Ridding on the dirt

Hi all starting to plan a trip up to cairns for a break from Julia Creek and find some winding roads. Well I have two choices one that takes me to Townsville and up which is a pretty boring run and 1000kms and the other which is around 850km but has around 100km of Dirt and some good windy roads to have some fun on when I get nearer to the coast. I have ridden road bikes on dirt roads before but the bandit is a lot nicer and newer than the bikes I have done so in the past. What are others thoughts about riding the bandit on dirt roads? Anything I have to worry about if I do take it on the dirt?
Thanks

Depends on the type of dirt and condition .I don't mind dirt but those big tires make the bandit drift around a bit . Hate some types of gravel though .
100 kls should be o'k though , a couple of breaks and relax on and off the bike .
Mind you,ive crashed (fallen off) a couple of times on dirt as well .

I agree with Gus and will add.
The Bandit is much better on dirt with less than half a tank left too.They're top heavy otherwise. Just let it drift around and not fight it unless you have too is my advice.

gus pretty well answered the ?

I`ve done a bit, I don`t mind it. if its pea gravel, that's scarey, very slippery, or if its corrugated, just shakes the shit out of everything!

If it rains when your on your journey, and its clay based, very slippery!

do some research on the road you want to travel, and find out of the condition, good road base etc:

don`t be scared of dirt though

I've dropped mine on wet, muddy, slippery shite dirt and broke some of the fairing and added quite a few scratches.  Now I'm very nervous if it's wet dirt.  Some very small amount of rain on proper gravel though is advantageous as it binds it together and the bike seems less inclined to move around.  Wet clay is a big problem IMHO. 

Thanks everybody. Just its my first new bike ever and a little cautious. Well up here is black soil and we have two seasons dry and wet. This year the forgot to send out the reminder to the wet to come lol and its bloody dry. Wouldn't ever consider riding on dirt roads up here if it even looked like rain. When its wet you cant get through on or in anything. Been asking some people in the know thinking I might be going the long way as its suppose to be really rough

Yep its quite doable, I ride on pea gravel all the time here in WA when we do venture offroad. Just ride it like a heavy dirt bike which has no front end grip, so be a bit cautious as it'll wash out quickly and you'll go sliding down the road. Be careful with brake and throttle application too, although I do like feeling the big heavy beast spin the rear and snake it's way up the road

One thing to remember is that the debris (rocks) flicked up will chip the paint off the front of the motor and the frame which cradles under the motor. Maybe go and buy on of those Fender extenders or look at protecting it some other way.

in addition to the above comments, see if you can find out what the road surface is like...

if it's too bumpy, your suspension may not cope with it.... (EDIT oh I just saw that you said it is supposed to be really rough... in that case I reckon don't do it.... not really built for rough terrain....)

if it's smooth enough, you may have to ride a bit slower, but you'll get there....

and yeah you may well get paint chips etc....

but if the riding payoff is worth it, cool....

.... but yeah no way would I ride on wet dirt with the nice slicky tyres I got on the bandit (compared to the dual sport of course :cool )

Okay I'll put my 10 cents worth in. Leave the front brake alone on dirt. Especially when going down hill. There's a section of dirt road heading to Bethanga(VIC), that's near impossible to ride on after rain. All steering is lost.

If there is a way I can avoid dirt - especially if wet - I will!

The official class for the bandit is a road bike, best left at that and leave the gravel to the GS brigade, well thats how i work unless its only 20ks and leads to the best road in the country, The bonang highway and its heaven

Is the Bonang H'wy fully sealed nowadays ? 

Nope

WISA wrote:Is the Bonang H'wy fully sealed nowadays ? 

It's not, but as alluded to above, it's only about 20km that isn't...

the rest is and it is good

I wouldnt even attempt dirt...i hate riding over roadworks let alone in bulldust or corrugated roads

SuzySuzuki wrote:I wouldnt even attempt dirt...i hate riding over roadworks let alone in bulldust or corrugated roads

Me too, but mainly because of stone damage, I have enough chips already without trying to get more

in short, go buy a KTM 950 Adventure..... tonnes of power and awesome on dirt roads.....

But Suzy its whats a the end of the gravel, A 105 kilometers of absolute heaven, yes i hate gravel at the best of times but i will make an exception for the Bonang

jim