Touring

[Guest bikeral]

Hi all,
 
I need some help. I really want to get away and explore the world on the bike - the whole point of a sports tourer 
 
I know it's really silly but in my head I can't get passed the concept of the possibility of running out of fuel and no petrol stations within miles. I know the likely hood is it would never happen but do you guys plan where to stop for fuel in advance when exploring? 
 
I know in the UK it isn't really a factor as we have many petrol stations but I am mostly talking about when you cross the channel from the UK into Europe
 
Cheers

[suncoaster]

ADV types here in Australia take spare fuel in bladders or Rotopax containers for outback journeys,
and/or just join the local autoclub/AA/RAC for bitumen rides.
 
Not that the Tracer is particularly suitable for dirt trips.

[daboo]

I did some long trips this past summer in the western half of the USA. I'd first plot my destination and the route using Google Maps. The Street View is great for picking which road will be more enjoyable. Then I'd switch over to Bing maps and plot my gas station stops. There were a couple areas that I had to fill up early, simply because the next hundred or so miles had no gas stations.
 
Chris

[estell]

... the possibility of running out of fuel and no petrol stations within miles. I know the likely hood is it would never happen but do you guys plan where to stop for fuel in advance when exploring? 

A GPS device can help. I enter a route into my GPS that contains multiple destinations along the route. Along the way, the GPS can list the petrol stations that are near each destination. If you are not following a route, then the GPS will tell you the distance and direction from your current location to the petrol stations in your vicinity. If you choose one then it will give you directions to the station. The same applies to grocery stores, cash machines, restaurants, etc. 

[betoney]

I did some long trips this past summer in the western half of the USA. I'd first plot my destination and the route using Google Maps. The Street View is great for picking which road will be more enjoyable. Then I'd switch over to Bing maps and plot my gas station stops. There were a couple areas that I had to fill up early, simply because the next hundred or so miles had no gas stations. 
Chris

Same here.  I always pre-plan the route with gas stops in mind and refill early if the distance to the next stop is questionable.  And as @estell mentioned, I use a GPS when I ride, its an indispensable tool IMHO. 
 

[DavidS]

I haven't ridden in Europe, but are the gas stations really > 200 miles apart? Here in the US, it's pretty hard to go more than 30 miles without finding another gas station. and you can always carry extra fuel like suncoaster indicated

[norcal616]

Install a 17T front sprocket to drop the RPMs?
I dropped the front sprocket 1T to 15T...I avg about 160-170 miles a tank, I'm still using 4th gear at 55 mph unless it a decent 10mins till my next exit I will cruise in 6th...

[nsmiller]

Back a couple MSR fuel bottles with extra gas.
 
 
Amazon

[wordsmith]

I haven't ridden in Europe, but are the gas stations really > 200 miles apart? Here in the US, it's pretty hard to go more than 30 miles without finding another gas station. and you can always carry extra fuel like suncoaster indicated

Here in Oz - and not only in the outback - it's not uncommon to find distances of ~200km between fuel stations.   When touring I tend to carry a 4L plastic 'can' mounted on the lhs pillion foot-peg, but it's carried empty on legs where I know fuel supply is reliable.   4L weighs in at only 2.8kg, so even with the 'can' it's hardly noticeable as far as added weight is concerned.

[wordsmith]

Install a 17T front sprocket to drop the RPMs? I dropped the front sprocket 1T to 15T...I avg about 160-170 miles a tank, I'm still using 4th gear at 55 mph unless it a decent 10mins till my next exit I will cruise in 6th...

What was the reduction in rpm in top gear at (say) 60mph/ 100kph, if you please?   And did you note any significant loss of acceleration?

[kimmie]

I plan my trips out on a spreadsheet....but then I do a lot of long distance riding in Australia and as Wordsmith has said sometimes the next fuel isn't for 200 or more kilometres.
 
I ring the stations in advance along the route to get their operating hours and the type of fuel 91,95,98 etc. If I change my plan there is a fuel app I can use to assist me.
 
Good luck with your planning.
 
The long distance moto is......plan the ride, ride the plan. Always obey Rule #1 - make it home safely!!
 
 
 

[norcal616]

Install a 17T front sprocket to drop the RPMs? I dropped the front sprocket 1T to 15T...I avg about 160-170 miles a tank, I'm still using 4th gear at 55 mph unless it a decent 10mins till my next exit I will cruise in 6th...

What was the reduction in rpm in top gear at (say) 60mph/ 100kph, if you please?   And did you note any significant loss of acceleration?

 
 
I got an increase in RPM since I dropped 1T on front sprocket... about 650rpm increase... I needed to cure a little lazy flat spot right off idle in 2nd gear...1st gear is reserved for LaunchControl in my case, I very very rarely use 1st gear to start rolling... in my case for example in 4th gear at 9k rpms(shift point) im currently reading approx 97mph...6th gear at 10.5k rpms its more than double the 70mph speed limit by 10mph ?

[advman]

I've recently ridden from the UK to Tavullia in Italy and back I never found any problems finding fuel stations, I did carry a 1 litre can for peace of mind but never used it (even in the Alps!)

[alejandro]

For folks who want to know how to calculate RPM: if you replace a 16t with say a 15t, the RPM ratio will be exactly a ratio of 15/16! At any speed in any gear.
 
So multiply by 15/16, which is about 0.94 or 94%. So RPM is reduced by about 6% at all times.

[jsp]

Alejandro, you have that reversed. Your RPM will increase by the ratio of 16/15.
john