Yamaha Tenere Experience

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After recently attending the one day Yamaha Tenere Experience I thought it would be good to do a write up of the day. I only did the one day experience as it came free with my Super Tenere but I would highly recommend it to anyone and I am aiming to go back for another one.

The day starts at a reasonable time (0900), and I was met by our instructor for the day, John, we chatted for a while about bikes in general and what the day would be like while we waited for the other guy that was on the experience with me that day. I have to say I was somewhat nervous as my only off road experience was racing a modified C90 for charity! While we chat I look around the WR250Rs that are parked in the workshop and John makes a brew – great start, and John continues to put me at ease about the day, telling me that they wont push me further than I am happy with.

Once the other member of the team for the day arrives we grab another brew, get geared up (you can hire all the gear except helmet from the centre or you can use your own, but you must use MX boots for safety), and start to look around the 2 Super Teneres parked close by. We are quickly joined by John who gives us a safety brief for the day, and shows us round the bikes. We are lucky, because there are only 2 of us on the course we can use the Super Teneres all day if we want (usually you would need to swap between the 1200 and the 660 Teneres during the day so everyone in the group get the chance to have a go on the bigger bike).

Safety brief over and its time to jump on the bikes for the first leg, John had already warned us that the knobblies might make the bike feel a bit strange on the tarmac so I was ready for the rumbling in the bars. After a brief couple of mile warm up on the narrow lanes up to the Halfren Forest it was time to hit the gravel fire breaks! Once I had convinced myself to release my vice like grip on the bars I started to really enjoy the slow ride along the wide gravel roads just getting used to the feel of the big bike and I get a quick look at the speedo to see we are doing about 20 MPH.

Soon after it was time for the first stop of the day in a nice clearing just off a fire break. John uses this break to discuss with us body position on the bike, basic off road cornering technique demonstrating on the XT660 he was riding. I suspect that had we had no off road experience at all we would have got this brief prior to setting off. With our new instructions in our ears we set off back onto the fire break and up to an area they call the rocky road. The rocky road is a loop of track about 2' wide with a number of drops, dips, water splashes and table top like lumps. This track was done once following John and then another time alone. After a couple of heart in mouth moments I relaxed some more and really enjoyed my second lap of the rocky road even though my feet were now soaked from the various water splashes! We then headed back out of the forest via fire breaks to a local pub for lunch and we were noticeably faster along the gravel fire breaks, I even got used the bike breaking loose when we hit the odd mud patch.

The pub lunch and hot or cold drink are included in the cost of the experience, and it would be easy to stay in the warm pub for hours, but we were all keen to get back on the trails for more fun. After a slightly longer stint on the roads to the other side of the forest we were back on the fire breaks, and with the Yamahas traction control set to mode 2 I was confident enough to give the bike a bit more throttle coming out of the corners to get the rear end to slide a little, making a novice like me look good! I have to say this is one of the things I really loved about the Super Tenere the traction control cuts in so smoothly the only sign that its working for a novice like me is the flashing amber light on the dash.

By now we are both getting more confident on the gravel and the speed is picking up on the fire breaks, but soon enough we turn off the large tracks for our first big decent on a narrow track. With John’s advice at lunch about approaching nice and slow use the front and rear brake and let the ABS work ringing in my ears I take the plunge and drop down into the corner. As I guide the bike slowly round the down hill corner I can feel the ABS just working as the front tyre skips over the ground, but there is no sensation of picking up speed and the whole decent is completed without a mishap. I have no doubt that for experienced off roaders ABS may not be ideal, but for everything we did during the day it no doubt enabled me to get down places that I would have dropped the bike without ABS. Talking to John during lunch he is convinced that the ABS is better in 99% of situations and they would rather help you avoid the 1% than disconnect the ABS.

The rest of the afternoon followed this routine of enjoying the views and higher speeds of the fire tracks, interspersed with more technical trails that push me that little bit harder each time. Before long we have a stop at a picturesque spot next to a waterfall just below the source of the Seven. After another brief stop, chat and a chance to take on some water we get back on the bikes and head off again. This time we head into the forest for a fun run along a smaller track with lots of water and some big dips, all followed by yet another tight decent, but we are getting used to them by now.

Far to soon it seems that we are heading back along the fire breaks to the centre and its all over far to quick (in reality its now around 1630). We arrive back at the Yamaha Off Road Experience and a quick look at the odo tells me we have done just shy of 80 miles today, nearly all of which were on the trials and I remember seeing 40mph on the speedo at one point as we gained confidence! The day ends with another chat and de-brief with John, a well-deserved brew and a biscuit.

In summary I think Geraint and his team have got this spot on, its not a full on off road school like I get the feeling the BMW school is, but what they have done is recognised what a large proportion of big adventure bike riders will do and have tailored the day to that. I could imagine me taking my own Tenere up those trials with my camping kit for a weekend or with a picnic to enjoy the views. I got just enough instruction to get me confident on the bike with all the practical elements done on the trail and one of the things the team do exceptionally well is quickly and correctly gauge your skill level and then just start to expand your envelope without pushing you to hard. The aim of this day is to get you to some of the best scenery in the country with a perspective that you can't get without going off road. My lasting impression of the day was outstanding fun, it gave me loads of confidence and a desire to get my own bike out on the trails. If you want an idea of the trails that we did, have a look at the Tenere Experience web site, we did all the trails on the video and more.