Bought myself a new toy...

[Penatr8tor]

2025 Honda Africa Twin Adventure Sport ES

Stock Photo of DCT model, I bought the manual shift variant.

It gets delivered tomorrow. 

[mvdveer]

Oh nice !. Enjoy and be safe out in the open!

[NikosSprocket]

Oh, that's a sweet ride!

I will second your decision NOT going with DCT!

Spoked tubeless wheels, yes?

 

[PFarm]

Awesome ride! Enjoy the open road in Texas or wherever it will take you.             Bye Bye!                               

[Penatr8tor]

13 minutes ago, NikosSprocket said:

Oh, that's a sweet ride!

I will second your decision NOT going with DCT!

Spoked tubeless wheels, yes?

Yes tubless. 

Yeah, DCT is for whimps  Plus, I like shifting and I like being the one picking the gear. You already know that. 

13 minutes ago, PFarm said:

Awesome ride! Enjoy the open road in Texas or wherever it will take you.             Bye Bye!                               

One thing Texas has a lot of is... dirt roads. Hopefully I won't run into any Dukes of Hazard Gool Ol' Boys. I have a feeling there will be other things I'll have to not run into out there.

54 minutes ago, mvdveer said:

Oh nice !. Enjoy and be safe out in the open!

Thanks, I will. Always, except for the occasional wheelie thru a puddle.

[Pappy3831]

Awesome.  I was going to ride the Harley to Dallas to see the grandkids until I flew there and saw the traffic.  
 

I’ll stick to the country roads in Florida and Georgia 

[Joegeeks]

Beautiful bike!  Really like your Modes Selection options for road type.  makes riding on gravel of a wet street a whole lot safer.  I have that mode selector on my bike and actually had used it on my second ride out.  Poured rain all the way home.  We live off a windy road, and I was loving every turn.  Mine mushed the brakes a bit, and had softer accelerations too.  I probably was riding it a little too hard, but the bike kept me safe.  Technology to keep us alive - got to love that.    I would wish you luck, but on a bike it's 100% skill, and when luck is involved , it's usually bad. So, Stay Skilled and don't trust the Cyber Trucks - they're all 1/2 ton cheese graders out to get us motorcyclists.

[TitusADuxass]

Honda have slowly developed that into a really competent bike.

I know a lady with the DCT version, she loves it to bit.

I agree with you about the DCT though, manual every time. I had an automatic in a car once, never really got on with not being in control.

[claudermilk]

Manual FTW! It also doubles as the best theft protection in the US ("what's with this broke, wobbly shifter? And what's up with that weird extra pedal?").

[Penatr8tor]

15 hours ago, Pappy3831 said:

Awesome.  I was going to ride the Harley to Dallas to see the grandkids until I flew there and saw the traffic.  
 

I’ll stick to the country roads in Florida and Georgia

I grew up in S. Florida, Fort Lauderdale. Since around 2000 we would travel to NC and ride the area around Deals Gap, Fontana and the Blue Ridge Pkwy. Like they say in TX, you can't swing a dead cow without hittin' a good road out there. North GA is pretty much the same. Not a whole lot of twisties down south tho. You get all the way down to where I grew up and there's not much other that highway on/off ramps but... If you go adventure riding, then all of the unpaved roads become open to you and now you got places to explore. Traffic is something you have to deal with on road... I'm definitely looking forward to zero traffic.

7 hours ago, Joegeeks said:

Beautiful bike!  Really like your Modes Selection options for road type.  makes riding on gravel of a wet street a whole lot safer.  I have that mode selector on my bike and actually had used it on my second ride out.

Thank you! A bike with ride modes is something I have yet to experience on one of my own bikes. I've owned over 20 of them but they were all old school where you needed ability to ride so, I'm looking forward to that. What bike do you ride?

6 hours ago, TitusADuxass said:

Honda have slowly developed that into a really competent bike.

I know a lady with the DCT version, she loves it to bit.

I agree with you about the DCT though, manual every time. I had an automatic in a car once, never really got on with not being in control.

Yup, It caught my eye a while back and I started doing some youtube based research which I figured would show all the flaws and short comings of the bike but, I'll be damned if it didn't do the opposite. Every test rider ended up loving the bike. Sure, there were some gripes and preference things but, overall... Turns out it a pretty decent bike so here I am... A bit more cash poor with a big unknown adventure in front of me and yep... not going DCT.

[Penatr8tor]

4 minutes ago, claudermilk said:

Manual FTW! It also doubles as the best theft protection in the US ("what's with this broke, wobbly shifter? And what's up with that weird extra pedal?").

It also prevents people from borrowing your vehicle. It won't stop a few of my neighbors that can't ride worth a darn from asking if they can take it around the block though.  They will get a really big ROLL-EYE from me with a "don't even ask Bro". 

[Pappy3831]

Whatever happened to the unwritten rule never ask a guy to ride his bike

[mvdveer]

3 hours ago, Pappy3831 said:

Whatever happened to the unwritten rule never ask a guy to ride his bike

COVID - It changed the world - respect, perception, caring, humility, entitlement, attitude........

Now it is all about I, me and myself

[PFarm]

22 minutes ago, mvdveer said:

COVID - It changed the world - respect, perception, caring, humility, entitlement, attitude........

Now it is all about I, me and myself

Totally agree it's very sad and frustrating.

6 hours ago, Penatr8tor said:

Since around 2000 we would travel to NC and ride the area around Deals Gap, Fontana and the Blue Ridge Pkwy. Like they say in TX, you can't swing a dead cow without hittin' a good road out there. North GA is pretty much the same.

Two summers ago I did the we drove down from Canada to do those three areas, which was a blast driving the Audi TTRS. I heard they were still rebuilding the Blue Ridge Mountain Pkwy got washed out with heavy rain. 

[NikosSprocket]

7 hours ago, Penatr8tor said:

It also prevents people from borrowing your vehicle. It won't stop a few of my neighbors that can't ride worth a darn from asking if they can take it around the block though.  They will get a really big ROLL-EYE from me with a "don't even ask Bro". 

Never ask to borrow/take for a spin another person's woman/partner, tools or wheels! 

There are stores/places where you can test drive/play, and don't abuse your neighbor's politeness! 

 

PS> I try to be more current/general with today's new ethics. 

[Penatr8tor]

55 minutes ago, PFarm said:

Totally agree it's very sad and frustrating.

Two summers ago I did the we drove down from Canada to do those three areas, which was a blast driving the Audi TTRS. I heard they were still rebuilding the Blue Ridge Mountain Pkwy got washed out with heavy rain. 

2 years ago was the last time I was there as well. We didn't even bother going to the Parkway as it was, as you said, washed out from heavy rain. Fortunately, for me, just 30 minutes away is some of the best adventure riding in the country.

I know this is a long video so, when you get a chance, grab your favorite beverage and check it out, especially the Llano river definitely one of the best adventure rides going. 

 

[PFarm]

Watch the video, some awesome backcountry! You certainly bought the right vehicle for those back roads; that should be a lot of fun.

[Penatr8tor]

The landscape attracts a lot of adventure riders. Even when I've done street rides there's more adv bikes than street bikes I see riding around.

[TitusADuxass]

6 hours ago, Penatr8tor said:

The landscape attracts a lot of adventure riders. Even when I've done street rides there's more adv bikes than street bikes I see riding around.

It the same here. ADV bike's make a lot of sense, some of the mountain passes are pretty rough. The Stelvio surprised me, it's bad in places. 

[Penatr8tor]

On 11/19/2025 at 1:55 PM, Penatr8tor said:

It gets delivered tomorrow.

Famous last words... It didn't get delivered. 

The bike was on the truck but was running late so they called and asked me if they could deliver in the morning.

It's going to be an exciting morning.

[Penatr8tor]

I did get my new boots in the mail yesterday.

Gaerne Balance Oiled. Not as rigid as MX boots but better than hiking boots or flip-flops.

[PFarm]

2 hours ago, Penatr8tor said:

flip-flops

Anyone who wears flip-flops on a motorcycle deserves to get injured. Flip-flops go well with shorts, too. Nice boots!

[Penatr8tor]

29 minutes ago, PFarm said:

Anyone who wears flip-flops on a motorcycle deserves to get injured. Flip-flops go well with shorts, too. Nice boots!

Thanks... I've seen a few videos of people getting thrown off the bike wearing regular shoes and gloves and centripetal force has a way of removing them very quickly leaving only bare skin to ward off the next abrasive impact. 

[Penatr8tor]

I also have a few more things coming.

SW-Motec Dusc paniers.

The boxes are quick release and so are the mounts. The boxes can also be top or side mount so, it gives you a lot of luggage options.

Brackets on...

Brackets removed, uses 1/4 turn quick release fasteners

In a prefect world I wouldn't need any luggage but... You can't travel without it. This gives me a ton of options.

I also ordered some better mirrors. Pricey but worth it IMO.

Doubletake Adventure 6"

And some adventure riding pants.

to match my jacket that I already have.

Jacket is 4 season rated but one would probably need a heated vest if it's really cold.

 

Construction:

3-layer Construction for maximum versatility

Robust, abrasion resistant 450D Oxford fabric shell

Removable 100% waterproof and breathable liner

Removable quilted thermal inner liner

Airflow inner lining for improved climate control and comfort

I think it looks pretty good as a set.

 

 

[PFarm]

Love those boxes, well designed with that flexibility. After watching that video, you need to plan for what can go wrong, not like you can walk into town if you need something. We can tell this isn't your first rodeo, you know that you dress for the fall and nothing wrong with looking good either!