Issue link: http://trailridermagazine.uberflip.com/i/1456806
Overland Expo West - Part Two Overland Expo West - Part Two Demos, Vendors, and Classes Demos, Vendors, and Classes By Jim Bird By Jim Bird Last month you may have read about my road trip from McCall, ID to Loveland, CO to a end the Over- land Expo. How it took me 1200 words to get from McCall to Loveland I can't figure. Moving forward…. once my corral side accommoda- ons were set up the wandering about commenced in earnest. There were many Moto ADV associated booths. Mosko-Moto, Wolfman Luggage, Garmin, Green Chile Gear, An Gravity Ba eries, Ural, Tri- umph, Yamaha, Harley Davidson Dunlop, Maxxis… and on and on. And the number of overlanding trail- ers and big rigs was staggering. Demo Rides Demo rides on four different bikes was certainly a highlight of my OX Mountain West visit. First up was the Harley Davidson Pan America. This was my first me riding a big V-Twin and it was very different than the big BMWs I've spent me on. I think a lot of that has to do with the different axis of the engine's rota onal iner a. The Pan America cranksha is parallel to the axles and the BMW boxer engine cranksha is 90 degrees to the axles. I can't say either is be er, they are just different and I am more accustomed to one than the other. But a er the demo ride I've no doubt I could be as comfortable on the Pan America as the Bimmer. The Pan America has plenty of get up and go, which I discovered on the 15-mile self-guided loop around the Loveland Airport. Details omi ed to avoid self-incrimina on. There was no off road on this loop, but I would have no qualms about taking this 1250 along some jeep roads. An op- onal factory feature likely to be very popular is the adap ve suspension. This adjusts the preload based upon rider weight and selected ride mode. And the popular part… when the Pan America comes to a stop all preload is removed to drop the seat height as low as possible. 28 Trail Rider www.TrailRider.com