First ride on the V-Strom

[shafty]

Grouse colour, well done Mate

[bluninja]

I decided that the bike needed a bit of a long distance run so took it to Taupo racetrack and back...a short blog about is here.

I made a few changes before the ride....I returned the screen to it's highest position...and I increased the preload. Clearly I need springs set for my lardy weight, but preload will have to do for now.

In terms of raising the screen height; in the lower position there was initially less buffetting but my visor got covered in bugs. Since I realised that the 'buffetting' was actually coming from underneath my helmet I thought I'd try again. Having now got accustomed to sitting comfortably on the bike, I noticed no noticable buffetting with the high screen height. What was cool was to see rain drops run up my visor, or at times, through themselves out over the screen when I decelerated for bends. The screen protection was absolutely fantastic around the chest and head. So much so that after 4 hours riding in the rain with a front pocket open (I moved the phone inside my jacket and forgot to zip up) it was bone dry. Unlike my pants, the rain had snuck under the front of the jacket and down the inside of the trousers.

I did 12 kms on gravel and everything was great. The gravel was pretty hard packed and level so despite the changes in gradient and bends it was almost like a normal kiwi road. I just stayed in 3rd and rolled off and on the throttle between 50 and 70 and everything was rock steady.

Look forward to doing the ride in the dry sometime.