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Norge to Dualsport?
- Thread starter jcjf
- Start date
100% sure you can get off-road, not so sure about the return to the road part... There are of course variations in what is called off-road. Logging road should be possible with some proper tires. Having taken my K1100LT on short logging roads and forest paths, to visit friends that were camping, I can report that I didn't enjoy it.
The biggest obstacle is weight, ground clearance and rider ability. Cosmetically your Norge might resemble a Lego star ship that you just dropped on the hardwood floor after a good trip off-road. My suggestion is to first consider if you care about damaging the bike, and then drop it a few times on your lawn and pick it back up. Just for sh%ts and giggles. Are you sweating yet?
Personally I am looking for a WR250R at the moment.....
The biggest obstacle is weight, ground clearance and rider ability. Cosmetically your Norge might resemble a Lego star ship that you just dropped on the hardwood floor after a good trip off-road. My suggestion is to first consider if you care about damaging the bike, and then drop it a few times on your lawn and pick it back up. Just for sh%ts and giggles. Are you sweating yet?
Personally I am looking for a WR250R at the moment.....
Interesting! In 2015 I went from a 2007 Norge to a new 2014 Stelvio. I would say they are not remotely the same, which is part of the reason I switched. I wanted something more comfortable with more leg room. The Stelvio really filled the bill. BUT, it's more top heavy, and doesn't have as good wind protection on the highway. On the other hand, the Norge wouldn't have been much fun in the dirt. The under carriage is too low and all the plastic is muy expensive to replace when you drop it! Ultimately, I just traded the Stelvio for an Eldorado with touring equipment because the Stelvio was too tall and top heavy for me after I had back surgery last year. Maybe you should consider keeping the Norge and buy a Zong for your off roading adventures!
Garwood.
Garwood.
P
PP-1753
Guest
I have a Sport (same frame etc) and have found it to be quite capable, off the bitumen. Initially I did not do this intentionally, as I took a wrong turn. It seemed to me I would come to more grief if I tried to turn around, so I kept going.
The "road" kept deteriorating rapidly, turning from loose gravel, to sand, to clay, to sheets of rock, and it was all wet. Kept in 2nd gear, stood on the pegs and with the wide bars on the Sport had a bit of fun - I used to ride off road many years ago, and while I never really excelled at it, I was "probably" capable. I kept going, over the mountain I was on.
As I got to the end of this particular road, I saw two guys loading "genuine" motocross bikes on the back of a ute. Should have seen their faces - could have driven a truck into either of their mouths as their jaws were on the ground - they knew where I had come from... and on a 250 kg road bike, with road tyres!
So, those of us that remember the difference between a genuine off road machine and the road going version (50's 60's et al), there really wasn't much in it. The off road variants had off road tyres, wider handlebars and maybe higher mudguards - my 1964 BSA Victor GP works motocross bikes (genuine factory) had 4" of suspension on the front and 2" on the rear - going over jumps was easy, ;landing scared the crap out of me!
Modern bikes easily handle the off road task, and I still enjoy a good blast and a half decent dirt/gravel road at a decent speed (circa 120 km/h) - riding at 40 km/h in such conditions will most likely get you in more trouble. All in road trip and bucket loads of luggage.
You can do it, and to improve things some suspension work may need to be done, some clearances may need to be improved, some tyres may need to be purchased, a different set of bars, maybe foot pegs appropriate to standing on. However, the key component needing change is the rider - lack of skill will get you seriously injured, if not downright dead - go get the skills. A 200+ kg bike is a real handful when things go pear shaped. I was lucky I raced (motocross, enduro, short circuit and a bit on the hard stuff) for a while, and later became an accredited motor cycle coach (now expired). I ended up teaching kids how to ride in the dirt - some even excelled!
Don't be put off. Learn how to ride your bike in the loose/dirty stuff properly and you will have lots of fun. This also makes you a better rider on the road, especially when a tin top "didn't see you" and you are navigating "off road" to survive. Go get some training if you are not comfortable, change your bike or your bike setup and fun can be had on any road.
I have seriously though about getting another Sport, or one of the 750 variants with a view to exploring more by suitably modifying things.
The Norge would need decent front suspenders (from a Sport would be ideal C/R adjustable), the rear shock is probably inadequate (barely adequate on the road), though the biggest problem is likely the weight issue - porky at the best, slim porky at best (and at what cost). Options abound.
Still, if you are competent and ride within your limits AND the Norge's, you can have a lot of fun. Go for it!
The "road" kept deteriorating rapidly, turning from loose gravel, to sand, to clay, to sheets of rock, and it was all wet. Kept in 2nd gear, stood on the pegs and with the wide bars on the Sport had a bit of fun - I used to ride off road many years ago, and while I never really excelled at it, I was "probably" capable. I kept going, over the mountain I was on.
As I got to the end of this particular road, I saw two guys loading "genuine" motocross bikes on the back of a ute. Should have seen their faces - could have driven a truck into either of their mouths as their jaws were on the ground - they knew where I had come from... and on a 250 kg road bike, with road tyres!
So, those of us that remember the difference between a genuine off road machine and the road going version (50's 60's et al), there really wasn't much in it. The off road variants had off road tyres, wider handlebars and maybe higher mudguards - my 1964 BSA Victor GP works motocross bikes (genuine factory) had 4" of suspension on the front and 2" on the rear - going over jumps was easy, ;landing scared the crap out of me!
Modern bikes easily handle the off road task, and I still enjoy a good blast and a half decent dirt/gravel road at a decent speed (circa 120 km/h) - riding at 40 km/h in such conditions will most likely get you in more trouble. All in road trip and bucket loads of luggage.
You can do it, and to improve things some suspension work may need to be done, some clearances may need to be improved, some tyres may need to be purchased, a different set of bars, maybe foot pegs appropriate to standing on. However, the key component needing change is the rider - lack of skill will get you seriously injured, if not downright dead - go get the skills. A 200+ kg bike is a real handful when things go pear shaped. I was lucky I raced (motocross, enduro, short circuit and a bit on the hard stuff) for a while, and later became an accredited motor cycle coach (now expired). I ended up teaching kids how to ride in the dirt - some even excelled!
Don't be put off. Learn how to ride your bike in the loose/dirty stuff properly and you will have lots of fun. This also makes you a better rider on the road, especially when a tin top "didn't see you" and you are navigating "off road" to survive. Go get some training if you are not comfortable, change your bike or your bike setup and fun can be had on any road.
I have seriously though about getting another Sport, or one of the 750 variants with a view to exploring more by suitably modifying things.
The Norge would need decent front suspenders (from a Sport would be ideal C/R adjustable), the rear shock is probably inadequate (barely adequate on the road), though the biggest problem is likely the weight issue - porky at the best, slim porky at best (and at what cost). Options abound.
Still, if you are competent and ride within your limits AND the Norge's, you can have a lot of fun. Go for it!
Last edited by a moderator:
Tony,
I assume most of your post was aimed at jcjf and I certainly can't argue against most of what you said. I was only offering my opinion on the difference between an 07 Norge and a late model Stelvio (since those where the models he was talking about and I actually had one of each). That opinion is coming from someone who has been riding for 48 years (and isn't particularly talented despite the years of experience) and has avoided the dirt like the plague the whole time. It was always my plan to put street tires on the Stelvio, but I didn't keep it long enough! The only time I ever got hurt on a bike was early in my riding career riding a "street" Bultaco up a firebreak in Los Angles back in 1966. Lost traction on a steep spot, went over, and slide to the bottom of the hill protecting the paintwork with my body the whole way! Lost some skin on that one! Since then, my off road motorcycle philosophy has been, "If you ride on the street, you MIGHT get killed, but if you ride in the dirt you are GONNA get hurt".
But my advice still holds. Dirt riding takes special skills (nothing I know anything about) and works best with a purpose built motorcycle. A Norge and a Zong Shen seems like a potentially good combo to me! And Zongs are cheap.
Garwood.
I assume most of your post was aimed at jcjf and I certainly can't argue against most of what you said. I was only offering my opinion on the difference between an 07 Norge and a late model Stelvio (since those where the models he was talking about and I actually had one of each). That opinion is coming from someone who has been riding for 48 years (and isn't particularly talented despite the years of experience) and has avoided the dirt like the plague the whole time. It was always my plan to put street tires on the Stelvio, but I didn't keep it long enough! The only time I ever got hurt on a bike was early in my riding career riding a "street" Bultaco up a firebreak in Los Angles back in 1966. Lost traction on a steep spot, went over, and slide to the bottom of the hill protecting the paintwork with my body the whole way! Lost some skin on that one! Since then, my off road motorcycle philosophy has been, "If you ride on the street, you MIGHT get killed, but if you ride in the dirt you are GONNA get hurt".
But my advice still holds. Dirt riding takes special skills (nothing I know anything about) and works best with a purpose built motorcycle. A Norge and a Zong Shen seems like a potentially good combo to me! And Zongs are cheap.
Garwood.
P
PP-1753
Guest
Yep Garwood, All aimed a the the original poster. personally if i needed a chook chaser, I would get one - but I like doing things the hard way. A Stelvio for me would require a very portable set of steps. My Sport is high enough, but when rolling is good. Right royal bitch to get back up though, if it has a lay down...
bb49
Tuned and Synch'ed
If you are only doing some casual riding on gravel roads, nothing aggressive, I would put the appropriate tires on, but definitely remove the side bags. That way if you go down, less damage.
If you do go off road, I think you would want one of these. https://www.guzzitech.com/store/product/gt-carc-guards/ Also good to have in general to protect that very expensive CARC.
I've ridden motocross bikes for 45 years and I'm quite good at it. No racing experience, mostly enduro type riding. I still own a YZ250 2 stroke.
I've ridden my '82 Honda 650 Nighthawk quite a bit on dirt roads of various quality when out exploring. It is doable and not too stressful or dangerous. I picked up my Norge yesterday in Montreal and on the way home had to ride a long stretch of narrow gravel road through a construction zone. It was not fun at all. The size and weight of the bike makes it unstable and very unnerving. Also I found that when looking through the windshield quite closely in front of the bike as you do when slow speed dirt riding, it was very distorted. The fuzzy picture made seeing potholes and rocks difficult and added to the stress level.
Personally I am going to avoid any dirt roads as much as possible. Sure the bike is new to me and my confidence level will increase but experience tells me this is no dual sport by any means.
I've ridden my '82 Honda 650 Nighthawk quite a bit on dirt roads of various quality when out exploring. It is doable and not too stressful or dangerous. I picked up my Norge yesterday in Montreal and on the way home had to ride a long stretch of narrow gravel road through a construction zone. It was not fun at all. The size and weight of the bike makes it unstable and very unnerving. Also I found that when looking through the windshield quite closely in front of the bike as you do when slow speed dirt riding, it was very distorted. The fuzzy picture made seeing potholes and rocks difficult and added to the stress level.
Personally I am going to avoid any dirt roads as much as possible. Sure the bike is new to me and my confidence level will increase but experience tells me this is no dual sport by any means.