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Saturday dawned with wet and wild conditions, not much of a day for a ride day. And I was having second thoughts about even heading over to Port Macquarie at all. As the morning progressed the conditions got better, so I decided I would kit up and head over. I rode over to Port Macquarie on my brother in-law’s Harley Dyna low rider, for something different. You couldn’t get any further across the spectrum between the Harley and the bikes I was booked into ride!!
The first bike I was booked to ride was the G1200GS Adventure.
I have never really taken notice of how big these bikes actually are and I was a bit taken back by its size when I saw it. These are a seriously big bike. Nearly as tall as my XR650 and twice as heavy!
I was secretly concerned that I mightn’t be able to lift it into an upright position off the stand! Anyhow I needn’t have been concerned, as I stood it up right with ease.
Once I worked out which was the start button among the myriad of controls, I pressed the starter and was surprised that the bike lurched to the left when the big boxer engine fired to life.AS I pulled out into the traffic I was amazed how nimble the big girl felt and I soon came to terms with its bulk. A 20km run on the tar isn’t really a good way to test out what is essentially a big dirt bike but it was a fun way to spend a half hour!
I would have loved a full day out on one, doing a run up through Werrikimbee and the Cells to get a better idea of what all the hype is about.
The next bike I was to ride, was a totally different style of bike to what I had already ridden for the morning. A four cylinder 1000cc sports bike.
A BMW S1000RR, This bike could be described as Sex on wheels!
Although I didn’t really look the part to be riding this bike, considering I was in work boots, jeans, enduro jacket and a MX helmet, I climbed aboard anyhow.
Probably much to the disgust of the assembled parade of die hard BMW fans in their BMW Motorad, Helmets, jackets, boots, socks and what ever other over priced BMW labeled accessory imaginable. It wouldn’t surprise me in the least if these guys had a ring imprint in their BMW wallets from a BMW branded condom. Ah well each to their own I suppose. I might add that a few of them thought they were pretty good. I was already expecting that though.Anyhow, at first the seating position felt a little bit cramped on the S1000RR but after a km or so I got the feel of it . It has been a while since I have ridden a serious sport bike and I had forgotten how fast they are, the BMW soon reminded me in no time at all. I was really looking forward to hitting the highway on it!.
I cant remember the term for it but you can basically flat change the BMW, no matter what throttle position you have, you can up-change the gears with no clutch and when you do, this thing gets going in a big hurry. How anyone could keep their license for very long after buying one of these worries me. It is one seriously fast motorcycle. I wont go too much into the ride for the fear of incriminating someone.Anyhow, I really enjoyed the opportunity to take both bike for a blast, Thanks to BMW and the team at Rocks.
Yeah Boulder! It is a pity that you are just getting the feel of the bike proper and then the ride is over!
It was still a good way to spend some time and try out some new technology. I loved the heated hand grips! :laugh:
I managed to drag my flu infested body out of bed on Saturday morning to join Mick on the ride day. While Mick was wrestling the big GS1200, I went for it’s little sister the GS 650 Sertao.
I’ve always had a soft spot for the 650 Dakar so I was really looking forward to having a ride on the latest version. And I must say it’s a very nice bike and very well priced.
As Mick said we didn’t take these bikes off road so it’s hard to give full appraisal but what i did like was:
It’s very comfortable :kiss:
It’d not too tall for short asses :whistle:
It’s got everything for heated grips to ABS :woohoo:
I felt like I belonged to the BMW crowd :dry:
On the down side:
It’s fuel tank :angry: 14 ltr tank 300 to 350.
The front suspension. It felt like it needed some attention. But when I checked it out after the ride it was set to full soft so I don’t think I got it the best it could be
The engine worked great from the midrange on, but it lacked the torque of a big single :dry:
Thanks Rocks for the day, it was tops.
Kram
Hey Kram, how do they wheel stand? Have they got the power to get the front wheel off the ground?????
:laugh:
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