Long way down.

[Stixx]

If any of you guys and gals get a chance to see the movie Long Way Down starring Africans and Beemers it was worth seeing. Give you a bad case of the I wanna GS maybe for some, but in all it really goes to the reliability of the BMW Motorcycle.

My local dealer gave me a free ticket to see it and it was shown on the big screen at a local popular cinema complex. Pretty cool stuff. Anyone else seen it yet ? I was told BMW made the movie but I didn't get that impression watching it. The screen opened with a short BMW commercial and that was the last time the three letters, BMW were mentioned. Interesting to say the least. Made you appreciate the versatility of the GS and the boxer engine


More here:http://motorcycles.about.com/b/2008/07/30/long-way-down-to-make-theatrical-cameo-july-31st-tv-debut-august-2nd.htm

[Oisin]

Give you a bad case of the I wanna GS maybe for some, but in all it really goes to the reliability of the BMW Motorcycle.


OMG!!! reliability is the last word I think of when I think of anything BMW :histerica .

[sanjaun2]

I just arrived home from seeing it. My dealer offered me free tickets but I declined since they were for the show in downtown Seattle. I live in Tacoma and have to get up at 4am for work. I had to pay 25 bucks for two tickets! I really enjoyed it but it did not make me want to get a GS and go riding around Africa. Maybe north america, south america. The scenery and most of the people were awesome.

[justlookin]

I think it is supposed to be on TV starting this Sat on Fox Reality TV..
I was going to go last night but had a business dinner..
Glad to hear it was worth watching. I had heard some not so good things about it..

[katnapinn]

I think it is supposed to be on TV starting this Sat on Fox Reality TV..
I was going to go last night but had a business dinner..
Glad to hear it was worth watching. I had heard some not so good things about it..
Jeff I just did a search and it is playing about 8 times over the next 4 days on Fox Reality Channel. I have it set for Sunday morning. ;)

[Moot]

I think it is supposed to be on TV starting this Sat on Fox Reality TV..
I was going to go last night but had a business dinner..
Glad to hear it was worth watching. I had heard some not so good things about it..

Not sure what "not so good things" you had heard but it is well worth seeing. Having just defended it, I think I liked "Long Way 'Round" better. Maybe its just that I always seem to like the original better than the sequel.

Anyone else seen both and have an opinion between the two?

Without turning this post into something its not intended to be, I can tell you that anyone who sees 'Long Way Down' will be sobered about the genocide in Africa.

[hopz]

I enjoyed it greatly as well, as I did the Long Way Round.

If you have not seem Long Way Round... find it and watch it. Great movie... My library has the DVD...

The Long Way Down movie was not made by BMW. The movie was made by Charlie and Ewan. BMW was solicited and eventually supplied the bikes for both movies, and the other equipment was donated also.

I highly recommend both movies and think the first was more entertaining while the later one was great, but in a different way.

[NOGILLS2]

I went to New Orleans last night with a few friends. A great movie, the photography was awesome and the people of Africa were great.

[Duane_in_Florida]

Jeff I just did a search and it is playing about 8 times over the next 4 days on Fox Reality Channel. I have it set for Sunday morning. ;)

The second episode is on starting next weekend, as well as a repeat of the first. Too bad Fox Reality is not available in HD (at least not here).

[KeVRod_TX]

We went and saw it here in Austin last night - unfortunately the cinema messed up and there was no audio for the GS ad and opening shots of the movie, and then for the first part in Scotland, the audio was akin to a single PC speaker behind the screen. Needless to say, after much jeering audio was restored, but they didn't restart the movie.

It's in the same vein as Long Way Round, but it's a shame that they flashed through much of the trip from John O'Groats thru Europe, missing out some spectacular riding and scenery. The Africa footage was awesome, although some parts might be deemed by some folks as not being 'kid friendly', which is perhaps what has garnered some negative comments.

What did surprise us, and is confirmed by the LWD web site, is that other then the damage caused by the offs they had, the only real breakdowns were due to rear shock failure.

Needless to say the first thing that SWMBO said when the lights came up was 'Don't even think about it.....'

In looking at the descriptions for the TV episodes, it looks like they may have some footage that was not included in the movie, it's definatley worth watching.

[Florian]

but in all it really goes to the reliability of the BMW Motorcycle.

Theyre damn reliable when you have a crew of people in the chase truck supplying parts when you need em. What you dont see is more important that what is actually portrayed.


F

[Bobnoxous]

Theyre damn reliable when you have a crew of people in the chase truck supplying parts when you need em. What you dont see is more important that what is actually portrayed.


FThere was a lot of "behind the scenes". It took me a while to figure out there were 3 bikes, one with a cameraman. It's not quit as romantic when you have 2 (or 3) support vehicles, but probably necessary when you're 500 miles between fuel stops. You also didn't see all the hassle they had to go through crossing borders.

I would really recommend it for kids, presuming the kid is over 10 and could appreciate it. A few topless women in Africa is not remotely sexual, and it's too bad we let such things be deemed that way. The only other questionable issue would be the massacres they came across, at the school and the church in Rawanda. I think these are things kids need to know about too. We did it here, others do it over there. Life isn't an xbox game. Of course, you don't want them depressed all the time either. I think it'd be a great chance to talk about the world with your kid.

Can you imagine riding to the pyramids across the sand? That would've been something.

[Stixx]

learn something new everyday. I figured anything that could make that trip and not fall apart halfway down would be considered fairly reliable. Either way It did not make me want to go to Africa on a bike , but it made me appreciate the simplicity of the boxer design and feel better about dropping my own bike once since they seemed to drop one every so many miles. Top heavy bikes are going to get dropped, heck maybe all bikes for that matter, but it looked like a fun way for a younger fella to test his mettle and the narrator/actor from starwars had a great personality for the part and the way the african villiagers responded to him was interesting. That part of the movie moved me at times and made me ill at others. Man's inhumanity to man will never cease to amaze me .

[Moot]

[QUOTE=Bobnoxous] It's not quit as romantic when you have 2 (or 3) support vehicles,

You want "romantic"--what about the fellow they ran into on the bicycle pulling the trailer?

[Bobnoxous]

[QUOTE=Bobnoxous] It's not quit as romantic when you have 2 (or 3) support vehicles,

You want "romantic"--what about the fellow they ran into on the bicycle pulling the trailer?That guy was nuts! He paddled across the pacific? Was it these guys (http://www.expedition360.com/)?

[justlookin]

I had just heard it was not as interesting as the first, and that the "wife" was along for some of the ride, and it was somewhat of a distraction.
No big deal, I did not mean to say I was not interested in seeing it.
I certainly plan on it. :)


Not sure what "not so good things" you had heard but it is well worth seeing. Having just defended it, I think I liked "Long Way 'Round" better. Maybe its just that I always seem to like the original better than the sequel.

Anyone else seen both and have an opinion between the two?

Without turning this post into something its not intended to be, I can tell you that anyone who sees 'Long Way Down' will be sobered about the genocide in Africa.

[nplenzick]

We saw it last night and enjoyed it although we both liked the long way better since it went into a little more detail.
Boy I bet KTM is still kicking themselves in the butt for not giving them their bikes for the first one!

[billr]

Don't confuse taping Long Way Round (the first trip) with Long Way Down. Fox Reality will be playing a marathon of Long Way Round on Saturday Aug. 2nd till time for the first installment of Long Way Down in the evening. There are supposed to be ten hours of Down showing on Fox Reality.

[CharlieVT]

OMG!!! reliability is the last word I think of when I think of anything BMW :histerica .

If I were going to take a long, remote ride without a support team I'd fix up a 70s BMW airhead. Those things do break, but a well maintained one is really reliable and most everything can be fixed realatively easily on the road.

A modern GS Adventure? Not. Way too high tech. In the movie Long Way Around they hired a local welder to fix the frame and after that the electronics in the brake system stopped working. Duh? It's a wonder they didn't fry the whole electronic ingnition system.

BMW makes great bikes, I love my LT. But the "Legendary Motorcyles of Germany" are a thing of the past. That was the era when if you wanted a long distance, reliable motorcyle, your only real choice was a Beemer. Today, if reliability is your priority, a modern BMW isn't the first choice IMO.

[Mike_H]

I'll probably see it. It won't, however, detract from my belief that Helge Pedersen remains the best adventure-tourer ever. His book Ten Years on Two Wheels is a classic.

Helge's trip was mostly solo - no camera crew, no support truck of mechanics and parts, no medics, no sound crew, no one to bail him out of trouble along the way.

Awesome accomplishment!

[Oisin]

Today, if reliability is your priority, a modern BMW isn't the first choice IMO.

I agree. My two LTs (1999 and 2004) have been the most expensive to run machines I've ever owned.
When they work they feel real good, but when they break it is always big $$$$. BMW corporate seems to have joined the ranks of the global
corporation that only cares about pushing cheaply made products. I believe the R80GS was the last motorcycle they produced that was capable of the term "adventure touring."

[Mike_H]

So if a person was going to take a big adventure ride into parts of the world where a durable, rugged and dead reliable motorcycle was necessary, which bike would be best?

[Oisin]

So if a person was going to take a big adventure ride into parts of the world where a durable, rugged and dead reliable motorcycle was necessary, which bike would be best?
No bike is bullet proof, but I think the Kawasaki KLR650 would be my choice if dependability was at the top of my concerns.

[eljeffe]

I wonder why all the big adventure tour houses use the BMW R1200GS or F650GS?

If reliability were a problem, I'd think they might use something else.

[Moot]

I wonder why all the big adventure tour houses use the BMW R1200GS or F650GS?

If reliability were a problem, I'd think they might use something else.

When they were planning the original trip that led to Long Way Round, they approached other manufacturers including KTM. No one except BMW was willing to sponsor them for fear that their bikes would not provide a good showing and the investment would turn out to be bad advertising instead of favorable. However the 1200 GS may compare to other adventure series bikes, BMW is the one that agreed to put theirs to the test.

[CharlieVT]

I wonder why all the big adventure tour houses use the BMW R1200GS or F650GS?

If reliability were a problem, I'd think they might use something else.

I don't mean to suggest that BMWs are bad bikes. I think that they are great bikes, and I am a "dyed in the wool" BMW enthusiast. Just not a BMW apologist.

My comment was directed at the independent rider or riders, not someone who is going to one of "the big adventure tour houses". Heck, if you have a bank account and credit card limit to go along with it, you can ride to any place in the world and have your support team fly needed parts in. Just bring your satellite phone so you can call home.

But, if you want a bike that you have a reasonable chance of fixing with the tool kit on board and the help of the locals in remote areas I'd keep it simple. The simpler and lighter the better. A bike with a solid mechanical history, certainly not a model with a history of final drive failures. It's pretty hard to find anything modern without electronics but I'd go for a carburated model and an ignition system that had a small replaceable module that you could carry a spare for.

Those big BMW Adventures remind me of the big SUVs with great off road capability that hardly anyone takes off road. Big and heavy and full of electronics. The less sophisticated the better. A well maintained old Airhead with a spare set of points and condenser in the tool kit is pretty bullet proof. "Simple by design."

I don't know much about the F-series, but they seem more like the kind of bike I'd rather wrestle with in a remote area than a R1200GS.

It's nice we have all these choices.