Going Small 2.0: Lightweight Touring All Over Again

By Andrew Pain

Following up the successful Going Small, Andrew Pain is back with Going Small 2.0 - a more in depth look at traveling on small motorcycles. Going beyond what to pack, he covers his philosophy on packing, budgeting, and traveling the roads of the world on a motorcycle most people would dismiss for overland travel. Included with Going Small 2.0 is Ten Things You Should Know Before Buying an Adventure Motorcycle.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Andrew Pain
• Release date: Dec 27, 2013
• ISBN: 9781310039621

Andrew Pain

After working as a Paramedic and riding a motorcycle around part of the world, Andrew Pain is now turning to another of his passions, and writing.

Book preview

Going Small 2.0

Lightweight Motorcycle All Over Again

Smashwords Edition

By

Andrew Pain

Copyright 2013 Andrew Pain

ISBN 9781310039621

Choosing Small

If you want to succeed you should strike out on new paths, rather than travel the worn paths of accepted success. - John D. Rockefeller

What is a Small Motorcycle?

When I think of a small motorcycle, which is to say what I mean when I write about small motorcycles through this whole book, is a something under 400ccs. Personally, I think anything over 250ccs is overkill, but will admit Suzukis DR350, the motorcycle used in Austin Vinces epic Mondo Enduro, worked just as well. Since the DR is an off road motorcycle it was geared differently, and the larger engine did give them more speed on the open stretches.

I am aware that most people think traveling on such a small motorcycle is impractical. I disagree, but this book isnt intended to argue the point. Especially here in the United States there is pressure to always buy the bigger one. Its led to large houses, large TVs, and large motorcycles. If you have a bigger bike and want to ride it, then I dont, in any way, want to discourage you. Go places.

While I am actively promoting small motorcycles with this edition of Going Small, there may be some knowledge here that will help the big bike rider. Small motorcycles encourage lighter packing and more attention when riding. Traveling small means finding quieter roads and less expensive options. These things are helpful for anyone who travels, whether its for a weekend or a year.

The big bike rider will have to forgive, then, the occasional jibes I take at the behemoth he or she chooses to ride. Dont worry, I will still stop to help you pick it up when it falls over.

Why I Choose a Small Motorcycle.

In 2009 when I started to plan my Americas ride, I decided right away that I wasnt going to buy a new motorcycle for the trip. At the time I owned four bikes (2 xs1100s, a Ural Patrol, and an sr250), all of which I had already used for long trips inside the United States. The idea of buying a new motorcycle seemed a waste of money. I went to the Horizons Unlimited forum for which bike? advice (there are dozens of such threads going on at any one time) to see if anyone had an opinion.

There were a lot of opinions, of course. My Ural was a popular choice, and I had to admit I liked the rugged simplicity of it. It was also very heavy and expensive to ride, getting (at best) about 30mpg and with a very short service interval. I used it on a test trip and was distressed over the amount of fuel I needed. The Ural was also my winter transport (I didnt own a car, and getting around on two wheels during Winter in the Midwest involved more crashing than I liked), and in the spring usually had several problems, ranging from minor to severe, that needed to be repaired before being road-worthy. The Ural was expensive too, so in the event of serious damage or mechanical failure leaving it behind and flying home wasnt really an option.

The xs1100s had been my primary means of travel for years. I had close to 200,000 miles on the two bikes, and had a full dress version with locking luggage. They were heavy, and with four cylinders and four carburetors (which took more than an hour to remove) mechanically complicated. I was very familiar with them, though, and they were tempting.

But the advice I received overwhelmingly was to take as small and light of a motorcycle as I could. There were five such responses for every one suggesting one of the other motorcycles mentioned. So, I looked at the sr250

Yamahas Exciter 250 is the street version of the XT. It was only available in the United States for two years, 1980 and 1981. With a standard seating position and electric start, it would probably be called a starter bike, and mine has been compared to Hondas Rebel, though the Exciter only has one cylinder. Its curb weight is under 300lbs and unloaded I would get close to 80mpg. My first motorcycle had been an sr250, and I had traveled all over the United States on it before getting a bigger motorcycle.

I decided to exercise some practicality, and looked at