lockdoc Posted October 21, 2007 #1 Posted October 21, 2007 Well almost. Picked up my 04 Venture from just north of Brisbane, Queensland and rode it back home across Australia to my hometown of Perth. I did the trip in 4 days for a total of 4,780 kilometres or 2,968 miles. The bike ran perfectly with nothing coming loose or worse falling off (including me). I kept a record of all my fuel stops and my gas useage worked out at 38 mpg U.S. 45 mpg Imperial 16 kms/litre I pretty much kept to the speed limit and probably sat on around 70 mph. Saw plenty of wildlife on the road to avoid including - kangaroos, mobs of wild goats, emus,cows,wombats even a dingo and an echidna. Never having ridden a Venture before I can say I am very pleased with the bikes performance. I did notice that on some road surfaces there was a lot of road noise coming from the tyres and setting up a loud resonance thru the fairing at certain speeds. The bike is fitted with Bridgestones. Is there a more quiet tyre or is this normal? Also, I notice the tyres have a very high profile. Is it possible to lower the bike a little by fitting tyres with a lower profile? All in all I am very happy and would do the trip again but at a more leisurely pace.
Mariner Fan Posted October 21, 2007 #2 Posted October 21, 2007 Great start for your bike! I wonder if Kangaroos are as determined to get hit as deer are here in the US.
Thom Posted October 21, 2007 #3 Posted October 21, 2007 great ride , do think you got in broke in yet ?:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:
BuddyRich Posted October 21, 2007 #5 Posted October 21, 2007 Well, That's means your Butt now fits the seat. Musta been a blast ridin thru there.
Guest sjhrace Posted October 21, 2007 #6 Posted October 21, 2007 keep it up it only gets better.the tire noise i havent found a good fix for i use metzler ME880's i get good milage with just a little hummm.but i play my music loud so it helps...lol i have a 07 that i bought in november. so i havent had it quite a year and i have almost 26,000 miles on it.this bike has completely spoiled me... Ace
royalstarjac Posted October 21, 2007 #7 Posted October 21, 2007 I have found Dunlops to be much quieter than Brickstones.-Jack
Freebird Posted October 21, 2007 #8 Posted October 21, 2007 Any tire that you put on it will be an improvement to the Bridgestones. I HATE those tires. They are the noisiest tires I have ever heard.
juggler Posted October 21, 2007 #9 Posted October 21, 2007 Great start for your bike! I wonder if Kangaroos are as determined to get hit as deer are here in the US. I was just thinking the same thing. I bet the jump higher than deer.
spear Posted October 21, 2007 #10 Posted October 21, 2007 Hey Steve. Glad to hear that you made it home okay. Looks like you would have done your 300kms to the tank. Mate - I though of you every day you were on the road. Seriously. I was going to give you a ring on Wednesday to see if you were in Gilgandra. I was in Dubbo at work on my bike. The Qld trip didn't come off. I would have loved to have ridden up to Gil to meet you, but I ended up working later than I planned and wouldn't have been able to get away. Damn. I hope my final assessment of the bike when we spoke prior to your flying out was correct. Anyway - welcome to the club. How about posting a couple pics of the machine (or should I just go outside and have another look at mine?) Cheers, Steve P
lockdoc Posted October 21, 2007 Author #11 Posted October 21, 2007 Thanks Spear I really enjoyed the ride and would have liked to have caught up with you. I'm sure my bikes identical to yours. It was originally a dealer import as Yamaha weren't bringing them into the country at that time. I think there's only 3 or 4 white ones in the country. I need to change the tyres as I'm not happy with the Bridgestones. Will have to see if Avons are available locally. Would also like to drop the front end an inch or so. At 16 kms/litre average the range is around 360 running dry.Happy with that. Cheers Steve
cowpuc Posted October 21, 2007 #12 Posted October 21, 2007 DEFINITLY my kind of vacation!! Get on that puppy and ride er till those crappy tires fall off!! Congrats on a great trip. 'Puc
spear Posted October 21, 2007 #13 Posted October 21, 2007 Would also like to drop the front end an inch or so. Drop the front, or raise the rear end using longer levelling links? Give us a rough idea of your trip - where you stayed overnight each night etc.
FreezyRider Posted October 21, 2007 #14 Posted October 21, 2007 Lowering the front end is easy enough: http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=939
spear Posted October 21, 2007 #15 Posted October 21, 2007 Steve. When I spoke to you last week, I mentioned the RSV workshop manual I have on CD. You were going to let me know whether or not there was one with your bike. If not, I'll chuck one in the mail for you. Send me a PM with your postal address if you would like it sent over. Steve P
Yammer Dan Posted October 21, 2007 #16 Posted October 21, 2007 Wipe that grin off your face!!!! People going to wonder what you have been up to...
lockdoc Posted October 21, 2007 Author #17 Posted October 21, 2007 That was the longest ride of my life:whistling:
payntor Posted October 21, 2007 #18 Posted October 21, 2007 I did notice that on some road surfaces there was a lot of road noise coming from the tyres and setting up a loud resonance thru the fairing at certain speeds. The bike is fitted with Bridgestones. Is there a more quiet tyre or is this normal? steve, i have run avon venoms on the front for many years. no noise, good mileage, and traction. i switched to an avon rear tire in june but after 15,000 i have ordered a new dunlop touring elite II because of a slight whine i have with the avon rear. glad to hear you had a nice trip. jim
wild hair 39 Posted October 21, 2007 #19 Posted October 21, 2007 now that is a ride,what about gas stations,when i was down there in 96,got out a ways,not to easle to find,would like to do it on a bike,but driving on the right,was a bummer,took me a week to get,better at it,on a bike,could be worce,anyway,now it is just a dream
hipshot Posted October 21, 2007 #20 Posted October 21, 2007 hey lowell! maybe it isn't just a dream! some day, there might be a bridge to oz! you never know! just jt
juggler Posted October 21, 2007 #21 Posted October 21, 2007 Steve. When I spoke to you last week, I mentioned the RSV workshop manual I have on CD. You were going to let me know whether or not there was one with your bike. If not, I'll chuck one in the mail for you. Send me a PM with your postal address if you would like it sent over. Steve P You can download the owners and service manuals here. http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1828
venturejockey Posted October 21, 2007 #22 Posted October 21, 2007 Thanks Spear Would also like to drop the front end an inch or so. Cheers Steve The narrower and smaller Avon will drop the front and give the bike a more precise feel all around. Enjoy your ride.
spear Posted October 21, 2007 #23 Posted October 21, 2007 now that is a ride,what about gas stations,when i was down there in 96,got out a ways,not to easle to find,would like to do it on a bike,but driving on the right,was a bummer,took me a week to get,better at it,on a bike,could be worce,anyway,now it is just a dream - - and therein lies your problem lyell. You shoulda been driving on the LEFT side of the road. :rotf:
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now