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Long Way Down starts Sunday, John-o-groats to Capetown


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#81 dapleb

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Posted 22 November 2007 - 12:59 pm

QUOTE(XTreme @ Wed 21st Nov 2007, 06:09 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
One thing you gotta ask yourself....Why are they riding fully loaded R1200GS's on surfaces like soft sand when they've got a full support vehicle with them?


Shame they didnt take along the new GS800 thingy. Suppose it was in the contract to take the 1200 though.

Made me laugh how many times they mentioned "MOTO GUZZI FACTORY" before visiting it, almost like they were being paid per mention, or were contracted to mention it x times. Ohh and what were they shown riding around town on before leaving? Freebies? rolleyes.gif

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#82 TonyDevil

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Posted 22 November 2007 - 01:05 pm

good on em, if i could get a free bike by running around in front of a camera and then taking a tour of the factory i'd do it good.gif

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#83 ChrisG

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Posted 22 November 2007 - 01:51 pm

QUOTE(masterbrewer @ Wed 21st Nov 2007, 09:32 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>


Good call good.gif

Just finished the Angola. MetalJockey's got a few other interesting looking ride reports on there too, but that Angola one is just stunning.

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#84 dapleb

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Posted 22 November 2007 - 05:10 pm

QUOTE(TonyDevil @ Thu 22nd Nov 2007, 12:50 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
good on em, if i could get a free bike by running around in front of a camera and then taking a tour of the factory i'd do it good.gif


Go on'wid ya.
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#85 E-njoy

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Posted 23 November 2007 - 03:51 pm

QUOTE(dapleb @ Thu 22nd Nov 2007, 01:44 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Shame they didnt take along the new GS800 thingy. Suppose it was in the contract to take the 1200 though.


The 800GS came out last week, while the guys returned several months ago (and started planning a year earlier). It just wasn't there, but it would probably have been a better bike... although the fuel tank is only half that of the R1200GS Adventure. And like you see in the Angola story, that would probably mean a lot of weight of extra fuel cans strapped on the bike somewhere:



Each bike carried an extra 30 liters, that's what those cans on the ground represent, which is what a R1200GS has as standard volume.

"The massive weight of the fuel and water makes your bike a stranger. I was riding a pogo stick front connected to a drunk hippopotamus at the rear. Not lekker at all."

So then it becomes a very heavy and more unstable F800GS, on top of that a lot less power per kg. The heavier and bigger KTM 950 didn't do worse apparently:

"The 950 comes into it's own however. The weight of the bike allows it to track straight and ignore all but the ugliest rocks. "



So perhaps a 1200GS, not needing those extras cans strapped on isn't such a bad bike for the job anyway?

And could somehow still please turn the picture autosqueeze feature up to at least 800 px width so we can show the nicer Large resolution smugmug pics without the ugly side effects? This feature is truly ridiculous and pointless.


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#86 dapleb

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Posted 23 November 2007 - 04:16 pm

Nice pics. smile.gif
"Whats up", "Piston Broke", "Yeah me too...hic"

If you want to mark your location on the Carpe map: http://www.carpe-tdm...opic.php?t=5117

Doin valve clearances? Use dappers valve shim exchange program and the job will be carroty - Free (other than you postin me yer shims) for sporting members.

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#87 ChrisG

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Posted 23 November 2007 - 05:29 pm

If you read some more stuff by the guy who wrote that Angola story, and was riding the KTM640 in it, he used to have a 1200GS. The 950 was praised for it's abilities on the rocks, but he had a lot more trouble in the sand than the lighter 650's

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#88 wicklamulla

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Posted 25 November 2007 - 12:04 pm


Each bike carried an extra 30 liters, that's what those cans on the ground represent, which is what a R1200GS has as standard volume.

yes but one of those can equates to 30 litres not all of them !!!



And could somehow still please turn the picture autosqueeze feature up to at least 800 px width so we can show the nicer Large resolution smugmug pics without the ugly side effects? This feature is truly ridiculous and pointless.

why ?? maybe your the only person on Carpe to use Smugpants but it doesn't bodder anyone else ???

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#89 E-njoy

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Posted 02 December 2007 - 11:07 pm

QUOTE(wicklamulla @ Sun 25th Nov 2007, 12:49 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
And could somehow still please turn the picture autosqueeze feature up to at least 800 px width so we can show the nicer Large resolution smugmug pics without the ugly side effects? This feature is truly ridiculous and pointless.

why ?? maybe your the only person on Carpe to use Smugpants but it doesn't bodder anyone else ???


It's got nothing to do with smugmug. There's a feature on the forum which squeezes pics to a pretty tiny display size (the size of the pic itself in kb is not reduced, so loading time or server load is still identical) without any reason whatsoever. There's plenty of nice pics encountered anywhere on the web, with a lot of them being 800x600 or similar, but this feature makes them look horrible... for no reason. So why not either remove the feature (although I can imagine it being good for people who have no clue how to reduce their 12 megapixel picture, but then still the kb size is NOT reduced and IE7 or Firefox will still autoreduce them anyway) or just increase the size to 800 pixels width, which is still a lot smaller than most laptop / pc display sizes?

It doesn't bother other people perhaps because they think it actually reduces kb size and figure the feature is good for something, which it isn't. It's a shame if you want to display a topic with some nice looking pics, even if they would be in a fine resolution for 90% of the users (PDA / GSM users have browsers which reduce pics anyway), because they just look screwed up. Not a lot of people do that, so even less know about it. It's completely pointless, so why would one want such a feature? It would bother even less folks if it wasn't there (or set up differently).


Anyway, glad to see a few nice images of Ewan and Charley arriving in Capetown. Saddened that everything in the series seems so incredibly rushed or cut out. I mean from Malawi to South Africa in 1 hour... Namibia about 5 minutes, South Africa in about 3 minutes. That somehow seemed totally different in LWR, perhaps because they edited most of America out of the series which left enough intimate details about the part through Asia. Perhaps there was too much emphasis now on a lot of the Unicef projects, or maybe it was the feeling their trip never began because their 3-car support team was almost always with them? Or just expectations were too high? I dunno... but it disappointed even though they must have had a much better time than what we got to see. In LWR we got the feeling to be riding with them, now it's more a feeling of catching glimpses.


Edited by E-njoy, 02 December 2007 - 11:10 pm.

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#90 catsbum

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Posted 02 December 2007 - 11:30 pm

Ewan's wife needed a stern talking to about the amount of times she fell off. Jeez woman!

#91 Guest_Pantboy_*

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Posted 03 December 2007 - 08:41 am

the ewan's wife falling off montage was the highlight of the series for me. laugh.gif
it went a long way to prove why she should'nt of been there the selfish cow.

#92 ChrisG

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Posted 03 December 2007 - 09:18 am

Did I miss something or were there even more support personell with them we were led to believe? When they split up Ewan, wifey and Claudio went one way, while Charlie and both support cars went a different way, yet Ewan was booking "2 singles and a double" at the hotel/lodge? Then there was that hill climb bit, 2 countries after wifey left them but they still had her bike with them, who was transporting that?

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#93 Guest_Emmett_*

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Posted 03 December 2007 - 06:48 pm

Charley was meeting Ewan and the wifey that evening, so he was booking a room for him. I dunno how they got the 650 around, I know some bloke won an auction to spend some time riding with them, mebbe he was on the wee bike????

#94 jht

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Posted 03 December 2007 - 06:52 pm

QUOTE(E-njoy @ Sun 2nd Dec 2007, 10:52 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
In LWR we got the feeling to be riding with them, now it's more a feeling of catching glimpses.
My sentiments exactly about the whole thing, just not as engrossing or 'intimate' as LWR


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To do: Educate homo sap nav system to operate twisty + grabby things/ get ear plugs

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#95 wicklamulla

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Posted 04 December 2007 - 12:06 am

well at least the last episode was prolly the best ? but i agree that they really did cut out alot of footage and apparently 'rush thru' some countries. Ole Charley really pissed of Claudio by fooling around and showboating fer some locals as it caused the intrepid cameraman to bin his steed................. a proper Charley indeed. I won't be buying or hoping i get LWD fer Christmas though. overall i'd rate it 3/10.

spyball alarm/immob, bluespot brake calipers and Stainless hoses, Fournales air adjustable shock with Remote Resevoir, forks raised 10mm thru yokes, racetech linear fork springs in 15 wt oil, Kappa wingrack/luggage, heated grips, Kedo handguards, dual heat controller to power heated jacket liner and or pants!!, Stebel 136DB horn, K&N air filter, colour matched Baglux tank cover (magnetic tank bag modified to fit cover), osram +50% headloight bulbs, headlight protector,"NitramSpecial" parking loight, tail light indicators all running on LED's & incorporate "Lite Buddies", MK7 Scottoiler fitted, taller screen, 2-2 stainless steel CCC's, Devil stainless down pipes. MKI Renntec engine crash bars & sump guard.
engine changed july 2007 on a dyno run it made 79.1BHP / Torque 59.9Had a brief flirtation with a 1999 MKIIa but it blew an exaust valve on the M5 so was sold on to be repaired.

I loike tay and hang sangwiches !

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#96 hallrob1

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Posted 04 December 2007 - 09:32 am

I don't know if this has already been mentioned but there is a similar program on National Geographic channel ( I know - Satellite/Cable only) following Kevin and Julia Sanders from Alaska to Patagonia with 11 novices. Link

I haven't seen it yet as I only found out about it yesterday and have missed the first 2 episodes but the next ones are on Sunday 9th December and it will be repeated in the very near future. I doubt they have 3 support vehicles!

I agree with others on the LWD - it seemed to be a much less in-depth program, I suppose thats the penalty for going on the BBC, Sky have so many channels they can fill them out more


Cheers


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#97 Matlock

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Posted 04 December 2007 - 09:52 am

QUOTE(hallrob1 @ Tue 4th Dec 2007, 09:17 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
I don't know if this has already been mentioned but there is a similar program on National Geographic channel ( I know - Satellite/Cable only) following Kevin and Julia Sanders from Alaska to Patagonia with 11 novices. Link
Cheers
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#98 XTreme

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Posted 04 December 2007 - 12:20 pm

It went from just being boring to being cringingly embarrassing IMO.....the lowest point being Ewen carrying his thicko wife along the beach into the sea. rolleyes.gif

#99 sidestand

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Posted 04 December 2007 - 12:35 pm

The next 'adventure' will be even worse, because she wants to do the whole trip with 'em ohmy.gif

Edited by sidestand, 04 December 2007 - 12:35 pm.

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#100 Mandi

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Posted 04 December 2007 - 01:41 pm

IMO, Eve (the wife) gives us girl bikers a bad name, she was falling off for no reason at all. I mean fancy doing a trip like that when you have only just learnt to ride and probably done very limited off road. My husband said he would not attempt it with his limited experience. I won't watch the next series if she is going to be in it because apart from anything else it changes the whole relationship between the boys.

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