So many of you have asked me to create a review video of Savannah. Now that I have reached the 10.000km milestone, it is time to evaluate how she has been doing. But instead of a video, I decided to write a blog, and here it is!
Why a Honda CRF250L?
Let’s first talk about my choice for the Honda CRF250L as the bike to explore Africa with. Upon my arrival in South Africa, I was extremely eager to hit the road and start filming after being in lockdown for so many months. This meant that I gave myself very little time to search for a motorcycle. I just went to the biggest second hand motorcycle dealer in Johannesburg and looked for the cheapest bike they had. It was Savannah.
Besides being the cheapest bike, the CRF250L had a few other characteristics that made me decide this bike was going to be my partner for Southern Africa. I knew the bike had a good reputation in terms of reliability, it’s a Honda after all. Spare parts and maintenance work would be relatively cheap and the bike was designed for off-roading. Something I was planning to do a lot on this trip!
With only 145 kilograms, it is such a light bike that it is easy to handle and to pick-up in case of a fall. A bike like this one would give me the confidence to choose for more difficult mountain routes and technical terrain. And I have to say, after 10.000 kilometers, Savannah was definitely the right choice!
What did I put the bike through?
When I bought Savannah, she was already 8 years old and had 23.500 kilometers on the odometer. Within a few months, I added another 10,000 kilometers to that, riding with her on tarmac, dirt roads, muddy roads, and lots and lots of sandy roads. The majority of the mileage was on unpaved terrain, of which some could perhaps even be qualified as hard enduro. I am thinking of Sani pass in South Africa for instance, or a remote part of the Fish River canyon in Namibia.
Being quite lucky with the weather, I had virtually no riding in the rain, but I did experience gale force winds coming from virtually any direction. The small weight of the bike was a slight disadvantage in the latter conditions. When the wind was strong,Savannah and I were unintentionally dancing all over the road.