Wheels in the Field: Video, Recap, and Gear Review
The first weekend in October marked the 6th annual Wheels in the Field rally hosted by Max BMW.
Here’s our event recap in three parts: 1) A video compilation of snippets taken from behind the handlebars of a 1983 BMW; 2) A ride recap with an action photo gallery; and 3) a Gear roundup cataloging equipment used on the trip, like the new Arai XD-5 helmet and Alpinestars Bogota Pro jacket.
1) The Video
2) The Ride
Wheels in the Field takes place in Chester, Vermont, where organizers commandeered the town’s central recreational complex to serve as a home base for the weekend event, and as a campground for the riders, vis a vis the town’s little league field and surrounding property.
Waking up in a field in Vermont in October could very well have meant waking up to frost, but even though it rained overnight the weather gods were on our side and we were greeted by a mild and misty morning that would burn off as temps climbed into the 70s. Perfect Saturday riding weather.
After an 8:30 AM rider’s meeting the 80-some assembled riders broke out into two groups and were guided out of town by a well organized crew of event marshals outfitted in official high-vis vests.
Like Woodstock, but for BMW adventure motorcycle enthusiasts.The route was a great mix of scenic country roads, some that were paved, with others ranging from loose gravel to hardpacked dirt. There were also some sections of unmaintained class 4 forest road, which included a few hairy sections littered with rocks buried in freshly fallen leaves.
Max BMW is a multi-store BMW dealer, with locations spread across NY, CT and NH, and the event seemed to draw riders from New York and across New England, riding bikes that spanned five decades of production; from OG early-eighties airheads to this year’s 1300cc GS models; and everything in between.
Highlights include a slew of original R80 G/S examples (Brothers Max and Ben Stratton both rode cherry examples), almost as many unicorn HP2s. There were plenty of 1200, 1250, and 1300s in attendance, and honorable mention goes to a bright yellow 1150GS with over 100K miles on the clock, and to a custom R nine T made fully off-road capable with a suspension kit and a 21-inch front wheel.
The riders spanned quite a few decades too, and collectively there group at large represented many, many years of experience on two wheels. Loads of experience in the group and, in some cases, a little too much enthusiasm.
The day’s off-road outing saw plenty of carnage, with more than a couple riders finding themselves bucked off of their bikes, some requiring helping hands to get their machines out of a ditch and back on track. Despite the heavy prevalence of crash bars, more than one bike limped back to camp leaking oil out of a smashed valve cover.
To address the elephant in the room, BMWs are not small motorcycles. There's a common, not altogether untrue trope that big BMW adventure bikes are primarily used for suburban Starbucks runs.
And while they are incredible on-road touring machines, this event helped showcase the fact these machines are capable of so much more, and it was nice to see these beasts put through their proper paces.
We're non denominational at Union Garage—all bike brands are welcome. But clearly we have a soft spot for BMW, a brand that has made some incredible machines, and has fostered a great community following.
The unusually dry trail conditions and unseasonably sunny and warm weather meant mud was at a minimum, and most riders kept their bikes upright all day, with lots of dusty smiles evident during the 80-odd-mile route.
After mid-ride regroup along a rolling fire road section, both groups finished their respective loops and reconvened at the town center where the local snowmobile club had hot lunch coming off the grill.
Saturday afternoon’s entertainment came courtesy of a Scottish Trials Course - a flagged obstacle course that included a teeter-totter, an awkward “log grind” that almost nobody successfully completed, a sandpit U-turn, and plank ride up and over a stack of pallets.
Bleachers were set up and a group of onlookers clapped and cheered the riders along, and groaned and gasped with the occasional get-off.
3) The Gear Report
Wheels in the Field was a great excuse to abandon all responsibilities and go camp in a baseball field with a few dozen new motorcycle friends, and enjoy a fantastic pre-planned route during a perfect fall Vermont weekend.
It also offered an opportunity to try out some new gear, and confirm our love for some old favorites.
Yard Sale: Alpinestars Botota Jacket; Stylmartin Matrix Boots; Arai XD-5 Helmet equipped with SENA ASC-10 Bluetooth; Kriegs OS saddlebags fit with UNIT Garage Locking Luggage Plates; a UNIT Garage ATLAS heavy-duty pannier rack.
And don't forget the small stuff: ROK Straps; Bungee net; hat for helmet head, with a trusty gold Lee Parks tire pressure gauge on top for airing down for the dirt; bandana to keep the draft and dust out.
Doubetake Mirrors provided plenty of stable rear-view, and tucked away easily when not needed. The new Peak Design mirror/Crossbar mount provided an easy perch for phone-holding duties, making it easy to swipe the device off the bars to use the camera, and then snap it back into place. Vibration dampening is built into the head, and a new orbital adjustment makes it a cinch to dial in the viewing plane.
Gloves - always bring multiple pairs on any trip. The Union D3 Moto Gloves were great for longer road stretches—although any colder and they'd be out of their element. During the day off road the KLIM Dakar Pro gloves were the go-to for, with their lighter-weight chassis and ample ventilation.
It's official: The Arai XD-5 Adventure Helmet is LOADS better than the outgoing XD-4. It offers plenty of visibility with a mega-wide Pinlock insert equipped shield. Like all Arai helmets, this one readily accepts the SENA ACS-10 comm system, which was appreciated on the longer road stretches. And on Saturday night with a couple hours until home and having spent all day on an unfaired bike, it only took a 2-minute picnic table operation to take the peak off to put the helmet into a more streamlined "streetfigher" mode.
The Stylmartin Matrix boots are not technically billed as off road boots, but with a solid shin plate and reinforcing batons supporting the boots laterally, and plenty of grip from the Vibram sole, they were a great do-it-all option for road, some litht off-road, and clomping around the campground.
John Doe jeans are AAA rated and already comfortable, and made even safer and more comfortable with our homegrown D3O Ghost Level 2 armor upgrade. Older, out-of-production pants were used for the trail riding, however these John Doe jeans would have done just fine off-road.
And the Bogota jacket from Alpinestars proved to be the perfect piece for this trip. Comfortable and lightweight for daytime offroad when needed, and waterproof and warm when all buttoned up, for long pulls at night.
Our new favorite hack is to bolt up Kriega OS saddlebags to a set of locking luggage plages from UNIT Garage. The result: the best soft bags in the business that now remove and install with the turn of a key.
UNIT Garage heavy-duty ATLAS racks are available for a wide variety of bikes, from the latest BMW, Triumph, and Ducatis, to 40-year-old BMW Airheads like this one. With three points of attachement plus a unifying crossbar across the back, these 18mm frames are up to the task.
These racks will gladly accept UNIT Garage Atlas hard cases, or the company's soft bags, but if you've already invested in a set of excellent Kriega OS series panniers, we found an easy solution by bolting them up to the UNIT Garage locking luggage plates. This hack greatly simplifies getting bags on and off the bike, with a locking latch that secures the bags.
Note: The Rotopax gas can is held on with a third-party Outback Motortek X Bracket, which with light modification fit and functioned great.