TOURATECH 2025

RALLIES WITH FRIENDS

Should you go to a motorcycle rally with all your riding friends? Yes. Yes, you should.

We came to ride, we came to party, we came to have a great time—and we totally did... but maybe we shouldn’t have.

We have been honing our Touratech campsite over the past few years. I feel like this year we came prepared. Last year, the rally got a little rowdy, especially on the last day. This year was a little different. Parking was tighter, the swag bag was lighter, and the suggested bedtime was followed by most. We had the party site most nights, but within a respectable party level. I’m not sure what that means for the next Touratech, but we might have to leave the party lights at home next year. “The needs of the many.” If people want a respectable rally with bedtimes and GPS trackers, who are we to stand in the way? That’s part of the fun of going to different motorcycle events—they are all a little different and they all attract different types of riders. At some point, we had over a dozen people come through our site. Most were awesome, but one or two were not. A little advice: party lights attract party people. You should turn them off by 10pm and switch them over to candlelight mode and talk late into the night.

The Tenere did great. We did most of the hard sections and it handled everything from singletrack to deep gravel, sand, and rocks. I took a tumble on a hill climb, but no major damage. The suspension upgrade has been great—a solid $300 investment. I could feel myself getting faster as the days went by. At some point, we all traded bikes for a few minutes, and that is a great experiment. I jumped on a Desert X, a stock Vstrom, and another T7. It’s a great way to compare your setup. I realized I do not like big grips anymore, and I really like my pedals.

Overall, it was a great time with good people and excellent rides. I am looking forward to next year and expanding our group. Maybe we'll bring Martinis instead of a rum punch. Good times, always.