this post was submitted on 11 Dec 2023

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Do you wanna go camping? (sh.itjust.works)

submitted 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) by ratman150 to c/[email protected]

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This was basically my birthday present to myself. Drag my friend on his newly running ninja250 and my fiance to a campsite in cold weather. It was awesome and I can't wait to try moto camping again.

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[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago (1 children)

"Do you want to go camping?"

Yes, any time it's pleasantly warm and I can disappear into the mountains or desert for a few days, away from signs of civilization.

This was in september: https://i.imgur.com/d8GR02U.jpeg

Anywho, well done on doing your first trip! How did the others you brought along find it?

[–] ratman150 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Man that would be a fun place to visit lol.

Ninja guy hadn't ridden in years and this was only the second time riding that bike as I just went through the carbs and several other things for him. We basically supported him and he was fine overall.

Scooter girl (fiance) was a smidge cold but had a lot of fun. Her scoot has a TON of space for gear and she ended up hauling most of it....she did suffer a 3 inch nail to the rear tire but somehow it was just through the tread (see picture)...this did cause us to abandon the second leg of our trip but that was okay with us.

The klr of course had the battery cover fall off right before the trip but after stuffing a rag in the battery box to keep everything secure it was totally fine. I am happy to say I brought a bunch of tools for nothing:)

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Lucky escape with that nail! Does your extensive tool kit include a set of puncture worm thingies?

Sounds like a good go at adventure, though if you have a KLR there's no excuse for having someone else carry all the stuff, those things are pack mules!

[–] ratman150 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

The original plan was the klr was gonna haul most of the gear but....more stuff kept fitting in the scoot lol.

No I do not (yet) have a tire plug set. I need to get more practice doing my own tire work as well because if the KLR gets a flat I have to replace a tube but if the scoot gets a flat it might just be a plug.

Most of my tools are literally for working on critical engine stuff and I had decided before the trip that tires can be left to a tow truck lol. I do hope to soon be able to do roadside tire changes if needed though, just gotta get a center stand for my bike.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Doing plugs is super easy, but not a permanent fix ... for me they've only ever lasted about 1000km (but then a permanent plug put in by a tire shop can be found).

Changing tubes is a PITA, it requires practice and the right tools. I made my own trail stand and combination tire lever / wrench set because the off-the-shelf parts are expensive. So far I've only used it at home, but it only has to be needed once in the middle of nowhere to be worth it!

[–] ratman150 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Yeah so far I've only ever done a tubeless tire myself once and a tubed tire (the wrongest way possible) about 10 years ago and it took 8 hours with two people.

I now have more tire related tools but am still very intimidated by the future job.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

First time is 8 hours, second time 2, third can be 45 mins. I wouldn't worry about changing tubeless tires though, for me that's worth paying someone 20€, lol

[–] ratman150 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

My issue is not that I do/don't mind paying someone it's that shops keep closing and prices keep going up. I think last time I asked around I got a reply for $75 to mount a single tire.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Ah ok, yeah that's mental

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I was quoted somewhere around $300 for an unusual specialty tire a year ago. I only found out during the payment that they tacked on $140 for the labor. I paid, but I will never go back.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

That's absolutely crazy, here even a main dealer wouldn't charge more than 30€ for fitting (not counting weirdness with pressure sensors, mooses, tubeliss, or stuff like that). Well, maybe Ducati would charge more, but they have a reputation to uphold.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Yeah. I was new in the area and funnily enough they are a licensed Ducati mechanic. They were well recommended by my coworker.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Well, anything that has the name Ducati attached is automatically priced to put off the plebs

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

Dat trees got them thicc currrves.

[–] ratman150 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Wouldn't be surprised if it was trained that way given it's location.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Kinda cool... It matches the road

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I thought the jacket on the ground was someone laying face down on the asphalt.

[–] ratman150 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Fortunately no, more of a last minute photo before packing up.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Where was this? It looks quite warm.

[–] ratman150 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Eisenhower State Park in Denison Texas (Lake Texoma)

Very much depends on your definition of warm I think it got to the mid thirties on the ride out there.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Oh. Well no. 30s on a long ride is definitely not warm.

I hope you have heated gear!

[–] ratman150 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Hahaaa....no I used to have some awesome gloves but those seemed to grow legs years ago. I've been considering heated gear but I don't have a lot of excess power on the klr to run it and I'm also not entirely sure how much power the scooter has as I could never find a rating for the stator.

I have seen some cool new gear that can run on either battery or your 12v and maybe when I have some free budget I'll get some of that.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I've never felt the need for a heated vest, but hotwired glove inserts are keeping me alive riding in the winter. And they don't take much power. I run them on my '99 F650.

[–] ratman150 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I assume you mean a BMW not the Ford f650 lol.

Yeah my core doesn't generally get cold but definitely the extremities.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Yeah, i haven't had to tow a house yet.

[–] ratman150 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Oh come on these days it's the bare minimum grocery getter.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Without one nobody knows I'm actually a man.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Subscribing to this comm may have been a mistake. I miss motorcycle camping greatly. Hope you had a fun time.

[–] ratman150 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

This was my first time moto camping and I'm very eager to try it again with some improvements. I'm kinda hoping to start a local riding group that gets people of any skill out there with their bikes and doing little adv trips.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Good for you. Honestly one of the things that clears my head the most is moto camping for a few weeks. There is something about it that is just different

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

Honestly you have no idea how much I need this. Riding South in the winter is what I need right now. Preferably for about 3 or 4 thousand miles.