Two Week Bucket Trip Out West - Preventive Maintenance Suggestions Requested!

[Patent1]

I am in the early planning stage for a 2 week motorcycle trip from Virginia to Southern Utah and Colorado, aiming for late May/early June, 2019. I am using Toby Ballentine's "Motorcycle Journeys Through the Rocky Mountains" to plan routes and stops.

I am going to prep my 2005 FJR for the trip as follows:

- new tires

- new oil, oil filter and shaft drive fluid

- new brake pads, new brake fluid, clean calipers

- new air filter

- new spark plugs

- new coolant

Am I missing anything?

Thanks in advance,

Jim

 

[RossKean]

If you are doing all the other stuff then you should also:

Bleed clutch hydraulics

Lube rear brake pivot and shifter pivot/linkage

Lube hand lever pivots - remember the brass bushing on the clutch side

Lube throttle cables

Throttle body sync

Wouldn't bother with coolant unless you are doing a valve clearance check - this makes the most sense for coolant change since it has to be drained anyway.

Air filter can likely just be blown out with compressed air unless it is bad

Brake pads last a very long time. Are yours almost gone?

- or just do fresh tires, an oil change and go!

 

[BigOgre]

Don't wait until mid-May to do the work. Put at least 500 miles on all that stuff before leaving.

 

[philter]

you camping or moteling.

 

[Patent1]

Thanks RossKean and BigOgre! I'll be working on the bike this winter - She will be ready to go by Spring.

I will be moteling this trip.

 

[SacramentoMike]

I'm not familiar with that book, but Butler Maps for Utah and Colorado would be an excellent idea. Don't forget to be prepared for cold. And heat. And everything else. Riding in hot dry weather that you might not see at home, think about a cooling vest, too.

 

[mophead]

Keep in mind late May works better than June. Colorado gets full of tourists in the summer months and the vacation spots make it hard to find a room sometimes. If you plan on going up Pikes Peak then May for sure. I went up it a couple of weeks ago and it was nothing but a traffic jam all the way up and even worse coming down. The COG railway is not running so if you go up there you have to drive/ride.

As mentioned earlier bring clothes for cold and hot. Gets pretty cool in the mountains in the morning and then you shed clothes by 10 o'clock.

 

[dravnx]

Some of the passes may not be open in May. That's kinda early.

 

[Spud]

Agreed to do a shake down run after all the maintenance before you leave. Make sure you have a good battery (didn't see that on the list), it could be very cold overnight that time of year and you may need some cranking in the a.m. And, please, no matter how many miles it is don't be one of those guys that think you need to make an oil change in the middle of a trip if you go over 3K miles. If you're doing over 10K on the trip, maybe you could think about it.....

 

[exo55c]

I just rode thru the canyonlands of southern UT in May and my suggestion is to do it as early in the month as possible. The temps were already in the 80s the 2nd week of May. I can only imagine what June would be like.

 

[exo55c]

I just rode thru the canyonlands of southern UT in May and my suggestion is to do it as early in the month as possible. The temps were already in the 80s the 2nd week of May. I can only imagine what June would be like.

 

[Spud]

The unpredictable part of hitting these areas early season is the elevation. Yes, it can be hot in May but for example Bryce Canyon is 8-9,000ft and rain in the valley will be snow up there. If you get lucky on the weather it's a fantastic time to go. If you have a cold front and showers, some of the high elevation sights you'd like to see in Colorado or UT may not be doable on a bike. Also, don't plan on carving up the corners that time of year as there is typically a lot of sand and dirt on the roads until summer. The pro's of going in the spring are cheaper hotels, less people, green everywhere, and avoiding really hot weather.

 

[Patent1]

Many thanks for the travel trips!

Elevation and temperature variation will definitely be factors. I am planning to ride around the Durango-Silverton-Ouray area (Million Dollar Highway), then head into Southern Utah (Mexican Hat, Valley of the Gods, Escalante, etc).

 

[russperry]

Many thanks for the travel trips!
Elevation and temperature variation will definitely be factors. I am planning to ride around the Durango-Silverton-Ouray area (Million Dollar Highway), then head into Southern Utah (Mexican Hat, Valley of the Gods, Escalante, etc).

You're just going to have to trust to fate a little bit since you've got the hottest areas and some of the coldest/wettest on the same itinerary. Obviously earlier is better for the deserts, but later is better for the San Juan mountains.

Overall I'd say later is a better choice. A cold, wet snap with snow and ice could make it perhaps impossible through the high country, while hot makes the desert a bigger challenge but still doable.

 

[art miller]

I have done all the areas you want to visit and suggest you do the southern portion in late May and cover the mountains in Colorado in June. My experience has been the tourists are not out in force until after schools are out.

 

[Redfish Hunter]

You did not mention how many miles are on your FJR so we don't know where you are as far as valve checks and brakes.

Honestly you can do as much or as little maintenance as you like. Do what gives you that "I did everything right so I know it won't break down" feeling of confidence.

Fresh brake/clutch fluid, oil/filter, final drive and good tires will take an FJR a very long way.

Reading the amusingly different opinions about the weather reminds me of every single question on every single motorcycle forum ever. We are all Experts and none of us can agree.

My Opinion on Timing/Weather: Early June. Yeah it will be hot in some places, yeah there will be tourists, and yeah there will be some places that would have been nicer either a month earlier or a month later. The fact is that some places you may want to see can still have/get snow. There will still be enough snow left on the higher mountains to give the Rockies that awesome majestic look. The weather can and will do some strange things. I had snow on Pike's Peak July 8th 3 years ago. They shut the mountain down and would not let any more traffic up, I was already at the top. 20 minutes later and we would have missed out on seeing the top of that mountain. I say endure the heat where you have to so you can enjoy the cool altitude when you get there.