Adventure Rider Radio Motorcycle Podcast. Travel Adventures, Bike Tech Tips

Cody Weber and a small group of experienced motorcycle riders set out on a planned day ride near Green River, Utah, traveling through canyon country, dry riverbeds, and remote desert terrain. The ride appeared well prepared: riders who knew each other, a route that seemed manageable, and time taken beforehand to organize motorcycles, gear, supplies, and navigation.What unfolded next isn’t unusual in the world of adventure motorcycling. Terrain gets misread, bikes go down, and riders get injured—especially in remote environments like Utah’s canyonlands. What makes this story worth paying attention to is not the crash itself, but what happened afterward.In the minutes and hours following the accident, a series of decisions were made under pressure, shaped by limited information, physical injury, environmental conditions, and the realities of being far from help. Those decisions made sense at the time—but they also raise important questions about risk assessment, group dynamics, emergency response, and decision-

In Kevin Staples’ mind, there was always a point where the trip would end. He didn’t expect to get through. The goal wasn’t success — it was simply to go far enough to say he’d tried. To ride up to the wall, touch it, and be told to turn back. So he kept doing exactly that. Showing up. Asking the question. Taking one more step, fully expecting it to be the last. That isn’t how it played out. By the time Kevin rode his motorcycle home, the road — and the world around him — looked very different than it had when he left.

This week, we’re taking a brief pause before the next regular episode drops after Christmas. For many riders, this time of year isn’t about motion or miles—it’s about reflection. About looking back at where we’ve been, the choices we made along the way, and what still lies ahead. The road doesn’t always demand constant movement. Sometimes, the most important moments happen when things go quiet—when we take stock, reconnect, and remember why we ride in the first place. Wherever you are, and however you’re spending these days, we appreciate you taking the journey with us. Our regular episode comes out tomorrow. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Slow-speed skills matter — especially on heavy adventure motorcycles. But if that’s where your training stops, there are real situations where it starts working against you. Because sometimes control doesn’t come from crawling — it comes from the right momentum at the right time. Clinton Smout from SMART Performance Centre joins us to talk about what happens when the trail gets rough and the bike needs to do what it’s designed to do: move. We explore how stability changes with motion, how traction and momentum work together in real terrain, and why timing — with throttle, clutch, and body position — is what separates bouncing through from riding cleanly through.

Riding a motorcycle through Laos pushes both nerve and skill—potholes big enough to swallow a car, sudden water crossings, deep mud, and even the possibility of an elephant stepping onto the trail. A team from Rally for Rangers, led by Steve Zuschin, recently tackled these extreme conditions as they crossed Laos to deliver new motorcycles to frontline Rangers. The ride blended rugged, technical adventure motorcycling with a mission that supports the protection of threatened wilderness. Steve talks about why these demanding routes keep pulling him back and what it takes to ride some of the toughest terrain in Southeast Asia.

Fogging is something most motorcycle riders just put up with — cracking the visor, wiping it, trying to manage it on the fly. But it’s more than an annoyance; it’s a visibility problem, and visibility is safety. What many motorcycle riders don’t realize is that there are real solutions, not myths or quick roadside fixes, but tools and technologies that actually work when you plan ahead. In this episode, we look at why fogging happens, why helmets struggle with it, and what you can do to prevent it. You’ll hear from Jason Eite of VISIN about a heated visor system based on aerospace technology, and from Clinton Smout about the practical approaches riders use every day. If you ride in weather — and eventually we all do — this is one topic that can make your ride safer and far less stressful.

On this episode of DEEP TROUBLE… two motorcyclists head to mid-Wales for a weekend of trail riding on the historic Strata Florida. It’s November, it’s wet, and Strata Florida is known for its water crossings. The plan is simple — get out, ride the lanes, and finally tick this legendary trail off the list. But as you’ll hear, conditions in the Welsh hills can change fast… and what starts as a straightforward ride quickly becomes something far more serious.

In 2022, long-distance riders Wendy Crockett and Ian McPhee set out to break a Guinness World Record for the longest motorcycle journey completed in a single country. Their plan: ride to all 50 U.S. state capitals in alphabetical order, linking them into a continuous route. It sounded simple on paper, but almost nothing went the way they expected. Mechanical failures, illness, a cracked frame, a visa issue, breakdowns every few days — the ride kept falling apart. What kept it alive were the people they met along the way and the unexpected ways strangers stepped in. Their book about the experience is called Pushing Miles, and in this episode they tell the story of what really happened on the road and what kept them going when most riders would have stopped.

This Rider Skills episode is a practical guide to roadside motorcycle tire repair for adventure and dual-sport riders. Instructor Clinton Smout shares hard-earned methods for plugging tubeless tires, patching or replacing inner tubes, breaking and seating beads without a shop, quick leak-finding, bent-rim workarounds, and true limp-home repairs. We compare compressor vs CO₂, talk what to pack (plugs, patches, tubes, irons, lube), and walk through the steps that get you rolling again when you’re far from help. If you’ve searched “how to fix a flat motorcycle tire,” “tubeless plug on the trail,” or “adventure bike tire repair,” this episode gives you the real-world techniques that work in dirt, gravel, and backroads.

Some riders are planners, while others seem to thrive amid chaos. Israel Gillette fits into that second group. He grew up in Tennessee, working in his father’s cabinet shop, and somehow that evolved into a life that has taken him between Romania, racing, carpentry, and motorcycle riding across continents. When we featured him on the show in 2023, he’d already experienced his share of close calls — time in jail, a bond set at thirty thousand dollars, and a border crossing in South America that ended with gunfire. Yet he still said it was the best thing he’d ever done with his life. Adventure, stubbornness, and perhaps a bit of trouble have shaped both his riding and his way of life. 

What started as a nine-day motorcycle trip through Bosnia, Croatia and Slovenia took a sudden and serious turn. Riding the TET, Philipp Amann and his friends were well into their journey when one of the riders fell ill but insisted on continuing. When he made the decision to turn back, his friends chose to ride with him, unaware of how quickly his condition was deteriorating. It’s a story about good intentions, missed signs, and the importance of recognizing when it’s time to stop.

When the life she’d planned took an unexpected turn, Kathleen Perry had to find her footing again. The quiet retirement she and her husband had imagined was gone when he passed away — so she reached back to something she’d set aside long ago: a dream to wander. She set her sights on three places — Prudhoe Bay, Ushuaia, and Nordkapp — three dots on the map. And to connect those dots, she would ride a motorcycle.

Near the end of a month-long motorcycle ride through Spain, Mark and Lisa Schubert set out for what should’ve been an easy final day through the Pyrenees. But as they climbed higher, a mild forecast unravelled into chaos — winds strong enough to stop their motorcycle mid-corner, trees down, and power lines snapping. What follows isn’t a story about recklessness or bravado, but about how easily ordinary choices and a little fixation can lead riders into real danger. It’s about the thin line between pressing on and pulling back — and the single moment that changed everything.

Thinking about downsizing your adventure bike? In this episode we test the waters with a Suzuki DR350—what it really takes to turn a lightweight, simple machine into a workable mini-adventure bike, the choices (and costs) that actually matter, and a few surprises that show up on both pavement and dirt. We start with durability—mirrors and signals, featuring the Doubletake Mirror origin story with Ned Suesse—and wrap with a technique reality check on small-vs-big from Chris Birch.

ADV-X in Canada turned out to be far more than just another riding event. By the end of the first day, faces were caked in dust, grins were everywhere, and the sense of camaraderie was undeniable. From trail-side fixes and overnight repairs to long mountain days, it was passion in motion—riders looking out for each other and a crew ensuring no one was left behind. Combine a world-class terrain with smart logistics that kept everything seamless, a spirit of fun, and you have an event that showcased the very best of adventure motorcycling in Canada. In this episode, you’ll learn how the framework came together from Ryan Austin, instructor and owner of Enduro Park Canada in British Columbia—and hear from riders who lived those moments on the trail.

Modern motorcycles aren’t just machines anymore—they’re equipped with advanced technology. Ride-by-wire means your throttle hand communicates with a processor instead of a cable, and that computer considers wheel speed, lean angle, traction, braking, and more before deciding how your bike responds. With ride modes, you can adjust your bike’s personality for pavement, gravel, mud, or rain—varying power delivery, traction control, ABS, and even suspension. In this Rider Skills episode, Clinton Smout of SMART Riding Adventures explains how understanding ride modes can enhance your safety, control, and enjoyment on every ride.

We all choose our riding gear for comfort, style, and weather protection — trusting that if it’s sold as motorcycle gear, it must also keep us safe in a crash. But how much of that trust is based on proof, and how much is just assumption? This week we speak with the head of one of the world’s only independent labs that secretly buys gear off the shelf, crash-tests it, and publishes the results. What they’ve uncovered may completely change the way you think about the gear you’ve been relying on.

When everything is perfectly organized—routes mapped, fuel stops planned, meals and beds guaranteed—it feels effortless. But the truth is, no matter how tidy the plan, the real world always gets a vote. On short rides, those small interruptions are easy to patch over. Stretch the miles across countries and weeks on the road, though, and the little things start to compound. That’s when the first casualty is usually the plan—and what comes next is called the adventure.In this 2017 story, a dozen experienced riders set out to cross South America from Cartagena to Ushuaia, equipped with skills, support vehicles, and a clear plan. But tropical rain, border red tape, shock absorbers that cried uncle, and Patagonian winds forced them to adapt. The journey didn’t unfold the way they mapped it—but that’s the point. What carries a long trip isn’t a perfect plan; it’s the flexibility to rewrite it.

Chris Birch returns to Adventure Rider Radio with insights from his brand-new Everything Adventure video training series. This is a deep dive into how adventure riding and training have evolved in the last five years. Chris explains why fundamentals like bike setup and body position matter more than flashy skills, how modern ADV bike design is changing the way we ride, and why so much of what riders learn in a course is quickly forgotten. From fitness as the hidden limiter, to the “fun tokens” mindset, to the balance between digital and in-person training, Chris shares practical lessons and fresh perspectives every rider can take to the trail.About Chris Birch:Chris Birch is one of the most sought-after off-road coaches in the world. With over 35 years of riding experience, he has competed at the highest levels and coached thousands of riders across the globe. Known for his relatable teaching style, Chris focuses on explaining why techniques work, not just telling riders what to do. Through his Say No To Slow

Damian (Demon) Rowley spent 35 years riding motorcycles professionally in London—first as a courier, then as one of Virgin’s elite “limo bike” riders, trusted to ferry celebrities and executives through the city’s relentless traffic. With over half a million miles behind him, Damian shares the toll of crashes, injuries, and burnout, as well as the moment he realized he needed a change. At 50, he walked away from security, ended a long relationship, and set out solo on a KTM 690 to ride the world. His story isn’t just about motorcycles—it’s about reinvention, confronting fear, and discovering personal growth when the safety nets are gone.