Greetings FZ6R Forum Members,
As some of you know, I'm one of those odd FZ6R owners who is deluded enough to think of his bike as a bona fide sport tourer. Well, last summer, 2012, I went on a solo trip from Toronto to Calgary, Alberta, then turned north and continued on to Yellowknife.
I documented the trip with quite a few pictures and told my story on Facebook. I'm going to copy some excerpts from the trip to this site for my FZ6R brethren and sistren to see.
I thought of titling this report, "How Not To Ride To Yellowknife," seeing as I made many, many mistakes during this trip. I'm a seasoned motorcycle tourer, yet I did a whole bunch of things wrong, and I knew they were wrong before I even did them. And I'm not even young enough to chalk it up to youthful foolishness (I'm 44).
Anyways, here is the trip...
Back in July, I went on a solo motorcycle trip WAY west and WAY north. The plan was to visit my friend Adam in Calgary, then ride up to Yellowknife, NWT, to visit my sister-in-law Katherine.
For you FZ6R owners, here is a partial list of some of the mods and accessories I have on the bike to make it more touring worthy:
Givi luggage on SW-Motech racks
Added 2" foam in seat
Garmin 60Csx gps
1" up and back risers
Some stuff I've added after the trip which I would have really loved during the trip:
Centre stand
Electric grips
MRA Variotouring windscreen
I've got a ton of other accessories and crap too numerous to mention. My favourite accessory is still my electric vest, though. Adds a lot of comfort with little bulk.
This is the bike pulled over somewhere on HWY 69 about half way to Sudbury. The skies were looking sketchy, so I put on my waterproof boot covers and gloves.
This was my third motorcycle trip riding out west, so I made the foolish decision to stick mostly to the Trans Canada Highway to make good time. Unfortunately, this makes for very dull riding.
It wasn't too long after Canada Day, so Canadian flags were in evidence in numerous places along my route.
That evening, I only made it to Blind River, ON, as I had left so late. Blind River is a lovely little town that is just big enough to have a KFC... Yay! Man, I have a horrible junk food addiction when I travel.
I did go out for an eight kilometre run all over town to make up for dinner. Very hot, but I discovered that running while on vacation is a fantastic way to sight see. I decided after that run that I would try to take my camera on runs.
As some of you know, I'm one of those odd FZ6R owners who is deluded enough to think of his bike as a bona fide sport tourer. Well, last summer, 2012, I went on a solo trip from Toronto to Calgary, Alberta, then turned north and continued on to Yellowknife.
I documented the trip with quite a few pictures and told my story on Facebook. I'm going to copy some excerpts from the trip to this site for my FZ6R brethren and sistren to see.
I thought of titling this report, "How Not To Ride To Yellowknife," seeing as I made many, many mistakes during this trip. I'm a seasoned motorcycle tourer, yet I did a whole bunch of things wrong, and I knew they were wrong before I even did them. And I'm not even young enough to chalk it up to youthful foolishness (I'm 44).
Anyways, here is the trip...
Back in July, I went on a solo motorcycle trip WAY west and WAY north. The plan was to visit my friend Adam in Calgary, then ride up to Yellowknife, NWT, to visit my sister-in-law Katherine.
For you FZ6R owners, here is a partial list of some of the mods and accessories I have on the bike to make it more touring worthy:
Givi luggage on SW-Motech racks
Added 2" foam in seat
Garmin 60Csx gps
1" up and back risers
Some stuff I've added after the trip which I would have really loved during the trip:
Centre stand
Electric grips
MRA Variotouring windscreen
I've got a ton of other accessories and crap too numerous to mention. My favourite accessory is still my electric vest, though. Adds a lot of comfort with little bulk.
This is the bike pulled over somewhere on HWY 69 about half way to Sudbury. The skies were looking sketchy, so I put on my waterproof boot covers and gloves.
This was my third motorcycle trip riding out west, so I made the foolish decision to stick mostly to the Trans Canada Highway to make good time. Unfortunately, this makes for very dull riding.
It wasn't too long after Canada Day, so Canadian flags were in evidence in numerous places along my route.
That evening, I only made it to Blind River, ON, as I had left so late. Blind River is a lovely little town that is just big enough to have a KFC... Yay! Man, I have a horrible junk food addiction when I travel.
I did go out for an eight kilometre run all over town to make up for dinner. Very hot, but I discovered that running while on vacation is a fantastic way to sight see. I decided after that run that I would try to take my camera on runs.
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