Finally, an actual update.

right, listen up you lot.
i actually have an actual update of stuff for you.
so far, in the last few days:
we've got both bikes fully prepped for the trip. tyres changed, pads done, racks modified, all that shit.
we've packed everything a few times to see if it fits. and it does. just.
we've used the primus gasoline cooker to actually cook a meal (fried sausages is a meal, fuck off). it worked.
we've finished and fitted the fuel and water carriers for the main racks. wide as a truck, but solid and they work well.
we've load tested the bikes out through Mt Mee and Neurum Creek. Great Zombie Jeebus they're heavy. but they work well.
and we took some photos of some of it. not a lot of photos to be sure, but a few.
see the photos and enjoy...
Taken at the Sawmill. with everything we're loading on for the whole trip.
Boo's bike all loaded up.
not so bad from the rear, but not narrow...
especially when compared to this!
still, the clear/white containers are 5ltr of water, and the larger red tank is 10ltr of fuel, so we have a decent reserve.and it's slung fairly low so the COG isn't completely trashed. just mostly so.
Boo refueling at Dayboro after a load test yesterday.
big black piggy just sitting there.
the bikes don't feel as over loaded as i thought they would, but they sure as hell don't feel like enduro bikes. one of the problems that we've got over most people doing this trip is that we have to take into account Boo's expanding waistline. as the Spawn Of Dark Gods grows within her, we need to have spare stuff that fits. and instead of just throwing in a few sets of gear that can get washed when they get too crusty, we need a decent set of clothes for 'going out' and 'seeing the sights'.
such are the trials and tribulations of traveling as a couple...
but the cooker works brilliantly. it's easier to use and faster to cook on than the electric range in the house (both Boo and i are chefs, so you can image how much we love the electric range) and all the cooking stuff fits well inside itself. we end up with all the plates in the frypan, the cooker and towels in the billy, and the utensils roll up in a teatowel. it's a pretty neat set-up and if we run out of fuel for it we're proper fucked because it runs on the gasoline from the bikes.
all the cooking crap laid out.
obviously this is the primus cooker. and a frypan. and a chicken sausage. and a cup.
sausage inna bun! with cheese!
now with everything basically ready to run, we just need to do the final checks and sort out exactly the packing for saddlebags and the main bag, and then it's an oil and filter change for each bike over the next few days and off on Saturday morning.
the one thing remaining to be taken care of isn't something we can do anything about... The safari tank for Boo's bike. we are borrowing it off Naz and she doesn't get back from Cameron corner until at least Wednesday night. I've modded Boo's carburetor so she can access the full load from the safari when it's on, but we just need to get it now. other than that, all ready.

in a side note, Boo and i are famous.
Trailbike Adventure Magazine ran a story on Snail Trails, a series of rides we help to run here in SE QLD. based of the ADVRiders forum they are designed to allow absolute beginners to come on trail rides and overnight camping trips and learn how it all works. the rides are specifically put together to give new riders a pressure free environment to get it sorted. Boo had her first ever dirt ride on a Snail Trail trip, and i helped to put the precursor newbie ride together. since then we've missed almost none of them, and i now ride sweep for most for most of them.
it's a cool way to get into this if you are thinking of giving it a try. we've even gt a spare bike we can lend you. all you need is learners permit and we'll supply the rest.
see, more photos. how much do we love you fuckers?
FEEL THE LOVE!!!

Boo on the right of the group shot, and me in attractive orange