The Tuareg 660 is my first "proper" adventure bike, and is a brilliant bike, but like you said, it is a big bike compared to a light weight enduro, I love mine, but it is a whole different game to riding my Beta 390RR in the dirt! 🙂
As a T7 owner, yes, I was one of those idiots. "I am gonna get the T7 and do Pol Tarres sh-t on it!" Yeah, no. lol. It does handle some gnarly stuff well, once you set it up right with 50/50s and some protection and height adjustment, but it's 100% an ADV bike for sure and Pol Tarres is a freak of nature. ;) Great footage and well done in the sand!
At 65 years old i will be sticking with my Honda CRF 300L! LOL I rode big bikes on the rode in my day! Light and crisp is needed now for an older guy! LOL Nice job Jake!
I've taken my stock Tenere 700 through sand, honestly it's just like a dirt bike. Speed is your friends gotta just crack it open and get your weight off the front wheel. They actually blast through sand pretty well. The size and weight is really intimidating though... especially when you slow down on some tight single track in loose dirt.
My T7 does surprisingly well in deep sand. I've got tires (Motoz) capable of keeping the front end light and in control though which is a necessity. I'm not near as good of rider as you and I single track mine. Just takes more time to build confidence on them.
Whats up S CAT, dude those MotoZ tires are legit. I've been watching Nerb1 on his T7 with those tires. I have some on my CRF and love them. For sure would have made a difference. Heck I rode the HD Pan America with some good tires (video coming soon, on patreon now) and was way more confident. And that's bigger bike with 19/17 wheels!
@@TheGardenSnake definitely. I trust the MotoZ just as much off-road as I do my Tusk D-Sports (on my KLR). Which is nuts since the MotoZ are sooo much better on road.
This market revolves around guys buying the biggest bike they can to take off-road. Somewhere out there in the desert is a GS sitting on its side forgotten, because the noob owner bought it thinking he was going to be like Chris Birch, and dropped it and then couldn't pick it back up.
Crashing, weight, simplicity, reliability, and pricing have me leaning me more & more towards the DRZ400 when it’s time to get a bike. Would the SM be the better choice for mostly commuting with occasional light off-roading?
uh well the SM is better for sure on the street but if you're not planning to do hooligan supermoto things then the S could be better for you. The S will commute just fine and still be fun off road with some good tires. Where on the flip of that the SM off road can be sketchy. I do it a lot but that doesn't mean it's smart haha. The front 17 with street rubber is tricky in the dirt, really tricky in the sand, and near impossible in the mud. If you want the most versatility the S is it. And hey that's coming from a guy that LOVES supermotos, just being honest.
@@TheGardenSnake Really appreciate the feedback. Always enjoy your content and creativity. I’m 58 and looking to get back into motorcycling after many many many years. I primarily road dirt bikes but want to be able to just hop on and go without having to load up the truck, plus commuting on a bike will be far cheaper than the truck. I live in Hawaii, but eventually want to ship a bike over to go on one of the BDR trails as part of my 60 year old bucket list. Keep up the great work!🤙🏾
@@TheGardenSnake That is legit the only way to do it. Lean back, keep on the throttle, and hope you can make the next turn. OTOH, it looks like a blast with a paddle tire on the rear and a smoothy up front.
Woopsie! Jakey falled down go boom! And that's why you don't call it an Uh-prill-ee-uh, it's pronounced Uh-pree-yuh.. listen to any Italian pronounce it. You should try the Guzzi V85TT like Josh (Shadetree Surgeon) just rode in Tahoe/Reno.. just unlike him know how to get it out of rain mode and you might enjoy it.. All you have to do is start it and then hold down the starter button for a second, let go and tap it again to cycle through the power modes. The earlier ones had 3 (rain/default, off-road, road) everything I've seen since looking up how to change it shows that every time you turn the bike back on it goes straight to Rain mode.. The later ones supposedly have a 5 mod Aprillia ECU. I feel like the old school Dunlop K70 tires that came on all the old Brit bikes since the early 60's and all the UJM's in the 70's are more offroad friendly than most stock adventure bike tires are.
The tires were your real problem. With good tires (Motoz) they actually handle pretty damn well in sand. The Tuareg looks like an interesting and fun bike, but I think I'll stick with my T7.
riding a 265 pound 2 stroke dirt bike i think i'd struggle riding a 450 pound adventure bike in th desert even though i've only ever ridden in the dirt.
Just wait until you try sand dunes and aren’t going fast enough lol. All the adventure videos have me wanting a dual sport or adventure bike to head to the trails on it instead of loading up my dirt bike, mostly so I can ride more trails
As entertaining as watching monkeys crash motorcycles is Aprilia might want to have people come ride their bikes with the skill to give a decent review.
Yep, at this point I don’t think it will happen though. Developing a new engine is something we’re going to start seeing the end of. They’ll revamp what they have a few more times. Electrics motorcycles will be forced into production by laws in another 10 year or less.
Larger cc and weight has no business of roading let alone $13000 bike dropped. No fun 400cc max would be best but there is no prestige of having a small bike.... ha ha
Yeah at the end of the day it's a game of compromises. The bigger cc's will crush highway miles easier and faster. Sometimes you need that to get where you wanna go. If you can put up with a smaller cc bike on the highway to get there you'll have a better time in the off road bits. It's just depends on the adventure your trying to have. Ultimately the adventure itself is what you'll remember, the bike is kinda secondary.
