Equipment Recommendations:
Updated: 9-06

The following information is categorized by Off-road Equipment, GPS Equipment, and Other Necessities. Everything recommended on this page has been torture tested by Lizard Lady Publications on expeditions lasting up to 4 months in Baja riding almost every day (for several years). I select equipment based ONLY on those products that last. The products on this page are those that survived extremely well:

Off-road Equipment:
DIRT BIKE: Honda XR. Totally reliable. We have ridden a variety of motorcycles in and out of Baja. The most versatile bike on the market with the most reliability for off-road is the XR400. At 120 lbs., I ride the XR400 in tight single-track and open desert with pure confidence that my bike won't let me down. As awful as it sounds, we don't always have the option to change our oil and filters at the optimal time while basically living on our bikes during months of travel without support. Honda takes a beating from us and continues to award us with reliability. Take the advice - it's less expensive in the long run and a sweeter ride. Ride Red. www.honda.com

TIRES: Dunlop 739 front / 739 A/T rear. We put on an average of about 8,000 miles a year in Baja (during the Summer/Spring months) and have tried other brands resulting in "Dunlop Rules". The Dunlop 606 front has just a bit more grip in the turns than the while the 739 outlasts its competitors hands-down; both are recommended with a sway toward the 606 for shorter rides and the 739 for longer multiple days rides. On the rear, the 739 is definitely the way to go. www.dunloptires.com

LIGHTING: Baja Designs lighting kits. There are many ways you can light your bike for dual sporting or night riding and Baja Designs is the place willing to educate you. They have full time mechanics and offer superb manuals for those mechanically inclined. We recommend the HID (high intensity discharge) lighting system for those serious about lighting. The money is worth the superior brilliant white light vision. The HID system uses half the wattage for twice the power and will make the most novice rider comfortable riding at night. www.bajadesigns.com

PROTECTIVE BODY GEAR: Foxing Racing Gear. Torture testing isn't done on purpose! We ride 8 hour days for weeks at a time on budgets forcing us to camp 90% of the time. We carry a computer and electronics rather than spare clothes. We LIVE in FOX gear for months and nothing else takes a beating and keeps on completing the mission like FOX. To boot, they now have women specific gear so I can look more like the lizard lady I am. I highly recommend the new "360 Pant" with the new mesh material, the "Roost" chest protector and the "Pawtector" glove. Fit counts. www.foxracing.com

PROTECT YOUR HEAD: Arai. Whether you ride hard or not, your head protection is vital and it doesn’t take a high speed fall to knock your noggin. I don't skimp when it comes to helmets. The MX/C Pro offers the best protection in the most light weight form. The design has a flex jaw to help alleviate neck and spine injuries and adjusts to different face sizes and shapes AND it has removable washable liners. Arai now demands all retailers to fit customers so they know you are getting the best protection where you need it. We have severely torture tested the Arai MX/C Pro for 6 years and we are living proof of this helmets' asset. www.araiamericas.com

GPS Equipment:
GPS Models: Magellan. Once you have read & reviewed the checklist below (basic aid in selecting the right GPS for you), you can CLICK HERE for a full printable comparison list we put together to help you decide which model works best for your needs.  This list is NOT offered in this kind of detail at MagellanGPS.com.
Checklist:

1. Decide if you would like to download your GPS information to a PC and work with GPS software.  If so, make sure to purchase a GPS With USB
2. Make sure that the unit carries at least 500 waypoints and 20 routes (some other brands offer GPS’s that only hold 1 route & that sucks).
3. More is not always better when it comes to memory and data storage for the buck.  What will you use your GPS for?  Do you need multiple maps? 
4. If you plan to use your GPS to mark waypoints in the field and construct routes, a very nice asset is a magnetic compass.  What this provides you: each time you stop, the magnetic compass will continue pointing in the correct position, whereas the GPS compass gets lazy, pointing off into another direction once your motion has stopped.
5. Having an altimeter and thermometer is purely an optional item seldom missed if you don’t have it and kind of fun if you do – the choice is up to you.
6. Battery life is important.  The longer you can go on one set the better.  Magellan offers great life on just 2 AA’s.  Using the Li-ion rechargeable batteries are new; suggestion: purchase an extra battery for longer trips to eliminate having charging issues in remote areas.  Also, the GPS’s using Li-ion batteries can still be hardwired to your motorcycle so you never need to worry about batteries (see Baja Designs or Cycoactive).
7. As rough as off-roading and desert elements can be, I love Magellan’s rugged rubber armored, impact and water resistant casing.  It reminds me of my Amrel computer that has lasted throughout Baja in my backpack since 1998!  I dig anything that can stand up to my torture tests: they’re rough.
8. Size matters, especially display size.  Magellan offers the biggest screens available on a handheld GPS.  This makes for reviewing the GPS on the fly MUCH easier to read.  Smaller screens take more time, more glances, and more risk without your eyes where they should be: on the trail.
9. Color.  Well, it’s a novelty item.  It’s cool, but if you don’t want to pay for it, this shouldn’t make you cry.  When color first became available, there were contrast issues in high light making it hard to see.  Now, those issues have been resolved and the color screens are easy to read and sometimes do make a difference when depicting roads, highways, and contour lines.

The rest is purely preference and most GPS’s offer close to the same specs after the above mentioned features.  Review Magellan’s Explorist Series along with this check list and you will find the right GPS for you.
Our General Recommendations:

EXPLORIST 210 – North America

If you are looking for a great GPS at a really great price, this is the GPS for you.  At $149.99 or better (if you shop), you have covered all the bases listed above with 22 MB of memory!  This is a basic GPS with no color and uses AA batteries (you can hardwire this model too). 

EXPLORIST 600 – North America

If price isn’t in your way, this GPS adds some flavor to the basic unit suggested above. This is a color unit with an altimeter, barometer,  16MB of memory, and is SD card compatible for unlimited storage.  Don’t be fooled by the Explorist XL at a higher price for more memory, it doesn’t have these bells and whistles.  It uses the Li-ion batteries and can still be hardwired to your bike (if you have a digital camera, you already have a spare battery).
CAREFULL: The Explorist 100, 200, and 300 do NOT have a USB port.  And,
There are several reasons we recommend Magellan over other brands:

1. Magellan is extremely user friendly over other GPS manufacturers
2. The screen is oversized comparatively and the contrast is bold (and adjustable), which makes navigating off-road easier to see while on-the-fly
3. Battery life span exceeds most other brands with fewer batteries or recharge
4. Magellan wins competition in customer service - hands down! If you need assistance, they are easy to contact and offer a free technical phone service
5. The Magellan's we recommend are a quality product at a great price

MAGELLAN WEBSITE: www.magellangps.com

SOFTWARE: Fugawi. Remember the Indian tribe with the mighty navigation chief? He once got lost wondering where the "fugawi"......... yeah. Fugawi makes sure you always know where you are with some major advancement than in those times. Fugawi allows you to scan topographical maps (like Baja topos that are not available digitally) and place the guidebook or your own personal information on it. You can create routes by clicking on roads, washes or canyons you wish to explore and create routes for uploading to your GPS. Fugawi allows you to store, transfer, edit, and manipulate data on maps or with your GPS. This software is used on your home computer,  and then interfaces the GPS. This is the software we have used for collecting and formatting all the routes offered in the "Baja GPS Guidebook Volume 1" and all three Baja GPS Events. We highly recommend Fugawi for GPS routing and mapping software (you can purchase it on our site under GPS Software discounted).

Guides: Baja GPS Guidebooks. Volume 1 (58 routes) & Volume 2 offer amazing and easy to follow GPS routes in Baja, Mexico! Lizard Lady Publications, Inc. published this off-road guide in Dec. 2002 offering dirt bikes, ATV's, and 4-wheels safe and accurate destinations navigated by the GPS. It includes course description charts, point-to-point mileages, waypoints/routes, maps, route ratings, total mileages, gas locations, special tips, and warnings just in the route sections. The rest of the guidebook gives recommendations on how to travel Baja as an off-roader and how to avoid troubles, history, common questions are answered, and there are recommendations on motels, restaurants, and where to get the coldest Negra Modelo at the days end. Everything you need as an off-roader in Baja is in the "Baja GPS Guidebook". Stock is always available at www.bajagpsguide.com - click on "products".

Our last Baja GPS Event October 7, 2006 teaches classes on GPS with hands-on education and then we send you on an off-road adventure lead only by the GPS. We offer a technical buffet with all kinds of GPS Gadgets for sale and have a huge raffle and Mexican fiesta afterwards. You can read all about the GPS Events by clicking HERE.

Other Necessities:
MEXICAN INSURANCE AND VISAS: Baja Bound Mexican Insurance. Baja Bound offers on-line and phone services in the United States for Mexican Insurance. The part we love best about this company is that we can do the entire thing on-line without having to travel to any destination and still reassure ourselves with a phone call talking to a REAL person. You can set up all Mexican Insurance policies and get a Visa (needed if you are traveling south of Guerro Negro) BEFORE leaving on your trip. If you are as detailed as I am, read the policy. This is the best Mexican Insurance Policy available at totally reasonable prices (typically better than border pricing). www.bajabound.com
LOOSE STUFF:

1. Duct Tape, bailing wire, tweezers, and plastic zip ties - don't leave home without them
2. Water. Sounds simple, but make sure you have a good water hydration bladder that allows you to drink on-the-fly. Don't skimp on water
3. Tire tools and patch kit - make sure your glue is plentiful