Motorcycles and large format photography...

[Jeffrey Goggin]

To be honest, I'm really partial to two-strokes. Not only were all of the bikes I raced/owned two-strokes but when I got into kart racing, I raced two-strokes there as well. Of course, I now tinker with cars so I'm sure that I can make the transition but all things considered, I'd really rather have a two-stroke, if possible.

Of course, I'm so out of touch with today's market that I really don't have any idea of what's available. Although going fast appealed to me more than going slow and crawling over and around obstacles when I was younger, I did have both a Bultaco Sherpa T and Honda TL-125 for a few years ... do they even sell trials bikes these days?

Anyway, if I do decide to get a bike, my inclination's to look for one that's in the 250-400cc range and oriented more toward off-roading and less toward street cruising. We'll see...

[Darron Spohn]

No two strokes that large are street legal in the U.S. EPA regs and all that. Besides, they get horrid gas mileage and dump a ton more pollutants into the air than four strokes. The gas mileage alone is reason to look at four strokes. You don't want to get stuck in the boonies with an empty tank. And you'll have a devil of a time getting a green sticker for a two stroke, which means you cannot ride it in national forests.

[Emile J Schwarz]

Hi, I bought a KLR-650 a few years ago with the same idea as yours (except I had hopes of doing the 4WD roads around Silverton CO) . It (rather I) lasted about two short trips. Both the camera (Meridian) and tripod came up with loose (lost) screws. That and the Texas summers (don't forget the protective riding gear) cured me of the moter cycle idea.

The John Deere Gator (or a Kaw. Mule) mite work but they only only have a top speed of 15-20 mph; and they have vibration too. (I went the Gator route.) My 7 year old loves to drive it around our farm. Its a very reliable flatland vhecial (However they have a belt drive system, no engine braking, and are unsuited for mountainious terrain, to paraphrase a JDeere dealer in CO).

What about a susiki sidekick? I've heard they're cheap and not to bad on gas milage.

[Jeffrey Goggin]

The problem I see with using a quad or other ATV-type vehicle is that they're not street legal. While it'd no doubt work fine for the last 15-20 miles of my trip, getting it to within that distance of where I want to shoot would mean hauling a trailer behind my car, which would most likely make the total trip time even longer than it is now.

BTW, the irony of using a motorized vehicle to help me take photos of nature hasn't been lost on me. It's not my intention to use the bike to replace the hiking part of my trips (which I enjoy) but to replace the car part, since they're poorly suited to crawling down unimproved desert and forest roads and going slower than I have to here wastes a lot of time that could otherwise be put to a more productive use.

[Blake]

well, the sidekick probably doesn't have much more clearance than your Audi... and the reason I mentioned competition 4 stroke conversions is because you sounded as if you'd favor a racier "powerband"... what's happening in MX these days is all the bike companies are throwing their research into 4 stroke for reasons that Darron mentions... so what has surfaced in the last few years is a hi-powered 400cc 4stroke motor dropped into a 250cc class MX competition bike/frame... so you get the dreamy suspension and low weight of a motocrosser with less suspension more torque and a little less "pep" from the cleaner/quieter 4 stroke... the problem is converting it for street.. some states require little more than brake-light, blinker add-ons, rearview and a quieter after-market pipe and others like mine require the same plus reregistering it through the DMV with a new "street" VIN and that entails paperwork and satisfying sticky inspectors... if you'll pardon the pun. Suzuki has gone one more by taking their competition MX 400 4 stroker and adding all street the legals items needed plus an electric start on their DR400se if you don't want to convert a similar make and don't mind SCUZBOMBS...

My brother is into 4wd, we both grew up on motorcycles(8 years old for me and my first thumper, honda XL-70) ... in fact we just finished bolting a bigger DANA to his XJ for his trip to the mining trails of Colo... His Xj can go in places a full-size blazer/bronco could only dream about and I'm sure he'd recommend you get a narrower and shorter 4wd like a XJ or CJ so you wouldn't be hindered by track, wheelbase and etc. issues.

[Blake]

that's confusing.. happy fingers... should read, same suspension... less pep. sorry...

[Brian C. Miller]

Um, looks like you want a street legal dirt bike in the under 500cc range, right?

I used to ride a Honda CM250C Custom (looked like a miniature Goldwing) with racks. You will have to have racks. You can load the tripod and camera on the racks, no problem for vibration. Carry your lenses in a small backpack. You'll need a waterproof cover for the tripod, and maybe a Pelican or similar case for the camera.

I have a Graphlex Super Graphic and Benbo tripod. The Graphlex is as sturdy as they come, and the Benbo makes a tidy little package. Backs and film are another package, and I only take one lens. This fits on my mountain bike (full racks, etc.). I use bubble wrap around the camera.

[Paul Wilson]

If you decide a bike is the way to go, you should definitely look at the bigger 4-stroke DP bikes like the KLR. Remember, you'll be riding the thing for 150 miles before you get to your destination so you'll want to be comfortable. Somehow I don't think a 2-stroke is condusive to this. The BMW GS is probably great for the road part and will carry a lot but they only seem to be good enough for a bad dirt road off the pavement.

Have you thought of getting an ATV and trailering it to the general vicinity then riding the ATV to your off road destination? This is pretty much what hunters do.

FWIW, I've carried 35mm and medium-format equipment on a Honda street bike but it's a lot smoother than any dirt bike.

[Jeffrey Goggin]

While I range up to 150 miles from home, the majority of my trips are within 50-100 miles ... for that, I don't think a two-stroke would be all that uncomfortable. It definitely would vibrate more, though, so a four-stroke probably does make better sense for minimizing any wear and tear to delicate camera gear.

I don't want to get involved in trailering anything ... not only do I not have any place to store a trailer when I'm not using it but in my experience, it'd make my net travel time longer not shorter, which is exactly the opposite of what I'm trying to accomplish.

As for the BMW GS bikes, they're awfully big and fairly costly, which rules them out for me despite their virtues on the street. While I'm not looking for something to enter the ISDT -- is this still held? -- I am looking for something that can hold its own off-road.

Of course, before I do anything, I'll have to convince Mistress Paula that my buying yet another "toy" to park in the garage makes sense...

[dan nguyen]

Jeffrey, I'm a photographer using (sometime) motorcycle. The BMW GS is a very good choice. For budget minded, I would go for a good used R80GS (plenty around), fitted with 2 Krauser brand hard case saddle bags and a rear trunk. All the bags should be filled with foam (hardware store) at cut out to fit your equipment. At destination, you just unlatch the bag a carry it. The medium weight tripod will sit on the top of the trunk, lenght wise.