X-Challenge shakedown cruise and a night in Bainskloof.

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LuckyStriker

Bachelor Dog
Joined
Jan 24, 2006
Messages
10,160
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18
Location
Bellville
Bike
BMW G650 X-challenge
Since getting the X-Challenge I have not had much time to ride. Before this weekend it merely decorated my garage, occasionally undertaking the epic voyage to Kriges on Friday afternoons.
So this past weekend I decided to take it on a shakedown trip. It was going to be a quick 500km roundabout with lots of dirt and mountain passes, specifically Bain’s kloof Pass.

I hear it being said on the Wild Dog forum that the X-Challenge is not a Dual Sport bike so I leave with some trepidation.
According to the Nay Sayers I won’t make it to the next town because the tank is too small. Or I won’t make it because my head will blow off in the wind. Or my posterior will become so enflamed my pants will catch fire!
This trip was designed as a little test of those assertions.

I leave home at 08h00 with less than 300km on the odometer. All the riding thus far was focused on breaking in the engine: low to high revs and lots of gear shifting.
The long, fast road to Wellington is new to the bike but it runs brilliantly. The Kappa screen I got from topbox works and looks great. I cruise along at 130km/h without fearing decapitation.

I climb Bain’s Kloof pass to the old Mondi pine plantations. At the entrance I take moments to read the ‘No Entry’ sign before scuttling up the washed out track.

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The trails are great and I occasionally have to ford small streams and hop logs. The bike’s fantastic ground clearance makes short work of it. The suspension soundlessly soaks up the impacts. The only sounds I hear are the growling exhaust note and my own “Oomphs” and “uuhns” as I bounce over obstacles.


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The views over the plantation and the town of Wellington are quite spectacular. The gradients of the trails are mostly gentle but occasionally steep.


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The Hawequas mountains


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I ride various tweespoor tracks to find a good camping spot for the coming evening. Some of the tracks are overgrown and I have to elbow my way through sapling trees and bushes.


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The Metzeller Saharas are not ideal for this type of terrain. They occasional had difficulty gripping the rocky surfaces. It wasn’t really a problem though. I was just being fastidious about not leaving any spin marks behind. I didn’t want a forest ranger to discover the damages and call me a vandal.


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After finding what looked like a good spot to camp I headed back down the trails and continued my trek eastward along the pass.


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The beautiful Bain’s Kloof pass


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Doh!
The X-challenge handles brilliantly in the corners. I do believe the DR650 has quicker steering but the power to mass ratio of the X-C makes it more competitive methinks, at least against a stock-standard DR.


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Dacre’s pulpit


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Weekenders cooling off at Tweede Toll campgrounds.


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Old bridge at Mitchell’s pass

After eating a Wimpy breakfast in Ceres I headed over Gydo pass and on to the Koue Bokkeveld. The Nay Sayers will tell you that the bike has too small a fuel tank. And yet miraculously I managed to travel from Bellville over three mountain passes (including some trail riding at one of them) at slightly over the legal speed limits for 160km before refuelling. The fuel warning light came on just outside the hamlet of Op-die-Berg, which meant I still had 2litres left.
I can therefore say with certainty that the bike will do about 200km on a tank at touring speeds with some technical diversions to break the tedium.
Ad an additional 10litre fuel container and there is probably no place you can’t go.


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Sandpit next to the Rietrivier
Just before the Katbakkies pass my backside began to hurt. I managed to do over 200km before monkeybutt set in which is not bad I suppose.


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As a relief from my ailing backside I decided to try out the bike in some sand. The sandpit at the foot of the Katbakkies pass is a great place to screw around.
The bike ran the dunes with ease, even with all my luggage on the back. The tyres had no grip though and I wasted a lot of the bikes power just to keep moving.
Deflating them would have helped but I didn’t want to ride around on 1bar for the rest of the day. And it was too hot to inflate the tyres again with my little hand pump.
Tyres with a more aggressive tread should sort this out though.


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At the Springbokvlakte I took some time off for photos. The veldt is amazing with colourful lizards and plants half-hidden among the coral rock.


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The old trapkraal ruins.
I am in two minds whether I should fit handlebar risers. You certainly don’t need to stand unless the terrain is very tough, the only other time being when your arse is burning. I am a tall guy but I found standing for a few minutes comfortable enough even without risers.
An Air-Hawk might be a good investment though.


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The Perdeberg koppies along the R355 dirt highway. The geometry of the bike is well suited for dirt touring. The 21” front wheel helps to keep the bike stable at high speeds regardless of the surface. There were no nervous moments when switching ruts over the loose, accumulated sand strips.


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In Ceres I stopped for provisions and returned to Bain’s Kloof.


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Since it was still mid afternoon I decided to do a little more exploring.
Off the pass is a 4x4 route that takes you down to a narrow valley below. It is free to use but I suspect the owners may rely on your patronage when you eventually pass by their wine cellars.

I scampered down the track towards a small dam.


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At track ended at the dam so I needed to turn around. Unfortunately the road has a steep camber and my U-turn went a little wider than I hoped it would.
I trundled over some small logs until one snagged my wheel.
The bike started to topple over and I desperately tried to keep it up, to no avail.

After removing the offending piece of wood I had to untie all the luggage before I could right the bike. It was lying at a crap angle and my luggage was too heavy.
After the battle with the slope I was in desperate need of a beer. At least the bike now had its first fall and I could celebrate.

In retrospect I think I need to deflate the Air-suspension a little. 9bar is just too tall and stiff. My feet can’t simultaneously touch the ground at traffic lights and arresting a fall is nearly impossible when you have to tippy-toe off to one side.
I will experiment with lower pressure settings during the coming weeks.


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And so I returned to the plantation and sought out a shaded clearing for some rest. It would be an hour or two before the worst of the midday heat was over and I could head further up the mountain to my intended camping spot.


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Patiently waiting for the afternoon heat to pass


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After 17h00 I loaded the bike up again. At the top I had a great view of Groenberg and Paardeberg (to the left in the distance).


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The sun was now headed toward the horizon. My spot would be a narrow track that was made almost inaccessible by rockslides and fallen branches. It was the furthest up the mountain I could go with my bike and the elevation afforded me a fantastic view.

A troop of baboons barked nearby. The sentinel was calling everyone together for the approaching night. His calls sounded almost urgent and I began to wonder if he was angry at me for intruding in their territory.
I didn’t want to hassle them so I kept my activities to a minimum and rather just sat there admiring the view.


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Midges were something of a problem.
I was forced to retreat to my tent so that I could eat in peace. I stayed there until the sun reached the horizon.


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Sunset. Flocks of swallows took to the sky to catch one last meal of insects before turning in. Above them raptors slowly circled.


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When the sun finally set and the terminator moved over the horizon, the wall of cool air crept over the mountain.
Like a creeping death the cold ether rushed through the trees, pine needles whistling, branches creaking in complaint. The wind seemed to chase after the fire beyond the horizon, never to catch up.

After less than an hour the gusts passed by and the forest was silent, seemingly still in shock. It took several minutes for the owls to recover and begin their hooting and whisper quiet hunting.


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Next morning. It was a trying night. The ground was a little uneven and I kept on rolling off my mattress. When dawn came, so did the loud calls of the baboon troop. I wanted to shout at them to STFU since it was only 05h00, but this was their home and I guess I was just the guest.


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I made my way down the still dark forestry roads.


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Entrance to the plantation.

I am not posting the coordinates of the entrance. I am also not telling you where the forestry stations are. Please don’t turn this into your plastic bike race track.
Obviously I want you all to feel the same pleasures I felt up in the mountain so I will only ask you to avoid pissing off the foresters and to not pollute the environment in any way, if you decide to go.
It is illegal to enter the plantation so don’t blame me if you get caught and fined. And please don’t tell them I sent you.

But if you go, you’ll love it!


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Map


Lastly, the bike:
It is almost everything I want in a DS bike. All you need is an Air-Hawk (R900 odd), a luggage carrier (R800 odd), a screen (R800 odd) and a map.

It’s a killer DS bike and what better place to use it than on tough travels as opposed to wimpy guesthouse-to-guesthouse cruises ;D
 
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