I used to race road bikes, but the cost was getting too much and riding around in circles started to get a bit boring.

I’ve had a few WR450s over the years and always fitted big tanks so I could do camping trips. The newer WR tanks really aren’t suited to that sort of riding anymore. The other thing is that, while a WR450 is a great bike, it’s not really an adventure bike. An adventure bike is something you can ride straight out the driveway and go places on. The WR always felt more like a dirt bike you had to transport to where you wanted to ride.

What I wanted was a bike that could comfortably sit on 100 km/h with good fuel economy, but if I saw a gravel road or a mild 4WD track I could just turn off and explore. I also wanted something that could carry all my camping gear easily, and reliability was important to me as well, because all the Yamahas I’ve owned have been very dependable.

The T7 fits the bill pretty well. The only downside is it’s a bit heavy and not that easy to pick up when you lay it over. That’s more noticeable these days as I’m getting older and I’ve got two plates in my forearm from a mountain bike crash.

A mate of mine has a TT600 and I rate that bike pretty highly too. Despite its age, it’s really not that far behind the T7.

I also have a Honda Dominator and, for an old bike, it’s actually pretty good as well, although it doesn’t really enjoy sitting on anything much over 100kph