Barkbusters , skid-plate and engine guards , a large Rotopax fuel cell with expensive Touratech panniers and top-box . I ’ d always wondered about security with soft vs hard panniers , but meeting an overlander years ago in Pakistan , he advocated leaving the panniers open regardless : fixing locks was a hassle , and if anyone really wanted to break into panniers , he mused , they would .
The four of us had a mix of machines for the journey : a very pleased Justin and his recently acquired Super Ténéré 1200 , a blue whale weighing-in at only four hundred tonnes ; my good self with my sturdy old BMW 1150GS , a rather portly old thing ( me and her ) and a devil to pick-up ( same , same ); the best rider amongst us , Dave , wouldn ’ t have to pick his bike up anyway , but had purchased for the trip a 2005 Triumph Tiger 955cc ; and lastly was Richie , a long-time friend joining the team on his Kawasaki Z750cc with tyres so warn he was effectively running slicks . Still , it was only five thousand kilometres to Darwin !
We aimed to camp , mostly , me with a biker swag and the others in their small tents . My swag was fantastic yet eminently non-swing-acat-able , so I ’ d leave my stuff in their tents more often than not . Two of the team had small camping stoves and some meals , which we used sparingly since Richie was often adamant that we deserved a good meal after a long day , which in fairness didn ’ t require much persuasion from the rest of us . No one wanted to be on the end of a , ‘ I had a roast dinner , treacle pudding and some ice-cold beers tonight , it was amazing ! How were the noodles ?’. Followed swiftly by swearwords , a mutiny , and a slashing of tent canvas during the night . Although packet meals for camping have come a long way , it ’ s hard to beat a proper meal in a cosy pub . We breezed through Victoria
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