Offroad & Enduro

Offroad & Enduro

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Discovering the world away from the tarmac - that is wat Offroad is all about. Altough possibilities for Green Laning are deminishing here in Western Europe there are always new parts to explore. More often than you think you can find these 'new lands' rather close to home. It's the 'Adventure just around the corner'. What do you think of riding offroad around the city of Berlin, offroad riding in Northern France or Meckelnburg? Just read the reports through the links underneath! Exploring the countryside near your own home will let you ride for hours! More extreme? Just join the X Track Enduro!

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What does it take

People often ask newsgroups what to take on an offroad daytour. Here I present a list with the most important stuff. The list was intentionally made for an LC4 - just check the sizes it you ride a differnt machine.

Andrea Mayer during the XTrack 99
8/10 spanners
10/13 spanners
13/17 spanners
multi screw driver with 2 sizes regular and two philipshead, hex 6 and 8
#5 nut and hex tool
#6 nut and hex tool
small wrench
cutter
combination spanners sizes 17/21/27/32
rubber bands (cut off old tubes)
tie-wraps in several sizes
several bolts and small pieces eg. fork bridge clamps, seat fixing bolt, bolts to keep the plastics in place, crank bolts, chain separator, 2 chain clamps, spare chain joints
piece of rag
wire
sparkplug in canister
sparkplug tool

inner tube 19" (fits in front as well in rear - you won't find a tyre bigger than 110/90-19", MX bikes use narrow rear tyres)
2 or 3 small tyre irons
capsules with pressurized air (2 needed for the front, 3 for the rear tyre
to inflate) or handpump
5 metre tie-down to tow or whatever

CamelBak and powerfood
Ordonnance survey maps
This list is partly taken from the SOMMER LC4 Special

If you plan to take a ride of a few days you'll have to take cooking and sleeping gear as well. The pack page provides you with a list for the long haul. A guide for changing a tube or tyre is on a differnt page.

Preparing the suspension of your bike you can use the informations on the page on this topic. Good Luck!

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'Offroad Code' - offroad riding using your common sense

Open areas - some people still call it 'nature' - get used more and more intense by hikers, equestrians, mountainbikers and offroad motorcycles. In a lot of countries offroad motorsports has to face an ever growing number of restrictions. The recreational use of combustion engines is put in line with acid rain, the extinction of species and lots of noise. This confrontation between outdoor recreational sports in fact is non constructive as described in articles on the 'CODEVER' - a movement which goal it is to preserve offroad riding on non paved tracks and roads. I believe that if outdoor people will not be able to respect each others activities the non organized offroad riding and green laning will soon come to an end - and that's the worst thing to happen! It is not only important to inform our 'opponents' - Green Laners should also behave in such a way that they earn respect tehmselves.

Offroad Lane

The 'survival strategy' for Green Landers and offroads could be this:

Be sure your bike is prepared well - vehicle and insurance registration, right exhaust (dB) and tyres, lights and a rear view mirror;
Plan your tour in advance - ordonnance survey maps of a scale of 1/50 000 are practical. Good planning prevents you from getting lost (annoying for yourself) and riding around searching (annoying for bystanders);
Respect people and animals you encounter on your trip - shut off your engine when encountering horses or pass them on the opposite side of the track - slow down for hikers and bicyclists - watch children very carefully - be polite to other people;
Only ride existing tracks and paths - respect protected areas like National Parks and closed roads;
Ride whenever possible in small packs - this is less 'intimidating' and you don't get too much dust to eat.

Difficult?

Those who want to read more on this topic can follow these links:

Happy Green Laning!

Six Days Granada The offroad community has recently started to work seriously on organizing events in an environmentally responsible manner. On behalf of the 75th edition of the ISDE the Spanish motorcycle federation created budget for local environmentalists to aid making the right choice for the Six Days specials. In France David Castera and others started the Trophee National Cross Country as a follower of the American Grand National Cross Country. This event is a tough enduro match with MX style parts in the race and is to be ridden on a well planned track. This way possible environmental problems can be well managed. Besides the event becomes attractive to sponsors.

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