People buy an adventure bike to go on adventures. They don’t buy one to take training course after training course. That’s exactly what I had been doing. I started this series of articles in an attempt to improve my off-road riding skills. But what’s the point of gaining all those skills if you’re not putting them to use in the wild? Adventure bikes are made to slide around corners, not safety cones. They’re meant to explore the far reaches of the trail, not gravel parking lots. That doesn’t devalue the importance of formal training. I believe all riders (young and old, new and seasoned, etc.) benefit from some form of professional training. I equate it to practicing before a big game. The more you practice, the better you play. But no one practices just to practice. For me, it was time to play the “game.” Little did I know that it’d be the biggest game of my ADV life: riding the South East BDR. I bet you’re wondering, “How’d this chump score a trip with the Backcountry Discovery Routes team?” I was wondering that myself. While I’d love to say it’s my unique combination of natural talent and hard-earned skill, it was neither. Instead, it was good old-fashioned nepotism (insert sweat-laughing emoji). Triumph sponsors both Jeff Stanton’s Adventures (JSA) and BDR. After I completed Stanton's training course, a Triumph brand rep asked if I’d be interested in riding the latter. I wouldn’t be joining any old BDR ride, either. It’d be the maiden voyage of a yet-to-be-announced route. Like a man-child buying Pokémon cards at Costco, I jumped at the chance. Here’s the catch. (There’s always a catch). The BDR shooting schedule spanned 10 days. I couldn’t afford to be away from the Common Tread desk for that length of time. Plus, I had no desire to be on the trail that long. I just started enjoying adventure riding. Let’s not overdo it. (Check out the link in @revzilla bio to read Dustin's full take on the new BDR route) 📝: @dustinwheelen 📷: @elywoody #RevZilla #CommonTread #motorcycle #motorcycles #moto #bikelife #instamoto #SEBDR #BDR #ridebdr #backcountrydiscoveryroute #advrider #advridersofinstagram #triumph #triumphtiger #triumphmotorcycles #southeastBDR https://www.instagram.com/p/DGvbLLeNF4t