Motorcycles

Jump to: KTM 530EXC · Royal Enfield · KTM 625SXC

People always ask about the motorcycle first. Not where we have been, not what we have eaten, not whether we were afraid. The bike. So here it is, the whole garage. My personal view: a travel motorcycle must be harder than me and simply work. Always and everywhere. Jazz has a slightly different view: it has to fit. Every millimetre counts, like buying shoes. Luckily, both views led to the same answer more than once.

KTM 530EXC

2010 - 2011 · Malaysia, Thailand, Laos, Australia, USA

If I walk into Emil's shop at Emil Weber Motos and tell him we want an EXC for the next big motorcycle trip, he says: "Yes." We'd like to leave in five weeks. He says: "Yes." Oh, and Jazz's bike has to come down a bit, she won't reach the ground otherwise. And he: "Yes. Let me just talk to Patrick and Marcel. Call me tomorrow." The next day, the final OK. Patrick, the workshop manager, and Marcel, the KTM Supermoto star and expert, like to go the extra mile when a project is exciting enough. True to their motto: "The impossible just takes a little longer."

Specifications

Make, model	KTM 530EXC
Year	2010
Capacity	510.4 ccm (31.14 cubic inches)
Engine	4-stroke single cylinder
Fuel management	Carburettor Keihin FCR MX 39
Ground clearance	38 cm (15")
Empty weight	114 kg (251 lbs)

The travel conversion

21.5 litre tank, neoprene shock protection, aluminium engine protection and suspension bleeders, all KTM Power Parts. Rally II hand guards by Acerbis. And a special drain pipe storage construction, invented and built by the Emil Weber Motos team. Even the chief lent a hand.

For Jazz, it took a few rounds. Each millimetre counts, and with a lowered bike the sidestand suddenly has its own opinion. In the end, with a handmade custom part, she can work the sidestand herself. Finally it works.

Riding a race bike around the world

Riding a 530EXC as a travel motorcycle is just as good as I expected. It's not just a joy, it's pure fun! Well, for the first couple of days your back has to get used to the saddle, which is about as soft as a park bench. Once you're over that, you get all the benefits a competition bike has to offer. It focuses uncompromisingly on what is essential: handling, suspension, agility, power, endurance.

Not that I scratch the limits of this motorcycle. By far not. And that's exactly why I chose a competition bike, and always would. The last thing I want to waste a thought on is: "Can I ride this track with my motorcycle?" With a KTM 530EXC there is only one answer: "YES, I beg for it!" Desert, mountains or urban jungle, it always works. And it's thrifty. On a flat road at a steady 80 km/h (50 mph) it drinks as little as 3.7 litres per 100 km, that's about 65 miles per gallon.

You may wonder what our bikes are called. Both of them are called "Mein Töff / Dein Töff", "my bike / your bike" in Swiss German. Both of them, because naturally it depends on where you're standing.

Maintenance and defects

On top of that, the chain and the air filter got their love regularly.

At the end

The EXC engine ran an incredible 468.5 hours, in which the motorcycle covered 32'000 kilometres (19'880 miles). Against all odds, not a single breakdown! Exactly 100 times I pulled into a petrol station and filled up 1'226 litres (324 gallons) in total. That's an average of 3.83 litres per 100 km (61 miles per gallon). The bill: 7 oil changes, 4 rear tyres, 2 front tyres, 3 chains, 3 sets of sprockets, one engine revision after 300 hours and 1 set of brake pads.

That can't be everything, you say? Ok, right, I'm hiding something. On my very last ride, the little tour through Manhattan, what flies around my ears? This freaking sidestand spring holder. AGAIN!

Spare parts

Globalisation is far advanced and KTM is everywhere. So we stopped lugging around pounds of parts. At the start of a journey the bikes are in mint condition, and so far they have always made it to the next dealer. We carry just a few parts, see the equipment list.

Royal Enfield Bullet Electra Twin Spark

2010 · India

Kerala is known for many things. Ayurveda massages, delicious food, working elephants and tea plantations so beautiful it hurts. But listen, all you lovers of a good lean angle: Kerala is the Mecca of curves in its purest form! John and his family made our dream come true and bought two Royal Enfields for us. And now, how on earth do I get this grin off my face?

Riding a Royal Enfield

You sit comfortably as on a sofa, and as low as on a chopper. Thanks to the low centre of gravity, it flows through the thousands of curves in Kerala's hills and mountains. The 350 cc potter away gently and hit maximum torque just after idle. The revs go on a bit further, just without sooo much push anymore. In practically every way, the Bullet is the exact opposite of our 530 KTM. And that makes it the perfect bike for this corner of India, where top speed is somewhere around 50 km/h anyway.

Olaf 1 and Olaf 2

Our Indian Bullets, the latest model of the Eicher-owned Royal Enfield, are called "Olaf 1" and "Olaf 2". Because now you have to know: Olaf is one of those people who actually studied engines. He knows these things like only very few do, and he understands in great detail that the development of the petrol engine did not stop a hundred years ago. With the Royal Enfield, he's not entirely sure about that. You should have seen his face when we told him about our grand plan to ride across India on one. More in the direction of lemon.

Royal royals

The first 1'000 kilometres are done, and so is the first regular service. The neutral light that was broken on delivery is replaced, so is the broken lock of the battery cover, and so is the frame bolt we lost somewhere along the way. But she's as comfortable as on the first day, so we look ahead calm and optimistic. Royal Enfield in India: an absolute must-do!

KTM 625SXC

2006 - 2010 · Ukraine, Russia, Mongolia, Tunisia

Two years after coming home from our first long journey, we bought the KTMs in 2006. It's the last evolution of the legendary LC4 carburettor four-stroke engine. Mature reliability together with sheer power and perfect handling off-road, that was the killer argument. And it still is.

Modifications

Tank conversion to 28 litres, engine protection plate with foam (for a bit less noise), fork covers and bleeder valves, handlebar riser, electric plug, sidestand, a lowering kit for Jazz's KTM and a special tool box, invented by Patrick, the master mind at Weber Motos.

With friendly support of...

Emil, Patrick and Marcel at Emil Weber Motos, who never once said "that won't work". And KTM Switzerland. Without you, these bikes would have been just bikes.