Jpez
Down on the left!
I’m not really a motorcycle guy a d these are nothing exciting compared to others here but owned these when I lived in Cambodia. When I first landed I picked up a super cheap Honda Dream scooter but whilst it got me around town I looked like a monkey on a toy bike. So went to Phnom Penh and bought myself a Honda FTR. A 223cc import from Japan. Once again it was a tad too small and gutless but was a nice cruisey ride. Rode that into the northern provinces which are pretty basic. It broke down a few times and each time I’d push it to the next roadside petrol seller and someone would fix it and get me going again.
Then this XR-400 came up for sale which was unusual as there weren’t many dirt bikes in Cambodia bigger than 250’s back then.
It was a beast of a bike (to me) and took a full body jump just to get it going on the Kickstarter. It was loud AF too. Had some aftermarket pipe on it people could hear me coming and would clear out of the way which was a good thing in the crazy traffic. Better than Hope hubs. lol.
I got knocked off it doing about 70 down a highway and as I slid down the road I saw it bounce off a tree moments before my shoulder hit it and cartwheel off into the jungle. A couple of broken levers and the plastic long range tank had a hole in it. That was it. a Khmer mate of mine retrieved it for me and rode it home. Which was pretty funny as he’s barely 5 ft. But a handy rider and mechanic though. Had a few awesome adventures in the jungles on it and took a trip to Poi Pet on the Thai border and checked out some wild untouristed temples and lost in time villages on the way. Pretty damn funny during the wet season when roads and tracks would become 2 ft deep mud tracks and here’s this big over sized Barang with his stupid big motorbike stuck hip deep in mud going nowhere fast and some little light as a feather granny on her scooter comes skiing along on top of the mud flicking me a cheeky grin as she skids past on the surface.
During that period a friend of mine died and I inherited his CBR500. I think it was. That was fun. Too much fun for shitty Cambodian roads and lunatic traffic. Was great until the security system rejected the key for some reason and nobody in Siem Reap could work out how to by pass it and get it going again. Even the best roadside locksmith that got me into my house drunk as a skunk 3am when I lost my keys one night And was a shonky as they came couldn’t crack it. So I stuck it on the back of a truck and sold it to a bike shop In Phnom Penh.
Then this XR-400 came up for sale which was unusual as there weren’t many dirt bikes in Cambodia bigger than 250’s back then.
It was a beast of a bike (to me) and took a full body jump just to get it going on the Kickstarter. It was loud AF too. Had some aftermarket pipe on it people could hear me coming and would clear out of the way which was a good thing in the crazy traffic. Better than Hope hubs. lol.
I got knocked off it doing about 70 down a highway and as I slid down the road I saw it bounce off a tree moments before my shoulder hit it and cartwheel off into the jungle. A couple of broken levers and the plastic long range tank had a hole in it. That was it. a Khmer mate of mine retrieved it for me and rode it home. Which was pretty funny as he’s barely 5 ft. But a handy rider and mechanic though. Had a few awesome adventures in the jungles on it and took a trip to Poi Pet on the Thai border and checked out some wild untouristed temples and lost in time villages on the way. Pretty damn funny during the wet season when roads and tracks would become 2 ft deep mud tracks and here’s this big over sized Barang with his stupid big motorbike stuck hip deep in mud going nowhere fast and some little light as a feather granny on her scooter comes skiing along on top of the mud flicking me a cheeky grin as she skids past on the surface.
During that period a friend of mine died and I inherited his CBR500. I think it was. That was fun. Too much fun for shitty Cambodian roads and lunatic traffic. Was great until the security system rejected the key for some reason and nobody in Siem Reap could work out how to by pass it and get it going again. Even the best roadside locksmith that got me into my house drunk as a skunk 3am when I lost my keys one night And was a shonky as they came couldn’t crack it. So I stuck it on the back of a truck and sold it to a bike shop In Phnom Penh.
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