READY-SET-GO ANZA-BORREGO!

FROM THE OCEAN TO THE DESERT ON A YAMAHA TW200

- Rodney “GCRad1” Wills

You can be as ready for an adventure as possible—but something is holding you back. Sometimes it’s simply the fear of the unknown that keeps us home in our supposed comfort zones….

There’s a book that helped me out of that zone, The Complete Walker IV by Colin Fletcher and Chip Rawlins. It can be read in two ways: as a regular book, or as a resource guide. For this trip, it was the guide for a three-day weekend reserved for moto camping completely from the bike. The bike… I’ve had all kinds, so this is not my first, but it is the one I’ve been having so much fun with, a 2016 Yamaha TW200. Yes, it’s small compared to what most consider an “adventure bike,” but it has made me love riding motorcycles all over again. How? It presents challenges, benefits, and comforts in very different ways, from the distinctive, stubby fat tires to the low seat height that makes it perfect for a wide range of riders. I’ve been riding for 48+ years and the TW200 makes for a seriously enjoyable experience.

The Yamaha was outfitted with two racks to haul my camping gear. The rear rack is made by Cycle Racks and holds a tent, sleeping pads, sleeping bag, extra water, and a saw/machete. The front rack is made by Man Racks and carries my moto tools and Helinox Multicam camp chair. I added a toilet trowel, a small Gerber hand saw and a Morakniv carbon steel knife. Also on the bike were a spare clutch lever zip-tied to the frame, a North Face wide brim bush hat stuffed between the handlebars and dash, a Ram Mount X-Grip to carry a phone for navigation, and a London Bridge Tactical 3-Day Assault 30L pack.