Some level of physical fitness is crucial for adventure motorcyclists as it can significantly enhance the riding experience and ensure safety. Endurance, strength, and flexibility are important elements that riders should strive to attain. However, getting in shape can seem challenging and intimidating. Bill Dragoo, who broke his leg while riding his motorcycle, decided to prioritize his physical fitness. His story is inspiring and can motivate others to work towards achieving a certain level of fitness, enabling them to undertake longer journeys and take on new challenges with confidence.

Keith Code is a renowned figure in the world of motorcycle racing and training. With decades of experience as a former racer and an influential coach, Code has revolutionized the way riders approach their craft. His expertise led him to establish the California Superbike School, an internationally recognized institution. In this episode, we explore Keith’s journey while he shares his expertise in the art of street cornering with adventure bikes. Particularly focusing on low-traction situations, we delve into the optimal sitting position—whether upright, aligned with the bike's lean, or leaned inside—and unravel the reasoning behind it all. Tune in to uncover Keith's remarkable story, his path to success, and insights on cornering techniques.

According to the Greek philosopher, Epictetus, “It’s not what happens to you, but how you react that matters.”  Rose Padilla and Chad Horton were looking to their future and thought they had their retirement plans all figured out, until they weren’t. When things sort of fell apart for them, instead of becoming bitter and resentful they took stock and decided there was another adventure they wanted to chase down, one that involved a motorcycle.

For motorcyclists, obstacles appear in many forms. On the street there may be road damage including missing asphalt on the road edges, potholes, construction, debris, dead animals and more. And off-road, anything from washouts that weren’t there yesterday, to rocks, boulders, roots, trees, and the list goes on. We have two choices when an obstacle presents itself, we can either avoid it or hit it. That may seem trite but it’s not just whether we hit or miss, it’s how we hit or miss. All with the goal of having the least negative result or, ideally, a positive one.

After suffering a tragic double loss lori lozinski felt alone in the world, an orphan grappling with an existential crisis. lori found herself spiralling emotionally downward until she discovered salvation through her new hobby of riding motorcycles. Only then could she turn to what she knows best - professional film production to reflect on her past relationships from the seat of her motorcycle and to help others navigate their own inevitable losses.

Budgeting for a trip has always been a bit of an enigma, there are so many variables to consider. Will you camp, stay in hostels or B&B’s, all decisions that change the budget drastically. And on top of that, in the past couple of years prices have skyrocketed for fuel, groceries, parts and accommodations. It seems that almost everything has increased in price, not to mention the supply chain issues, reduced or non existent shipping options, and more. But it isn’t necessarily all doom and gloom, in fact it’s during these times when those people who are really on the ball and motivated, like Michnus and Elsie Olivier, dig in and discover new ways and even develop new ideas and habits to not only survive, but thrive. And what you end up with is a new or at least different paradigm for travel by motorcycle, and a better way to budget.

Sharon and Doug Wildeboer are a close couple, used to spending time together and both ride their own motorcycles. Doug is the original motorcyclist of the two and it was his idea to travel by motorcycle in Iceland and through Europe. Sharon is a skilled rider but she describes herself as a reluctant rider although a lover of travel. Being a reluctant rider can mean a lot of stress for Sharon, which for Doug may be difficult to recognize since he’s not feeling that. But that isn’t the only challenge that Sharon and Doug have had to work through on their trip. Before they left they had saved money and rented their house out with the plan being to work remotely on the road. And so far they’ve been able to keep their trip, in their words, cost-neutral. So, travel by motorcycle, on the cheap and work on the road. How they’ve managed to do that and more, on this episode.

Combine a heavy adventure motorcycle with a narrow trail or tight space and turning around becomes a foot wrestle at best, or a job fit for a team. Today on Adventure Rider Radio’s exclusive Rider Skills we are learning two great methods to make the turnaround a non-event and get you back in the saddle again.

Many riders lack the confidence and skill to repair their own tire at the side of the road and much of that is derived from two things, not having practiced the skills required and using the wrong patches and plugs. The story usually goes something like this: I tried fixing my tire once but every time I pumped it back up it just leaked again, so I gave up and took it to a shop. The problem with relying on a shop to fix your tire is that it leaves you stuck wherever your air escapes, yet with a little knowledge, preparation and practice, a flat tire can mean nothing more than a delay before you are back on the road. David Peterson loves flats tires, well, he loves to fix them. And over the years he has become an expert of sorts in tire repair, in fact David has invented some of the products riders use to repair tires.

Jackie Layng and her partner Davide Focardi came from Ireland to America in part to ride the Dalton and then to continue down into South America. Jackie was a relatively new rider, with little experience and part of her motivation for doing the trip was to overcome the anxiety that had been infiltrating her life. Davide has been dreaming of doing a trip like this all his life, riding off into the unknown. For him it’s all about the challenge, pushing his own limits and exploring wild areas that are unavailable in Europe. So, we almost have two sides of the spectrum, one looking to overcome anxiety and build confidence, and the other searching for a test of his.

Graeme and Katrina Perkins are riding the slow lane around the world. They left Australia back in 2016 and thought it could take a couple of years to explore the globe, but it’s now seven years later and they have only made it about half way around the world. They have learned plenty, met loads of people, crossed many borders, all along the way perfecting this thing called motorcycle travel. They pack extremely light, plan ahead, and the more they ride, the slower they go.

There is a lot to remember when riding an adventure motorcycle in the dirt and challenges often come up quickly leaving little time for contemplation. That’s when having the skills you need in muscle memory can make the difference between an exhilarating ride or a ‘pick up you bike’ exercise or worse. So, to get some things clear in your mind once again Clinton Smout is going to walk us through almost every challenge we find when riding adventure motorcycless in the dirt.

Chase Eckert says he’s drawn to fantastic stories told by amazing people and feels that if you listen to enough interesting people for long enough you will end up trying something interesting yourself. Chase grew up working at his family’s traveling carnival in Alaska. As things would have it, during Covid the carnival shut down, but when things started to open up again Chase went back to work. While at a carnival during the Iditarod sled dog race he got the idea to ride his motorcycle to the Arctic Circle. After some quick planning, Chase set out and rode his KTM up the Dalton Highway, but before he made it to his destination he ran in to some trouble with his bike and plans changed.

Nothing beats heading out for a riding adventure with a group of friends, enjoying the ride and having someone watch your back while you watch theirs. But, there are some things that you should keep in mind when it comes to riding with a group including safety, preparation and buddy etiquette. Clinton Smout, who’s in Baja, Mexico riding sweep on a commercial group ride, talks about group riding but not before he tells us about the most difficult day on the ride so far, on what he calls The Trail from Hell.

They say that everything has a season in life, a time, perhaps even a lifespan, and when it’s over we need to let it it go and move forward. But it doesn’t mean walking away and forgetting, it means taking with you what you have learned and what you have become from the experience. And that may be one of the things we can draw from Tom Reuter’s story, that it’s not about how many miles you have ridden, how many countries you have visited, or how many borders you have crossed, it’s about what you take away from the journey. And that has nothing and everything to do with the ride itself.

Janell and Stuart Clarke are both engineers and both enjoyed travelling and exploring the Australian outback by four wheel drive having so much fun that they decided to explore the world. So they began dreaming and planning a trip, but it soon became apparent to them that the cost of using a four wheel drive would deeply cut in to their budget. Then the idea of using motorcycles came up and that seemed like a plan they could sink their teeth into. Soon they were on the road, two bikes and a dog on the trip of a lifetime. Nine years later, they are still travelling from country to country and having picked up some passengers it’s now five of them on two motorcycles - still exploring the world.

Chris Birch thinks that sand really gets a bad rap and that riding in sand is fun, not just for him but for all riders. And if you disagree, it could be that you either need to tweak your skills or perhaps you’ve missed one of the fundamentals of riding in sand. Time after time, Chris teaches riders to have fun in the sand, not just survive, but have fun. So, if you fear sand or you struggle in it, this episode of RIDER SKILLS should make it so that the next time you see sand through your visor, you’ll anticipate it with a smile on your face.

When Patrick Cheever was about seven years old his dad brought home a moped, and Patrick thought it was a dream machine. He racked up mile after mile riding the moped back and forth in his driveway and around the yard. And that sealed it for him, he fell in love with riding motorcycles. And so it continued, riding, fixing, buying and selling, until something happened, not to Patrick but to people close to him. It made him question the safety of riding a motorcycle, so he walked away from the internal combustion engine and began riding his mountain bike because it was safer, or so he thought. In hindsight, he realized that he had never really let motorcycling go, and this is his story of leaving and then returning to the motorcycle.

Why would anyone ride a motorcycle to an exotic location in a faraway place and then just leave the bike behind? To date, there are about 175 riders who have done just that. They’ve ridden these motorcycles on epic motorcycle adventures in which they traverse sand, mud, tough ground, through streams and even over mountains to deliver the motorcycles to park rangers working in underfunded areas. The ceremonial hand-off of the new motorcycle from the adventure rider philanthropist to park ranger is an emotional affair that is so powerful that it draws some of these riders back, year after year. And the great thing about it is that you could be going next.

It was something he dreamed of doing, something on his bucket list. Brett Anderson was going to ride his motorcycle to Ushuaia one day, perhaps in retirement when he had more time. Brett had a busy life filled with outdoor pursuits such as hiking, running, motorcycling, and he also worked as an international commercial airline pilot. He was active, physically fit and busy. Then suddenly he got sick and everything changed when he was diagnosed with a terminal illness. But rolling over and accepting defeat is not Brett Anderson, in fact that diagnosis was what fuelled Brett to focus on his bucket list - Ushuaia by motorcycle.

Rolling along a trail or down the road on a motorcycle emanates a sense of grace and precision, but when the rolling slows to a stop that same motorcycle suddenly feels like a pig. And trying to move it around while standing beside it quickly become a wrestling match, or more over, a mismatch as you try to shove and pull the hefty two wheeled behemoth while it seems to do it’s best to oppose your every effort and flops down on the ground. On this exclusive Adventure Rider Radio RIDER SKILLS segment, we learn the methods of the pros on moving a motorcycle while standing beside it, all the while making it look like a well balanced bicycle, with you taking control.

Every motorcycle has some suspension settings that can and should be adjusted for you and your load - so ask yourself, when was the last time, or maybe when was the first time you adjusted or readjusted your suspension to match your load? Or maybe you are wondering why we need to adjust our motorcycle suspension when we don’t ever have to adjust the suspension in our cars? And what is dampening, how do you set it and what are you supposed to feel afterwards?

Wayne Kouf is heading to Ushuaia, Argentina. His plan is to stay off the beaten track and find some challenges like The Trampoline of Death - fabled to be one of the most dangerous roads in South America. But, Wayne and the two other riders he had met up with found the gruelling road blocked by landslides, so they changed routes and rode up high up into the mountains of Colombia. At this point, they were sort of off the map, in to what Wayne describes as the toughest, most difficult riding he has ever done. But what he didn’t expect, what he couldn’t have imagined from the thin line displayed on his GPS, was that this route would take him straight into hostile FARC Guerrilla territory, where they were stopped and held at gunpoint. And not much later in the trip he is caught in the violent deadly protests in Peru. Something that’s fascinating in Wayne’s story, aside from the events themselves, are the tactics he used to safely get them out of dangerous situations. Tactics he used for completely different situations in a real estate career.

Deadhorse, Alaska is an unincorporated community that supports oil operations in nearby Prudhoe Bay and is the temporary home for two to three thousand nonpermanent workers. To get to Deadhorse you have to ride the Dalton Highway, commonly referred to as the Haul Road, and it’s not for the faint of heart. Road conditions vary greatly with gravel, mud, dust, snow and ice. Why has it become a destination for motorcyclists, not to mention loads of other tourists? So why all the fuss? On this episode, Jeff Davison tells us what it was like for him to ride a test motorcycle from Suzuki all the way to Deadhorse Alaska.

Crossing a river, pond or puddle can be great fun, exhilarating in fact, that is assuming you make it through. Because if you don’t, the result can run from mild to very serious, even leaving you stranded or walking out. And it only takes one of many possible mistakes to ruin your day. But there is a procedure, and if you follow it through you will have the best chance of getting to the other side smiling. On this episode of Rider Skills, instructor Clinton Smout will walk us through that procedure, step by step, and give you some exercises to do at home to build your skills while you’re still dry.

We’ve heard much talk and debate about the modern motorcycle, with its computer systems and how it affects one’s ability to ride in remote or far off places. Some riders insist on riding bikes that have older technology, while others say the new systems are reliable and are worth the risk of the remote chance of having a problem. The choices for new motorcycles without computer technology is dwindling quickly as manufacturers modernize their line-up, complying with emissions requirements around the globe. But what is this system that we’re so afraid of? This computer system that is so magical, mysterious and yet loathsome for a rider with a broken one? Is it really as difficult, as out of reach, as impenetrable and difficult to understand as many would have you believe? This, travel and motorcycles on today’s episode of ARR.