doctor phil

your enduristans still available? if so can get me at meditcp@nus.edu.sg please?

am putting the shine back on a 1997 valk tourer, the OEM pipes and headers are almost impossible to find but i have a source with six to six cobra slash pipes, which look and sound gorgeous. does anyone know if this will be a problem for the authorities, how do you check which pipes are permitted? please lemme know doc phil

am restoring a 1997 valkyrie tourer and in need for front and rear suspension and exhaust headers, have heard of some local shops that bring in these parts, but does anyone have any strong recommendations or discouragements??

hello fellow strommers have a 2009 v strom bought second hand with 19000on the clock. bought it just before i had a new idea - to ride from singapore to sweden to raise funds for cancer research! not the bike i would have chosen for that much mileage, and am also getting some soft pressure to land a GS. truth is i really like the strom and have had nothing but good times. don't feel like letting it go, but would like to know any thoughts on what mods you would recommend? at present i have made following changes steel braided brake lines front and rear scottoiler new ratifier - this did give me trouble higher widescreen bigfoot Hepco alu side boxes, hepco black top box my main worry - tendancy to backfire on deceleration. anyone with similar problems and what suggestions?

thanks to yem-paul for the great advice on getting into china. its being looked into and hopefully some news will come soon. its just that we are trying to get into xinjiang which is not the usual route into china, to say the least. will let you know how it turns out on the bike issue the F800 sale did not work out, think i will spend the money optising my present vstrom 1000, and learning how to do the roadside repairs. any opinions on what should be added on? my bikes pretty much all stock except for windscreen, H/Becker boxes and crash bars....

ok after some consideration i have settled on the bike. any strong opinions on taking an F800 GS? or where i might be able to find one?

ok peeps have done my homework and it appears that pakistan west of quetta is generally considered no go. i was afraid of that because it means going through the stans to get into iran, and that means going through china. any recommendations on whom to contact for getting private bikes through china?

dear FB666Y many thanks for the fabulous photos and travelog. am planning a similar trip westward in about three years time. have a question about the timing. was informed that after may as a whole india get clobbered by the monsoons and that makes riding more hazardous than usual, yet as i understand this road is only open in summer. was the rain an issue at all?

ok itineray is coming together. in malaysia we stop at KL and penang because of meeting with local collaborators. in thailand the usual stop at hat yai, then surat thani, prachaup kiri kan where we might lie on the beach for a bit, then kanchannaburi, sukothai and chiangmai where we meet more collaborators. cross over to myanmar is in the usual place at mae hong son. have been told by all sorts of myanmese military doctors that we have worked with in the past that they can get our selves and bike OK through myanmar but truthfully have no intention of staying any longer than nec. the route plan is through mandalay and then north west to enter india through the moreh imphal highway, which should be our first exposure to the mountains. if all goes well this should take about three weeks, and hopefully a month to get through india, details to follow. anyone with an opinion on this route, or more interesting alternatives, please let me know.

hello mercenary and thanks for the offer for help we could certainly use it am in the midst of setting up what is called a "blog" site. i know it sound like a small thing but i am pre generation X. i remember a time when all the Beatles were alive. who is this Kushinagar? the fund raising we are directing at corporate sponsorships and pharmas because of our professional links but if there is anyone out there whom you think can help us from the biking angle that would be perfect. if you ask me i think the best sponsor is Mustafas. i could give them the front of my chest on the riding suit. everyone in india and pakistan knows them! there are some things that an old hand like yourself could help us with: need a place to learn how to fix bikes on the road. any suggestions? have not done any offroading for a while and any courses on this would be great. right now my main effort is deciding on the route. the big question is whether or not anyone has got their private vehicles into china. if not its through iran and turkey... lemme know if any of this tickles your fancy to get involved in warmest dr phil

last place i expected to hear from the singapore cancer society! thanks for the llinks, will get up a contribution to the facebook page soon, limiting the SBF to bike and trip related matters, as its function appears to be many thanks for the interest doctor phil

hey fredd thanks for the interest. we started out on the principle that we should both ride the same bikes. there are many practical reasons for this - ease of repair and maintenance, supply chain, even support from vendors. unfortunately the overriding principle we were advised was that we should ride bikes we loved. and this meant bikes we presently like. so mikes going on a 2009 BMW GSA, and i will be taking a suzuki vstrom 1000. completely different bikes, although we both agree they are both just as ugly the blog page is coming up. we are already on facebook look for an event called the Long Reach Around and you'll see updates. we are both of an age where blogging, er tweeting and the rest of it does not come naturally, so we'll concentrate on itinerary first and will start the blog when this is settled will keep you posted meanwhile on this forum page as well

those of you who are still keeping track of this thread, have just got NUS approval and will now start to seriously raise funds. any advice on bike shops that might be keen to be sponsors?

hey burnjr thanks for the tip. anyplace you'd recommend in Myanmar?

thanks burnjr. yes the carnet is an ordeal to look forward to. thankfully we have some influence and will be able to get through burma, apparently its quite beautiful. thinking on getting to CHITTAGONG in bangla but after that expect a real ordeal getting throgh bangla, bihar and uttar p. expect to take a whole month