Our new American Mistress

After much waiting, our Harley-Davidson Pan America arrived! Actually we got it a couple of months ago but I just realized that I never got a blog post up... so here it is, short and sweet.We put a deposit on the bike back in February. It arrived about 2 months after the initial orders were shipped mid-May. Apparently, because I ordered the "Special" but opted out of the automatic ride height adjust option, my bike got pushed to the back of the queue. It arrived 7 weeks later than expected which is never a good thing when you design parts for a living. We got at the designing later than we really wanted to but better late than never.The Gut...

Read entire article

Slaying Dragons Hill Climb - T7 and 790R

I've been eyeing up this hill climb for a couple of years. It's steep and loose then gets quite steep at the top. I took a half-hearted run at it a couple months ago but aborted because I wasn't carrying enough speed. I wasn't super-stoked about trying it ago as the price for failure is pretty high. Jaden and I had a friend (Brandon) out from BC. He's a madman on his KTM 790R. Point him in a direction and turn away from his roost! We rode over to the hill and Brandon said, "Yup", and off he went. It killed it on a few passes. Jaden was having an uncharacteristically bad day. He made 4 attempts and called it...

Read entire article

ADV Riding, Drone or Helmet Cam?

The same section of trail is recorded with a Skydio2 drone and a DJI Osmo helmet cam. The drone is more scenic but the helmet cam shows more trail detail. Which do you prefer?

Read entire article

Grizzly Bear on Koko Claim - T7s and 890-ADV Rally

Crossing Creek FSR (aka Koko Claim) is a snotty, rocky two-track that gains a lot of elevation quickly. The track is covered with loose rock and ledges toward the top... it's a grind, to say the least. We rode it last year in the fall when it was much cooler. It was 38C (101F) this time and the heat was kicking our butts. About 1/2 way to the summit, a yearling grizzly cub popped out on the trail in front of me. The mother wouldn't have been far away so we turned around and headed back down. I had stopped in Elkford to buy bear spray an hour before this. Bear spray can be effective but I'd rather not rely...

Read entire article

Tenere Crash - Hill Climb FAIL!

A short video of my fail on a steep, rocky climb at our local OHV area. The run-up to the hill is rough, rocky, and loose. There are a few small rock ledges before the main rock ledge section. The rock is off-camber to the right and it's always trying to pull you in that direction. Because that side is lower, water from spring snowmelt and rain have eroded that side. There are a few verticle sections with pools/pockets at the base. The deepest is about 3ft. This was the first time I've cleaned the ledges and gotten past the 3ft hole. I got too far right and ended up in the erosion path, hit one of the steeper sections,...

Read entire article

Hill Climb Fail - 700 Tenere

Just another snotty cutline in Alberta, Canada. It's steep and loose then gets steeper with rock ledges. You can ride to the peak relatively easily from the other side. We were hoping to connect the two to make a rideable loop but the North slope is pretty damn steep. I aborted the attempt when it was clear I didn't have the speed to get up and over the steep upper section. I'm undecided about second attempt, the first try wigged me out. I'd like to conquer it but the consequence for failure at the top rock ledges is quite high.

Read entire article

Snow Section - T7s and Africa Twin DCT

We ran into a bit of snow on a recent ride at the base of the Alberta Rockies. The trails were generally clear there was some snow left in some low-lying spots. I was glad to be riding with Paul (Africa Twin DCT) and Jaden (T7). These guys are a riot to ride with. We enjoyed the challenge of getting the bikes through this section... of course we were glad to have them up and out of there too.

Read entire article

Racehorse Pass - T7s and Africa Twin DCT

We made a Racehorse Pass (Alberta, Canada) attempt this weekend. It was a great ride while it lasted! The pass still has too much snow, likely needs a couple more weeks of warm weather before you can get through. The view was absolutely amazing though. We'll definitely be back later in the season.

Read entire article

ADV Ride up Quirk Ridge - 890 Rally and T7s

A short blast up to Quirk Ridge. The trail is nice and flowy, climbing up the top of Quirk Ridge.

Read entire article

First Real Offroad Ride of the Year - KTM 890 Rally and T7s

We had a new-to-ADV rider (Boe) with us on a brand new Unicorn (KTM 890 Rally). Boe is no stranger to offroad as he's been riding and racing enduros for almost 30yrs. He killed it all day and will be a force to be reckoned with once he gets his ADV legs and gets the bike set-up fine-tuned. Jaden (regular to the channel) was also there on his T7. Our first full-day ride in our local riding area. Most of the snow and ice was gone so we were able to cover a lot of ground. I had a cutline intersection marked on the GPS from late last year as a "Must scout when dry". It was still snowed-in but...

Read entire article