pritch
6th December 2010, 18:54
The Ducati is fun, but in April I will have owned it two years; so if something interesting comes along...
Retirement is now approaching at a gallop so any replacement will hopefully be capable of touring without being too much of a handful on weekend fun rides. By nature I guess I'm a Honda rider, but Blue Wing are making things difficult.
It is possible to tour anything of course, an Australian toured the world on a Honda CT90, and there is the Englishman who has made a career of rapid transits across the globe on an R1. But some bikes are more naturally suited to the task than others. The CB1000R Predator does not have a hard luggage option, so that's out. The CBF1000F does have a hard luggage option, and a half fairing, but Blue Wing don't bring that in.
Givi offer mounts to fit their V35 cases to the Hornet and it just happens that I have a set of those boxes here. The Hornet though does not offer weather protection. Well, the fully faired Hornet from Honda Italy might, but I think that's new and Blue Wing probably won't be bringing that in.
There is the Deauville but these are only occasionally available second hand because, yes, you guessed it! Blue Wing don't bring those in either. The Deauville is expensive but it does come standard with weather protection and panniers. The problem with importing them shouldn't be parts inventory related because the Transalp and the DN-01 are already here, and they use the same engine.
Road bike sales have been very slow lately, but as the resident non-importer of Honda motorcycles Blue Wing might need to be exercise caution, Kawasaki have just released the new Z1000SX with a half fairing with three way adjustable screen, and a 19L tank. Here's hoping for a hard luggage option .
So what is available from Honda in Godzone? Craig at Energy Honda, New Plymouth, offered me a ride on a used VTX1300. I recently read a comment that cruisers don't make good tourers, but there are a lot of Americans who don't seem to have discovered that yet, and "Baggers" do have a loyal following here.
So one lovely summery evening I took Clive up on his offer.
This was only my third ride on a cruiser, and as with the previous two I felt like a nob as I rode out of the yard waving one foot in circles feeling for the forward mounted foot board. This bike had custom pipes meaning any gear change errors would be broadcast far and wide. So I promptly stuffed up the first change.
The bike being a cruiser I decided to slow everything down, including the gear changes. It isn't too difficult to adjust to the heel and toe type changer. There is a certain appeal to riding along in a relaxed manner, certainly the riding position doesn't encourage speeding. The high bars mean that the rider acts as a permanent air brake. To tour a cruiser you'd definitely need a screen, or arms like Popeye? Another advantage of the cruiser style riding revealed itself as I exited a blind bend, there was a highway patrol car coming the other way. I aimed a guilty glance down at the speedo and was relieved to see an indicated 100kph.
The VTX has shaft drive which is a nice feature on a tourer, there was no noticeable downside. The seat is comfy enough in the short term but I was surprised that the upturned part at the back was biting my bum before I finished the shortish ride. I had been planning a ride over Mt Messenger and back but on arriving at the start of the Mount there were roadworks, traffic lights, and a queue of cars. So sod that! I did a U turn and headed back. I was momentarily apprehensive about that U turn but the VTX turned out to have useful steering lock. I'm told by a VTX owner that a backrest cures the bum problem but I thought that back rests on pillion seats looked funny enough without adding one to the rider's perch as well.
The suspension is suited to the kind of riding the bike is designed for. A couple of times the bike seemed to wander about on the road a bit and I put that down to the big round section tyres reacting to a particularly "interesting" road surface. Generally though it went where you pointed it.
The bike has enough power to keep up with the traffic and to pass trucks and other mobile obstacles. The acceleration isn't of the arm stretching, neck snapping variety. Neither is it like some cruisers where the engine note changes but nothing much else happens.
That custom pipe wouldn't help for touring. Years ago I rode to the Coromandel for the weekend. A friend on a BMW, and me on a borrowed Suzuki 650 Katana with a four into one. What a bloody racket. OK in a short burst, but very wearing listening to it all day. Also he on the Beemer would glide noiselessly past a car and then I'd go screaming past. It was almost embarrassing. Almost? Actually some things don't change much, I recently rode to Mokau with Movistar. He'd pass a car in a civilized fashion then the Duc would bellow past. Those Termis do sound nice though…
All in all I enjoyed the ride on the cruiser and just lately it has occurred to me that I wouldn't have to modify my riding style too much to own one. The Blue Wing website lists the VTX1300S which comes with a screen and bags but they don't show a price. The plain vanilla version VTX1300 isn't currently mentioned at all.
Interestingly Glenn Rangiuia who founded "Bike Rider" Magazine purchased a VTX1300 after he sold his interest in the magazine. Having had access to and ridden, all of the then current tourers, the fastest sports bikes, and basically anything else that made it to our shores, Glenn chose the VTX1300 for his personal ride.
Would I want to own one? Maybe one day.
This last Friday evening Craig lent me an ST1300 for the weekend. Chalk and cheese compared to the VTX1300. The ST is a big ol' bus when threading through the shrubbery around the house but on the road the size isn't noticeable. Then again, when did you ever read about a bike that was heavier on the move?
To get at least a limited idea of what the bike would be like to tour I went around the mountain. That's only about 160k but I did it non-stop to get an idea of what the riding position might be like on a longer trip. That is one large and comfy looking seat. Well, two actually, the pillion perch is seriously impressive looking too. The seat is a bit taller than I'd have thought, even in the lowest position there's no way I can get my feet flat on the ground. Fine at the lights, but a bit dodgy when maneuvering on an uneven surface. The riding position is good but I'd still be interested to know if someone offered handlebar risers. The exhaust on this example remains as the designer intended so the bike proceeds in an unobtrusive manner.
This was the first time I had been on a bike with an electrically operated screen, so up down, up down, up down… Eventually I mostly rode with the screen in the lowest position. With the screen in the highest position the rider is sitting in a calm quiet bubble looking through the screen rather than over it. That'd be great if you were riding in freezing weather, or perhaps just somewhere in the South Island. (Sorry about that, some chilly recollections just intruded.)
The five speed gear box was a bit of a worry prior to riding the bike. The engine makes loads of syrupy power and there is definitely no need to row the bike along the road with the gearbox. Should you wish to hustle, however, the gearbox is smooth and effort free. I never missed that absent sixth cog. Velocities were restrained, when you're used to having a radar detector you feel rather exposed without one. When touring a long way from home I'm generally fairly conservative anyway.
Yesterday the weather was brilliant, today is cloudy but calm. That's nice but it doesn't give me an opportunity to check the weather protection. OK, I can live with that, I would imagine though that the ST offers pretty much the same protection as anything else available.
There is a serious amount of information available from the instruments but not having read the manual I don't know how to access all of it. The speedo and rev counter are easy to read as is the fuel level. And that's one big mutha of a tank so the ST should have an impressive tank range.
My last three bikes have been set up sports bike firm. Well, there was this one time when the S4R was more like race bike firm, my dental fillings would have been falling as the gentle rain from heaven, but Doctor Robert did his thing with the Ohlins. The ST is not quite sports bike firm. It doesn't wallow all over the place but it is a magnitude more comfortable over bumps than the Ducati. I was really impressed with the ride on the VFR1200 when I tried that, the ST is in a similar vein. KBer Nadroj punts his ST around with élan but without any apparent impediments.
This particular bike has ABS but I didn't need to use that. It also has linked brakes which I'm comfortale with.
In February I'm heading off around the South Island again. Would I want to take the ST? Hell yes!
Note
Thinking that I may have perhaps been unkind to Blue Wing I gave them a call and asked why in Melbourne virtually the entire Honda range is on the floor yet we never get to see some models.
I was reminded that Honda Australia is owned by Honda Japan. Blue Wing is an independent company not owned by Honda, and as such they are outside the Honda family to some extent and they aren't always offered all models. F'rinstance the Crossrunner announced at the recent EICMA show has not been offered to Blue Wing.
Road bikes aren't exactly flying out the dealers' doors at the moment. Blue Wing feel that most of the Italian made models will be too expensive when landed in this country. They don't want to get stuck with stock that is similar to, but more expensive than, the opposition.
I was assured that parts inventory considerations play no part in the decision making process when contemplating which models to import.
If there is a model unavailable here that you really really want though, Blue Wing may be prepared to try and get it for you. It may, however, be really really expensive.
Retirement is now approaching at a gallop so any replacement will hopefully be capable of touring without being too much of a handful on weekend fun rides. By nature I guess I'm a Honda rider, but Blue Wing are making things difficult.
It is possible to tour anything of course, an Australian toured the world on a Honda CT90, and there is the Englishman who has made a career of rapid transits across the globe on an R1. But some bikes are more naturally suited to the task than others. The CB1000R Predator does not have a hard luggage option, so that's out. The CBF1000F does have a hard luggage option, and a half fairing, but Blue Wing don't bring that in.
Givi offer mounts to fit their V35 cases to the Hornet and it just happens that I have a set of those boxes here. The Hornet though does not offer weather protection. Well, the fully faired Hornet from Honda Italy might, but I think that's new and Blue Wing probably won't be bringing that in.
There is the Deauville but these are only occasionally available second hand because, yes, you guessed it! Blue Wing don't bring those in either. The Deauville is expensive but it does come standard with weather protection and panniers. The problem with importing them shouldn't be parts inventory related because the Transalp and the DN-01 are already here, and they use the same engine.
Road bike sales have been very slow lately, but as the resident non-importer of Honda motorcycles Blue Wing might need to be exercise caution, Kawasaki have just released the new Z1000SX with a half fairing with three way adjustable screen, and a 19L tank. Here's hoping for a hard luggage option .
So what is available from Honda in Godzone? Craig at Energy Honda, New Plymouth, offered me a ride on a used VTX1300. I recently read a comment that cruisers don't make good tourers, but there are a lot of Americans who don't seem to have discovered that yet, and "Baggers" do have a loyal following here.
So one lovely summery evening I took Clive up on his offer.
This was only my third ride on a cruiser, and as with the previous two I felt like a nob as I rode out of the yard waving one foot in circles feeling for the forward mounted foot board. This bike had custom pipes meaning any gear change errors would be broadcast far and wide. So I promptly stuffed up the first change.
The bike being a cruiser I decided to slow everything down, including the gear changes. It isn't too difficult to adjust to the heel and toe type changer. There is a certain appeal to riding along in a relaxed manner, certainly the riding position doesn't encourage speeding. The high bars mean that the rider acts as a permanent air brake. To tour a cruiser you'd definitely need a screen, or arms like Popeye? Another advantage of the cruiser style riding revealed itself as I exited a blind bend, there was a highway patrol car coming the other way. I aimed a guilty glance down at the speedo and was relieved to see an indicated 100kph.
The VTX has shaft drive which is a nice feature on a tourer, there was no noticeable downside. The seat is comfy enough in the short term but I was surprised that the upturned part at the back was biting my bum before I finished the shortish ride. I had been planning a ride over Mt Messenger and back but on arriving at the start of the Mount there were roadworks, traffic lights, and a queue of cars. So sod that! I did a U turn and headed back. I was momentarily apprehensive about that U turn but the VTX turned out to have useful steering lock. I'm told by a VTX owner that a backrest cures the bum problem but I thought that back rests on pillion seats looked funny enough without adding one to the rider's perch as well.
The suspension is suited to the kind of riding the bike is designed for. A couple of times the bike seemed to wander about on the road a bit and I put that down to the big round section tyres reacting to a particularly "interesting" road surface. Generally though it went where you pointed it.
The bike has enough power to keep up with the traffic and to pass trucks and other mobile obstacles. The acceleration isn't of the arm stretching, neck snapping variety. Neither is it like some cruisers where the engine note changes but nothing much else happens.
That custom pipe wouldn't help for touring. Years ago I rode to the Coromandel for the weekend. A friend on a BMW, and me on a borrowed Suzuki 650 Katana with a four into one. What a bloody racket. OK in a short burst, but very wearing listening to it all day. Also he on the Beemer would glide noiselessly past a car and then I'd go screaming past. It was almost embarrassing. Almost? Actually some things don't change much, I recently rode to Mokau with Movistar. He'd pass a car in a civilized fashion then the Duc would bellow past. Those Termis do sound nice though…
All in all I enjoyed the ride on the cruiser and just lately it has occurred to me that I wouldn't have to modify my riding style too much to own one. The Blue Wing website lists the VTX1300S which comes with a screen and bags but they don't show a price. The plain vanilla version VTX1300 isn't currently mentioned at all.
Interestingly Glenn Rangiuia who founded "Bike Rider" Magazine purchased a VTX1300 after he sold his interest in the magazine. Having had access to and ridden, all of the then current tourers, the fastest sports bikes, and basically anything else that made it to our shores, Glenn chose the VTX1300 for his personal ride.
Would I want to own one? Maybe one day.
This last Friday evening Craig lent me an ST1300 for the weekend. Chalk and cheese compared to the VTX1300. The ST is a big ol' bus when threading through the shrubbery around the house but on the road the size isn't noticeable. Then again, when did you ever read about a bike that was heavier on the move?
To get at least a limited idea of what the bike would be like to tour I went around the mountain. That's only about 160k but I did it non-stop to get an idea of what the riding position might be like on a longer trip. That is one large and comfy looking seat. Well, two actually, the pillion perch is seriously impressive looking too. The seat is a bit taller than I'd have thought, even in the lowest position there's no way I can get my feet flat on the ground. Fine at the lights, but a bit dodgy when maneuvering on an uneven surface. The riding position is good but I'd still be interested to know if someone offered handlebar risers. The exhaust on this example remains as the designer intended so the bike proceeds in an unobtrusive manner.
This was the first time I had been on a bike with an electrically operated screen, so up down, up down, up down… Eventually I mostly rode with the screen in the lowest position. With the screen in the highest position the rider is sitting in a calm quiet bubble looking through the screen rather than over it. That'd be great if you were riding in freezing weather, or perhaps just somewhere in the South Island. (Sorry about that, some chilly recollections just intruded.)
The five speed gear box was a bit of a worry prior to riding the bike. The engine makes loads of syrupy power and there is definitely no need to row the bike along the road with the gearbox. Should you wish to hustle, however, the gearbox is smooth and effort free. I never missed that absent sixth cog. Velocities were restrained, when you're used to having a radar detector you feel rather exposed without one. When touring a long way from home I'm generally fairly conservative anyway.
Yesterday the weather was brilliant, today is cloudy but calm. That's nice but it doesn't give me an opportunity to check the weather protection. OK, I can live with that, I would imagine though that the ST offers pretty much the same protection as anything else available.
There is a serious amount of information available from the instruments but not having read the manual I don't know how to access all of it. The speedo and rev counter are easy to read as is the fuel level. And that's one big mutha of a tank so the ST should have an impressive tank range.
My last three bikes have been set up sports bike firm. Well, there was this one time when the S4R was more like race bike firm, my dental fillings would have been falling as the gentle rain from heaven, but Doctor Robert did his thing with the Ohlins. The ST is not quite sports bike firm. It doesn't wallow all over the place but it is a magnitude more comfortable over bumps than the Ducati. I was really impressed with the ride on the VFR1200 when I tried that, the ST is in a similar vein. KBer Nadroj punts his ST around with élan but without any apparent impediments.
This particular bike has ABS but I didn't need to use that. It also has linked brakes which I'm comfortale with.
In February I'm heading off around the South Island again. Would I want to take the ST? Hell yes!
Note
Thinking that I may have perhaps been unkind to Blue Wing I gave them a call and asked why in Melbourne virtually the entire Honda range is on the floor yet we never get to see some models.
I was reminded that Honda Australia is owned by Honda Japan. Blue Wing is an independent company not owned by Honda, and as such they are outside the Honda family to some extent and they aren't always offered all models. F'rinstance the Crossrunner announced at the recent EICMA show has not been offered to Blue Wing.
Road bikes aren't exactly flying out the dealers' doors at the moment. Blue Wing feel that most of the Italian made models will be too expensive when landed in this country. They don't want to get stuck with stock that is similar to, but more expensive than, the opposition.
I was assured that parts inventory considerations play no part in the decision making process when contemplating which models to import.
If there is a model unavailable here that you really really want though, Blue Wing may be prepared to try and get it for you. It may, however, be really really expensive.