Ola Hermanos

 

Following the Dakar, few riders stayed behind to participate in the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge.  One of them was Ross Branch.   And he had kept one day out of his calendar to join the community ride with Motozone.  

I was eagerly waiting to ride with him and my fellow colleagues but sadly day he had to postpone by few days which did not fit into my schedule as I had already booked a flight to Canada to see my daughter. 

 Using the excuse to visit my daughter I searched for some fun and cold outdoor adventure.   Riding in the snow was something I wanted to try for a long time.  As a former skier and snowboarder, I wanted to see how it felt to ride on snow compared to regular off-road motorcycling.  Surprisingly, the Salon de la Moto of Montreal was happening just when I arrived in Canada, so I went to the convention centre a few hours after landing to see the new motorcycle launches from every maker in North America.

There were also many tour companies, and the photos of the Canadian countryside were stunning. I'll have to plan a trip there and ride in the wilds of Northern America. 

I wanted to try snow motorcycle,

but I could not rent any outside Montreal, so I chose snowmobile instead. I made a reservation with Artic Adventure and drove north of Montreal to join the trails. The machines were Ski Doo 600cc with Rotax engine that produced about 85 hp. A good option for beginner riders. The start of the ride was dull as the guide tested rider’s skill but when groups of similar level riders were formed it got more enjoyable. Overall impression is snowmobile is closer to Quad or Jet skiing than to off-road or desert riding. Anyway, it was a good experience and I achieved what I wanted.  

I returned to Dubai and collected my T700 from the shop, where I had left it for service and to add high front end kit, new decal and some small things to suit my preferences. I tested it at Max Enduro site and liked the outcome.

I'm still not sure if I should reduce the height of the bike by 2cm to feel more at ease, but it would compromise the ground clearance. And lack of ground clearance is what damaged my GS. So, I have the lowering kit from AltRider with me, but I haven't put it on yet. I'll see...

It was time for a much-needed amazing weekend in Liwa with some colleagues from Motozone Dubai. Liwa is the ultimate place for dune bashing in the United Arab Emirates. It is near the Saudi border, about 3.5 hours from Dubai, in the empty quarter. There are many high dunes to ride on. 

It was a wonderful weekend!!! I had never experienced such tall dunes and stunning scenery. It was like Heaven. It was both exciting and difficult, traversing the wide and diverse land of sand dunes, from soft hills to sharp falls, leaps and turns to feel the rush of speed and liberty. And it was also a great chance to connect with other riders and share the love for off-road riding. And of course, the drinks after the ride...notwithstanding, the long discussion on rally racing with Jason.  

As it turns out Jason, whom I had already ridden with during the UAE raid adventure in December has already taken roadbook classes with TRC and was very complementary.  And as alumni of TRC he gave me the direct contact of the lady in charge of admin so I could ensure everything runs smoothly when the training take place or clarify any queries I might have.   He gave me lots of useful information about different types of roadbooks (ertf and some others) as well as training app.   Still a bit blur in my mind but trust it will become clearer as I continue my journey.   

Today, is the start of Ramadan so many shops will do Ramadan sales’ deals.   Already registered for free service on my CRF and Palm Mx is having massive discount on Leatt product.   Time for some new clothes.  Am also still debating for GPS for my T700 to do trails in Northern part of the Emirates and Road book tablet to adapt to the upcoming electronic road book.   Hence, I contacted Willem Avenan from RallyTab who appears to have successfully developed an Android tablet with accessories for both adventure riding and for rally navigation but am still debating with myself what tablet to buy, so whilst awaiting, I bought a second-hand Montana that I will use in the mountains here.

Like last year, I attended the Get Out There’s iftar in Al Qadr.   It was nice to reconnect with the adventure communities as I have been absent this year due to constant weekend commitment with Motozone and Furiosa Racing.   With the recent acquisition of the Tenere and my ambitious 3 years project, I need to do a lot more of rock riding and the guys at GOT will be a big motivation help.  

In preparation for the Enduro cross at MX Ride end of April, I bought a second-hand Acerbis 11L tank for my CRF.   I took it for a spin Saturday and was unpleasantly surprised how the bike handled with a more weight upfront.    I felt I was losing the front at every corner.   All things became normal after I rode for one hour and the gasoline level came back to what I am used to.   I will need to ride it more to adjust to the new balance of the bike with additional gas.  

Yesterday, I met with Benji Melot who has recently relocated partially to Dubai to discuss my project.  Nice and very humble bloke.  

Gave me lots of advice to move forward on my project.   I am sure we’ll meet again as I move along in my adventure.