[Axe77]

Originally Posted by mobike008

We too heard of Big Big Tours. But, they are at least 2-3 times more expensive. I planned the ride myself and did it quite economically.

So were you escorted at all or just self planning and riding on rented bikes. I just like the comfort of someone else pre planning everything and taking the headache too of issues and support along the way. Basically an escorted tour format. If you also managed a cheaper escorted tour I'd be interested in any references.

Cheers and good luck with your 2018 riding plans. It's great to read these travelogue / ownership blogs combined. Shows the bikes being used as they were truly meant to be.

Btw - I found those tyres on the Versys totally wicked on the BBT pics. I'm surprised more Versys owners in India aren't interested in dressing up their bikes with similar stuff.

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by Axe77

Btw - I found those tyres on the Versys totally wicked on the BBT pics. I'm surprised more Versys owners in India aren't interested in dressing up their bikes with similar stuff.

Because the heidenau tyres, which is probably what they are cost 35 grand a set here.

Go figure.

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by ethanhunt123

Avi - Where did you rent the bike from ? And how much was the rent/day ?

Please search for "Popcarrent" on facebook and add him as your friend and you can message him to block your choice of motorcycle and when you land in Chang Mai, a spanking almost new bike will be ready for you

You don't even need a license for renting the bike. They will hold your passport till you return the bike ( 1 passport per group is enough)

VStrom : 1800 Thai BAHT (INR 3600/Day)
Africa Twin : 3200 Thai BAHT (INR 6400/Day)
GS1200 I think is around 5000 BAHT

But, I highly recommend 650cc or lower powered motorcycle when doing this loop

Originally Posted by Axe77

So were you escorted at all or just self planning and riding on rented bikes. I just like the comfort of someone else pre planning everything and taking the headache too of issues and support along the way. Basically an escorted tour format. If you also managed a cheaper escorted tour I'd be interested in any references.

Btw - I found those tyres on the Versys totally wicked on the BBT pics. I'm surprised more Versys owners in India aren't interested in dressing up their bikes with similar stuff.

It is not complicated at all. I just created the loop on Google maps and chose the hotels to stay on the loop. It is as simple as that

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Because the heidenau tyres, which is probably what they are cost 35 grand a set here.

+1

35K for a pair is ridiculously high for something that will not last more than 10k kms-15k kms

Btw, those knobby tyres "look" fancy but, are not comfortable to ride on regular tarmac as they are not silent and do make a bit of sound as they are more tuned for off-road purposes

[mobike008]

Have been itching to ride ever since I came back from my winter break and finally got an opportunity to ride last Saturday

As we had planned a full day ride which not many people enjoy (I like doing these marathon rides especially after getting the Versys) and as expected only the regular riding pals from our group joined up (IDPSharma and Haseeb--Imagine he rides a speed and always ready for long distance and endurance type of rides) and this time joined by the new Ninja 1000 owner BHPian Ashroy

As usual, we started late due to one Nizami who need wake up calls and still turns up 40 minutes late

Agenda was to ride for a total of 700kms on the beautiful Nagpur highway riding almost until the beginning of the Adilabad forests and discovering a few water-falls en-route (There are 7 of them)

It was a great ride and it felt wonderful to ride the Dark Knight after a long time and it behaved even better due to a proper chain clean and lube (each time I ride after this, it feels truly wonderful as the accelaration increases quite a bit)

Entire bit of the ride was breathtaking 4-lane highway except for a 40kms deviation into to reach a small unknown waterfall where we went off-road on roads being laid kicking up dust. It was fun for me and not so much for the others...LOL!

Headed out from the meeting point in city at 7:15am and I was back home by 7:30pm in the evening fresh as a flower blooming on the mountain to host a party at home

Here are a few pictures from that ride in no particular order

[naveenroy]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Hey Naveen. I know you are comparing 3 different bikes but, I have experience of riding only 2 of them. One of them super extensively which is the Versys 650

I think you missed reading out my comparison report of the Suzuki Vstrom 650 that I rode in Thailand in August last year

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/superb...ml#post4248463

I would still pick the Versys out of the 3 shortlisted ones as it's a more complete motorcycle compared to the VStrom

I have PM'd you my contact # and happy to answer any detailed queries you may have

Yes, the 3 temptations

I hadn't read your comparison of the VStrom - thanks for the link. Looks like the Versys is indeed a very versatile bike. I am still doing my research and many thanks for the contact # - I will get in touch with you soon! Appreciate the help.

[KK_HakunaMatata]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Have been itching to ride ever since I came back from my winter break and finally got an opportunity to ride last Saturday

As we had planned a full day ride which not many people enjoy (I like doing these marathon rides especially after getting the Versys) and as expected only the regular riding pals from our group joined up (IDPSharma and Haseeb--Imagine he rides a speed and always ready for long distance and endurance type of rides) and this time joined by the new Ninja 1000 owner BHPian Ashroy

As usual, we started late due to one Nizami who need wake up calls and still turns up 40 minutes late

I still can see the bandage on your bike, not yet fixed is it?

Also nice to see IDPSharmas drone in action and drone shots.

BTW I might end up riding to Hyd on 26th for friends wedding reception, if everything goes as planned.

KK

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by naveenroy

Looks like the Versys is indeed a very versatile bike.

Oh yeah! It is indeed. As I have mentioned a few times before folks out in your part of the world are buying it more than once to replace an existing one after clocking some ridiculous miles

Originally Posted by KK_HakunaMatata

I still can see the bandage on your bike, not yet fixed is it?

I ordered the accessory from Sri which will help me move the Aux lights from the current position (from number plate) to it. But, I am not getting the time to get the work done as I might need a few hours for this job and few other things that I need to get done on the bike (Throttle Vacuum Sync, Replace the rubber as the hissing sound is back) etc

Originally Posted by KK_HakunaMatata

Also nice to see IDPSharmas drone in action and drone shots.

Those pictures are from Haseeb's drone though IDPsharma also took a few from his drone which I hope he will share here

Men and their "childish" toys

Originally Posted by KK_HakunaMatata

BTW I might end up riding to Hyd on 26th for friends wedding reception, if everything goes as planned

Welcome. I have travel plans for that weekend. If I am in town, let's catch up

[Axe77]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Because the heidenau tyres, which is probably what they are cost 35 grand a set here.

Originally Posted by mobike008

+1

35K for a pair is ridiculously high for something that will not last more than 10k kms-15k kms

Btw, those knobby tyres "look" fancy but, are not comfortable to ride on regular tarmac as they are not silent and do make a bit of sound as they are more tuned for off-road purposes

Haha - both excellent points.

Originally Posted by mobike008

Please search for "Popcarrent" on facebook and add him as your friend and you can message him to block your choice of motorcycle and when you land in Chang Mai, a spanking almost new bike will be ready for you

But, I highly recommend 650cc or lower powered motorcycle when doing this loop

Thanks for the reference. Good to know the bikes are new'ish. That's a big part of a good rental experience.

Any particular reason for 650cc or lower? Is it because the roads are not safe for bigger bikes? If I rent, I'd be keen on either a low seat versys 650 or alternately an 850 / 750 GS, bikes I'm keenly awaiting in India as well.

On a slightly unrelated note but can't think of a more apt thread to post this in - we've got a massive influx of ADVs across segments going to come in over the course of 2018 along with the numerous already here (I'm thinking new Tiger 800 range, BMW 750/850 GS twins, perhaps the V Strom 650 in the mid range, the top range of multistrada / 1200 GS new Tiger 1200 and of course numerous "entry" level ones if I can use the phrase for the 4 - 7 lakh bikes).

Perhaps we could have a comprehensive thread that provides a high level overview / first ride impressions of the entire range of ADVs from ~4 - 25 lakh range, broken by broad segments. Someone like you who's very experienced in this segment along with some other experienced member riders could perhaps undertake a review of this sort closer mid to end of the year by the time these are all in? Would be a super one stop shop reference point for ADVs.

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by Axe77

Thanks for the reference. Good to know the bikes are new'ish. That's a big part of a good rental experience.

Chaing Mai is a motorcycling hub as people from all parts of the world come to ride the loop and Pop Carrent is the leading and possibly the largest rental store there with as many as 150-200 bikes with them.

When we were renting they had bought 4-5 brand new Vstrom and a couple of Africa Twins

They are always replacing the bikes with newer versions so rest assured that new (er) bikes will be always available

Originally Posted by Axe77

Any particular reason for 650cc or lower? Is it because the roads are not safe for bigger bikes? If I rent, I'd be keen on either a low seat versys 650 or alternately an 850 / 750 GS, bikes I'm keenly awaiting in India as well.

Imagine tackling 1864 curves in 1000kms?.....Roughly one curve to tackle every 600-700 meters. Some sections are so tight that you will be coming across them every 300-400 meters

As soon as you accelerate to 80kmph-100kmph you will encounter a sharp curve which means you decelerate and downshift. This is a continous process and actually gets painful after a time along with managing the power of the 650cc and above

As I was riding with a pillion it was perfect but, according to me even 650cc would be rather powerful in those conditions. I would recommend the Honda CBX500 for solo rides on the Chang Mai Loop. At the most a 650cc but, 1000cc bikes would be just an overkill as for nearly 90% of the loop it is difficult to cross 100kmph

But, as they say power is never enough for many folks so people may not heed to this recommendation

Originally Posted by Axe77

Perhaps we could have a comprehensive thread that provides a high level overview / first ride impressions of the entire range of ADVs from ~4 - 25 lakh range, broke
n by broad segments. Someone like you who's very experienced in this segment along with some other experienced member riders could perhaps undertake a review of this sort closer mid to end of the year by the time these are all in? Would be a super one stop shop reference point for ADVs.

Thanks for the suggestion. Similar to Motorcycle News Eh? Haha!

It would be a pleasure to compare the ADV bikes for sure and rest assured I can give a brutally honest opinion of what I think of them

[mobike008]

Ever since I know that Throttle Body Sync will improve the accelaration, have been planning to get it done and it was scheduled for 10:00am last saturday. I wanted to skip the ride that morning and go directly to the Kawasaki ASC but, temptation to ride is a dangerous thing. My regular riding pals joined me for a short and fast run to Breakfast mecca of Motorycling in town-Hillpark which is a good 75kms away on the Bangalore highway

We met on time and enjoyed a hot cup of Irani Chai (Only tea I drink, otherwise I am a coffee person) and had a wonderful ride to Hillpark. That particular day was so cold (normally our winters are nothing to rave about) that even I felt little chilly for the first time this season with hands and feet getting little numb.

Overall, awesome weather to enjoy a ride and Hillpark's sumptious south indian breakfast

Straight from the ride headed to Kawasaki ASC and they promptly started the work on the bike on the following

1. Throttle Body Sync

2. Replace the stock rubber with a new rubber (not Honda Activa Fuel pipe)

3. Remove the Air Filter, Clean and Replace

4. Fit the accessory that I got from Sri to hold the aux lamps and GPS (if I wish too)

Boys at work showed me the reading of my throttle body sync which was quite off (as seen in pic). It has a left & right reading and both should be in range of 3500-3700. They corrected the reading as per the manual and trust me their a vast improvement in the accelaration. Initially it felt little dull but, now it's crisp and bike lunges forward with minimal input of throttle. I'm getting this done for the first time whereas it should have been done once every 12,000kms (Scratching my head how I missed on this task before...Perhaps due to unavailabilty of equipment, knowledge or combination of both)

Then they proceeded to fit the aux light accessory which was done in about 10-15 minutes.

Entire work was completed in 2 hours flat and I was presented with a bill wherein I was shocked to see they charged me INR 650/- for accessory fitting. 650 bucks for a 10-15 mins job. Holy mackeral! I fought tooth & nail and got them to reduce it to INR 300/-....LOL!...If I had my way, it should have been a free value add. But, those guys were helpless as the job code was already keyed in and they had limited values to choose from the computer system

Paid INR 1628/- for the above work and left the showroom a happy man!

P.S : I saw the Vulcan was on a pedestal under wraps and I forced the super reluctant sales person to unveil and show it to me (They were launching it formally that evening). On my way out saw the popular Vlogger Dino Vault doing his stuff (unboxing video). Btw, I'm not a fan of his monotonous style of diction but, his quality (definition) of videos are in general good

[Red Liner]

Throttle body Sync. I need that done too. Maybe right away. Thanks Avi.

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Throttle body Sync. I need that done too. Maybe right away. Thanks Avi.

If I recall correctly, you have done it before? Isn't it?

I'm doing it for the first time. Boy! It feels good now

Here are a few pictures taken last night while cleaning the chain and lube for yet another marathon day ride this weekend

The aux light now feels properly installed and there is no fear of them falling of due to a broken bracket or any such trivial issues as that rod is extremely strong and icing on the cake is there is space now to mount a GPS device (if, I wish too)

Cleaner frontal look now







GPS Device can be easily mounted here



Whew! That is the max I can clean a chain. Some of my riding pals clean it to the extent looks like it came out of a bucket of surf excel...LOL!

[mobike008]

One from the last weekend ride; 700kms in 15 hours (Full day ride)

[mobike008]

A few more pictures of our last weekend ride

We started from the meeting point at 7:00am and after our breakfast at our usual spot about 100kms away, we rode through the Srisailam ghats and forests and decided to do a loop and ride through more ghat sections through Atmakur and exit at Kurnool and then do the final 220kms ride through the broad 4-lane highway

Out of the 700kms, nearly 150kms was ghat sections with a series of those "smooth" speed breakers that will not allow you to accelerate beyond 100kmph as the moment you touch this speed another one springs up right in front of you which actually is a good safety mechanism

70kms before Srisailam the speed-breakers weren't that kind but, after Srisailam there is a stretch of 45kms which is simply bliss. Thick forest with multiple switchback turns to enjoy some leaning into them

As it was a decide-as-we go ride, where we made a mistake was that we should have taken a U-turn after this stretch and do the same route back (Would have been 520kms overall ride).

But, nope we brave folks decided to go ahead with the loop and it turned out to be a mistake as the next 100kms (ghat section on and off) was narrow road-mostly broken and having to get off the road to give way to opposite traffic coupled with lot of lorry traffic carrying construction equipment and this whole exercise tired us down like anything. After a certain stretch on the ghat, we stopped with no water and hungry around 2:00pm but some passerby stopped and gave us a bottle of Kinley to quench our thirst. God bless them !!

They suggested a lovely veg restaurant about 95kms ahead and we continued our ride in the hot sun to finally reach there around 4:00pm to enjoy a simple yet sumptuous thali. Whew! That was an excellent feeling but, slowed us down like anything after such a meal...LOL!

We entered Kurnool around 6:15pm and we decided to stop for some tea and both my pals spotted a Charpoy on the wall which was immediately asked to be pulled down and they jumped on it and rested on it for almost an hour

After a lot of coaxing from my side that we are getting late, they reluctantly got up and we headed out towards Hyderabad which was 220kms away and finally reached home at 10:00pm

It was a totally enjoyable ride as we rode at our own pace stopped at plenty of places to enjoy the scenery, flew drones and enjoyed each other's company to the hilt





















Mandatory foodie pic





Another small milestone



Perils of owning a naked bike for touring

[mobike008]

A fellow Versys rider and an ardent tourer Nishant has done something unique. He went ahead and plugged in a powertronics chip to his Versys 650 and seems to be quite happy with the results even though the dyno shows improvement of only 2HP at the wheel

He and his friend made a nice initial impression video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7hoUNs_pxM

I hope to test ride his bike sometime soon in near future before taking a call if I need to go for it too (As you all know, I believe in spending money on performance upgrades and hate throwing away good money on cosmetics)

Well, as an old powertronics user, I know figures don't tell you exact story but, I know it feels really different in real-time

Check my review of Powertronics on my erstwhile bull here :

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/motorb...ml#post3093560

I'm already excited. Can't wait to TR Nishtant's Versys 650