TOURING TIPS
PAGE 121
SPRING 2018 ISSUE 01 / VOL . 03
TOURING TIPS
Packing It Up Gear Guide
Nylon luggage and high-mounted mufflers don ' t mix . Make sure soft bags are far enough from hot parts to prevent melting .
Packing for two requires some compromises . The rule of thumb for couples ( and also for solo riders ) is to take half the clothes and twice the money you think you ’ ll need . Leave the hair dryer and the beard trimmer at home , too . If you walk into a restaurant in your sweaty riding gear with your hair all messy and people are staring at you , you can be pretty sure it ’ s with envy . Touring ’ s not a beauty contest , and anyway , you ’ re out riding a motorcycle instead of sitting behind a desk , so you ’ ve already won whatever contest is going on .
If you ’ re staying at motels you can get away with two changes of clothes , one to ride in and another for off-bike activities . When the riding clothes become unbearable swap them for the other set and hit the motel laundry room .
Before you take off on your ride , set aside the bare minimum of riding gear you ’ d wear at any time , for example when it ’ s hot . Now pack all your foul-weather gear — heated stuff , rainsuit , waterproof boot covers , thermals , whatever — onto the bike . This way you ’ ll always have room for it . I learned this the hard way by packing my bike just prior to leaving on a ride on a cold , wet morning and discovering several hours later that I had nowhere to stow my cold-weather gear once the weather turned balmy .