‘Farkling’ (Functionally Accessorising) your adventure bike

Adventure riding, by it’s nature, can take you places where the terrain is rough and there is a possibility of falling off and damaging your adventure bike. In the worst case this could leave you stranded somewhere. To offset this risk there are a number of accessories available to increase your riding comfort and control, protect your bike in case of falling off and give you a greater piece of mind to enjoy your riding.

Bash Plate

A bash plate mounts to the underside of the bike to and protects the engine from  stones thrown up from the front wheel or from grounding the engine on rocks. A bashplate should be placed high on the list of potential upgrades to your adventure bike.

Lever guards

Lever guards attach to the outer ends of the handlebars and curve around the brake and clutch levers to attach near the centre of the handlebars, they provide a degree of protection for your lever controls in the event of falling off. Being stuck down a track or back road with no front brakes or clutch is not much fun and could mean a long push or call to a recovery service to get you home.

Crash Bars

Crash bars mount to each side of your adventure bike, again to provide protection in event of an accident. Crash bars generally tend to offer protection of the bodywork of an adventure bike more than mechanical protection.

Extra fuel capacity

 Many smaller adventure bikes are fitted with small petrol tanks as standard, often in the range of 9-12 litres. This can mean a range of less than 200km’s between fuel stops and can severely limit your ability to explore back roads and tracks. Again at worst leave you stranded somewhere if fuel economy is lower than expected and you run out.

There are a number of options for carrying extra fuel ranging from inflatable fuel bladders and plastic tanks to strap to your rear seat through to larger model specific fuel tanks to replace or supplement the factory fitted petrol tank.

Luggage

Whether you are heading away for a day trip or an extended journey, some way of carrying luggage from as little as a camera and a snack, through to your entire life is handy.

Luggage options range from tank bags that sit on the petrol tank and tail bags for the rear seat through to larger side mounted soft panniers and plastic or alloy boxes.  Motorcycle manufacturers often offer factory luggage options for their larger adventure models and there are many after-market manufacturers offering model specific and generic luggage solutions.

Bar risers

Bar risers raise the height of the handle bars and can offer a much more comfortable and controllable riding position when seated or standing, especially for taller riders. Bar risers are often available in different heights, before purchasing a set of bar risers check that your clutch, brake, accelerator cables and wiring have enough slack to accommodate a longer distance to the handlebars.

Larger footpegs

Larger footpegs can provide a more stable foot platform when standing or riding on rougher terrain, which in turn gives better control and more confidence.