The Noble Steed

So the plan was to ride from the UK to Australia but to do that I'd need a bike. Obviously this would mean a big shiny adventure bike designed for arduous round the world the world travel. Unfortunately I'm not Ewan McGregor and I don't have lots of money, or a support vehicle or a film crew... Time for a rethink!

As I was travelling solo and through some fairly remote regions I came up with a few criteria for my adventure machine. It needed to be:

• Simple - The bike would have to be repaired by either me (a very amateur mechanic with minimal experience) or a local mechanic who probably wouldn't speak English. Any repairs would be carried out using the tools I carried with me and a combination of locally available spares, duct tape and cable ties. 
• Light - There is a fairly high chance that I will drop the bike at some point so I needed something I could pick up by myself. In addition this would allow the bike to be easily pushed lifted and manoeuvred down alleys, onto boats and over narrow bridges etc
• Capable off road - Given that some of the roads in Asia rival even Wiltshire for poor road surfaces I needed something able to negotiate rough terrain, potholes, mud and the occasional river crossing. Sports bikes were out! (Although this has been done and utmost respect to those who throw practicality out of the window)
• Reliable - It's hard to get the miles in when you spend more time fixing your bike than riding it. Probably not a Ducati then...
• Power/Speed - Now a 125 dirtbike would meet most of these criteria comfortably but I would inevitably have to spend some time on main roads in order to actually make some progress. Having experienced the pain of holding up lorries on an under-powered 125  I wanted something capable of keeping up with traffic even when fully loaded.

Taking this all into account and  after many hours of research I settled on the Suzuki DRZ400. Japanese reliability, a mid sized engine, off road ability and a proven track record as an edventure bike, this dualsport machine seemed like the perfect choice.

Now to find one. After much trawling of ebay I managed to find a 2001 DRZ (the more road orientated S model) which already had bash plates, a rear rack and a large fuel tank fitted for added range. A quick ride over to London to check  it out and I was satisfied that I'd found the one. A little bit of haggling knocked £200 off the asking price and for £2300 she was mine!

I hopped on the train, sweating in my leathers in the June sunshine and soon arrived in Watford to collect the bike. An exchange of paperwork and a handshake later and I was off, straight to the petrol station as she was running on fumes and even cut out approaching a roundabout! £20 worth of unleaded and the monster tank was brimmed and ready to go.

The M25 is a less than ideal place to get to know a new bike, especially one more suited to dirt tracks than 4 lane motorway. The bike lacked power, the brakes were awful, the seat was already uncomfortable and with no fairing I was being buffeted about by the wind. A far cry from my 800cc BMW sports tourer! Had I made a terrible mistake?

Keen to escape the motorway I took a twisty route back home and my doubts quickly faded as I fell in love with the agile flickable handling and aggressive bark of the single cylinder engine. I soon had a huge grin on my face as I weaved between traffic and slung it round corners. This is what riding bikes is all about!

Approaching home I had the urge to get the bike off the beaten track and see what she could do. A quick blast along a gravel track over the common once again confirmed that I'd made the right decision and I was half tempted to carry on into the sunset but relented and pulled the bike into the drive. We were home!

More to follow as I take the spanners to the bike and get her adventure ready.

See you on the road.