Alright, it's snowing here in Edmonton, and nothing motivates me to edit video more than snow. I've finally got around to editing the lead-up to and first day riding of our Big Trip last summer. Hammy's doing the ride report (http://www.kawasakiversys.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4840).

and I'm responsible for the video. Here's the first bit. I had to divide it in two for youtube.

Part1

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Part2

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This is really just an extension of what we started last year (http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=371016)

Hopefully I can get Day 2 done in the next week or so. Enjoy!

-Whitey Jr

HEY! You got it to embed!! That's new...

Good job :thumb: look forward to the rest of the story .

Great story, thanks for sharing.

I am looking forward to seeing how the Versys did on the dirt fire roads. I am sure it did just fine.

Looks like a lot of fun. Hope the tent was well ventilated after the Texas bbq chicken & beans. :D Look foward to seeing the rest of the story.

:clap:

great report..lookin forward to more

Glad you all are liking it so far. I've started Day2, but am still waiting on Hammy for a few files before I can finish. The Versys did great on the back roads (as you'll see in the next few videos). I was skeptical before we left, but by the end of Day 2, she had proven herself on the fire roads.

-Whitey Jr

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g304/Bear_on_a_bicycle/lurker.gif

Here's me jealous as hell!:guilty:

Alright, Day 2 is done, and has been posted. Enjoy!!


Part 1

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Part 2

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-Whitey Jr

Okay!! Episode three is done.

Part 1

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Part 2

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-Whitey Jr

Alright, after a couple of weeks and an upgrade to Windows 7, I've finally finished Day 4.

Part 1

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Part 2

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Hope you like it!

-Whitey Jr

Good stories, well told, and superbly edited. I'm digging your soundtrack too. Keep 'em comin'. Cheers!

Cool videos .....my first motorcycle camping trip was over to Tofino , great roads all over the island , and for those in Cali and Oregon ..........Tofino , BC has world class surfing ( yes it is cold )
http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/hh237/jafkaf81/koreskiraphbruhwiler.jpg

Awesome trip and great job on with videos!!!

Thanks guys!! I'm still waiting on some footage from Hammy before I can do Day 5. I hope to get cracking on it this weekend (c'mon Hammy!!)

-Whitey Jr

I'm very impressed and very jealous.... Great footage and commentary!! I can't wait for the rest of the series to be posted.

I'm extremely familiar with all the roads you guys have been on and will be on in future episodes, unfortunately most of the miles have been on four wheels or more.... You've really got my own Big Trip juices flowing.

Thanks for sharing!!!

Dave

Alright...sorry for the delay. Day 5 is finally done. it's only one file long (as opposed to the usual two) cause it was mostly a slab ride, and we didn't film much. Hope you like it.

Day 5

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-Whitey Jr

Looking forward to day 6. I visited Tofino back in the 90s and loved the hot springs at Hot Springs Cove.

So it's been fluctuating between -30 and -40C here in Edmonton all weekend, which gave me an opportunity to get lots of editing done. Here is Day 6 which was one of my favourite days of the whole trip. Hope you like it.



Part 1

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Part 2


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-Whitey Jr

Awesome video report! Brings back memories of that ride over the spine of the island. :thumb:

Awesome video report! Brings back memories of that ride over the spine of the island. :thumb:

Thanks Miguel! I fell in love with the Island on this trip. I'd take a serious pay-cut just to live out there. All I need now is to convince the wife! :)

-Whitey Jr

Watched both 2008 and 2009 B/T films...wasted the better part of the day....Excellent Thanks Much.
If you plan a trip to Ontario let me know maybe we could arrange a V.O.M.I.T. (Versys Ontario Motorcycling Team) ride.
Thanks again for sharing....Hope Day 7 of 2009 will be posted soon.
:thanx:

Thanks for all the replies guys, I really apprecieate it. It's funny you mention Ontario....It won't be 2010, but there could be a trip to Muskoga in my future. Sorry for the delay (holiday craziness). I finally got some time to edit and here is Day 7. Hope you like it!

Part 1

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Part 2

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-Whitey Jr

Super Vids guys, a real treat watching these episodes as I have travelled a lot of the same routes in BC. Just one question, what cam did you use as there are very few jitters in your vids? Great stuff, thanks.
Wayne

Thanks man! It's a lot of fun to put together (although not nearly as fun as filming it). For video, both Hammy and I use the Samsung SC-X model. I have the SC-x205l while Hammy has the slightly newer SC-x300 Great cameras for one simple reason...it is a regular high-quality digital video camera that happens to have a helmet-cam attachment. That versatility allows you to use the same device for the hemet-cam footage as you use for roadsode interviews (or your kids birthday, hockey game, buddy's wedding, etc..). Most newer helmet-cams are single-purpose. No viewscreen, no effects, no zoom. And that's fine as long as all you want that cam to do is helmet-cam stuff. I recently bought a Vholdr ContourHD. An HD helmet-cam, (but again, pretty single-purpose). I reccomend the Samsung models, but I've heard they have been discontinued (although you can still find them out there) Hope that helps.


-Whitey Jr

Thanks for Day 7....Can't wait for the next vid.


Have you seen the SW Ontario V.O.M.I.T ride thread??
http://www.kawasakiversys.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4998
Hope to do some riding in the muskoka's this summer.

I used to live 2 minutes from Coombs... Your videos brought back really good memories of riding those roads! Thank you!

Rub

Here's Day 8. Featuring two special guest stars...Wild Bill and Walter Matthau!


Part1
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Part 2
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-Whitey Jr

All are fun to watch.:thumb:

Highly entertaining. Looking forward to day 9 :clap:

I read the latest installment this morn ....Thanks again!

Right on enjoying your videos. Went out to Tofino about 5 years ago, since been on a week to 2 week trips every year. Keep the videos coming!

Alright...here it is. Day 9...one of my favourite days. Sit back, pour yourself a rum, and enjoy...


Part1
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Part 2
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-Whitey Jr

Thanks again for another day of yhe Big Trip. I can't wait for Day 10.
:thanx:

Alright...here it is. Day 9...one of my favourite days. Sit back, pour yourself a rum, and enjoy...

-Whitey Jr

Continue to enjoy your trip and vids. I am watching you 2008's too.

What head cams and other video equipment do you use?

Looks like you guys had a good time. The only thing I'd change if I were on it would be switching the rum to rye.
Can't wait to watch the rest!

Continue to enjoy your trip and vids. I am watching you 2008's too.

What head cams and other video equipment do you use?

Both Hammy and I have a Samsung SC-X model camcorders (which come with an external "helmet-cam" attachment). They are regular digital video cams when not used as a helmet cam and they handle almost all of our video needs. For stills, I use a retail point-and-shoot Sony Cybershot (has since been replaced with a Casio Elixim), while Hammy uses a full DSLR job, the Cannon MkII. For next year, I'm adding a CountourHD helmet cam, and Hammy is adding a Cannon G11 still cam.

-Whitey Jr

For those who were asking...I recently found out that the dates for KGB 2010 have been set. Aug 6-7, once again at the legendary Toad Rock Motorcycle Campground. More info here:

http://www.kgbcomedy.com/Purchase-KGB-ticket-and-packages.html

On a related note, one of the comics, Daryl Makk is doing a comedy tour off the back of his Suzuki Bandit and plans on filming it. More info here:

http://www.theplanettour.com/


Work on Day 10 continues...still waiting on Hammy for some files.

-Whitey Jr

This is hands down one of the best ride reports i have read... i stumbled across it as i am looking at buying a versys this summer, and wanted to see what folks thought of them, Vs the V-strom. would love when your done if each of you could give a top 5 bottom 5 assessment of you trusty steads. your doing exatly the sort of ride that i want to do on it, some pavement, some forest roads. mine will be a commuter as well. i will be living in seattle.
ECXELLENT WORK guys...

Thanks again for the replies guys, it's nice to know people are enjoying these things. After a few hours of wrestling with youtube I finally uploaded Day 10. I hope you like it!

Part 1

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Part 2

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-Whitey Jr

Alright folks...with only 12 weeks before BigTrip2010 I finally finished BigTrip2009.Both Hammy and I'd like to thank everyone for their comments and feedback. Thanks for watching!


Part 1

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Part 2

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-Whitey Jr

Thanks for all the work you guys put in to these videos. They've been very entertaining. Two Big Thumbs Way Up to ya!!


Rub

The countdown is on. Big Trip 2010 is less than 3 weeks away and the excitement is starting to build (well...for me at least). I've started to pull the camping gear out of storage and re-evaluate what I need. I picked up a fancy new bedroll over the off-season (Exped Downmat 7) and thought with that, I might be able to get away with a smaller (less warm) sleeping bag. As if in response to my ponderings...it began to snow. :(

Anyway....the route plan has been set (or at least as set as it's gonna be) and will see us travelling through Monatana, Idaho, and Washington eventually reaching the San Juan Islands. We've decided to re-visit Yaak Montana (home of the Dirty Shame Saloon) on our way back east and are planning on being there June 24th. If you're in the area come on out and visit!

We've started filming already and this year we've gone HD. Hopefully the first episodes should start appearing in July.

-Whitey Jr

Thanks so much for all your time and effort posting your adventures. You guys had us laughing and dreaming of our next trip. Ride safe and best wishes for 2010 tour.

Good Luck Guys!

I really enjoyed watching the vids.

Awesom ride/video and thanks.

All the best on 2010 & :goodluck:

:cheers:

Alright folks the wait is over (for me anyway). Big Trip 2010 starts the day after tomorrow with Hammy and I meeting in Medicine Hat Alberta. We will once again be taking the GPS Spot tracker so those with nothing better to do can follow along here:

http://share.findmespot.com/shared/gogl.jsp?glId=0bNWvMu14TEDnTx0LQOC7Vr10rl38DFp8

It likely won't show anything until Friday or Saturday. If we get a chance to post reports along the way we will. The videos usually start appearing a few weeks after we're back.

-Whitey

wish you the best man,i apreciate your videos and your efforts!! keep us informed

Thank you for the filming and the awesome "trip" !

Well, BT2010 is over :( But great times were had in search of sunshine and great roads. The Versys performed great, and I mean really great. I managed to nearly wear off the back tire. I had a new set of Pirelli MT-60 Corsa tires on for the trip and true to form it was a great tire. It was (note tense) a great tire, super sticky, great on gravel (way better than the stock tire on gravel). Of coarse the down side is less than great wear. After 4,500 km of BT2010 and a few 100 Km about the city the back tire has about had it. Since the front seems to be hanging in there, I'll replace the back and hopefully the new back will last through the rest of the front tire.

If anybody out there has any doubts whatsoever about the capabilities of the Versys on trails/gravel etc. I'd take mine nearly anywhere. I use mine 100 days a year to ride to work and 10 days a year on BT, and I can't think of many bikes that would do each job equally well. I'm worried kawasaki is going to make an 800 cc version of this bike, because then I might actually be tempted to consider something else.

CJH

Ya BT2010 was a little soggy, but still just as silly as BT2009 in places (we took over the town of Yaak). I know I said I'd start editing in July, but that never happened. I'm starting to get organized now and hopefully will have all the files I need from Hammy in time to start editing the first episodes by the time the snow flies here in Edmonton. STAY TUNED!!

-Whitey Jr

You guys were an inspiration to me about riding and trip reporting. I have included my own BT2010 ride report in the ADVrider forum with you guys as my mentors. Here's a link:

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=620940

/Matthew