I have been riding with a team in France for the last 5 days and covered 1700 miles so just wanted to share a couple of observations:
1. The HP4 is not an easy bike for a long day in the saddle. My brother and I both have HP 4's but we were whipped by our friends riding GS 1200's. They might not have the top speed but after 3-4 hours I was finding it hard to keep up as frankly I was knackered. The longest day we rode 8 hours and never want to do that again though the heat didn't help. But then we rode part of the track at Le Mans and it all seemed worth while.
2. For motorway riding it makes a lot of sense to change the suspension settings on rain mode to soften it up.
3. UCLEAR is a life saver as the network between 5 bikes extended to beyond 1km and the lead rider can give feedback regarding approaching traffic. This means others can overtake slow traffic in conditions you would never otherwise such as approaching corners etc. The roads in the Masif Central are simply amazing. For many of the long corners you have a view all the way round which means you can hang well off the bike when no oncoming traffic on sight and go for it!!
4. I am really worried about my tyres. I am running a set of Rossa Corsas that have been tracked once, but I have been finding the rear sliding all over the place on tight turns when the surface is a bit uneven. Funnily enough my brother is on Super Corsas and has no problems at all. I have now ridden into Austria having spent the day in Germany and the Black Forrest so am thinking of putting a pair of Metzler M7 RR's on as on the mountain roads want plenty of good feedback to inspire confidence. As i found out today where else can you overtake traffic going down hill into a hair pin bend and get round safely which is testament to the handling of the HP4.
5. Didn't see any pot holes anywhere in France but with the heat a lot of gravel has been put down on some of the minor roads which can play on your mind at speed. Also didn't see a single police car or speed trap on the motorways or fast main roads.
6. I love my HP4 but it strikes me that for long touring the XR1000 is going to be a much better bike but the I didn't buy the HP4 because I was being sensible in the first place.
7. Petrol consumption not bad as getting around 115-25 miles before warning light comes on, but some French self service petrol stations don't accept UK credit cards which is not what you want when you are nearly out of fuel.
1. The HP4 is not an easy bike for a long day in the saddle. My brother and I both have HP 4's but we were whipped by our friends riding GS 1200's. They might not have the top speed but after 3-4 hours I was finding it hard to keep up as frankly I was knackered. The longest day we rode 8 hours and never want to do that again though the heat didn't help. But then we rode part of the track at Le Mans and it all seemed worth while.
2. For motorway riding it makes a lot of sense to change the suspension settings on rain mode to soften it up.
3. UCLEAR is a life saver as the network between 5 bikes extended to beyond 1km and the lead rider can give feedback regarding approaching traffic. This means others can overtake slow traffic in conditions you would never otherwise such as approaching corners etc. The roads in the Masif Central are simply amazing. For many of the long corners you have a view all the way round which means you can hang well off the bike when no oncoming traffic on sight and go for it!!
4. I am really worried about my tyres. I am running a set of Rossa Corsas that have been tracked once, but I have been finding the rear sliding all over the place on tight turns when the surface is a bit uneven. Funnily enough my brother is on Super Corsas and has no problems at all. I have now ridden into Austria having spent the day in Germany and the Black Forrest so am thinking of putting a pair of Metzler M7 RR's on as on the mountain roads want plenty of good feedback to inspire confidence. As i found out today where else can you overtake traffic going down hill into a hair pin bend and get round safely which is testament to the handling of the HP4.
5. Didn't see any pot holes anywhere in France but with the heat a lot of gravel has been put down on some of the minor roads which can play on your mind at speed. Also didn't see a single police car or speed trap on the motorways or fast main roads.
6. I love my HP4 but it strikes me that for long touring the XR1000 is going to be a much better bike but the I didn't buy the HP4 because I was being sensible in the first place.
7. Petrol consumption not bad as getting around 115-25 miles before warning light comes on, but some French self service petrol stations don't accept UK credit cards which is not what you want when you are nearly out of fuel.
