Thanks to the mods for accepting me into this group and I’m so happy to be here. Hi, I’m Mike and I was hoping to get some advice and guidance from members specially to those who’ve done Sydney to Cairns. A bit of a background- I’m 48 and a returning rider, bought my first HD in 2018 which is a Superlow XL883L. Haven’t ridden it yet but will do once I get my full licence in July. I haven’t done long distance rides and I wanted to get advice regarding this. I’m moving to FNQ in August and instead of shipping the bike, I’d like to ride and break her in. What I want to know is- how many days should I allocate for the ride? How many hours of riding per day, normally? Is it better to go through in-land route via Gregory Hwy (2,421 kms) or via Pacific/Bruce Hwy (2,600 kms) where there are plenty of servos along the way? (Considering fuel tank capacity is 17L and consumption 5.2L/100 kms). I haven’t done 100kph and sat on a bike for long periods so should I get windshield, engine guard/hwy pegs? Any thing else that I should think about and consider? I would appreciate all your inputs, advice, and sorry if this has already been asked in the forums. Cheers

Welcome to the zoo Mike!

Did Bris to Canberra last August and Bris to Cairns in December..so Syd to Cairns would be a great run. I'm no expert but the following is my 2 bob's worth!

1) The bike: My first comment is has the bike been run in yet? Had its 1st service? Not sure I'd want to sit in top gear for long periods breaking in a new donk but I'm no engine expert. Not sure how tall you are but I'd look at forward controls on a Sporty. I have a bolt on Memphis Shades fairing for longer rides on my Breakout, cuts down the buffeting and helps with fatigue. Only other suggestion would be a sissy bar and rack to throw all your gear on and a comfortable seat!

2) Your kit: I always dress for the slide, full face helmet, good quality boots, kevlar jeans and shirt and my leather jacket..given the time of year you'll want thermal leggings and undershirt, balclava and bloody good gloves! I always carry a basic set of tools and a puncture repair kit in my swing arm bag.

3) Long distance riding: Depending on your fitness, I normally do between 700-900k's in a day [that depends on the amount of daylight available] and your destination each day, sometimes I'll do shorter If I'm stopping to see shit! Golden rule when riding outback never before dawn, and be off the road a good hour of more before sunset. I stop every hour or so to stretch the legs, have some water and a bunger..lol. Apart from wildlife, look out for caravaners and cattle trucks, passing the latter is a required skill if there full of livestock..lol

4) Which way: I tend to stay away from the Coastal roads where I can, less traffic and coppers/cameras etc. I enjoyed both the Newell and New England Hwy's in NSW, If your wanting to do the Gregory Hwy in QLD you'll need to watch your fuel, there only one stop prior to Charters Towers. Grab yourself a set of Hema Maps, great for accurate distances and servo's. I sit down and work the distances between fuel stops and plan accordingly.

Like I said just my 2 bobs worth, I'm sure the other blokes will chip in, most importantly...enjoy the ride! :-)

Pic of my setup!

I bought my bike in Canberra, rode it home (1400Km) then down to Adelaide a week later for the first service (400km)

sat on 100 - 120 all the way, 4th, 5th and 6th gear, don't over rev but more important, do not labor the engine (run to high a gear)

always better with a mate, when you get close to the ride, post up your plan and the chance others may do a leg or part there off, always good

- Get the fwd controls as the stock pegs on a 883L are too far back for us long legged folks (I'm 6'2").  Even simple highway pegs will be a bonus here.

- Get a good seat!  The stock solo one is HARD so look to a two up seat as they do tend to have better padding.

- A fairing is good too... BUT in all honesty I find the buffeting from the fairing to be worse than without; I have a full height clipon Sporty one vs a Ness style bikini.  I only run the fairing on rainy days - and for keeping dry they are bloody brilliant.  If your expecting sunny weather then perhaps give it a miss as in high temps you can overheat sitting behind one.

- Definetly get the bike run in and past the 1st service (Oil, Filter + loose nuts and bolts) .  No way do you want to be doing a long haul with ALL the metal shavings that get dumped into the oil from a brand new engine.  Even if you can only get say 200-500km under your belt and then change Oil and Filter then thats perfect.  From about 500km onwards its all about not lugging the engine or overreving for the remaining 2000km.  Plus things like Brakes / Tyres etc will be properly bedded in; which you want on a long trip.

@Ken - Guess I better get that Hema Map and look at in-land route more closely. I’ll take note of fuel stops at Clearmont and Banyano. Will message you when I’m in Cairns, thanks Ken. Actually my journey doesn’t stop there. From Cairns, I’ll have the bike shipped to TI via Sea Swift as I’ll be starting work at TI Hospital as a new grad RN. Dunno if there are any Harleys up there… Cheers

@Birtyyy – Thanks! Yep I’m planning at least 4 days only because I get cramps on my hips when riding in the cold so I’m factoring in heaps of stops.

@tussuck – I had my bike winterised last year and when I bring it to the dealer in July, I’ll have a look at highway pegs, seats, etc. and see what’s comfy for me. Yeah, the plan is to get at least 200kms in July and August then do the first service before the long haul. Cheers

Thanks everyone!

Hey Mike, thanks for the comments! Told you the boys would pile in..some great points to note!

Couple of things I forgot to mention:

Get yourself a set of rain gear [just in case]...yet to use mine but always strap it to the front of my HD bag.

I'm 6ft and have a Sporty as well [pic attached] forward controls are the best, if you want to keep the mids, go for a crash bar with Highway pegs, riding a Harley long distance it helps!

Having said that plenty of Sporty stuff on Gumtree and Facebook Marketplace as well as some Sporty sites in Oz. Grab yourself the latest HD catalogue and go shopping..e-bay included!

If your going the coast road, fuel shouldn't be a problem  [not sure what your choice is], but having done the back roads even the big rig runs well on 91 when I've had to use it!

Accomodation, I try to find somewhere that has undercover parking, most motels average $100 a night, but a pub is around $50-60, my experience!

Keep us posted, I'm west of Brisbane, but happy to ride with you as you pass through if I'm not working??

Cheers and Beers

Steve

Charters Towers to Townsville is about 2 hrs, and then 4 hrs to Cairns.

Most servos had 95, the fuel finder app is great, as is wiki camps (costs 8 bucks) you can do all the route planning in wiki camps, and it has distances between waypoints, accommodation options with prices, other info and attractions, well worth the small fee.

I would try and make Dululu as there is a pub with rooms or a great free camp there, think it 80 or maybe 100 km so north of billo and that would  take an hr off the CT leg.

My daughter, son in law and two grandkids are on Ti. Make sure you have good insurance before you hand the bike over to Sea Swift, just saying...

@stevo- Absolutely, the boys have been very helpful and supportive! I’m now starting to plan my legs, fuel stops, accommodation and of course costings. I’ve penciled in a St. George to Roma fuel stop on day 2 but I’ll touch base before I leave Sydney. Thanks Stevo!

AND a set of good noise cancelling ear buds plugged into said phone

Good bit of kit, USB charger mounted next to it works great