The un-plan is the overall adventure mindset behind all our trips.
The Why
In a few years, you won’t remember that perfect vacation, where everything went just right, but I bet you will remember that time when everything got fucked.
Today it’s just too easy to plan every detail of a trip, then putting all your effort into making sure everything go just as planned. There’s easily accessible information about every place you might want to go. Navigation systems that will make sure you won’t miss a turn. Internet everywhere. Extremely reliable vehicles that won’t leave you stranded.
The golden era of exploration is long past us. The times when you could adventure to a distant land, not knowing what to expect, not knowing how to get there, without being able to communicate with anyone, are all gone. There are not a lot of unexplored and truly remote places left on earth.
We want to bring a bit of that exploration excitment back. Introduce a bit of chaos into our lives, and have more stories to tell.
The Attitude
The difference between an adventure and an ordeal, is the attitude.
This is not your typical vacation. Things will go wrong. Your bike will break down. Weather will be shit. Your hotel room will be smelly. You will meet assholes. You will get sick from eating that dubious burrito.
If you let that get you down, angry or anxious, everyone around you will start feeling the same, and everyone will have a miserable time. Your attitude is the single most important factor that determines how fun and exciting a trip will be.
- Keep in mind that whatever happens, it’s just another story to tell.
- Don’t try to control everything, all the time, go with the flow.
- Take your time and appreciate the view, enjoy the moment.
- Be open, try new things. Create those longlasting memories.
- Most people are genuinely excited about meeting a traveler. Make the effort to break the ice, listen and meet new people along the way.
The Route
The worst thing that could happen during a trip is not taking that road because it was not in the plan, and regretting your whole life. Or blasting through everything because you were running behind schedule.
That’s why we don’t expect to follow the route and itinerary at all. They are just a vague idea about where we want might to go, and what pace we might want to keep if we want to get to our destination somewhat on time.
If something happens along the way, and we decide take a completely different route, that’s fine. If we really like a place and want to hang for a while, that’s cool. If a someone tells us there’s a really cool place just down that dirt road, we’re definitely going. If a local invites us to stay over, “yes” is the only answer. We just adjust the plans as we go.
We also like to avoid navigation systems. A good old paper map usualy does the trick. And because we are terrible at navigating, allows us to explore places we would never think of going. Ask me about the time we drove half a day in the wrong direction and ended up at the China border.
The Vehicles
You’re more vulnerable on a motorcycle. You’re more connected with the environment around you. You can’t blast through 400 miles without stopping. That’s why we chose to travel on motorcycles. To be more in touch with where we are and the people around us. Meet more people, and create more memories.
Today, it’s really easy to hop on a modern adventure motorcycle, with all the new gadgets, and more likely than not, it will work perfectly. It won’t break down in the middle of nowhere, or just decide it doesn’t want to start in the morning. That’s not what we’re looking for. We’re looking for bikes with a bit more character. Bikes that probably were not made for this kind of trip. Bikes that should have been retired long ago. Increases our chances of something fun happening along the way.
Having said that, we don’t want to cut the trip short because a wheel fell off the bike and someone got hurt. Riding a motorcycle is inherently more dangerous than driving a car, and we don’t want to make that worse. Bikes always need to be checked and in tip top condition.
Martin’s ‘94 R1100RS “Bumblebee”
A few years ago, I’ve found this motorcycle abandoned in the office garage. During the early days of the pandemic, the owner moved out of state, but coulnd’t take it. He tried selling it, but given it’s age, high mileage, and the fact that it was leaking oil through the main seal, no one would take it. Given the amount of labor required to change the seal, the service would cost more than the bike was worth.
I reached out, and promised giving it a nice home. He gave me the bike, and I’ve spent the next year disassembling it completely, repainting, replacing all broken parts, and finally putting it back together again. All of that without any experience. Bought the service manual and crossed my fingers.
Now this is the bike I’ll be crossing the country with.
The Preparation
We try to prepare as little as possible. Just enough to avoid having to cut the trip short or wasting too much time on boring things along the way. There are basic things that just need to get done, so we just focus on getting those things out of the way before the trip starts.
- Riding gear
- Motorcycle insurance
- Motorcycle luggage
- Basic maintenance and inspection
- New tires
- Toolset and tire puncture kit
- Camping gear
- Electronic gadgets (cameras, chargers)
Things will not go according to plan, so there’s no point on wasting time planning for every possible detail.
The Details
Over the years, there are a few things we learned that will make the trip better.
- Leaving early. That means not dragging our feet, making others wait.
- Not riding at night. You can’t see shit at night.
- Keeping a moderate pace. We’re not trying to reach our destination as fast as possible.
- Eating local. Instead of the chain restaurant, let’s try the local burger joint.
- Owning your shit. If you break down, don’t expect someone else to sort it out for you.
