Dark&Stormy Posted April 6, 2018 Share Posted April 6, 2018 So to escape part of the bitter cold Canadian winter I went exploring around Mexico for 2 months solo. I put over 14000kms on my FJ-09 down there. Here is just a few photos from my journey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wordsmith Posted April 6, 2018 Share Posted April 6, 2018 Nice pix, you lucky, lucky man! Riding a fully-farkled 2019 MT-09 Tracer 900 GT from my bayside home in South East Queensland, Australia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dark&Stormy Posted April 6, 2018 Author Share Posted April 6, 2018 I'll try to post some more photos and details later. Feel free to ask me anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member betoney Posted April 6, 2018 Supporting Member Share Posted April 6, 2018 Very Nice. Looks like a true adventure. ***2015 Candy Red FJ-09*** Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angrygirafe Posted April 6, 2018 Share Posted April 6, 2018 Well, that sounds pretty much awesome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
koth442 Posted April 6, 2018 Share Posted April 6, 2018 Awesome adventure! Keep the pics coming and feel free to share any anecdotes! '15 FJ09 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Brick Posted April 6, 2018 Premium Member Share Posted April 6, 2018 I ridden in Mexico a number of times but I have not found the tunnels and that road on the side of the mountain. Where are they? Great stuff. Thanks. Brick 2015 Yamaha FJ-09 "Red Molly" 2014 Yamaha Super Tenere' ES 1999 Suzuki SV650 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member betoney Posted April 6, 2018 Supporting Member Share Posted April 6, 2018 Did you ride down and back (or moved the bike to a starting point somewhere south)? How did the tires fare? Chain maintenance?... any other maintenance related things... I had the same thoughts, obviously with 14,000kms you swapped tires and did 1-2 oil changes. Were parts and facilities readily available? And more photos and "first-timer" tips please. ***2015 Candy Red FJ-09*** Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pattonme Posted April 6, 2018 Share Posted April 6, 2018 would be fantastic if you go to Google 'My Maps' and lay out your route and then share the URL with us. mymaps.google.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member joeszup Posted April 6, 2018 Premium Member Share Posted April 6, 2018 Very cool. Thanks for sharing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dark&Stormy Posted April 6, 2018 Author Share Posted April 6, 2018 Did you ride down and back (or moved the bike to a starting point somewhere south)? How did the tires fare? Chain maintenance?... any other maintenance related things... I had the same thoughts, obviously with 14,000kms you swapped tires and did 1-2 oil changes. Were parts and facilities readily available? And more photos and "first-timer" tips please. I had a friend drive me and the bike from Saskatchewan to St. George Utah in a pickup truck and then i made my way to Baja California from there. Maintenance wise the bike was trouble free the only spare part i had was a clutch cable. I started the trip with half worn Michelin pilot road 2 with intent on buying new tires mid trip. In hindsight i should have started with new chain and sprockets (duh) but my chain seemed ok before i left. By the time i rode from St George Utah to La Paz BCS my chain was toast and had a massive tight spot in it. I made it Guadalajara and found a shop called Surtimoto to get new tires and a chain. Finding a new front sprocket was impossible in Mexico. The guy at Igartua Yamaha in Guadalajara said (with a straight face) they could get me a new sprocket in 45-60 days. So we determined that the front sprocket was not "badly" worn and Surtimoto installed a new o-ring chain for me. In addition to that I had them install a set of Pirelli Trail Attack II. Im really glad i went with these tires i could now visit some dirt road destinations with greater control. Later on in the trip i returned to Guadalajara for an oil change. Typically in Canada we run 10w40 in most bikes but in Mexico that was considered too light. I had Yamaha put in 15w50 full syn. This was an improvement the bike did not heat up as fast when stuck in stop and go traffic. (The ambient temperature was always atleast 30°C daytime) I again stopped at Surtimoto to see if they could help me tune my suspension for my weight and luggage. They determined my rear shock Yacugar FR-S had a brocken o-ring and was not dampening. I was hesitant at first that they would have the parts to service it but they replaced the oil and all the seals with ohlins seals and had me back on the road again. When it comes to getting work done on your bike in Mexico the shop rate is a lot less then Canada/US but tires and parts are waaay more in Mexico if they even have replacement parts. There is no jobber parts available you want new sprockets? Sunstar is non existant only OEM from Japan. Chain maintenance? I have a scottoiler (messy thing) and a tool kit with everything i need to do an adjustment. I had a small bottle of 3in1 for lubing clutch cable/pivot points. Three essentials: Skidplate and engine bars from Higdonion. A skid plate is 100% necessary for riding in Mexico. Small towns contain massive topes (speedbumps). The skidplate made contact with topes a few hundred times. Barkbuster handguards with the full frame. Protects your hands! Keeps bug guts off your gloves, saves your controls if you drop your bike. Large CalSci windscreen. Reduces fatigue, quells wind noise, keeps bug guts off your visor, prevents dehydration as you wont be directly blasted by hot dry air all day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dark&Stormy Posted April 10, 2018 Author Share Posted April 10, 2018 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dark&Stormy Posted April 10, 2018 Author Share Posted April 10, 2018 I ridden in Mexico a number of times but I have not found the tunnels and that road on the side of the mountain. Where are they? Great stuff. Thanks. That is the tunnel leading to Real De Catorce. The steep narrow mountain road is the old road leading to Real De Catorce, it was pretty hard on the FJ09. No room for error at all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alquimista Posted April 10, 2018 Share Posted April 10, 2018 I live in Mexico... Glad you enjoyed your time around here. Next time you come, you can contact me. I live at 1.5hr from Guadalajara Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dark&Stormy Posted April 10, 2018 Author Share Posted April 10, 2018 Day trip ride to Santuario de Cristo Rey from Guanajuato with a Mexican FJ09 rider from Irapuato and another Mexican traveller on a 1 year trip with his 150cc Yamaha. Great times! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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