see it. But there were challenges. In order to get
to our viewpoint, we needed to ride the sand dunes ourselves. Not the huge “verti- cal drop” dunes, mind you. Still, riding even the most benign sand can be tough on an Adventure Bike. Our support truck—con- taining food and fuel for our group, among other things—was already parked some- where in the dunes, about a mile into the thick of it. Our job was to find the support team, traverse safely to them, and enjoy the food and festivities. We arrived at the edge of the dunes, wait-
ing on a gravel road as I sorted out the game plan. I had a GPS waypoint, which our driver promised would represent the exact location of the support vehicle. And I had a radio, which worked pretty well within a couple miles of the truck. I clicked on and confirmed. “Shawn here. We’re at the edge of the dunes, you guys at the waypoint?” “Yup, we’re here. Come on in. Careful,
there’s a lot of sand.” No kidding. I turned to the group. “Okay guys, this is
the tricky part. By my reckoning, the truck is about a mile into the dunes. I want to do a scouting run before I take everyone in, so stick around and take a break. I will run in and find them, then come right back for you. Okay?” They agreed and I headed out. Immedi-
ately I began to see the difficulties that Dakar competitors face. The dunes were huge and contained no trees, rocks, or other reference points in sight. Even with my GPS—a technology not afforded to the rac- ers—I felt a sense of fear and disorientation as I crested and descended dune after dune. But an end was in sight. Soon the support
truck revealed itself, complete with a easy- up for shade and cooler full of refreshments. I waved, rounding the truck and heading back toward the waiting tour group. The ride back was easier; my motorcycle tracks were plainly visible against the otherwise smooth and windblown sand. I even had a little fun along the way, throttling up as I crested the dunes and sending rooster-tails into the air.
Soon I was back at the tour
group, enjoying the adrenaline rush. I pulled my helmet and addressed the group.
“All right guys, I found the truck. It’s several dunes back, and it’s easy to get lost out there. So let’s ride together, okay? Keep plenty of space between you, but keep each other in sight. Don’t stop if you can help it, it’s hard to get going again in the sand.” I pointed to my tracks, now two sets running in parallel. “If anything goes wrong, just fol- low the tracks I made on my scouting run; they’ll take you straight to the truck. They agreed, and I could see their excitement at riding the dunes. We had been talking about them since the tour began; tackling sand dunes was considered a quintessential element of riding in South America. Every- one wanted to give it a go. I slipped on my helmet. “Stay with me
now!” I yelled, and started out. The group followed, and soon the nine of us were tak- ing on the dunes. The ride was smooth, laced with a few lateral drifts of the tires. But everyone was moving well and having fun. We crested the first dune, then the sec- ond. Then… “Clunk!” With a jolt my BMW F 800 GS shut off,
the bike coming to an abrupt halt. Damn! I went for the starter. The motor turned but wouldn’t start. I cycled the key and tried again. Still no good. Soon the other bikes were upon me. I waved them by, pointing at the tracks. If they stopped to help, it would be really hard to get them going again. Best to keep them moving. Realizing my problem, I grabbed for the
radio. “Support truck, come in! I’m out of GAS!” Tour guides tend to use a lot more fuel
than other riders. For one, it is common to ride ahead and check routes while everyone else takes a break. I had done this several times on my current tank of gas, most recently on the dunes. And my “hammer down, rooster-tail” return didn’t help mat- ters. Normally I would mitigate this issue by riding a motorcycle with a larger fuel tank, such as the F 800 GS Adventure. But this was South America, and motorcycle rental availability was limited. No big fuel tanks to be had. So I had relied on frequent gas stops and spare fuel on the support truck. But the truck was a half mile away, over several sand dunes.
February 2016 BMW OWNERS NEWS 55
IN CALIFORNIA Dubbelju Motorcycle Rentals
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www.dubbelju.com
www.dubbelju.com SP-BL_BMWON-2015.pdf 11/12/14 3:19:58 PM
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