2002-03-06
Building Magellan, Part 1
I have driven to Boise, Idaho to meet Tim Bernard of Happy Trails with the mission of transforming my stock KLR 650 into a capable world tourer. My route took me south to Portland and then east on I-84 through the scenic Columbia river gorge and over the Blues mountains. The gorge is impressive even in winter. Hundreds of waterfalls flow over the stone cliffs. Some are flowing, some frozen, and some a little of both. It is beautiful and I made a note to return during the summer. This route is a little longer than the direct path but as we've had more than our usual quota of rain and snowfall it isn't likely I could make it through Snoqualmie pass. The mountains were covered with ice and snow but the roads, thankfully, were clear. The views made me forget all about the cold and the ride was a pleasure.
In a few days my KLR will bear little resemblance to the motorcycle you see in this picture. My request to Tim Bernard of Happy Trails was simple: One of everything! Happy Trails specializes in products to enhance dual-sport motorcycles like my KLR. We're going to add their aluminum luggage panniers, an engine guard, a skid plate, hand protectors, shift lever, fork brace and a center stand. The bike already has a braided front-brake line and I've replace the stock seat with one from Rick Mayer. The other modifications will be to add a Garmin GPS and a replacement Electrex stator/regulator for higher wattage output.
The new KLR will be a true Magellan: Ready to go anywhere that a motorcycle could possibly go.
I'm thinking about these modifications as I ride through the mountains. The fact is any motorcycle can make it around the world. It's been done on everything from the tiniest scooter to the biggest Gold Wing. The problem is those motorcyles are limited to where they can go and what they can do. Small motorcycles can't keep up with highway speeds. Dirt bikes have microscopic luggage capacity and aren't at home on the pavement. Sport and touring motorcycles are limited to well-paved roads.
A 125cc scooter on the autobahn? Suicide. A Gold Wing on desert sand dunes? Only in a Fellini movie. And that would be the dream sequence with a fog machine and singing drawf.
Even if you think you can live within those limits the lack of flexibility can rear its ugly head when the unexpected happens. And you can be sure it will happen at the worst possible time. What would you do when the main highway is unpassable and you are forced to take an alternate route through muddy dirt roads? What would you do when you discover the next gas stop is 150 miles away but your bike only has 100 miles of range? Or when you have an unrepairable flat but there are no replacements for you bike's odd-size tire?
All motocycles have limits. A Magellan motorcycle intelligently minimizes them.
The recipe for a Magellan starts with a dual-sport bike for on and off-road capability. Then modify it to improve carrying capacity, comfort and safety.
Here is how my KLR appeared when I arrived at Happy Trails. The Rick Mayer seat may not seem graceful at first glance but after a comfortable 500-mile day it's starting to look beautiful to me. You can just barely make out the accessory socket that I wired to the battery to drive my heated vest. It's zipped-tied to the frame and dangles out the back fender. I'm going to have something more permanent made for it while I'm here.
The first step is to install a center stand to make it easier to work on the bike. You can just see it in this photo (it's more visible in the next.)
Brent Wecker is replacing the stock stator/regulator with one from Electrex. Tim Bernard is on the right. The stock unit puts out only 200 watts which doesn't leave much power left over for driving a GPS, heated gear and keeping the battery charged. It's a good modification to make but I'm still a little nervous about replacing it. Will the Electrex unit be as reliable as stock? Just to be safe, I'm going to carry the stock unit as a backup.
Replacing the stock shock absorber spring with one from Progressive. We did the same for the front forks too. Jason Ward is on the right.
Mounting the Happy Trails "SU" racks. The name originally stood for "Something Ugly" because of the simplicity of the thick welded tubes. Simple and plain but strong and dependable. That makes it beautiful in my eyes. I think Tim is calling it "Something Unique" now but I prefer the original name.
Jason Ward is test-fitting the aluminum panniers.