As mentioned in previous postings I had decide that I would
definitely be looking at a different type of motorcycle, not that I have been
unhappy with the Boulevard, to the contrary, it has been a wonderful
relationship, but now that it is over I want something different. I have grown
up a bit in this world of motorcycling since my impetuous decision to buy the
Boulevard in the middle of winter 2014 at the Toronto Bike Show. I’ve learned a
little, realized that there is more to motorcycling than riding a big heavy
powerful iron and had a chance to figure out what I really want. All too often
I have had to ignore a road that looked interesting because it was gravel or
likely to become gravel and then the thought of taking some of those trails up
mountain sides and through verdant forests is very attractive. Maybe one day
I’ll get the chance to cross Africa, north to south, a la Ewan MacGregor, then
I will definitely need experience on something other than a cruiser.
There are few other things, for one, I’m looking for a
motorcycle that I can understand, mechanically that is. Maybe it’s to fill a hole in my experience
that the sheer accountantness of my younger years denied me, but I want
something that works a little bit like the teeny engine I had on a model aero
plane when I was nine years old. Something I can get my non-mechanical brain
around with the help of a decent manual and a few YouTube videos. I want to
understand what the engine is doing and why it is making a funny sound, I want
to do the services, change the oil, adjust whatever needs adjustment, the inner
grease monkey in me has been awakened. I want a bike that is low on
pretensions, high on performance, I also want something that is light, agile
and I can manage to throw around corners a little.
I have test ridden the Ducati Scrambler (as indicated
previously). It is a really super machine to ride, a little more than half the
displacement of the Boulevard, but it would totally smoke it, except maybe when
carrying a passenger. I really like the L air-cooled configuration, only 10%
less displacement than the Harley 883 but the motor is way smaller, lighter
and the L config is more space efficient
than the V, allowing for more ‘stuff’ to fit between the cylinders. I have however decide against buying this for
a number of reasons, this is not really a dual purpose motorcycle, this is a
bike to ride on the road with, although value for money it is good, it is a lot
of outlay in absolute terms. But most of all it is too low for me with the foot
controls situated where they are, my slightly arthritic hips ached for hours
after the half hour test ride. It also needs a windshield and I like to have
saddlebags. Sadly this bike with a windshield, saddlebags and forward controls
will look like an Arabian stallion with a plough harness on. There is a lot to
like about this motorcycle, decent torque and horsepower, beautifully styled,
it is a Ducati after all, and a totally
honest bike, aluminum rather than plastic bits, so it was with regret that I
scratched it from the list, but if I wore a younger man’s clothes….
I didn’t manage to test ride a Triumph Tiger, but did sit on
one and did a heap of internet research on the bike (or rather bikes as there
are several versions). I found it a little too tall for me, I am challenged in
the inseam department, but once actually on the machine everything was fine...
apart from the fact that I was merely sitting on a stationary motorcycle rather
than rolling off the apron and taking it for a spin. I don’t know how actually
relevant all the fancy stuff that this bike has… ABS, ride by wires, antiskid
and so on, but it does get some very favorable reviews and is a serious dual
sport (adventure tourer, as it is called) motorcycle, without a doubt it can
handle the trails as well as the motorway. The downside is the price tag, once
you have paid the sales tax and the ‘dealer deliver charge’ (what the fuck is
that anyway?) and all the other bits and bobs you are looking at a serious
investment. Which investment, I have firsthand experience of, can turn into
spare parts in the wink of an eye.
My next test ride is the BMW F700GS, which absurdly does not
sport a 700 cc displacement engine, but rather an 800 cc one. Also excellent
reviews, but not quite an off-road bike, little on the genteel side in the
rough, I am led to believe. The folks that seem to know what they are talking
about punt the F800GS ADVENTURE for a truer dual bike or better still the R1200GS
ADVENTURE which actually does have a 1200cc motor (well slightly less, but in the
motorcycle world you generally round up)… I have arrived at the appointed time
at BMW Toronto, a very upmarket establishment, befitting the products it pushes,
the sales staff are impeccably dressed, and I suspect even the mechanics wear
ties. Motorcycles are a few floor up so I ride the elevator, a superior
experience in itself. It is a very different showroom to the usual, the bikes
are laid out in neat spacious rows, there is no overcrowding and shaved-head,
overweight, tattooed dudes are completely conspicuous by their absence. Now I
must admit that I am ever so slightly prejudiced against the bike for one
reason, the space between the seat and the handle bars is molded plastic that
has the appearance of a fuel tank, but actually it isn’t, it a just houses the
battery. The fuel tank is under the seat. Now I fully understand the
engineering reasons for putting the fuel tank where it is, it lowers the point
of gravity, and of course I understand the aesthetic reason for a fake fuel
tank, the bike would look ridiculous with just a bloody hole there, but I don’t
like the deception. Maybe I would prefer a storage compartment which is
obviously a storage space than a fake fuel tank. Anyway I have huge doubts that
BMW give a flea’s droppings for my opinion on fake fuel tanks. I fill out the
disclaimers and they bring the motorcycle down to ground level for me and I
take it out on a loop that includes a decent stretch on the Don Valley Parkway (motorway)
and a nice twisty ride through the park area. Needless to say this bike is the
sweetest bike to ride I have yet to experience.
It is smooth, responsive, deceptively powerful, light and easy to
handle, those German engineers, fake plastic fuel tank and all, certainly know
what they are about. The sticker shock is less than the Tiger and I damn nearly
buy the thing on the spot. Reason prevails – taste and try as many as you can
before you buy.
After the ride I am reluctant to leave all these motorcycles
un-fondled, as such, and spend some hour touching and sitting on the inventory.
Being bikeless on a lovely Saturday morning renders a chap a little needy and
pathetic. That’s when I spot a lone G650GS, pushed a little to the side. This
is a 650 cc single cylinder – a thumper, real enduro bike. I don’t get to test
ride, but do sit on it and get a feel for it – a thought process is set in
motion.
I must give credit where credit is due, Helena suggests that
if I am considering something like the BMW G650GS, then I should look at
similar motor cycles as a comparison, Suzuki, Honda, maybe the Kawasaki 650
KLR. Internet reviews on the KLR are very positive, a very popular bike. I also
discover that there are herds of them available on Kijiji at prices that would
not even cover the sales taxes and delivery charge of a BMW. I am a little
skeptical, the horsepower and maximum torque are a lot smaller than anything I
have considered to date, but this bike does comply with the desire for
something I can get my head around the mechanics of, it has a carburetor for
goodness sake, even the latest model. I find one that looks interesting, a 2000
year model with only 18000 km on the clock, right here in Newmarket. I make a
date with the owner and arrive with my kit, including brand new helmet –
helmets are one use appliances, one ding and its toast. The bike has horrible
colors (apple green and vivid purple), but besides that it really is in showroom
condition. The seller is a policeman, and clearly a man that takes good carte
of his stuff, his garage is neat and tidy, he has the bike’s original manual
and a book that describes the care and maintenance of the KLR 650 in great
detail… and the bike still has two keys.
The Green and Purple Machine
I take off on a test ride. Man what a surprise, sure it
isn’t an 800cc BMW, but that single cylinder motor has guts aplenty and the
bike is so light that it needs so much less. Even on my very first ride I can
feel the easy of handling and can throw it around a corner or two with no
problems. I take it down a gravel road, and though I am a little unsure of the
techniques required, it is much more sure-footed than the Boulevard on a
similar road. Then we get on Highway 9 for the acid test, how does it manage at
100-110 and even a little beyond? My research indicated that top speed is a
tersh over 130 km/h. I don’t want a bike that can only handle side roads, the
need to do motorways will come up from time to time. At 90 km/h I open the
throttle, to my surprise the motor gives a happy little growl and in no time
I’m flying down the road at 120. Now the Boulevard could manage 120 without
breaking a sweat and it hardly felt like you were speeding, on the KLR you know
it. The wind at that speed is difficult to handle and makes the bike a feel
little unstable, but I can manage and I’m sure that the addition of a
windshield would make a difference By the time I get back there is a grin on my
face from ear to ear, I know that I’ve found what I’ve been looking for, at
least for this year and the next, then who knows – maybe there is still a BMW
in my future, as it has been said, 'life is like a box of chocolates.'
It’s amazing, but there has been very few design changes on
the KLR since introduced in the late nineties, I believe a bit of an upgrade in
2008 or thereabouts – but really essentially the same machine. The newer ones
have a fancier set of instruments, mine has instruments that look like they
were nicked from a 1962 Morris Minor, which I find oddly satisfying.
My purchases have not yet arrived, but I have serviced the
bike, well I did at least part of job, changed oil, spark plug, oil and air
filters and did all the inspections, but thought it prudent to get a qualified
mechanic to do some of the other things like drain and replace brake fluid, adjust
the ‘doohicky’ (yes that’s what it is called by all who ride one). I have of course done a few short rides, but
wasn’t keen on going a long distances until the service was done, so now I am raring
to take off on a few decent rides, the back roads and maybe a few light trails
beckon.
The After - Pimped my Ride
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