Luke
Member
- Joined
- Aug 18, 2013
- Messages
- 16
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Hi everybody,
My new RR is due for pickup on Wednesday and I can't wait!
It's my second 'big' bike, I bought a new F800GS Adventure a couple of months ago. I bought it after completing my DAS in the spring - a welcome return to 2 wheels after commuting on a 125 when I was a fair bit younger! I did lots of motocross riding when I was a kid and because my bike will used for commuting as well as fun, I assumed a nice big comfy enduro bike would be just the ticket. WRONG!
After a few weeks of riding the GS around and getting used to it, a well meaning friend persuaded me to try his Honda CBR600RR for an hour. I had always dismissed the idea of owning and commuting on a sports bike for a number of reasons, so I was expecting to hate it. Wrong again! I have never grinned so much about anything that did not involve foreplay first. From that moment, I was hooked. The problem which I could not get over though was the size of the bike. I felt like I had stolen my kid's scooter. I'm quite well built and reasonably tall and the little but fast Honda was just too small.
Being a BMW owner already, I was aware of the RR but had never considered wanting or owning one. So, I booked a test drive just to make sure that I hated it as much as I hoped I would. Wrong for the third time. I booked it out for an hour and after 4 hours, the dealership phoned me to ask if I was OK! The truth is that I'd ridden back there several times but sailed past because I didn't want to give it back.
So, to cut an already long story short, I spent hours and hours reading up on the bike and finally traded my lovely new GS in against a new RR. Yeah, I lost money and yeah, I've been an impulsive idiot, but hey.... Since 'borrowing' the RR, I could barely bring myself to ride my GS. My lovely and supportive wife will probably never forgive me and I'm currently doing an unusually high number of baby nappy changes along with an awful lot of housework to conquer my guilt, but it's more than worth it!
I'm an inexperienced biker but what I lack in experience I hope I can mitigate with maturity, sensibility and humour. Despite my greenness, I can say with absolute conviction that during the few hours of riding I did on the RR, I felt infinitely safer, more confident and comfortable than I ever have on the GS. I guess the answer is because the RR is a sharp edged, massively well designed road bike which is 100% at home on the road, which could not be said for the GS, however good it is in other ways.
I didn't for one second buy this bike just because it happens to be the best. Far from it. I bought it because from when I first sat on it, it simply felt like it was designed specifically for me. It's an astonishing and beautiful piece of engineering which appeals to me greatly and which I respect deeply. Without getting too weepy eyed, I feel privileged to have the chance to live with it and learn how to use it.
Now I just have to get over the rather eye watering insurance premium! I'll just have to prove the suits wrong over the next yearlayful:
Anyway, that's me. Sorry about the rambling bollocks - I'm a bit excited!
Nice to meet you all!
Best wishes....
Luke
My new RR is due for pickup on Wednesday and I can't wait!
It's my second 'big' bike, I bought a new F800GS Adventure a couple of months ago. I bought it after completing my DAS in the spring - a welcome return to 2 wheels after commuting on a 125 when I was a fair bit younger! I did lots of motocross riding when I was a kid and because my bike will used for commuting as well as fun, I assumed a nice big comfy enduro bike would be just the ticket. WRONG!
After a few weeks of riding the GS around and getting used to it, a well meaning friend persuaded me to try his Honda CBR600RR for an hour. I had always dismissed the idea of owning and commuting on a sports bike for a number of reasons, so I was expecting to hate it. Wrong again! I have never grinned so much about anything that did not involve foreplay first. From that moment, I was hooked. The problem which I could not get over though was the size of the bike. I felt like I had stolen my kid's scooter. I'm quite well built and reasonably tall and the little but fast Honda was just too small.
Being a BMW owner already, I was aware of the RR but had never considered wanting or owning one. So, I booked a test drive just to make sure that I hated it as much as I hoped I would. Wrong for the third time. I booked it out for an hour and after 4 hours, the dealership phoned me to ask if I was OK! The truth is that I'd ridden back there several times but sailed past because I didn't want to give it back.
So, to cut an already long story short, I spent hours and hours reading up on the bike and finally traded my lovely new GS in against a new RR. Yeah, I lost money and yeah, I've been an impulsive idiot, but hey.... Since 'borrowing' the RR, I could barely bring myself to ride my GS. My lovely and supportive wife will probably never forgive me and I'm currently doing an unusually high number of baby nappy changes along with an awful lot of housework to conquer my guilt, but it's more than worth it!
I'm an inexperienced biker but what I lack in experience I hope I can mitigate with maturity, sensibility and humour. Despite my greenness, I can say with absolute conviction that during the few hours of riding I did on the RR, I felt infinitely safer, more confident and comfortable than I ever have on the GS. I guess the answer is because the RR is a sharp edged, massively well designed road bike which is 100% at home on the road, which could not be said for the GS, however good it is in other ways.
I didn't for one second buy this bike just because it happens to be the best. Far from it. I bought it because from when I first sat on it, it simply felt like it was designed specifically for me. It's an astonishing and beautiful piece of engineering which appeals to me greatly and which I respect deeply. Without getting too weepy eyed, I feel privileged to have the chance to live with it and learn how to use it.
Now I just have to get over the rather eye watering insurance premium! I'll just have to prove the suits wrong over the next year
layful:Anyway, that's me. Sorry about the rambling bollocks - I'm a bit excited!
Nice to meet you all!
Best wishes....
Luke
