Lyndon Poskitt (aka Pyndon) comes on board as an official Adventure-Spec rider. After his excellent feedback and ideas during the testing of the groundbreaking Klim Adventure Rally suit we thought Lyndon would make a valuable team member due to his talent on a bike and vast experience of adventure biking on the limit.
Check out his report from recent trip to Portugal…..
“Crappy New Year weather, stricken motorcycles and Volcano eruptions make for pretty interesting times!
After an Epic ride to Africa last December on my KTM 950 Adventure I found myself having to go back, literally for more! Well, not quite but when we left Africa for the shores of Europe and began to head North in time for New Year the weather started to change. From the beautiful sunshine and blissfully comfortable temperatures things soon started to take a turn for the worse, good to tell we were heading home. Anyway, There were three of us, all on KTM 950 Adventures, myself, Ned and Tony. Ned and Tony are both from the States and Tony had a flight to catch on 3rd Jan and I needed to be back at work so there was not option for us other than to grin an bear it. For Ned on the other hand, he was not flying home until 13th Jan so he decided to stick the middle finger up at the weather front and return back south for a bit more sun, who could blame him.
With Tony and I flogging the 950’s back to the UK through sleet and snow and sub-zero temperatures I was happy to have my new
Klim Adventure suit, that coupled with my Gerbings heated jacket liner I was comfortable, just. Tank after tank we slogged the 2700 miles from Southern Morocco in just 3 days while Ned kicked back, shot the breeze with some internet friends in Portugal. Long story short, the weather only got worse and 8 inches of snow here in the UK was not encouraging Ned to ride back to catch his flight. So, he flew home and left the 950 with friends in Portugal.
On his return he bunged me some cash towards a trip to pick the bike up and said “how bad can it be, money towards another adventure”! So I set about planning a trip to Portugal to collect the stricken 950. To make the trip more affordable we’d take a Sprinter van with four bikes (and room for the 950 on the way back). Those that graft for a living decided to fly out to save vacation, the others drover the van. I thought flying would be great, I turned up, met the others and had a couple of great days riding in Portugal on my RXV 450. Loz, Timpo and Maltesar (internet names) were the other riders.
Portugal - Offroad Paradise
This was Loz’s first outing with the
Adventure suit so he was keen to give it a good run for its money.
Loz samples his new Klim Adventure Rally Suit
After a few days, things started to go bad, namely a huge volcano errupting and putting pay to all flights around the world. This was fine, I wasn’t flying for another week but things were not going so well elsewhere. It was the day before the World Enduro Round in Fafe, Portugal. Because of the flights, many UK support riders and mechanics were unable to make the event. Frantic phone calls from Portugal to the UK resulted in me getting a call being diverted from the ride in hand to go and support ride at the WEC round for a good friend at MPS Racing Husqvarna. So, gear on bike I headed off on the torturously long road ride to Fafe on my 450 Aprilia. Through the battering rain I eventually turned up at the event and did a last minute 2 hour recky of the course in the dark thanks to my
Vision X Solstice Solo LED lights .
Lyndon on the mighty RXV
The following weekend was filled with two manic days of support riding for Alex (Rocky) Rockwell. Great weekend but by the end of each day I was absolutely beat! Even the liaison section on the WEC were challenging and I can honestly say that I take my hat off to those guys. 8 hours riding per day in hardcore conditions with no breaks. It’s certainly no longer on my list of things to do!
The weather was pretty unpredictable the entire weekend and the Klim suit worked great. From 22 degrees and sunshine to single digits and rain, it was extremely versatile. The massive array of pockets meant that I didn’t have to carry a back-pack, drinks food, spare gloves and goggles were all crammed into the pockets each morning. I ran it with the Leatt Brace and collar all weekend and it worked well. Vents opened and closed multiple times throughout the day to match the conditions.
Alex 'Rocky' Rockwell
On the Sunday, the rider had a problem towards the end of the day and I had to ride the course to find him. This started very well but after dropping down two 4ft concrete slabs and working my way into the bottom of a gulley, I was confronted with the exit route, a huge boulder garden!. I began to question if this was a good idea but at the end of the day I was there to help him so I just went for it. It probably took me a good four or five times longer than the slowest of the field to make up the mile long climb. I eventually found the rider back at the pits after I’d fought my way al the way back on following the race course. Exhausted I pulled up outside the tent, looked at the rest of the team and they all burst out laughing. Rocky saying “there’s not way you muscled that beast up that boulder garden”. Sweat dripping from my brow “I’m knackared, your going to have to find another support rider for the next round” haha.
An update from the UK suggested the flights were still all disrupted and the team had spare spots back to the UK. With this in mind I took the chance to get home and jumped in the Artic and headed for Santander which wasn’t a bad thing. David Knight and Tom Sagar also in tow due to disruptions with the flights we had a great trip home on the ferry.
A few days later, Timpo rocked up with the KTM950, they ferried it back from Portugal in the van.
As for the
Klim Adventure suit, I have over 20,000 miles on mine now, from Africa hot weather and Arctic European weather, I have to say it is an impressive piece of kit. I had a Hein Gericke Tuareg suit before and I was always frustrated how you had to switch liners and if rained, then you baked as the thermal liner was the waterproof liner. Also, the weight of the jacket doesn’t really alter when it gets wet, unlike linered textiles. Granted you need a good electric liner for the cold weather but to be honest, I still used this with the Gericke jacket so no change there. Very versatile piece of kit, road or off-road and all conditions. It’s pretty tough too, I took a few tumbles along the way and its fairing up well.
Until next time,,,,,,,,
