When I set out on my around the world journey in July 2005, I was adamant about carrying and riding on an AirHawk. I also was adamant about carrying a bunch of other “stuff”. But as the miles clicked away and I got tired of carrying the “stuff” I found myself sending packages home. Losing weight, so to speak.
But not my AirHawk. It goes everywhere with me.
The stock seat on my 2005 F650GS Dakar is terribly uncomfortable. Just after a few hours of riding my I’d go numb. That is, until I started using my AirHawk.
On the first part of my journey riding from California to Prudhoe Bay in Alaska, I benefited from nearly infinite sun and routinely rode 12-14 hour days clocking 600 miles or more. Literally floating on air while taking in some of the most amazing scenery in the world, my AirHawk made those days a breeze.
Crossing from Ecuador into Peru and dumping down into the Atacama desert with its glorious and wind carved sand dunes is quite an experience. But after 100 miles of sand and wind blowing me all over the road, it gets rather boring. In the vast emptiness of this desert, I only stopped when I absolutely needed refueling. Again, the AirHawk made the Atacama tolerable.
But it’s not just the long days and heavy mileage that makes a difference with my AirHawk. From short 100-mile days to the long arctic jaunts, getting off my AirHawk at the end of the day meant no fatigue, tingling or discomfort. It’s amazing.
Even better, the AirHawk is virtually indestructible. It’s been rained, sleeted, hailed and snowed on. A laundry attendant in Columbia accidentally threw it into the washer, cover and all. I was nervous, if not slightly angry. But out of the dryer (yes, it got dried) the AirHawk still worked and sat with me for another 3,000 miles to Bolivia.
Seems these days everyone is trying to solve the seat problem for motorcycling. I’ve tried a bunch. No matter what, I won’t take any trip without my AirHawk. It’s proven it’s worth to me for more than 200 continuous days and 22,000 miles. And the journey continues.
Allan Karl -
WorldRider
http://www.roadrider.com.au