BMW R1200R R1150R/T F800 K1200R R1100R/T R1250R RnineT Message Board

Question: I want to do more riding off pavement. Dirt and gravel roads, but nothing worse than that. I was thinking about getting an F650 thinking that the R bike wouldn't be so good on rough roads. I'm wondering how much others ride their R bikes off pavement and would it really be that much different from a lighter F bike. Also, should you install rock guards under the engine pan and are they even available? Are regular highway tires adequate? You can tell I've not been off pavement except for road construction which was pretty smooth.

Thanks for any advice.

Look at ChiTown's report in the Great Rides section. It's called "Who Needs a GS? A little adventure I'm on....." He took his new 1200R off road and wrote about it and posted photos. That might give you an idea of how it would handle.

Al,

I'm off road a lot. The bike is fine. It's well-balanced and can handle reasonably fast pace on dirt. It's the rims that can't handle too much stress. Our wheels are known for being 'soft'. Hit too many holes or rocks and you will eventually bend a rim.

The road tyres are ok, but move around a lot at speed, and in softer gravel. Can be a little scary at times. I'm tossing up on fitting some more aggressive Pirelli 'Mottard' type tyres from the KTM Duke in a few weeks as I have some long dirt trips planned over Winter here.

The rear would drop to a 160, which is no big deal. The front is the same size. Be wary of small stones that get into the alternator belt housing via the vent holes. They can chew up your belt. Carry a spare, and the tools to change it.

Other than that, the R makes a good off-roader. Just watch the ground clearance, and be prepared for some stone chips on the oil coolers and front of the tank as the front flicks up a lot of stuff.

I also drop my tyre pressures from 36/42 to 32/38 (4 pounds), just to iron out some of the vibration on severe corrugations. It also allows the tyres to 'mould' around sharper rocks instead of having them punch through the less-robust road tyres.

You will also need to change your braking technique. These bikes tend to 'push' on the front end at the best of times, which is not a good thing on the dirt. Stay smooth, and be ready to go light on the front brake at all times.

If you have ABS - It may not be a help on the dirt, which is why the GS has switchable ABS. Just be extra careful when braking. The idea with hard braking is to lock the wheels and bite through the surface gravel so that you have a solid surface for braking effect. ABS prevents that.

Lastly - Have fun. The number of dirt roads around quadruples your riding destinations. Just go easy at fiirst.

cool pic, MIXR

MIXR wrote:Al,

I'm off road a lot. The bike is fine. It's well-balanced and can handle reasonably fast pace on dirt.

http://picasaweb.google.com/Hotel179/Te ... rDeltaRide

Hello All,

Just did about 40 miles on dirt this afternoon. It was a great day. The Tensaw River Delta is about 60 miles north of the Gulf of Mexico in Alabama.

Love the beads on the seat - Reminds me of a Greek taxi!

Nice pics. I must have a closer look at Picasa - It's been recommended by a few people now.

Cheers, Mick.

MIXR wrote:Love the beads on the seat - Reminds me of a Greek taxi!

Nice pics. I must have a closer look at Picasa - It's been recommended by a few people now.

Cheers, Mick.

Why, thanks....I think! I read about the beads in one of those "motorcycle around the world without getting monkey butt" books. They allow me to scoot around on the seat without sticking.

Picasa also has photo editing....you can fix the colors and do cropping as well as neat effects.

A little dirt won't hurt anything, and has like been said the R will do just fine off road.
Just go easy on the throttle, or you'll end up like this:



But you can ride roads like this if you're careful...



Personally, I hated to wash it after this trip, I loved how the R looks all dirty, especially parked next to a group of clean GS's.
The few scratches in the cylinder cover lead to telling a good story, I like em' !
"HAHA, look at those scratches, did you dump it in a parking lot?", no actually it happened 30 miles down a fire road in the Arkansas mountains, after crossing some rivers, where's your scratches from?
Just think of the stories the bike can tell when parked next to other bikes.

ChiTown - I think we think alike.

Battle scars tell a story (or two), much to the horror of those who like their machines kept in showroom condition. It doesn't mean we mistreat the bike, just that we make full use of them.

Great attitude, and our friend Al has to decide whether to 'risk it' or keep it safe and shiny, and miss out on some great roads.

MIXR wrote:ChiTown - I think we think alike.

Battle scars tell a story (or two), much to the horror of those who like their machines kept in showroom condition. It doesn't mean we mistreat the bike, just that we make full use of them.

Great attitude, and our friend Al has to decide whether to 'risk it' or keep it safe and shiny, and miss out on some great roads.

Thanks, I think you're right.
BTW, your sig comes to mind everytime I fill up the tank and Camelbak, and take a piss. Except I suppliment kilometers for miles.

Will the sump guard from the relevant (1150/1200) GS fit??

Tempted to put one on my Rockster anyway just for that "Mini-GS" look. (and to make it more practical for gravel roads etc.)

hi awagnon,

i have quite a bit of expierience on a yamaha xt500 (off-road) and i live in an area with a lot of sand roads ans for holland small hills.

i've bought mine r1150r in januari this year and driven 7000 km

before getting onto paved roads i have to go a half a mile over sand road down hill at first i was way to tensed riding it because the beemers is much heavier and has road tires, but as i eased up it follows the road strait, be loose on the handlebar and smooth on the throttle.

when i have a tight corner, to get into the drive way including a bump, i stick out both feet as a precaution.

only look where you want to go and the bike will follow the path.

happy riding

In really rough stuff, or steep and slow, or deep gravel, I use the 'trail bike' technique of standing on the pegs. It's a bit of a reach down to the bars, but workable. Much better than putting feet down. Keeping your feet on the pegs, if you can trust yourself, gives much more control and manoeverability. Feet down is for heavy mud, to stop the bike from slipping sideways. The R is really very good on the dirt as ChiTown has proven, but would be much better with more aggressive tyres.

The 1150 GS sump guard will fit, but I would question its value. If it's that rough, buy a GS. The R has too many other fragile bits that sit low or wide to make it a serious bush-basher. The 1200 bash plate is totally different and won't fit. I'd invest in some decent crash bars rather than a sump guard. Mine arrive in a couple of weeks (Hornig). Just added insurance.

Good dirt roads are no problem at all, and get you out into some great countryside and scenery. The bonus is the lack of traffic.

+1 on the R being OK on dirt / gravel roads.
MLW (My Lovely Wife) ended up on some rotten dirt roads on our first multi-hour trip, ended up on tractor path that came out between a house and a barn (labeled on the Finglerlakes AAA map though) near Honeyoue Lake near Harriet Hollister lands. Road was so unused there was 3 or 4 inches of fallen leaves on the last mile or two. White knuckle for a while.

After that I got used to it and ride down dirt roads whenever I find them. These pics are from Finger Lakes National Forest.

The Road Behind


The Road Ahead


I go really slow most of the time. It seems useful to feel the way the bike reacts to slipping / sliding at speeds to gain some familiarity with what it might feel like on the pavement.

DLS

Thanks for all the replies. I guess I'm just timid about getting the bike scratched. I do have Wunderlich engine protection bars, so I might as well go for it. Like I said in my original post, I have zilch experience riding off pavement. Guess I need to just do it.

I appreciate the note that the sump guard for a GS would fit the R-bike. However, I would think it would take away from what is already a pretty limited clearance.

I'm blown away by ChiTown's ride report and pictures. To see a new 1200R taking a nap on its side takes more nerve than I have. Very impressive.

Thanks again for the words of encouragement.

I ride on a variety of nonpaved roads. The single best item I 've added are the fastway pegs. I put a lot of weight on them even if not fully standing up. My driveway is the scariest place for me to ride, it is only 400 yards but steep and at times muddy other times gravely. The RR is much better off road then my MG LMl with clip ons.

The single best item I 've added are the fastway pegs.

Fastway pegs? Tell me more about them....

they have a large platform on which to place your feet, as well as lowering the pegs they have adjust ability of angle and height. . The GS crowd uses them. <http>

Mick and Stephan,

I am getting close to needing a new set of tires as the Conti Attacks haven't lasted as long as I had hoped. I was looking into a tire with a little more tread on it as I am in the process of building a house is the Blue Ridge Mountains and will have a 1300' steep, gravel driveway that leads to two a 2 mile dirt road before I see pavement. I would be interested to know what tires you have on in those pictures and did they fit on your existing wheel. Thanks!

Brady

I'm also interested in some tires that are more "dual use". Don't the GS type tires come in our sizes? They seem to work well there, why not on our R's that see some dirt/gravel regularly?