MCN Fleet: There's a 'Welcome in the Hillside' for the X-Adv

I’ve just covered 500 miles on my latest weekend jaunt on the Honda X-Adv, I’ve been for a camping weekend deep in the Welsh Valleys.

My KTM Duke 125 riding buddy and our On-Line Editor, Maria, had persuaded me and two other girls to visit Camp VC, a ladies only weekend of camping. It’s a chance for ladies, from all backgrounds and levels of riding ability, to have fun with ride-outs, beginners motorcycling lessons, live music and partying in the Brecon Beacons.

I made myself a packing list for my weekend camping trip to Wales, so as not to forget anything.

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It was a short list with just four key points to remember. 1. Tent. 2. Sleeping Bag. 3. Clean pants. 4. Prosecco.

The under-seat storage and top-box were plenty big enough to hold all my kit and the tent secured to the pillion seat. I’d stowed the tent in an Oxford Aqua T30 Roll Bag, it fitted perfectly and I used the webbing straps, that came with the bag, to anchor to various points on the X-Adv.

To avoid the monotony of the motorways, I’d purposely plotted a route to take in lots of sweeping A roads, through the centre of the Cotswolds. It was a pleasant surprise, to find that the handling of the X-Adv wasn’t affected by the extra weight of a weekend’s worth of gear.

The event was being held at a farm on the edge of the Brecon Beacons, as you’d expect we were parking the bikes in the middle of a grassy field, next to our pitched tents. It was a surprise how easily the X-Adv sank into the grass, no one else seemed to have an issue when they parked up but as soon as I put any weight through the side-stand it started to precariously lean over. I was grateful of the combination of plastic puck and squashed beer can, which kept me upright for the duration.

With tent pitched and mattress inflated, it was time to party. You’ll be pleased to hear the prosecco arrived in tact and a decent drinking temperature. Result!