this has to be a personal record. 15 years ago when we prepared the bikes for the rallies we typically finished after midnight the day before – well technically on the day. and sometimes things actually worked.

more often some things did not, and there was a bit more fixing to be done just before the race. it was mostly the electrics that gave us trouble. in those days had pretty basic electrics and we used 9v batteries to drive the imo and the md roadbook holder.

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modern bikes come with 12v dc electrics as standard; that makes things a lot easier.

so now we can turn our attention to creating better ergonomics. i ordered a simple triple clamp mounted nav tower from the states. it’s a work of art – beautifully machined, waterjet cut and anodized parts, easily assembled. my self made roadbook carrier mounts up nicely.

my only issue is (again electrics!) – the lights. the tower is designed to work with led lights, but i can’t use them here because they would not be road legal. so i got a set of projectors.

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so here is the roadbook & imo mounted on the bike.a bit forward & up, much better to see, especially when i sit down. the f2r switch is great, and i hope the steering damper will save me from nasty headshake when the front hits something.

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and here is the bike in all its glory.

i know i might be running a little risk with the standard tank, but generally i can do 130 km easily, let’s hope the higher speeds don’t change that massively.

i’ll mount a 48 sprocket in the rear, that should help me save fuel. so that’s still left and then i got to connect the lights. should be a simple case of a few connections …

5 more sleeps …