Royal Enfield Himalayan: Is it a Universal Motorcycle?

#motovlog #royalenfield #himalayan
After a recent ride I was struck by the idea that the Royal Enfield Himalayan motorcycle really is an excellent, all around, do everything, universal bike. It may not excel at anything in particular but it will take you where you want to go.
And keep in mind that many of the limitations I encounter are not the motorcycle, but rather the skill and physical limitations I encounter now that I am 69 years-old. Ugh.
Its elegant simplicity of design and construction may be attractive to many riders who have grown weary of a wealth of technology loading down other motorcycles. If you are interested in dual sport machines and aren't out to tear up the world you may want to have a look at the Himalayan.
If nothing else, it always brings a smile to my face when I take it for a ride.

[@goks278]

Pleasure to see Himalayan in abroad 😍 Love from India and Royal Enfield 🏍️

[@ScooterintheSticks]

I’m glad those motorcycles from India are becoming popular here in the United States. They are fun to ride and fine machines.

[@goks278]

@@ScooterintheSticks ❤️😍

[@flatgrindrides]

5:42 your voice here cracks me up and brings back some childhood memories. Remember when you and your friends would bang each other on the back and talk at the same time and get that funny modulation in your voice? Who knew that we were actually simulating motovlogging on a Himalayan on a bumpy gravel road?! 😂 Good ride. You really are blessed with all of those quiet dirt roads. Those are getting harder and harder to find in many places.

[@ScooterintheSticks]

I used to tap on my daughter's back when she was little to make that sound. She would laugh and laugh. The first time I heard it on my videos I was kind of shocked. I thought it indicated that something was wrong with me. Well, there probably is! My off-road motovlogging voice! We do have a lot of dirt and gravel roads here. And public lands as well. Pennsylvania has far more empty and remote places than people realize. I'm lucky to live here to enjoy them.

[@ranplan]

Just over a year of owning mine. Still love it. You were part of the reason I chose it. Cheers!

[@ScooterintheSticks]

The Himalayan is a fine machine. My appreciation of it continues to grow.

[@outlandersystems552]

Love you and your videos, Steve. You're the Bob Ross of ADV motorcycles. I want to see you get that sundae you missed, someday.

[@ScooterintheSticks]

I'm glad you like the videos. I try to keep them interesting. I know Bob Ross the painters. I'm still trying to wrap my head around him and me applied to ADV motorcycles! It must be the hair. I've had a number of hot fudge sundaes recently but all at the end of a ride on the W650. It was designed for ice cream runs.

[@outlandersystems552]

@@ScooterintheSticks I love it. More so that your demeanor is calm and approachable, much like Bob's was. Very soothing. Always a pleasure to watch. Thanks for posting these!

[@dewipeach]

Well, Hi Steve, Been sometime. I'm a Technical issue with Surface Pro lost every Bookmark and those I've been subbed to and following...! I'm back and it's taken your vlog to drop into my feed, enough said. You've summed up the Himalaya to a tee, able by design to do what it said on the create, reason for my return to biking, other than manhandling the weight, no issue elsewise, bike's just ideal for the great adventure or pop down a local lane or two. Love it. Take care, stay safe. Davey.

[@ScooterintheSticks]

Welcome back! The Himalayan is just a great machine to ride as you indicate.

[@danzuelch]

What a beautiful ride Steve. Your views on the Himalayan are spot on. I've never enjoyed riding a motorcycle more.

[@ScooterintheSticks]

Glad you enjoyed it. It was a fine ride.

[@phillipdaulton9861]

Hi Steve, we breakfasted at The Pump Station last Friday on a super-foggy morning, on our way back home from Niagara Falls to East Tennessee. We had camped at Bald Eagle State Park the previous night.Stopped at the overlook on Jack’s Mountain, which was superb. TS Ophelia caught us in Gettysburg and we had to skip Shenandoah NP and part of the BR Parkway. Pennsylvania is a beautiful state! We saw Flight 93 Memorial, Johnstown Flood Memorial, Gobbler’s Knob, Drake Well, Clear Creek State Park, the Piper Aircraft Museum in Lock Haven, and a bit of the Gettysburg battlefield. It all deserves a return trip!

[@ScooterintheSticks]

Sounds as if you packed a lot into your trip. You should have reached out when you were at the Pump Station. I live just up the street. Pennsylvania has a ton of things to see. I've barely scratched the surface!

[@RonniesRambles]

Hey Steve, great peaceful ride, you demonstrated the escape the ride gives us very well; no, I should say you took us on a mellow escape ride. Good stuff, thanks for sharing.

[@ScooterintheSticks]

Thanks 👍. It is still amazing how relaxed my mind can get when I'm out alone in the middle of nowhere. The Himalayan is the perfect ride for me to do that.

[@heritagehillsecurity8778]

Nice ride. Good times!

[@ScooterintheSticks]

Yes it was! The Himalayan takes me places that I would otherwise never see.

[@johnanderson3412]

Lovely video

[@ScooterintheSticks]

Thanks 🤗

[@grahams6390]

Have similar feelings about my Tiger 850 sport… has everything I need and nothing I don’t….traction control and abs and heated grips… $3000 to $4000 less than its sibling 900 with every option…. Another good video.. thanks for starting my day.

[@ScooterintheSticks]

Well said! Perhaps the most important thing is to be aware of what we need, want, and how that might be different from what is being marketed to us. The Tiger Sport 850 is a handsome machine. Like almost all of the Triumph line. It's only 50 pounds heavier than my Himalayan but with three times the power. Back in 2011 I was riding a Triumph Tiger XC for a short time and I was loving it. It was early in their ADV development but I can only imagine how much more refined the 850 is.

[@vincenz0]

I love all the videos about the himalayan motorcycle. I'd like to know more about the gear you wear when riding. Thanks!

[@ScooterintheSticks]

Thanks for the kind words about the video. On this ride I was wearing my First Gear Kilimanjaro jacket, Joe Rocket armored pants over jeans, TCX riding boots, TourMaster winter gloves in the morning and KLIM summer gloves when it warmed up. My helmet is an HJC IS-17 Tario. The only other things I use are foam contractor earplugs. I hope this answers your question.

[@rechard-jb9cr]

Similar to a Suzuki DR 650. You know where I've ridden mine, everything from curvy pavement, e.g. unladen in the Alps, Dragon's Tail and all that, to thousands of miles of dirt roads and mud, fully loaded with camping gear, food, foul weather clothes, etc. Yes, that was my Swiss Army Knife. The Himalayan is the same concept. I never wanted ABS, traction control, or more than one instrument on the handlebars. I see you hit the Sandy Ridge Trail! Whoopee! Fun at any speed.

[@ScooterintheSticks]

I think the DR650 has a broader range of capabilities than the Himalayan. More power, more speed. So you can at least go places faster and perhaps tackle rougher environs. My issue with the DR650 and the Kawasaki KLR was purely aesthetic -- I don't like the way they look. For some reason I've never cared much about the way the cars I drive look but with motorcycles and scooters it is a make or break issue. The Sandy Ridge Trail was full of fresh gravel. That always makes it less fun for me. But despite that it was a fine ride.

[@larrywade9041]

I agree that this is a good dual sport machine. Nice bike overall, but not my cup of tea since I'm only a pavement rider. I have other bikes,& like them all especially my W800 Kawasaki. I'm just now 72 y.y. & take one day at a time. Time will dictate to me what changes I will have to make when I get down the pathway!! ONE DAY AT A TIME my friend as that is all we have!! Have a beautiful day!!! Illinois, USA

[@ScooterintheSticks]

With no off-road riding the Himalayan would not be in my garage. While it can handle the pavement fine, there are better choices if that is where I would solely ride. Like your Kawasaki W800. That's a perfect standard motorcycle for prowling the pavement. The wisdom on "One day at a time" is not lost on me and I try to live with the thought that all I have is right now. Yesterday no longer matters much and tomorrow may never arrive. And while I like to think in terms of years young I'm writing this in pain from a flare of my old pole vaulting injury. With no position comfortable save for prone in bed I feel pretty old at the moment. These flares usually pass in days or weeks (once for almost a year) but I know that one day they won't without some dramatic intervention. So I try and embrace the moment now and find some satisfaction as I can. But riding is off the table right now. It still was a beautiful day and I hope I can now go to sleep and dream about riding...

[@larrywade9041]

@@ScooterintheSticks I am truly sorry to hear about your condition my friend. I wished I had the proper word's of wisdom for you, but having watched enough of your video's I know that your wisdom will lead you correctly.

[@ScooterintheSticks]

@@larrywade9041 Illness, or in this case a flare of a pre-existing injury, requires patience and faith on my part. Qualities that took me years to understand and embrace. Patience in the sense that any resolution will take time and that I cannot control it. I have to wait patiently for things to change. And faith that whatever happens I'll be ok. Even if my back issues don't resolve and I can never ride again I have faith that I can find other interests and passions that can exist within my new limitations. It's hard to say how I would actually respond when that time comes but I hope I will find the acceptance and courage to move forward along a new path.

[@heritagehillsecurity8778]

@ScooterintheSticks I hope you're feeling well. I'm wondering if hanging from your own. Pull up chinbar and maybe doing a few pull ups would help with the compression of the spine. It seems to really help me. And I find myself secretly hanging from door frames with 1 arm and then the other getting some decompression just from gravity. Anyway, I hope all is well, and thank you for the videos.

[@ScooterintheSticks]

@@heritagehillsecurity8778 I thought the same thing might help several years ago but as luck would have it the arthritis in my shoulder joints make hanging from my hands an excruciatingly painful undertaking. My back issues that affect me most is when my spinal alignment gets messed up and one of the nerves gets compressed. I have a series of floor stretches and exercises that keep me in relatively good shape. Until I feel better and quit doing them...

[@kz1000st1]

You gotta start standing up on the pegs on rough dirt roads Steve. It makes the bike more stable, keeps you from wrestling with the bars and is safer. Is the Himalayan a Universal motorcycle? Of course it is. With your saddle bags and tail pack attached it has all the virtues of a Vespa with the control of gear shifting. I would imagine the low state of tune on the RE even puts it in the same gas mileage category as the GTS. Coming from the land of poor quality roads in India it is durable, built for all occasions and made to be used.

[@ScooterintheSticks]

I stand more than I used to but usually to insulate my back from the jarring of rough roads. I don't often need the ability to lever the bike around while standing. If I was going to do more I really need to raise the bars a couple inches. I'm too tall to be comfortable. End up leaning to hold the bars. I'm not sure I've ever checked the gas mileage on the Himalayan. If I have I've forgotten. Gas mileage has never been a concern for me. I just don't put enough mileage on anything to really worry about it.

[@kittywampus]

My little burro gets me everywhere I need it to, and it can handle everything. Mostly. Back in the early 2000's I drove tanker around Philly and discovered the best way to handle traffic. I'd get on the blue route and put the cruise at 55mph. I never had to hit the brakes until I got down to i95 Speed doesn't equal safety or even a quicker ride. Stay safe.

[@ScooterintheSticks]

You have a good perspective on the Himalayan and what it means to handle traffic. Thanks for sharing it.

[@Scale_Slotcars_Latvia]

Good to see you out on the Himalayan. Did you ponder anymore on getting an emergency gps sender . I finally got my Vespa gts300 last week ...its the 23 supersport version .I'm not mad about the electronic key fob ,but at such a great price, I couldn't pass it up .

[@ScooterintheSticks]

I've decided that if, IF I buy one it will be the Garmin InReach Mini 2. But I have not taken the step to actually buy one. Congratulations on your new scooter. I've been eyeing a brand new 2023 GTS Super 300 exactly like yours. I go round and round from thinking my 2006 GTS is fine to I should buy a new one and keep the old one as my winter scooter. I thought I was subscribed to your channel but when I checked to see why I didn't see your recent video I realized I wasn't. I am now! Have fun with that fine scooter!!

[@Scale_Slotcars_Latvia]

@ScooterintheSticks thank you very much for your subscription 👍ile be putting more Vespa stuff up soon . I must check out the garmin GPS system ,I don't like to go off the beaten track on my own to often and that would help 🤗👍

[@iggyzorro2406]

do Royal Enfields have a kick start as a backup to the electric starter? is it a single or parallel twin? u ever see any animals in those woods? interesting straight handlebars.

[@ScooterintheSticks]

The Himalayan doesn't have a kickstart. Some of the older Bullets do but none of the US models sold now have a kickstart. My Vespa ET4 has a kickstart and so does my Kawasaki W650!

[@UncleVoodoo]

The Himalayan will go down as one of the most enjoyable bikes Ive ever owned. If I could have multiple bikes,.... I'd still have it.

[@ScooterintheSticks]

I hear that. I'm fortunate to be able to have multiple bikes. Right now I'm thinking about a new Vespa GTS and keeping my old one as a "winter scooter." That would bring the number to five in the garage, the maximum number it will handle. I'm spoiled.

[@twloughlin]

I love the Himalayan, but at 439 lbs wet it's just too heavy anymore for me should it drop. I dropped my Honda CT 125 Trail about a month ago, and I was happy to be able to get out from under it and lift it easily back up (no injuries, just a mild concussion). I'll sacrifice the top speed for that ability any day. The other thing that makes the Trail so attractive is that I now have a rear hitch for my SUV and can load the Trail right on it and still be under the 350 lb. tongue weight. That means I can load it on the car, drive with it anywhere I wish to go (central PA?), and ride there. PS - Don't delay on the Garmin inReach. It will give not only you but your wife some peace of mind.

[@ScooterintheSticks]

I don't know if I could pick up the Himalayan. Right now I am suffering again from a flare in my aging back and I know I couldn't since I can barely stand up. I like to think I could when I'm healthy but until I decide to practice I just don't know for sure. So I can understand why the CT 125 is so attractive. Yeah, I should just order the Garmin InReach Mini 2...

[@heritagehillsecurity8778]

Do you think there is a universal scooter?

[@ScooterintheSticks]

Hmmm, good question. I used to think my Vespa GTS was a universal two-wheeled machine but once I got the Himalayan I felt the off-road capabilities were a lot better than the Vespa. I would like to say a Vespa scooter but I'm not ready to be pinned down!