Shenzhen - Chongching - Yangshuo - Shenzhen

[futianshenzhen]

Tue 5th

Total so far 2940.
Left rongjiang at 6.20, alarm was set for 7 but had weird nightmare about Joe drowning. WTF! Maybe I'm going to find god! Got back on gaosu, without being shouted at and rode for 80 clicks then it finished. Got bollocked by a toll dude who told me it was very dangerous for bikes to be on the gaosu, so rode off the deserted dual carriageway on to a muddy, truck and buffalo filled road that went through villages with kids and dogs everywhere, which was obviously much safer. It then pissed down with rain until I arrived in yangshuo, (just after 1 pm) so couldnt get any footage of longsheng mountains. It cleared up just enough to get last few ks into town on film.
Have already seen Frank and oda at Kelly's and George at 98. Had the bike cleaned and now at Yi's giving it the once over. The exhaust bolt had rattled loose and yi is replacing the fuel valve that broke yesterday. Gonna say hi at zhuoyue then drop the bike off at will's. Then going boozing.
The chain needed another couple of links taking out, that's either 6 of 8 in total this trip...130 quai chains are pretty shite. Also the sliding part of the master link had fallen off so yi made one out of wire, nice and pikey. I have the 350 quai chain I bought from yingang to put on back in shenzhen with the new sprockets I already have. I hope I don't regret not getting them to put on a new set in Chongqing.




http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNDEwNjEyMDgw.html
(Entering Guangxi Province)


http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNDEwNjI4NTk2.html
(Riding into Yangshuo then some bar fun)

[futianshenzhen]

Wed 6th
It was about 500 to yangers, set off this morning before 9 with monster hangover. Nice sunny day at last so got some nice video. Can't remember getting back to the hotel last night, I can remember sparring with George in 98 but after that it gets hazy. Stopped for lunch in the middle of nowhere, 160 kms left to ruyuan. 3720 on the clock.

Was proper fucked after lunch, had to stop and have a power nap by the side of the road. Definitely the worst I've felt on a bike! Checked into posh hotel in ruyuan, got room service and felt sorry for myself. Got some good footage of the ruyuan twisties but will try filming without tank bag tomorrow. Totally cooked the rear brake in the twisties but was ok again after 5 minutes. Did about 450 today, total 3890.

CIMG0389.jpg
My other car's a land rover!



CIMG0400.jpg
Somewhere near the Guangdong grand canyon

[futianshenzhen]

Thur 7

Left ruyuan at about ten, no rush today as don't want to ride into shenzhen before 7. Got the best twisties footage of the trip so far on the road leading to the Guangdong grand canyon. Much better to film twisties without the tank bag. Gonna improve bungee mounting system to include halterneck style strap so camera can be on my chest rather than beer belly. Stopped for leisurely breakfast now at 11.

Stopped for drinks in yingde, conversation with shopkeeper went as follows -

Your bikes Japanese.
No it's Chinese, from Chongqing.
You can't register it legally though I'm sure.
No. You can, it's legally registered.
Well you can't ride it in the rain though.
Yes you can, I ride it in the rain all the time.

I then walked away and pretended to look at the map, 3 strikes and your out!


Got back to the shed at 7.30, 550 kms for the day, 4440 in total. Dropped the bike in gravel about 50 ks outside of shenzhen going about 5 miles an hour. Twat. At least I was filming at the time so should make a funny clip. Going straight home to rape the beer machine.

[pattang]

Well that was fecking awesome Tom, excellent camera work and your riding skills are 100%
I award you 1%13
Your a real biker!

[MotoKai]

Thanks for the RR!
...and great videos.

Your Japanese Yingang is looking good.
But be careful riding in the rain without a plate!

By the way, was watching the Shuikouzhen Hamlets video and can't believe how well the Yingang handles on dirt roads.
Perhaps your new friends should be saying, "Your hovercraft is Japanese". [It's that smooth!]

What mount are you using with your GoPro?

[felix]

Nice writing sir! A rider and a poet, makes for great reading.

Very impressed with the level of service you're getting from yingang, i bet all the jialing 600 guys are raging!

[futianshenzhen]

CIMG0319.jpg

Close your eyes @ChinaV and @richKTM, there was no 97 at this place!

[MotoKai]

i bet all the jialing 600 guys are raging!

Since the JH600 ECU rage (that thread is thankfully now CLOSED!), Jialing seems to be stepping up.

Two weeks ago a couple of Jialing moto-staff guys came from Chongqing to Shanghai to meet with us. We discussed all things JH & JB! They came rather well-prepared with market-research surveys and interviewed each of us. And they were very open to discuss things "off the page", taking detailed notes. Topics included open and closed issues (like the ECU problem), re-design suggestions (engine, mechanical, electrical, tires, suspension and cosmetic). They were also very keen to obtain our insights in how to better market this bike. For instance, if they want to sell a bike w/ mods (like they do with the terrible side panniers) then they should do it right and produce a true adventure model with these components coming from quality out-sourced partners like Tourfella.

They were receptive.We also discussed past customer service issues and how to improve. Euphonius was most active and I think at one point in his life he'll swing a gig as the Jialing Consultant and spend a week or 2 in Chongqing! haha

This all concluded with a great dinner and goodhearted banter by all!

* For me the most interesting thing that came from this was info on how few recreational bikes they actually sell in China. We discovered it was only a couple of hundred in the last year - and they in fact sold more in Brazil than here. But this doesn't include the (probably very high) production and sales for the military, for mostly the JB model. The military not only uses this bike for themselves, but sell/export it to other national military units (which nations were not disclosed but one can guess the short-list!). So because of the sensitivity of this bike it's officially classified as a state secret.

Which may explain some of the prior mafan we dealt with regarding the ecu. But seems now they are interested in the recreational market, and things can only get better with improved marketing, sales/distribution and of course customer service!

[futianshenzhen]

CIMG0390.jpg
A good place for a power nap


CIMG0405.jpg
A fake grand canyon


CIMG0406.jpg
The Guangdong grand canyon

That's the last of the photos and the videos are finally all up on youku.

So, to summarise the trip...

Riding solo on a trip of this size was a first and very different experience, much more expedition than the usual jolly. I think I enjoyed it as much but it was more in a me against the world kind of way. The bike was fantastic all trip, it's so nice when you can be sure you won't have any major problems. The experience at yingang was amazing, I would never have believed you could receive this individual service and generosity from any company worldwide. My 'new bike' is a totally different animal, much more of a tourer now although as MotoKai commented it was pretty smooth off road even before the changes. But the new frame is much more solid, the already minimal vibrations have now disappeared and you know it's built to survive a real pounding. The new swing arm and shock have made a huge difference, it now glides over the bumps and the larger pot holes no longer lift you out of the seat...a much more comfortable ride. The new seat is a major improvement, the original was too sporty and a bit of a nutcracker, riding for hours upon hours no longer causes pain. A good solid rack was also missing from the bike and the current one is extremelly well designed, it's the final piece of the puzzle which makes this a great bike for China. Personally speaking I think a 250 is enough, I only wanted for more while on the Guizhou gaosu, and I think you'd struggle to find a better one in China at the present time. Any thoughts guys?

Here are the last few videos:

http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNDExODgwNjQ4.html
(Leaving Yangshuo)


http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNDExODgwNzEy.html
(A serious deadend)


http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNDExODgwNzc2.html
(Twisties leaving Ruyuan)


http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNDExODgwODA4.html
(When I drop the bike and return to the outskirts of Shenzhen)

[futianshenzhen]

What mount are you using with your GoPro?

My 'gopro' is an 800 quai casio camera bungee strapped around my torso, cheap and cheerful to say the least. It's not bad but a bit low, i'm going to try and raise the camera to chest height for the next trip.