2010 Yamaha WR250X Adventure Touring Project Bike - X-Country at 100 + MPG

[beatr911]

It must be the GPS!

[xcel]

Hi All:

Just got back and spent a few hours this morning resting up at a Park on the river in downtown Elkhart, IN before making the final ride through Chicago home.

I think I will take a nap now

Tanks so far are 110, 102, 109, 99 and 105 mpg IIRC. Will post the details later. I hope the pics turned out as there were some good ones. Met a ton of great people on the road too. More on that later as well.

Wayne

[xcel]

Hi All:

A bit about the IB ride… First, it was one very long day. I packed up the bike, uploaded some News, and sent out my final E-Mails. With ~ 2-hours of sleep, it was time to head out. I topped her off at a Shell in Gurnee, IL located about ¼ of a mile from the I-94 East On-ramp near the IL/WI border at 05:44 AM CST.

2010 Yamaha WR250X – “IB” Ride Details

Fill Location	Date	Time	Odometer	*Actual Odometer	Trip A/B	*Actual Trip A/B Miles Traveled	Miles into Low Fuel	*Actual Miles into Low Fuel	Gallons Filled (gallons)	FE (mpgUS)	Notes
Gurnee, IL	07/30/2010	05:44 AM CST	923	923	Reset	Reset	NA	NA	Initial Top Off	NA	Begin the “IB” Ride
Elkhart, IN	07/30/2010	09:21 AM EST	1,066	1,082	142.6/142.6	159.1/159.1	30.4	33.9	2.525	63.01	Made it through Chicago.
Genoa, OH	07/30/2010	12:52 PM EST	1,196	1,226	129.6/272.1	144.6/303.6	8.9	9.9	2.178	66.39	Took an hour break.
Kingsville, OH	07/30/2010	03:43 PM EST	1,338	1,385	142.4/414.6	158.9/462.6	19.7	21.9	2.290	69.39	Tail wind
Cuba, NY	07/30/2010	06:24 PM EST	1,468	1,516	129.8/544.4	144.8/607.4	16.5	18.4	2.382	60.79	Ascents and Descents in earnest.
Nichols, NY	07/30/2010	08:58 PM EST	1,579	1,640	111.4/655.9	124.3/731.8	7.5	8.4	2.134	58.25	Getting Cold at night in the mountains on I-86/88.
Rotterdam, NY	07/30/2010	11:38 PM EST	1,714	1,790	134.3/790.2	149.8/881.6	27.3	30.4	2.425	55.38	SP8’s and Aerostich liner are barely doing the job. Ramped up speed a touch before it gets to cold.
Charlton, MA	07/31/2010	02:08 AM EST	1,831	1,921	117.7/908.0	131.3/1,013.1	1.4	1.6	2.038	64.43	Cold and slowing down even more to stay warm It is 59 degrees F now.
Chicopee, MA	07/31/2010	03:30 AM EST	1,876	1,971	--/--	--/1,063	NA	NA	NA	NA	Arrived at Jesse’s home after figuring out how to turn around on the Mass Pike.

* Gearing Change from OEM 13/43 to YGTR 14/40 adds 11.57% more actual miles to Odometer/Trip A/B/Low Fuel Distances.

1,013 miles on 15.972 gallons = 63.42 mpgUS.

Wayne

[xcel]

Hi All:

I was planning on beginning the 100-mpg ride attempt ride beginning on Sunday but Jesse’s and Heather’s Altima Hybrid was begging for a ride… Actually I was begging to drive it instead

2008 Nissan Altima Hybrid on top of Mount Greylock.

Mount Greylock in the Berkshire Mountains is the highest mountain in Massachusetts at 3491 feet. The views were pretty darn good too!

Pic taken from inside the Veteran’s Monument/Lighthouse.

The Veteran’s Monument/Lighthouse guided wary pilot’s to their destinations back in the golden days of flying. Namely, bi-planes when the phrase “Wing and a Prayer” really meant something!

Wayne

[xcel]

Hi All:

So Monday was the day… After thanking Jesse and Heather for their gracious hospitality and a number of locations to get a shot of the bike actually in the Atlantic, I was on my way.

I rode around Hull, MA area for almost 2-hours until I found a gap in the wall to a private (or maybe it was public?) beach and I rode the mighty WR right on in

2010 Yamaha WR250X Adventure Touring Project Bike - 100-mpg X-Country Ride Attempt


Parked in the Atlantic Ocean

I asked a scantily clad beach goer to snap a pic and she obliged Thank you anonymous scantily clad beach goer!

An unknown creature was seen coming out of the Atlantic Ocean this past Monday

About 5-minutes after this pic, I dropped the WR in the sand at ~ 2-mph while trying to ride back out to the road. The road tires just could not get any traction from a standstill.

Wayne

[xcel]

Hi All:

After I left Hull, MA, it was time to fill up and begin the 100-mpg X-Country attempt. I found a station just outside of downtown Boston, MA which set in motion the journey with the odometer at 1,993 miles. It was ~ 13-miles to the park at the beginning of Commonwealth Avenue so I rode up Beacon Street where Commonwealth crossed creating the Terminus of Hwy 20. I snapped a pic a few blocks down the road at the first Hwy 20 only sign in downtown Boston I rode by…

2010 Yamaha WR250X Adventure Touring Project Bike - 100-mpg X-Country Ride Attempt


The beginning

The Escape from Boston was somewhat uneventful as Hwy 20 is simply stop light to stop light and the further away from Boston you get, the less congested it becomes. Very nice ride other than the hard work to keep the FE numbers up in downtown of course.

I rode 20 almost back to Chicopee where it turned onto I-291 and I left the Interstate after about a mile. This is where the Garmin decided to quit for a bit. I pulled in to a Legion Hall while trying to get the Garmin to reboot. Finally after 45-minutes, she came back and I have not seen the trouble since???

I let the Garmin loose with Fuel Saving Routes and no Tollways which took me on "Wild Routes" all the way to Schenectady in order to visit with Ricardo for the night.

The WR 250X on the side of the road just before nightfall near a Mountain Lake in Western Massachusetts.


Crossing into NY- One down and many many more to go.

Low fuel just appeared after almost 200-miles indicated (222 miles actual) and pulling into Schenectady for the night.

Wayne

[xcel]

Hi All:

To begin Day 2, Ricardo and I were looking over the maps and it looked like SR 5 heading West towards Geneva, NY was one of the best before tying back in with US 20 and heading Southwest towards Hornell, NY and then Pittsburgh, PA.

I pulled in for the first stop at Palatine Bridge, NY with the Odometer at 2222, Trip A/B showing 229.8 miles indicated and low fuel on for 30.6 miles. After the 11.57% adjustment, the WR covered 256.4 miles on 2.315 gallons for 110.75 mpgUS top off to top off. This is about where the headwinds started at 10 + mph and held all the way until Geneva. The station (a Gulf IIRC?) had just 87 and 89 with the bike requiring 91 to 93… I put in what they had and moved on??? After nightfall, the winds subsided and the roads became a bit more hairy

While riding SR5, I pulled into a McDonald’s for lunch in Oneida, NY where a lady named Mary was kind enough to give me not only the location as I was on the Cell with Al in Pittsburgh but gave me some insight into the local town’s history. Not far from Oneida in Pratt’s Hollow which she said was the geographic center of NY. She also has a friend that rides in the “American Legion Riders Club” with a number of lengthy weekend rides all over NY.

Mary helping out with directions and local history.

The Garmin was let loose again and onto country roads, back roads and even some unpaved back roads while still hoping to keep the 100 mpg attempt moving forward. The Garmin in Fuel saving route mode and no highways can really go nuts so sometimes I followed and sometimes I did not.

I made it to Arkport, NY a little after 10:00 PM and filled at a closed Sunoco. Trip A showed 193.1 miles (215.44 miles actual) where I topped off with 2.118 gallons for a 101.72 mpgUS tank.

Some more strange country road routing and I crossed into PA just before midnight…

Soon after crossing the border, I was lead down an unpaved, off-road mountain trail that in some places was so steep I was on the pegs and looking back through the windshield at the instruments while attempting to stand upright! In addition, the road/trail was heading up above 2,000’ elevation and torn up so bad I should had been on knobby tires as the road tires were breaking loose every which way.

Jud, I was indeed following the Navi blindly at this point and should not have been as it was neither fuel efficient or a shorter route! In actuality, the route was a short route but the routing was insane as there was no car that would have made it up and then back down that mountain trail simply beacause it was by no means a road. All told, maybe 15-miles of unpaved roads were ridden with this mountain climb in the middle of the night the most "hair raising"

After riding all night long, I pulled into Al’s home about 08:30 AM the following morning And boy was I ready for a lengthy nap after that all-night ordeal

Later that day after Al got back home from work, we went out to a local Applebee's for one of the best steaks I have had. One more day and 450 + miles ticked off with the following to be yet another long one...

Wayne

[xcel]

Hi All:

A parting shot and will post more on the first half of the WR X-Country Ride tomorrow…

2010 Yamaha WR250X Adventure Touring Project Bike - 100-mpg X-Country Ride Attempt


The WR parked along a lonely stretch of Hwy 20 in North Central Ohio at sunset.

Wayne

[bestmapman]

So far this is proving to be a great adventure. I wish I was making the trip with you.

[xcel]

Hi Jud:

You would have loved to be on this one with your new ride and it’s not even half over yet! Let us plan another review ride in the future

About the bike and its equipment so far…

The WR250X has been performing spectacularly. Need a little kick to pass or climb, downshift and add some throttle and it moves without hesitation. And it is doing so while achieving better FE than the OEM Review! The more I ride some of the back country, the more I realize what a long legged WR setup for the street can do. Very quick handling for the hundreds of 90 degree turns I have taken transitioning from one road to a perpendicular yet not jittery at higher speeds. And the tall layout really helps stretch the longer inseam riders out to make a 5-hour bike into a 10-hour one. The seat is still a PIA but there are any number of remedies available to cure that from the aftermarket. All told, the WR 250X is a lightweight yet reasonably powerful point and shoot and you are already thinking about the next turn ¼ mile ahead.

And the Yamaha WR250X’s YGTR OEM taller gear set is so good I have to question why a road rider in particular would reduce gearing through other aftermarket solutions. With the Avon Distanzia’s, the taller gear set was just about right. With the OEM Bridgestone’s, I could use another 2 to 3% but I am certainly not complaining as the 14/40 is a vast improvement over the 13/42 OEM sprockets.

The Cardo Scala Rider G4 allows the ability to tie your Bluetooth phone to your interior mic and speakers plus any Bluetooth enabled player can be listed to seamlessly. Above 60 mph however, the speakers need to be jacked up to max to hear (I am wearing ear plugs). The Speakers are set back from my ears about an inch so with some foam moving them closer, I am sure they would work better at higher speeds. Below 60 mph and the speakers work very well. While in Bluetooth mode, the Li-Ion batteries will allow a single unit to run for about 4-hours. When not in Bluetooth mode and listening to the FM radio, I have had over 10-hours of play time before the Li-Ion gives up the ghost. I have the second unit with me and with it charged, I can make it to the next stop before having to charge both. The way I wired them in the Arai is to loop the left speaker wiring between the foam and attached it to the inside with the speakers Velcro backing. For the right speaker wire, I inserted under the Arai’s rear rubber edge to the right side and routed the wiring between the foam inserts. So far, it is holding well.

While I am not answering my cell on the road due to the shortened Bluetooth hours of use, I am listening to FM stations while crossing the great divide. The Tuner cannot pick up stations that far away as even in Chicago where the Car tuner will pick up maybe 50 stations, the G4 will pick up only 6 or 7. It does pick them up cleanly however. To turn the volume up or down, you simply tap the front (up) or back (rear) button on the unit and it drops down about 10 dB. A guess as to the drop. I really like the Auto Gain Control as you slow down or stop and then take off and increase speed, the volume automatically decreases or increases depending on the exterior ambient noise level.

I wish there were a way to swap out a separate power unit instead of swapping out the 2” x ½” inch by ½” clip in G4 unit for longer ride times with Bluetooth enabled.

The Promoto Billet/Fastway F5 pegs are just too darn good to describe in words. While I am up on the pegs to stand up stretch out every 10 or so miles, just lifting to cross over a set of rail road tracks or when on the pegs for a significant amount of time while on the off-road roads , the flat platform and lowered height are a very welcome addition. And something I still think about every time I get up on the pegs. For cruising, they hold their own without a thought.

The Promoto Billet rear rack still looks brand new and I have had the bungies holding the Sealline bag (see the photos) attached and detached about every 200-miles. With its multiple points to attach, I can bungie just about anything up to the WR250X’s rear rack weight limit. I almost hate to place the bag(s) on it because it looks so good darn good all by itself

The Slipstreamer Spitfire windscreen while already showing wear thanks to the WR’s front brake cable continuously rubbing the plastic is a must have inexpensive add-on that not only protects the rider from road debris and bugs at night but takes some of the chill out of the ride when temps fall into the high 50’s and low 60’s. It is small enough to not look overly obtrusive or like you are riding a road bike but large enough to protect and deflect for an aero, colder temperature and protection improvement.

The RoxSpeedFX risers are working as expected. They help with my arm reach yet soften the blow of impacts and reduce vib’s. You can pull at them and there is movement so a hardcore track rider may find them a bit to spongy but for riding the slab, they are working as expected for both ergonomics and long hour ride vibration reduction. I have not yet had any tingling in my hands and forearms which the RoxSpeedFX risers were meant to reduce or eliminate.

The Ricochet skid plate is doing its job for the aero improvement and was there when the rocks were being kicked up on the dirt trail. The only thing that came up was when doing an oil change. The hole is plenty large for a socket to get to the drain bolt but when the WR250X is on its kickstand and as the last bit of oil begins to drain, it comes to the edge and some finds its way onto the top of the plate vs. dripping through the hole. A minor problem that a paper towel will cure but something I noticed during its first oil change before I left for the east coast. All other plates would have a similar issue.

The Alpinestars SP8 gloves are a worthy addition to the equipment arsenal. I use the BMW Cross Gloves when above 70 degrees but their hand protection is minimal as are all summer light gloves. At night, I place the all-leather gauntlets with multiple protection points including hard knuckles and layer upon layer of leather types in the palm to not only help keep warm but for that just in case moment… They were a little tight when I first received them but have broken in and are now as comfortable as any other. I even slept with them on in Elkhart, IN while sleeping under the stars to stay warm and keep the mosquitoes at bay. I wonder how many have worn their Alpinestar SP gloves for that purpose

Both the Canari Gel Liners and EVS Synthetic Chamois shorts work as advertised. Both help to cushion the continuous pounding while helping to increase seating comfort.

The IMS 2.8-gallon fuel tank… Oh boy what an improvement upon the 1.9L OEM. Not only is it much lighter and has more capacity, Low fuel to empty appears to be more along the lines of .7 gallons remaining vs. .5 from the OEM. The IMS cap is a simple vented unit and if you do not have a vent tube (tough to do when you have a tank bag), I had to stop fuel slosh from coming up through the vent and onto the base of the Giant Loop Fandango tank bag from an initial top off by placing a valve stem cap over the vent and taping it down with duct tape. It still acts as a vent yet prevents any fuel slosh form dumping onto the exterior of the tank.

IMS 2.8 gallon Tank - Cap Vent Modification. The Giant Loop Fandango Tank Bag is unzipped part way and flopped over as performed at each fill.

The Giant Loop Fandango tank bag... There are not enough superlative's in the world to describe its weather proof utility, toughness and ease of use. From the zip on/off the base for both removal and/or flop over to fill (see photo above as to how that feature works), exterior grab handle to carry it with you or the large volume to place all your "get to" items quickly, it is the best on the market to date.

And now back to our regularly scheduled programming.

Wayne