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Touring on a ZX-6R

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Mr Ed

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We have a group of friends getting together in Parker, Colorado, in June for a tour of Colorado. The tour itself will be easy with 200~300 mile days, but we have a young man planning to go from the Huntsville, Alabama, area on a ZX-6R. He'll have to do a few 500 mile Interstate days to get there and back. He'll do approximately 3500 miles in 9 days.

He's a beginner who just got the bike and will be taking the MSF Beginner's course before then.

We've given him all kinds of advice including a few who said "Don't do it." :eek: But he's young and in good physical shape and if he wants to tag along with a bunch of old guys on Gold Wings -- why not? ;-)

Anyway, I'm looking for advice specific to the ZX-6R. I'll suggest he join the group or just send him the URL for this thread.

How about tires, in particular? I know, if I took the ZRX, I'd have to leave on a new tire to get back without buying one, and I run a sport touring compound. How's the ZX-6R on tires?

Anyway, TIA for suggestions and advice.
 
I think he has lost his mind, personally. As far as tires, Avon 45/46's get fantastic mileage, but won't be as tacky as the rubber that comes on the bike. Being new and hanging out with Wingers, this probably won't be an issue though. :-D
 
Jack Giesecke said:
79 RD400 (I swear I'm gonna restore it someday -- no, really, I am)
Click to expand...

If you don't, I know lots of folks including myself who'd love to restore a Daytona! ;-)

500 mile days sounds easy until you preface it with "on a ZX6R". :shock: :lol:
Click to expand...
I know I'm dealing with folks in the know when they relate "79 RD400" to "Daytona." :chug: The bike's rough. My wife (it's her bike) let her nephew have it to ride a few years ago, and we've now got it back.

I toured on an '83 Suzuki 550ED (had my name in it; had to own it) when I was in my late 30s, but it wasn't as extreme as the ZX-6R.
 
txmedic said:
I think he has lost his mind, personally. As far as tires, Avon 45/46's get fantastic mileage, but won't be as tacky as the rubber that comes on the bike. Being new and hanging out with Wingers, this probably won't be an issue though. :-D
Click to expand...
Kurt, that's brutal :lol:

I haven't met him or seen the bike. I know it's used, and I fear he may leave with a sport compound tire without enough rubber to get back. Thanks for the advice on the Avons.

Hey, are you the same "txmedic" on the ZRXOA board?
 
Ed yea its the same TXMedic and Jack you are in line behind me I had a dibs on that project for about 4 years now, Ed I think we may both know Jack from the old days he was a TWS regular at about the same time
 
Mods

I don't know how far he wants to go to improve his comfort, but installing a set of handlebar risers from Genmar or Helibars might help. Also, an aftermarket seat offering more padding would be a good idea. On the cheaper side, he should get a nice sized tankbag and pack all of his soft stuff in it. That way he can lay down on the bag and take some of the weight off of his arms and lower back. A taller windscreen would also be a relatively low cost option for greater comfort. Gloves with good gel pads in the palms. And tell him to pack a heating pad so that at night he can use it on any sore muscles. Premedicate each day with a healthy dose of Ibuprofen or Tylenol before he starts riding. And, yes, he'll need a set of more durable tires. Personally, I've always liked the Dunlop D220's for sport touring. I run them on my Sportcruiser. This is a bike that weighs 670 pounds and yet the lunatics at Victory put seventeen inch tires on it in sport/sport touring sizes. So the bike eats the relatively soft compound tires for lunch. And yet, I still get between 8000 and 10,000 miles out of the Dunlops. And tell him good luck. Remember, for us it's another ride to the Rockies. For him, it's an adventure. I think he should go for it.

Kelly

Oh, and you asked for a forum. Here's a very good Kawasaki forum.

http://www.kawasakimotorcycle.org/forum/index.php
 
Ed by the way I got 5500 miles out of the last Dunlop D220 Rear and that included the Barber Track Day
 
Well, I've toured on GT550 Suzukis, R5 and RD350 Yamahas, XS650s, all sorts of light bikes, no problem. It's the riding position and seat on that ZX6R that are the problem. But, heck, I'm old. If he doesn't wanna spend money on a different seat, those gel pads work pretty well. With riser bars, they sit you up a little higher and give your legs a break somewhat, too.

And, hey, I've hung around wingers that could show the trunk lid to ANYone less than race capable on a sport bike. Just depends on the wingers. If this guy is a newbie and those Wings are GL1800s, I hope he eats his wheaties. :lol:

I rode once with a group of guys from the Sugar Land area up the back roads in the Fayetteville/Gay Hill/Independance area. Those guys were stark raving nuts! I remember one of them on a 1500 getting into a wing wobble off a tight corner, his wife sitting on the back just checkin' out the scenery like nothin' was up. I was amazed. That was before I had my old Wing and I had the typical old foggies that can't ride stereotype of Wingers. I was on my VX800 and pushing it a little to keep up.. :lol: We passed a lot of shocked sport bikers that day.
 
To be brutally honest, I wouldn't want the guy along on the trip. He's just too inexperienced and unproven for a trip like that. Too many things could go wrong. That being said, his bike is suitable for something like that trip. I have a friend that does trips a lot longer on a R6 and she never seems to have much problem with discomfort. She hasn't done any mods to the bike at all. She did borrow my Airhawk on a trip we did up to Yellowstone. I think she's planning on buying one for herself now.
 
:tab I agree with Hood. The guy really should have more experience on the bike before heading to Colorado. A mistake out there can be deadly. It's a LONGGG way down in some places if you blow a corner... If he lives in Huntsville, Alabama, there are soooo many good roads in that area!! He should spend some time there getting used to the twisties as they are typically more technical than the stuff in Colorado. I guess if the Wingers are going to run a sedate pace and can keep him in check, then he would probably be okay.

:tab I would tell him to get a tire plugging kit and to know how to use it. On the long days, he should stop about every 100 miles or so to stretch and walk around for about five minutes. Over 500 miles, this is only an additional 25 minutes but it will make a HUGE difference in how he feels at the end of the day.

:tab He will need cold/wet weather gear. We were there mid June last summer and got into a pretty bad snow storm coming over Independence pass. The weather can vary from over 100 F to freezing in the same day and sometimes within an hour depending on elevation changes.

:tab I would suggest getting a Camel-Bak for water. The dry climate will suck the moisture out of you without you even realizing it. A 2 liter Camel bak should be drained a minimum of once during a 300 mile ride, preferrably more. Again, this really affects how you will feel at the end of the day.

:tab Some kind of throttle lock would be a good idea for the long days. Otherwise his throttle hand may be killing him in short order. Vista Cruise locks can be had for $20-$40 depending on the model and are easy to install.

:tab Tires: The Avons, Pilot Roads, BT 020, D220's, etc,... All good tires that will easily last this trip if mounted new before he leaves. Hopefully, he has experience riding in wet conditions on curvy roads...

:tab That's all that comes to mind at the moment...

Adios,
 
Beginners shouldn't tax themselves with such an arduous trip too early on. Encourage him to wait for next year. It really would be safer.

That said, I find the described outline of days to be appropriate for a relaxed trip. I took my ZX9R on a trip from TX to Utah to Nebraska and back. The trip was a total of 9 days, but I only travelled the nearly 3,900 miles in 4 days.
Travel days:
1 - 1100ish miles
2 - 500ish miles
3 - 1000ish miles
4 - 900ish miles

I have stock bars and a stock seat. I stood up on the pegs to stretch about every 50 miles later on in the day. I was wearing 2-piece AGV leathers.

I was using an AV46ST rear tire and a Pirelli Diablo front at that time. Wear is pretty much going to be dictated by the rider's style of riding. If you are just superslabbing it, things should be ok unless he has DOT race tires fitted. Tire pressure should be very important all the time, but special care should be given while planning for and while on the trip. The 600's aren't torque monsters (like the mentioned ZRX) and are usually pretty easy on tires.

I would consider the suggested "Camel Bak" type of hydration system a must. Also, I was very surprised by the temperature difference caused by elevation changes. We don't have that here. I heard about it and packed for it, but I was still surprised when it actually happened. I was glad for my heated handgrips (from Aerostitch.com) and poly-p thermals.
 
The most important thing he should pack is a list of all the Greyhound stations en route.
 
He might want to bring some of those "icy hot" peel-n-stick patches. It helps ease cramping muscles if he is still en route.

I used them on the way to Arkansas last year, which was about 550 miles in a day and was the longest I'd ridden.
 
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