TAT Stories and Lessons Learned (Responses)

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2	Dave	Sept. 2016: just completed the TAT coast-to-coast (in 3 legs) on a 2013 KTM 300 XC-W 2-stroke, street legal. I had the advantage in CO & UT as my co-riders had heavier bikes. I used the same jets I use in Ohio for the entire trip. Some noticeable pwr loss in higher elevations but no big deal. I carried five 3oz bottles of oil in my back pack for ea. days ride and blended at the pump when refueling. Here's how the bike was set up: 3.5 gal. oversize tank, 1 gal. RotoPax spare (only used once), Pirelli MT 21 DOT tires (wheels trued and balanced), 14 tooth front sprocket, 49 rear, Scotts steering stabilizer, Seat Concepts custom seat (a must!), street legal and plated.
3	jay	been going down to the trail for a couple years now. start at the days inn. Jellico tn. use the 2014 trail just go out a couple sections west but plenty of off roads and rivers to play in trails everywhere. made it to Copan OK once. in the process of putting together a budget jeep 1997 Cherokee lol should be blast going to try to make Trinidad CO leave aug 2016
4	bronson 1	My son and I did the trail from Tennessee to the coast of Or. in the last two weeks of June and it took 14 1/2 days with near perfect weather. It was very hot, 100 plus most days and often 107 to 112 degrees BUT not much rain so not a lot of Mud to deal with. Most days we ran between 260 and 400 miles. Most days we rode from 7am to about 5 or 6 pm taking about a hour for lunch. So mostly 10 hrs. a day with a few more like 12 hrs. We ended up riding about 4800 miles with a few side trips thrown in from time to time. We did 3 to 4 sections per day for the most part, remember you don't have to stop at the end of a section, you can stop mid way if you find a good place. The GPS route worked great for the most part. However there were some reroutes because of swollen rivers, creeks, washouts, rock slides, trees across the roads and a few roads closed with locked gates. Also watch for the occasional and unexpected Barbwire gate not marked and across the road. Yes we road right into one at speed, fortunately no one got hurt but some damage to the bike. The route after Tennessee is about 85% dirt or gravel, very little paved. One thing about the route, The Greens are not always easier, sometimes there are two good or equal routes and one has to be a different color, so its either green or red. Sometimes green is used to get you to gas or food, Both of which come in handy and are often scares. Red route were sometimes closed and often difficult on a heavy bike but were very ride able on a lighter true dual sport bike. Only a few were true single tracks. the DRZ 400 was a good choice but the BMW sertao was a bit heavy for the route but worked. With the bigger bikes you just have to slow down and take your time. BUT the lighter bikes allow you to have more fun while playing in the dirt! Gas was not a problem but you learn not to pass up gas or food, We had 220 mile ranges on both bikes and never had any close calls other than the one time that we created our self. As I said you learn not to pass up gas even if you think you have plenty to the next gas stop. We used a motor home as a chase vehicle and met up with it at night for maintenance and a home away from home. It carried our spare tires, brakes,chain and sprockets,tools extra gear. So we traveled light on the bikes with only water, tubes and tools for the most part. This worked very well and its not much trouble to figure out ahead where to meet. We camped at Wal-marts, private campgrounds, state and national parks mostly. We used T63 tires and I do recommend aggressive Knobbies. Ours lasted about 2500 miles on the rear and we used 1 front and 2 rears on both bikes to complete the trail. Make sure you have a good chain and sprocket and keep it lubed, then it should make the trip. We did not have to replace brake pads on either bike and they were about half gone starting the trip. We owe a big thanks to GPSKevin for the tracks and a great route to follow. We had purchased Sam's roll charts but once we used them both we learned how much easier it was with the gps so we used his tracks exclusively for almost all of the trip. Its really is a trip of a life time. GO ENJOY
5	cgav8r	Background: We road from Oxford MS to Trinidad CO, 5/25/15 to 6/2/15. For navigation we used: Garmin 78, Nuvi 750, iPhone – we used no paper. Our bikes were a WR250R and CRF250L. It was a three-generation trip. We were truck supported so we traveled very light and could cover a lot of ground quickly. Lessons Learned: Our lessons learned apply to our circumstances and how we saw the trail. First and foremost – loved the TAT and can’t wait until next year to finish up. Second – the GPS tracks are spot on – thanks to all the people who have contributed, together we can keep improving the experience. My biggest take away was: “do not discount your smart phone.” I should have installed a usb outlet and a dedicated mount. I hard wired my Garmin which was great but had to share the mount with my phone and the phone was battery powered. The phone worked all the way. We planned everything out in advance and it quickly all fell apart due to weather. So we had to plan and navigate on the fly. The Nuvi was crap (I updated to the 2015 maps) but it could not find obscure places. We met a group that used the Nuvi to display the route but I could not figure that out. They copied their Garmin 78 SD card and put it in the Nuvi and it worked – I have not tried that yet. Google Maps on the iPhone was money to find new places to camp, and get us and our support truck together. You could easily send each other position information and navigate to that point. Put a camera on your handle bars – if you have your smart phone there – problem solved. I did not; therefore it became a pain every time I wanted to take a picture. Because it was a pain, I did not take many pictures. Next year I will mount a GoPro (hard wired to power) with the wireless remote. (Garmin 78, iPhone, GoPro) A can of fix a flat can get you to your camp where it is easier to change a tire. GPS Kevin’s website is valuable on the trail. With the smart phone I would go to the TAT section pages open the Google Map and search for camping places the next day. I could easily see the location in relation to the trail. Worked like a champ. If it rains the night before – plan on jumping to the road. The muddy trail does not get better – you just get farther from dry land. In the beginning we were purist, ride the trail! But after carrying a motorcycle for a few miles– it got a little old (I am sure the people who maintain the road would rather you not gouge huge ruts in the road bed). The mud sticks like cement! We shot for about 180 miles a day. That was a lot of miles and kept us from smelling the roses. We wanted to get to Colorado this year and only had a certain amount of time – that made the trail a blur. My last lesson learned deals with supported vs unsupported. There are pros and cons to each. There is a lot of security with being truck supported but also complexity. There is simplicity being unsupported but there is risk. Having the truck was nice, but I think next year we are going to try it unsupported. It took at least 1.5 hrs to set up camp and we never got on the road faster than 2 hours in the morning. We went from park to park to camp, but there were plenty of places that the small footprint of a motorcycle and a bevi sack could stay. The gas stops had food (maybe not the best) and your camel back carried plenty of water. If the weather turns bad – you can always get a hotel. With the truck we had to make the campsite. So if we were behind schedule we had to power on, if we were ahead we had to stop. Thank you Kevin for your work on this – I appreciate the opportunity to add to the body of knowledge.
6	gpsKevin	This is a new test section, what will people write here?
7	Arlen	At 60, I did the trail w my son in Aug 2016. Beginning in Savannah jumping on in N Carolina and finishing in OR. Epic trip DR 650s and tent w side packs. 5000 miles across and 3000 back on pavement home to IN. I recommend more than 1 1/2 years off road experience esp for the mtn trails. They require skill and a lighter bike. Was a great father son adventure.
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