Planning Dual Sport & Adventure motorcycle rides

There are many things to consider when planning a group motorcycle ride that includes off-road sections, or is all off-road. These rides are a great way to meet people, and group rides improve safety for all. I began organizing group motorcycle rides about a year and a half ago. I created this post to share my lessons learned over that time, and after many great rides. 

Weather

While many don't consider season or weather before planning rides, I do take these things into account. At some point it goes beyond just comfort and enjoyment, and becomes an important safety consideration. For instance, I live in an area where flash floods can be deadly. Many rides include wash crossings, or even long section riding the wash itself. Often these washes are in deep canyons or even slot canyons. A slot canyon is a complete trap, where there is no exit on either side. 

Safety

The most important weather consideration is safety. The weather related safety risks vary by region and season. Here in the Southwest flash floods are the most dangerous, followed by lighting and fire. The biggest flash flood risk is in Monsoon season. The challenge here is that the probability of heavy rains during Monsoon season can be very low, yet end up producing deadly flash floods. The situation can be very dynamic and hard to predict as well. Lightening and fire risk follow the flash flood risk and the thunderstorms are responsible for lightning which causes most of the fires as well. OnX has a feature that shows current fires on the map.

Comfort and fun

We all have different tolerances to things like temperature and humidity. Personally I prefer cooler weather in general. I would rather ride in 40F temperatures than 100F temperatures (presuming low humidity). Wind also plays a role. It is not much fun to ride in strong wind. Wind also drives the direction of dust. 

Here in the Southwest, I plan around weather. In the summer, I plan very early morning rides, and go to high altitude. NOAA has some great maps views for this. The weather map below is an example showing apparent temperature in the region. Apparent temperature takes wind chill and humidity impacts into account.

The color shows the various temperatures. In the summer, head for green areas. In general for each 1,000 feet of elevation gain, the temperature drops about 3F to 5F. In the winter, ride the lower altitudes and start later in the day. They also have maps for storms, wind, precipitation, etc. 

Ride Planning

Ride difficulty level

As all riders have different skill levels, train preferences, and motorcycles, it is important to communicate as much as you can about the nature of the ride and the difficulty levels. It is less about the bike and really about the combination of bike and rider, and this is very subjective. The term "big bike friendly" comes up often. However, Chris Birch could ride a Goldwing in places others would struggle with a TW200. I tend to think it is about 70% rider, 30% bike and tires. Because of this I find the best way to share what the trail looks like is with a video. I record all the new trails I ride and post them as playlists on my YouTube channel. I created this https://sites.google.com/view/las-vegas-dual-sport-adventure/home website where I have information about the various trails with links to the related YouTube playlists. The goal is for people interested in the event to preview the trails and determine if the ride fits there skills, bike, and desires. I post a link to the playlist showing the trails we will ride for the event (if available). If I have not yet recorded the trail, I try to find a video from someone who has. I have had mixed success with this but it seems to be the best approach. Too many will ignore the video but at least I have provided them with this information ahead of time. If they chose not to use it, that is up to them. Some off-road mapping applications such as OnX have difficulty levels for most major trails but most are 4 wheeled vehicle based. They are also subjective. If the trails are in one of these mapping application, and that application can share deep links to the trail(s), share those links in the posting. OnX also allows sharing your planned route as a link. Since I post the rides as events in Facebook, people in the group can ask questions and get replies from others. This is another way riders can ask about difficulty and crowdsource responses from other riders. 

Ride details

It is very important that you post a map link and details of the starting location. People need to know exactly when and where to meet. I use a Google Maps link as well as a good description in the event post for this. The time should reflect the design ride start time. I found it is best to have at least a 15 minute buffer for this. If you want the ride to start at 8am, post the meeting time at 7:30am or 7:45am. Or, post the start time at 8am but don't leave until at least 8:15am. 

Different bikes have different fuel ranges. Fuel economy is somewhat hard to predict since the terrain causes big changes. My Husky 701 can get as good as 65mpg or as bad as 35mpg for instance. Adding to that many off-road focused dual sport bikes can have rather small fuel tanks. Some (like my 701) has no way to know how much fuel is in the tank until the low fuel light comes on. This creates range anxiety. I post the longest distance between gas for the route we plan to ride. I use a mapping application such as GAIA or OnX for this. I have this post: https://jimroal.blogspot.com/2024/02/off-road-trails-in-southern-nevada.html describing those apps. After ring my motorcycle for a couple years now, and tracking the fuel economy, I have a good idea of my range. If there is a risk of not having enough fuel, I have a 1.3 gallon add-on gas can I can attach to the bike. I prefer to plan rides with less than 100 miles between fuel stops when possible.

I like to create the route in OnX or GAIA and share the link with the group. Ideally also create a GPX file of the route and share that for download. This is tricky since I use Facebook to post the events and they do not allow attaching GPX files. I use a Google Drive public folder to host the GPX files, and share the Drive link in the event details. This way people can download the route into their favorite GPS navigation device. I use a Garmin Zumo XT2 for this myself. Some use phone apps, some of which allow downloading maps for offline use. I use both. If I am unfamiliar with the area, I download offline maps on Garmin, Google Maps, GAIA, and OnX. Never get lost!

Some riders have tire/tube combinations that are not good on pavement, or just avoid pavement. These folks will want to haul and meet to minimize road riding. Some rides can facilitate that, others less so. Ideally consider this when planning rides. This is a tough one as suggesting a place to park is risky. I avoid this instead pointing out the route and where we start, and let them decide where they want to haul to and meet us. 

Some people don't have street licensed motorcycles. Generally all the rides I plan include roads and trails that require a street license. Mention this in the event post. While the roads may be obvious, many trails are not.

Creating a route

I start with some of the ride mapping and routing tools available. This post https://jimroal.blogspot.com/2024/02/off-road-trails-in-southern-nevada.html covers that topic. Finding and connecting trails with gas stops takes some time. Understanding what each trail segment is like can be the hardest part. I use web searches and YouTube searches as much as I can. OnX and some others offer good reviews and explanations of many trails, but not all. I find GAIA to be a good choice in some cases as it is very crowd sourced and detailed as far as trails but it does not have difficulty ratings. For the most part, OnX and GAIA have trails mapped and you can simply create routes by mapping through and between them. This uses a snap to map feature that tries to route you between points by following defined trails. At times, none of these apps have certain trails covered and you may need to improvise. OnX and GAIA for instance, offer custom routing/mapping tools. In this case you turn off the snap feature and instead draw point-to-point yourself. Often I will build a route mostly with the snap feature ON, and switch to the point-to-point approach only for small segments between defined trails. I use a satellite view while doing this to validate the route appears good. This is of course risky. Watch out for things like gates and fences, large deep washes, etc. I use Google Earth at times to show the profile of the terrain as well as view the satellite imagery. OnX and GAIA both have similar profile features. If you try to add points too far apart, most of these might reroute you to highways and paved roads. To avoid this, add a close point instead to ensure the route stays where you want it.

Here is an example of a powerline service road that does not show up in any off-road mapping tool I have found.

See the "elevation profile" showing how this route follows the terrain. Here is more details about this route: https://sites.google.com/view/las-vegas-dual-sport-adventure/home#h.7ghyi74fpgfg with video. This is a great connector route I often use to make a loop through Goodsprings and Potosi. Powerline service roads can be great trails and too often they are not mapped. 

This video shows basic route creation with GAIA.

and route building in OnX.

There are many others but these 2 have been the best for my uses.

Once you have the route planned, I take a screenshot of it to use as the image in the Facebook event (as shown above in this post). This way people can see the overview of the ride. 

Creating an event in Facebook

I am no Facebook fanboy but it seems to be the best one for rider groups and creating events within the group. Here is a tutorial on creating the event in Facebook.

Rider Communication

Rider-to-Rider

I posted a separate blog post on this here: https://jimroal.blogspot.com/2023/11/rider-to-rider-communication.html . Rider-to-rider communication can help safety and fun. Off-road riding in the Southwest almost always includes dust. Heavy dust can be a safety risk since it impedes visibility similar to fog. It can be worse than fog since the dust coats everything between your eyes and the trail. When riders can communicate, the group can stretch out to provide bigger gaps, helping to reduce the dust issues. This also reduces the likelihood of a rider hitting another rider who has an accident. If a ride at the back of the group has an issue, they can inform the riders ahead. If a rider at the back has a minor issue and has to stop, they can let the other riders know so they don't have to worry or ride back. See my blog post for details, but at a high level I recommend using both Cardo PackTalk (or similar) helmet intercom along with a GMRS radio for longer distances. I have a GMRS radio I keep on my bike, and I carry a spare that I often give to the last rider in the group in case they don't have their own. There are 3 major brands of helmet intercom: Cardo, Sena, and all the rest. Cardo PackTalk is currently the biggest and best choice in my opinion. Sena is a strong competitor and functionally very similar. Both have mesh communication in their higher end units (PackTalk for Cardo, DMC for Sena). You can even bridge between them with Cardo PackTalk. Both also can pair with all the rest and each other via standard Bluetooth intercom mode. Each rider can bridge one rider outside their brand as well. Theoretically 6 riders can have either Cardo PackTalk or Sena DMC can each bridge in one additional rider so 12 rides can all talk. In reality setting that up is difficult and time consuming.  

Emergency Communication

In case of emergency, you need a way to call for help. While cellular phones may work in many places, there are far too many places where they don't. Cellular providers and device makers are adding satellite services for SOS which can help. I prefer Garmin InReach as it has an industry leading rescue service and even an insurance plan. I use the simplest Garmin InReach Messenger for this. I also have a Garmin fenix watch that integrates with InReach so I can trigger an SOS even if I can't reach the InReach device. The InReach also lets you message people via SMS for emergencies and non-emergencies. The messages can include your GPS coordinates by default too. I find it handy for non-emergency messaging. InReach can also be setup to track you on rides. You can share this location with a person or group of people, such as a spouse. They can track you on a map so they know where to find you if things go badly. 

The GMRS radio mentioned in rider-to-rider communication can also be used for emergencies and to help coordinate rescue. However, I would not depend on this.

Rider to Rider Communication

I bought an adventure bike to explore off-road. I also bought a helmet intercom system from Sena (actually mine is branded HJC but it made by Sena, it is an HJC 10B). I rode with some friends that also have helmet intercoms. This is really great, pretty much a necessity once you have had it. There is no going back. You can hold a conversation while riding. The front person can also warn the people behind of upcoming obstacles, vehicles, hazards, etc. You can also discuss where you want to ride, what turns to take, do you want to stop, etc.

The two leading helmet communications makers are Sena and Cardo. These 2 both have mesh systems which allows the communications to use multiple riders to relay messages across the group. This also allows for larger groups of riders to all communicate at the same time. These 2 mesh systems are not compatible though (although Cardo now offers a bridge feature to connect them). This intercom approach is great for street riders who ride close together (less than a mile with clear view). However, off-road the intercom approach has some issues. Off-road we have things like dust, gravel, and rocks getting kicked up by the tires, narrow trails, and other issues that make us ride much farther apart. We also have hills, canyons, mountains, and other obstacles that interrupt the communications. If the person in the back drops their bike, communication is lost pretty fast as the other riders increase the distance. Just when you need it most you lose communications. Mesh helps some as it daisy chains all the riders but you can still break the chain at any time.

I did some investigation into options. I found this great YouTube video going over this same issue and several solutions.

I looked into these options and decided to go with the BTech GMRS-Pro and the push to talk (PTT) button. This works slick with my HJC/Sena helmet system, as well as the Cardo Packtalk (and likely most others). It pairs to the helmet intercom as a second phone. This way you can still use the intercom via Bluetooth and mesh as normal until you are too far away and the intercom drops. Then you simply use the PTT button to contact the other riders. If and when you get back in intercom range you can switch back. Switching back and forth is automatic really. The intercom is much preferred as it allows continuous 2-way communication and is lower power (less radiation). I prefer to use the radio only when needed (which happens on many rides). This BTech is really the only GMRS radio I found as of writing this post with Bluetooth profiles to support this configuration. I found others that support Bluetooth for app integration but this device also supports profiles for hands free communication and the PTT remote. This radio is also waterproof making it a good choice.

My first attempt at mounting the radio was on my rear bag.

I stuck the PTT button on the left grip at first.

This radio is a 5 Watt unit which is not something you want too close to electronics or your body really. I don't really need to see or touch the radio when riding since I have the PYY button and the mic and speakers use the helmet intercom system. I set the channel and volume and forget it. I decided to clip it into my rear pack, as far from me as I can. I zip the pack on the clip which retains it very well. The radio is waterproof so no worries there.

That all seemed like a great idea until we tried it while riding. The PTT button would only work sometimes, maybe half the time. I suspect the EMI from the motorcycles ignition system interfered with the Bluetooth signal from the PTT button. I decided it was time to mount the radio on the handlebars. I made a mount on the left side which is also only a few inches between the PTT button and the radio.

I found that having the PTT button on the grip was a problem since it would sometimes get in the way of the clutch level. I moved it to the mirror mount using a strip of Velcro tape and the strap it came with to keep it in position.

This worked OK but you have to reach for it and it can slide along the strap a bit. I finally moved it to the clutch lever.

Look closely and you can see one zip tie on each side of the clutch adjuster so it can't move at all. This is the best PTT switch position.

I used 2 small zip ties to retain it in place. Now I can use my index finger to press the button while riding without having to reach. It is also in a place where I would never hit it by accident and it does not move at all. This works perfectly!

The GMRS radio can also communicate with FRS and Ham radios. This means others can have an array of different radios and they can all work together. You just have to chose the same channel. FRS channels 1 - 7 appear to be the best choice for compatibility with both FRS and GMRS at 5W. Channels 8 - 14 are limited to 0.5W so not great for our purposes. Channels 15 - 22 would also be good as GMRS can go to 50W here but because of that high power capability you might pick of many other radios that are very far away.

Current (2017) FRS/GMRS Channel Table
FRS Channel	Frequency	FRS Max Power	GMRS Max Power
1	462.5625	2 W	5 W
2	462.5875	2 W	5 W
3	462.6125	2 W	5 W
4	462.6375	2 W	5 W
5	462.6625	2 W	5 W
6	462.6875	2 W	5 W
7	462.7125	2 W	5 W
8	467.5625	0.5 W	0.5 W
9	467.5875	0.5 W	0.5 W
10	467.6125	0.5 W	0.5 W
11	467.6375	0.5 W	0.5 W
12	467.6625	0.5 W	0.5 W
13	467.6875	0.5 W	0.5 W
14	467.7125	0.5 W	0.5 W
15	462.55	2 W	50 W
16	462.575	2 W	50 W
17	462.6	2 W	50 W
18	462.625	2 W	50 W
19	462.65	2 W	50 W
20	462.675	2 W	50 W
21	462.7	2 W	50 W
22	462.725	2 W	50 W

Here is how I setup my system.
Pair the BTech radio to your phone via Bluetooth. This is used to simplify configuration, not communication really. The Btech app uses this connection to communicate with the radio so the app can be used. Follow the instructions in the app.
Pair the BTech radio to the push to talk (PTT) button. Follow the directions that come with the radio and PTT button.
Pair the BTech radio to your helmet intercom via Bluetooth setting it as a second phone. Follow the instructions for putting the radio in paring mode. Then put the helmet intercom in pairing mode to pair to a phone. Treat the radio as a 2nd phone in this case. With HJC/Sena you enter the configuration menu using the helmet intercom buttons until you hear "pair second phone". Somewhat similar with the Cardo. On the Cardo hold the phone button until you hear "phone paring" then roll the roller forward and you should hear "second phone pairing".

I setup the BTech Pro radio to use both the internal speaker and Bluetooth at the same time. This way if I walk away from the bike I can hear the radio even with the helmet off.

I upgraded to the Cardo Packtalk Edge after initially writing this article. In general it works very similar to the Sena as far as radio integration.

The Cardo PackTalk has a weak microphone in my experience. I made this document to help make it better: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pSw99DGPqQlbnlzCCxGzZUEQYRWzhN-yGs87ZEK4pRw/edit?usp=sharing by optimizing mic and speaker placement, as well as settings through the Cardo app. I also found the speakers are best placed so they actually touch your ears. I stuck them to the helmet lines on the outside. Sound is way louder this way.

If you are going to have just one of the systems, I would use the GMRS radio. This works for much longer distances which you will need off-road. When you space out to keep out of each others dust, and you begin to worry someone behind needs, help, you can always just call them and check in.

One downside of the radio is that others may use the channel you are on. Your group will all need to switch channels to find a clear one, which can be a moving target. Since it is analog communication you also get background noise and poor reception at times. Also you need to use a push-to-talk button of some sort. Using the one on the radio while riding won't work out. Most GMRS radios are compatible with wired remote PTT buttons. I use the BTECH GMRS-PRO since it can use a Bluetooth PTT button.

BTech now released another radio with integrated Bluetooth, the GMRS-50PRO