Need advice on a bike to tour NZ.

[86GSXR]

Yeah, well, don't be too hasty. If you want the Triumph do it, but I'm biased just having got myself a new Daytona - Hell YEAH

[FkNAmerican]

hehe..hell yeah MSTRS. Im def. coming to Napier.....

My tentative route so far:

1. Auckland to Coromandel

2. Coromandel to Hamilton

3. Hamilton to Rotorua

4. Rotorua to Taupo

5. Taupo to Gisborne

6. Gisborne to Napier (where, no doubt, MSTRS is gonna invite me into his home, feed me dinner, have his wife give me a massage, and then loan me his Ford F-350 super duty pickup truck he keeps hidden behind the house so I can haul my bike the rest of the way to chch)

7. Napier to Palmerston North (nah, fack that......Im just gonna ride through Palmerston North.......)

8. Palmerston North to Wellington. Stay awhile in Wellington because I loved it last time I was there and know some peeps.

9. Wellington to Picton. Staying in Picton a few days just because its the most relaxing town in NZ and I wanna stay at this B&B I stayed at last time and say hello again.

10. Picton to Nelson. Staying in Nelson because half my mates seem to have come from Nelson.....no idea why. Which brings me to another odd thing about my last stay in NZ: When I was on the road it seemed that a good third of the people I met were from Invercargill.......no idea why. Maybe everyone was trying to escape the town hehe. Too far south or something.

11. Nelson to Kaikoura. Surfed off Kaikoura and had a blast.....so doing it again.

12. Down to Christchurch to meet all my peeps..cant just pass through without at least saying hello...that would be rude.....then to Akaroa and all around the Banks Pen. because I just love that area.

13. Akaroa to Dunedin (with maybe a side trip to Mt. Cook)

14. Dunedin to Queenstown where Im gonna act like every other dumbass American tourist and spend lots of money doing stupid shit just like I did last time. I never learn.

15. Over to Milford Sound.

16. Whatever route I feel like back to my new home: Christchurch. Then Im gonna relax for about a week, sell my GS650, and get me a nice sports bike and use it to terrorize the people of Akaroa every weekend.

[FkNAmerican]

Oh by the way: Here are some pics of my test ride of the Daytona 675. I swear I've never had better service from a dealer then I did at the BMW/Triumph place. They gave me a tour of the whole place, including the service dept. downstairs in the dungeon, they gave me a detailed walk around of the bike with a knowledgeable service tech. pointing out all the features, they gave me a free can of soda (Dr. Pepper of course) and a free roast beef sandwich. THEN, to top it off they gave me a 35 minute guided demo tour on the bike which included some back road twisties and a short high speed highway run to get a feel for the wind protection (which, by the way, the 675 doesnt have the greatest wind protection on planet earth).

If I had stopped off there before I bought my CBR 600 I'd prolly be riding a 675 right now!!! BUT, my CBR is more comfortable, it sounds better with the Two Bro's pipe, and its just a wee bit smoother. It also feels just a little faster according to my arse dyno but that could be down to the 675 only having 30 miles on it and my CBR having a few trick bits . Ah well.

Anyway, here are some pics. Before you piss on my shoes again for not being in proper gear I was working that day so relax!!!! I do realize im in jeans and New Balance running shoes alright!!! Again taken with my craptastic cell phone:

[clint640]

yeah, you guys are right. Fuck it. Im just gonna get a BMW GS650. .

Good choice. Don't forget that you don't have to be on a rocketship to have fun in the twistys, me mate Mike has passed many a squidly sportsbike on his trusty 650GS.

Here's the report of our South Is trip last year to whet your appetite for some fine NZ riding, both on & off the tar:

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=124655

Cheers
Clint

[FkNAmerican]

Woops, here ya go:

[FkNAmerican]

Hehe, damn Clint640....that little road trip report was awesome.....great pics.....especially the one of the fish n' chips with a little Speights to wash it all down.......brought back memories of the good ol' times. Ok, Im pretty much sold on a GS650 now. I'd love to do some riding like that....which would be impossible on a sports bike.

[FkNAmerican]

And since Im posting pics: Here are some pics from some past trips to the Blue Ridge Mnts. which is where I like to ride in my neck of the woods:

[img=http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/6545/p1010217sv4.th.jpg]

[86GSXR]

The road through Palmerston North will be closed that day. But, if you beg real nice we may let you ride with us

[FkNAmerican]

shit well I fucked that one up. Oh well...dinner time. I will post some good pics later.

[FkNAmerican]

LOL 86GSXR.......I know I moan about how crappy Palmerston North is.......but Im sure it would be a whole lot better on a motorcycle with some riders from KB to show me around. First time I went through there I didnt know anyone and I came by train. That mighta had something to do with my negative first impression

[Monkeyboy]

I've toured NZ on a CBR600F2, R1, VTR1000 and a Fireblade. The Firestorm (VTR1000) was the best "tourer" of the bunch. My two cents worth.

When you get to Christchurch don't forget to go to Akaroa and have lunch at Bully Hayes, tell the ladies working there the Muffin Boys sent you!!!! (it's a long story)

[Big Dave]

I'm sure Big Dave will be along shortly to suggest a Buell... which would be a good choice!

Steady on - I'm not that biased - It works outstandingly well for me, but if you fit well on a 675, an XB12X ain't for you.

The Buell has other niggles too, many of which don't bother me a jot - I like the way it shakes, some people think it's a joke. There's other things too.
It's also $20K.

What Riffer said, actually.

I've done 2 big 'all over' tours on a Tiger and it were grand.

FJR1300 would be my choice for a 2-up road tour.

(after the Ulysses)

[MSTRS:Me]

hehe..hell yeah MSTRS. Im def. coming to Napier.....

Och nooo....

6. Gisborne to Napier (where, no doubt, MSTRS is gonna invite me into his home, feed me dinner, have his wife give me a massage, and then loan me his Ford F-350 super duty pickup truck he keeps hidden behind the house so I can haul my bike the rest of the way to chch)

Oi...you know something I don't?? Anyway - you wrong, boy...no Ford's allowed at mine.....

7. Napier to Palmerston North (nah, fack that......Im just gonna ride through Palmerston North.......)

Best thing to do with that place....some of the people there are OK tho

LOL 86GSXR.......I know I moan about how crappy Palmerston North is.......but Im sure it would be a whole lot better on a motorcycle with some riders from KB to show me around. First time I went through there I didnt know anyone and I came by train. That mighta had something to do with my negative first impression

Nah - you right first time.
Hint: - turn left at Woodville....

Woops, here ya go:

You a bit big for that 600 ?

[Reckless]

I've toured NZ on a CBR600F2, R1, VTR1000 and a Fireblade. The Firestorm (VTR1000) was the best "tourer" of the bunch. My two cents worth.

Ye i had a storm as well! Twin is strong and the bike is good natured and a good ride. Was quite a good balance between being ok for the longish hauls and still awesome for a good fang when required.

Another bike which is a bit boring makes a brillliant sport tourer is the VFR800. Which has a really good riding position for touring and can still handle quite well.

That is if most of your milage is gonna be on tarseal (or crappy punched through the tar coarse chip that we have over here).

[Kinje]

I've just finished 2 weeks around the South Island on a CBR600RR. Went really well and while we weren't covering huge distances (prob about 350km avg per day) I was always pretty comfortable. It does restrict you to the sealed roads, but sounds like your going for the beamer so you can get offroad when ya want. Check out my trip report here for some SI ideas.

Enjoy your trip