts in Australia so mate you're on the toes a bit yeah yeah God mate well done like loose scramble or anything doesn't like that no but as long as you're in the Smooth you're you're good as gold now again I've just got one more concern did you get a wide load permit before you you came on this bike no permits all right no uh thanks for talking to us gentlemen early start after a big day yesterday Clubby never forgets anything oh look at this oh dear oh dear I wonder how long it'll take him to work that out how's it going now you I have got one dirty great big bone to pick yeah okay so last night it was about what quarter to ten the middle of nowhere between younger and broken Hill and you say push on clappy come on son we can't just lie here in the dirt we've got to get to Broken Hill yeah oh yeah yeah probably not been there 17 times yet right yeah I'm real Dave yeah if you wanted Dave oh I'm your wingman Dave I'm the man for you Dave and we get to Broken Hill last night he plonks us into the Palace Hotel home of the golden stiletto or whatever from that Mighty movie and why is he busting he's just woken me up this morning says copy we've got to get out and film now but we're here for the next three days well it's three days in broken Hill and you want to know why you know I don't know why I reckon Darcy's got a secret a deep dark inner secret if he wants to stay in broken Hill for the next three days there's only one reason and I'm going to show you what it is come on come over here come on come on come on come on come on come on look look look look oh that's secret look and what is happening for the next three days three days of drag disc on Divas this is Darcy study I won't say dirty not that there's anything wrong with that little secret and that's why he wanted to be here and this is why he's staying for the next three days so Dave what are you wearing underneath the Klein riding suit I think we should change the topic for a minute after I die so I'll do that again I think we should change the topic a bit you always pride yourself in having your [ __ ] together so what's missing it's just going to be about a specific moment at about what two past midnight last night no this is now this is completely out of your memory what do you need to ride a motorbike what haven't you got to ride a motorbike what they yeah tell me the keys you've got the key out of the door I didn't take the key out the door have I not got a helmet on me where's behind I didn't set them but yeah we're going in the front door oh I didn't take the cake out at all your helmet is in the room where where in the room put in the room do you hope you're familiar with picking locks I don't tell me we're locked out I don't have to key in the door of the room oh hang on no this will be open now oh dear oh dog are you sure last night coming back from yonta into broken Hill 200ks sitting on about 95 to 100 K's and the fuel economy just went right up so it was excellent so we've now got 500ks range on the tanks which is bloody excellent so anyway anyway let's see what to buy drinks I'm gonna try to get out and wait High warning light came on for front tire got an air pressure hose for you what we're gonna do though I'm just going to put it up on the center stand and we just have a little polite look I reckon but we want the attraction s a minute ago a bit more given yeah being on the center stand let's have a look at the fire anyway yeah let's see oh God this trip just keeps giving Clubby it is isn't it Dave it just never ends it's all about the adventure Dave please God please God let this be a false alarm come on little doggy please I'm walking I'll let you pass your Eagle Eye over this Clubby eye could be prophetic Captain what have you seen anything ah my thumb test is mate that we're within one and a half PSI of what you arrive with seven minutes ago so it's going down you reckon no I don't reckon it's going down there okay I think it's with intolerance as well you may feel yours sorry what was the question give me a feel of yours Springwell County or I'm not getting anything out for you to feel here mate come on again it should have been broken him yeah you give you a thumb test because I don't know mine is harder is it always but only marginally right nice it's that same softer to me you're talking on
2022-10-28 23:58