[TrevorMember]

Looks good Nick. What dates are you talking about then?

Which bike are you taking? Camping so I assume the Tenere?
Where will you camp then ?

[TrevorMember]

Back at work and trying to find time to update this report…. Priorities. Priorities…

The tyres are a really good thing.
Mitas E09 Dakar. The yellow stripe signifies they are as tuff as buggery.

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Brand new

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Brand new

I did 1000km on the wet bitumen highway (and I mean really wet) and felt solid and planted all the way. Speeds varied generally 110-120km an hour but there were bursts (on private bitumen roads on the way out there?) that we sat on 140km/hr for some time. The tyres felt good at speed and balanced and very little vibration or anything.
When on the black top I ran 31psi in the back and 28psi in the front. I weigh 100kg loaded up in gear and probably carried another 25 or 30 kilos or so of camping and bits and pieces.
The tyres were still basically brand new at this point. Still had the little rubber sprigs present just about everywhere.

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After 1000km wet bitumen

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After 1000km wet bitumen

Then we hit the dirt and did about 550 km of sandy dirt roads. The speeds are roughly 100-110km hr. Tyres performed well. The odd soft sandy bit was gobbled up and spat out the rear of the dakar with ease. Front seemed stable and we hit 130-140km an hour on some of the straight sections. Roads had just been graded and man was it fun…Tyre pressures had been reduced to 22psi front and 25psi rear to give a bit bigger footprint in the soft stuff. Didn’t want to go too low. Worried a bit about punctures from sharp rocks though really all the way to the corner is reasonably good, maybe just a few sections for a km or two where you had to beware the rocks…
Could have driven a hyundai to the corner if you were game.

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At the corner after 550km dirt still looking good

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At the corner after 550km dirt still looking good

Then we went North to Noocundra to find the bitumen in the easiest way possible. Bike issues unfortunately.
Trying to keep this thread just about the tyres.
The road was fast and gravelly. The dust from the other bikes was a bit of a hassle and you couldn’t sit too close or you wouldn’t see the odd rock prop up and launch you airborne.
The gravel is sharp and treacherous in sections. Sandy deep and soft in others.
This section is 240km in distance or so and I loved it. The road has sections of deep bulldust as well.I was in the zone 110km an hour and everything was ticking over perfectly. The speed was awesome. Bike was running like a dream and I was staring at the ground in front dodging the sharp tennis ball sized rocks that seemed intent on bringing you to an abrupt halt.
Bit of a self indulgent blurb here but this was the highlight of my trip. I have never felt so good and comfortable on a bike. Out in front. No dust and complete. COMPLETE. confidence in the bike and tyre combo. Felt like I could have ridden all day.

Now, I gotta say, I hit some of those sharp bastard rocks at high speed with the full brunt of a loaded BMW Dakar. The front wheel had a heavy duty tube (so did the back) and each time I hit one of these rocks (there were several) I thought it was all over red rover. Not so. Thankfully, the bike trundled on unscathed and in defiance of its surroundings. I was enjoying it all so much…Thats why we ride I guess. For those moments?

The knobs didn’t get ripped off. The tyres still looked great at the end of the gravelly sandy snotty fast section.

OK, getting close to the end. After the gravel came bitumen. Glorious smooth and safe and grippy bitumen.
I did another 1200km or so of bitumen to get home. The road was now dry and I just wanted to get home. I stank like a bastard and the little niggly mechanical issues associated with the trip and travelling with two complete and utter bastards (my best mates) had worn me out. Noccundra, Cunnamulla, St George,Gonndiwindi, Tenterfield, Drake, Lismore Home. I had a warm and welcoming bed to get back to…
The road is good and there is no traffic. I was punting along for a lot of the way. There was a private section of road (about 300km long) where I sat on 150km an hour for a solid two hours. Surely this would destroy the tyre. It should be ripping shreds from it and wearing it down to the canvas (if thats what the tyres have inside them – I sure as hell don’t reckon I will ever see that part of the tyres).
They were hot (the tyres) when I stopped, held my gloved hands on the rear for warmth for a few minutes…

I washed the bike today and they still look good.

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after the bitumen, Sand, Gravel and then more bitumen. Up to about 3000km all up. Maybe a few hundred more than that.

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after the bitumen, Sand, Gravel and then more bitumen. Up to about 3000km all up. Maybe a few hundred more than that.

They are in very good condition. The high speed did touch them up a bit but they are still maybe 90%

I cannot recommend them highly enough.
They cost me $325 for the pair fitted at Bikeworx in Lismore. It cost extra for Heavy duty tubes – less than $30 each installed. They did hit me for $25 freight but what the hell. Money well spent.

My mate on the VStrom tried the Mitas E10 version front and rear (more than $500 fitted tubeless?) but they have a pretty good flat spot in the rear tyre. He did all the same road work as me but not the high speed section at the end. He actually babied his a bit trying to conserve tread and $$$$

Other Dakar on the trip had a second hand E09 rear that came with the bike. Similar story to my experience with his tyres. Not much change in the tyre in 3000km….

I have no affiliations with Mitas. I figure these tyres will last me another 3000km easy. depending on the speeds travelled of course.
If you used them just on dirt they would last forever….

Happy Days. I will be using the same tyres when I traverse Australia East to West one day…I can dream can’t I ?

[TrevorMember]

On the blacktop well and truly. The Dakar just eats up the k’s and is very comfy. Not many cars and the speed limit seems to be whatever your comfortable with. Tyres still in great shape. Done 2700km now and they are still 95% IMO.
Judge for yourself.
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Here’s some random photos while I wait for my burger.

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More when I hit a real computer. Gotta love this travel on a bike thing. Great experience. Get out there guys. Go the Dakar.

[TrevorMember]

Spent the night at st George. hot shower and a pub feed. my bikes been going well. other Dakar had a few little issues. I’ll try and load a few photos. gotta be a bush mechanic out here.

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Fuel filter possible cause of bike running like crap. No power above 3000rpm.

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Sprocket and hub came clear of the rubber coosh drive and started wearing through the swingarm. How thick did the Germans make that swingarm metal?

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Rats nest. How good is the wire in that dog proof fence ?

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That’s all I have time for.
More later.

[TrevorMember]

Made it back to the bitumen. Been a very busy couple of days. Wanaaring.tibooburra.Cameron corner.break down 3 different ways. Few small offs. Sandy tracks and campfire. Headed north to noccundra then cunnamulla. Having a feed now. Photos and update later.

[TrevorMember]

Ok. Bourke is blue sky and not a cloud in sight. We’ll give it a real crack today.
Figured out it takes us an hour and a half to get our Shit together in the mornings. And that’s staying at a motel. Imagine camping in the mud and rain and trying to load peannniers. How good are those motel hair dryers ? Not for the hair style…..boots gloves and jock dry. Worth the money just for that.
Be back in contact when I get signal. Happy days.

[TrevorMember]

Well another day in a wet saddle.300kms roughly collarenebri to bourke. All in the rain. Made it here and stopped in at the cop station they advised it was pretty wet on the track. They rang wanaaring and confirmed they had some fuel but said it had rained out there…. we’re camped up at a motel in bourke hoping for clearing weather tomorrow. Eternal optimists hey. We had a little test down near the river bank this arv to see how the bikes would handle a bit of rough. The two dakars ate awesome. The V strom went maybe 5 metres off the road before its front wheel choked up with mud and the front locked up completely. Mmmm. We may be in trouble here. What a laugh. The Dakar has a brace in between the front forks leaving maybe 20mm clearance between the tire and the brace limiting the build up of mud. Good thing. Here’s a few photos. Hard to put them in order off my phone.

We are loving this trip. Meeting some real characters. What a great country we live in. Wouldn’t be dead for quids. We’ll find a way to the corner somehow…alternate routes will be sorted at the bowls club Chinese tonight. Need to hydrate a bit. Apparently beer is made of mostly water….
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Jamie used his fuel can .150km an hour chews fuel fast…

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Bourke wharf. Bit of site seeing. Too wet for much else.

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Muddy v strom wheel.

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Scrape that mudguard out.

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Mites e09 after 1000km. I am impressed.

[TrevorMember]

Well, that was a big day. The first 350km was in solid drizzle. Brand new knobbies on a shiny wet road. We were all totally soaked through. Heated hand grips worked great till my gloves were soaked through. It was miserable but still fun to be headed west finally. After Glenn innes and inversely the weathered eased up and the road became dry. Never been so glad to dry out. made it another 300km all the way to collarenebri where we had planned to get fuel. Servo closed 6months ago apparently. We managed to get fuel from a guy at the pub but the bar was just too attractive.5pm and they had rooms out the back. Bikes in storage. Hot shower. Huge steak and some bourbon/rum and we are off to bed. Tomorrow looks like more rain. Get to burke maybe 10am and see if the roads passable to the corner.
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me happy it stopped raining.

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Biggest steak ever

Bikes running great. Tyres still have tiny little rubber sprigs on them still after 700km they still look brand new.
Dakar is getting 23.5 km to the litre which means about 400 km max from a tank.

All good so far. Happy days.

[TrevorMember]

Well, here we are in tenterfield.wet and cold.2 hours in rain. Other guys tipped water out of their boots. I’m not as wet as them. Heading west now. Hope the rain eases up. Out come the dishwasher gloves to try and keep warm my wet hands in wet gloves.

[TrevorMember]

All right heres a couple of photos of the bike loaded up.
Spent the day on it. How much fun is that.
I reckon the preparation is sometimes one of the best parts of a trip.

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Not sure about the fuel bottles on the back? They might bounce around a bit.
One for fuel the other for water. There will be some better straps before morning. Oil has to fit in there somewhere too.
Should have got some more straps from Andy Straps. Bugger….

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Lets see what these tyres look like in 3000km. About 1000km bitumen. 1000km dirt and then another 1000km bitumen home.
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6 am departure. Lets hope theres no rain. Apparently up through tenterfield was -5 degrees this morning. Go the heated hand grips….

[TrevorMember]

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Just testing to see if I can post off my phone.

[TrevorMember]

Thanks guys. There are so many choices out there.
Anyone suggest a good tyre shop in Bourke to get some nobbies fitted?
I know I could buy them at Suttos but that means carting them out on the back of my bike?
I want to use up the Anakees that are on the bike now on the bitumen….

[TrevorMember]

Thats awesome news. 25000 km? Thats a shitload of travelling….Hard to imagine they could last that long. Thanks for the advice.

[TrevorMember]

Hey Lotsa
We’ll keep an eye out for you too though you may be coming the opposite direction? You’ll be on the way home while we are still heading out to the corner I think…..

[TrevorMember]

There might be a few guys out there then.
A couple of mates and I are heading to the corner from Ballina (Northern NSW) on the same weekend.
We are hoping to get close to Bourke the Sunday evening and then head off Monday morning towards the corner.
Hoping to camp somewhere on the way to the corner Monday night perhaps then hit the corner Tuesday before turning around and coming back.
We are on two BMW 650 gs dakars and a Vstrom.

Can anyone suggest a good camp spot between Bourke and the corner where we can have a camp fire?
Is it a good place to camp at the corner itself?

Many thanks

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