Sand riding for motorcycle touring





A lot of motorcycle tourers will probably think this article has absolutely no bearing on them. Those who ride the Honda VFR1400 or BMW R1200RT might think they will never encounter a sandy road...But the problem is, you never know when the road runs out.

I have been in a few situations with a fully loaded BMW R1150RT where I have sorely wished and prayed that my off-road motorcycling skills were better. Fortunately, my dad had done quite a few adventure trips and always spoke to me about the difficult parts, thus imparting some priceless wisdom. The fact is, you can get a fully loaded road-tourer through some nasty patches. Even if the back wheel is sliding all over the place, that does not me you have to let your motorcycle fall.

 
One of the first tips you'll get from anyone touring a lot of rough roads, is to let your tires down. This could make the difference between a great day's fun biking on a challenging track, and having a hellish encounter with a monster road. This will take some experimentation, and depends on how heavily you've laden your motorcycle and how rough or sandy the track is, but many riders even drop their pressure to well below 1 bar. Of course, you have to have some means of pumping them up again when you get to the end of your off-road adventure. Take note though, by doing this you increase the tire's contact with the surface, which means it's going to get hotter, wear quicker and get punctures more easily.
 
Once you've let out the tires to tackle the adventure motorcycling part of your journey, you're still going to need some technique to get to the other side. If your motorcycle touring has so far taken place purely on tarred roads, you're obviously not used to a surface which actually moves when you travel over it. This implies a rather different approach to cornering than comes naturally on tar. Most importantly, it's just common sense not to take fast corners on sand or dirt when you haven't had tons of experience. You want your motorcycle to remain as upright as possible, not leaning over as you'll do on a mountain. Advanced riders recommend putting your weight on the outside peg as you get through the corner, which is something you can experiment with.
 
The single most important aspect though - as someone who does about 80% of his motorcycling on and 20% off the tar - is throttle control. Often, the dirt I encounter is only a fairly short stretch, and I really don't want to bother deflate my tires. All I want sometimes is to get through and throw my motorcycle down the beautiful highway again...With good throttle control, you'll be able to get even a heavy tourer through sandy stretches without having to get someone to help you pick up the bike.
 
The principle is basically this: When you're in trouble, open up the throttle. You will be riding in a reasonable gear - I like sticking to third on my BMW (going down to second on slower parts, of course), only going up to fourth on a really nice stretch of dirt. You don't want to jerk the throttle, just roll on the power nicely when you feel your back wheel starting to snake out. This will allow you to keep the front wheel on track, which is what you need to maintain control. Once you really get comfortable with this simple technique, you would be surprised where even a heavy motorcycle tourer can go. Take this guy, for example:

 

Update


There is something you can do to increase your off-road pleasure even before you turn off the tarmac, and even before getting on the tarmac. As any adventure rider eventually finds out, it's about three things: weight, weight and more weight. I can guarantee you that you're overpacking most of the time, because it doesn't matter all that much on the freeway. If you're only on dirt and sand for 20% of the time, you might think you can just cope with it when you get there.Every gram will count. Cut your toothbrush in half. Take a plastic spork, and let your Leatherman double as an eating utensil. Only take half a small tube of toothpaste. Throw out half the underpants and socks you have packed. Throw out half your T-shirts. Seriously, you can rinse out dirty ones, hang them for the night, and ride them dry in minutes at high speed. In deep sand, you'll be wishing you threw out more even after all this. Oh, and try to pack as much of the weight in front of the back axle. If you overpack, you will end up like this: