Our good friend from this forum, Paul Newbold (XPAG6259) is off having the adventure of a lifetime,
attempting to ride from Athens to Vladiavostoc on a 34L Tenere, along with 3 of his good mates.
For a thrilling read I suggest you start following their epic journey.

To refresh your memory you can read about the rebuild/restore here.....

And a shakedown ride we took in Victoria earlier this year.......

He is carrying a SPOTWALLA satellite tracking device that transmits and maps his journey in almost real time (10 min delay).
Hit the link to the tracker and increase the history to a week or more and you can see the track they have taken. Zoom in or out as appropriate!

Paul is also writing a blog that is very intermittent because of patchy internet access in the "stans".
But it is developing into a very exciting epistle.

The real adventure is just unfolding as they battle sand, heat, food poisoning, incorrect visa's etc.

So when we going Dave?

M.

Far out......
They have just ridden over a mountain pass at an elevation of 4,400 meters.
That's 13,640 feet!! Bikes must be struggling for oxygen.

Mezo wrote:So when we going Dave?

M.

After reading that blog theres no way on earth i could tackle that trip.

M.

Brilliant,had a look last night....one thought I did have after seeing the pic of tenere on its side in sand was ditch carrying stuff high up on back of bike,I had a moment in Croatia resulting in a comedy crash which I realy shouldn't of had...my bike handled and steered like a pig in sand or gravel with a top box,ditched it and bike transformed totaly

Wowwwww
Have you noticed the "blue" can on that 34L??????
Fantastic tripp!!!!!!

G'day all,

The old Tenere did the job! About 22,000km. Its not as pretty as it was 3 months ago, but there again, none of us are. Mezo, the hardest part of the trip was getting to the airport. Once the mind has been made up, its a case of arranging all the stuff that needs to be done. It was 2 years of planning and bike building that wasn't done as well as it should have. I ran out of time towards the deadline and only managed one dirt ride with ActionMan and BernieBoy, which was great, but didn't come close to the sandy/muddy/bulldusty/loose gravel crap we had to deal with. I quickly realised that although the Tenere was a great dirt bike, I wasn't a great dirt bike rider. I'll whack some pics up here when I get the other guy's pics.

In retrospect, a new or newish DR650 may have been a better proposition. My engine and suspension was equal or better than theirs. Seat much better. I took along an Airhawk, but new resorted to it. The Tenere's brakes were crap. New kits in the caliper and M/C, braided line, but it was still really wooden. The plastic tanks on the DRs held around 34l and held it lower than the Tenere. The Tenere got around 22l per litre, the DRs 20l or a smidge below.

So when it returns from Vladivostok in mid September, I'll get the frame checked for straightness, forks straightened, new switch gear, probably throw a gasket kits at the engine, a few small parts (springs and rollers), paint touch up and then work out what I can do about a tanks full of loose baffles.

and thanks Dave for the posting our little adventure.

paul

xpag6259 wrote: I quickly realised that although the Tenere was a great dirt bike, I wasn't a great dirt bike rider.

Seat much better.

The Tenere's brakes were crap.

The plastic tanks on the DRs held around 34l and held it lower than the Tenere.

Thanks for the update Paul, glad you had a safe journey.

Did you do moto cross as a kid Paul?

Yep seats are crap on DR`s

And the Safari`s are a must for the DR650.

Look forward to your pics mate.

Mezo.

xpag6259 wrote:G'day all,

The old Tenere did the job! About 22,000km. Its not as pretty as it was 3 months ago, but there again, none of us are.

paul

Paul, welcome back. Fantastic trip, and great to follow (I knew my motor would make it!!!!). We'll catch up soon. Well done