"TheOnelectronic" (theoneelectronic)
05/18/2015 at 11:52 • Filed to: two wheels good
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"TheOnelectronic" (theoneelectronic)
05/18/2015 at 11:52 • Filed to: two wheels good | 4
| 2 |
It’s not every day that someone lets you borrow their nearly-$30k superbike, so I didn’t exactly push it to the limit, but if you’re interested in what someone who’s never ridden anything sportier than a VFR 800 thinks of one of the top-of-the-line performance machines, read on.
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The Good:
Good lord, this thing builds speed like you wouldn’t believe. It isn’t the sort of seat-of-your-pants, torquey fast that the Monster is, but once you get up into the powerband it just goes and goes.
I had no intention of wrecking somebody else’s motorcycle, so I can’t report on the ABS, Traction control, or wheelie control (it lets you hold wheelies at a specific angle... how cool is that?), but the quick shift system is awesome. Think dual-clutch for motorcycles, except without the dual clutches. In everyday riding, you clutch and shift just like normal, but if you want, you can just flick the shifter and the ECU automatically cuts the engine for a split second to allow a smooth upshift. The result is almost gapless acceleration. It works on downshifts too; let off the throttle, kick the peg down, and you get an automatic throttle blip to match the shift.
It -feels- like a Ducati. By that I mean it’s hot, it vibrates, it makes strange noises, and the engine stalls if you look at it wrong. Given how silky-smooth and utterly unflappable the Monster’s similarly-sized motor is, it’s an interesting contrast.
It is absolutely gorgeous. Pictures do not do this bike justice.
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The Bad:
It is... very uncomfortable. I have a long torso and short arms, so even at my most upright, my shoulders were even with the front of the gas tank. This isn’t a condemnation of this bike specifically; I doubt I’d fare any better on any other sportbike.
It really is not meant to putter around town at low speed. Again, this is just par for the course for this type of bike. It also takes a lot of concentration to not stall coming off a stop. The engine’s absurdly high compression means you have to give it a fair bit of gas before you let out the clutch.
Once you get to about 120, the front fairing/mirrors shake around quite a bit.
It is very, very easy to hit 120 before you’ve realized what’s going on. Your first clue is the fairing shake.
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The Untested:
I only rode down a straight backroad and back, so I can’t say a thing to its high-speed handling. Almost any modern sportbike is capable of going much faster through the curves than I am willing, though, so I wouldn’t have been able to say much anyway.
I never had to get on the brakes hard, but again, I challenge you to find a modern sportbike that can’t heimlich you if you make the mistake of using more than two fingers on the lever.
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Here’s a short youtube video showing the quickshift.
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> TheOnelectronic
05/18/2015 at 12:03 |
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I think that you’ve nailed the catch-22 of modern sportbikes. Their looks / sound / performance is amazing, but they are useless below posted speed limits. You need to be in the upper 3rd of the rev range at all times for the best experience, which also means speeds well in excess of safe for the street.
The quick-shifter seems pretty sweet too. I have one on my bike, but it’s only for upshifts. You still need to clutch and blip on downshifts, which can get a bit hairy if you’re coming in to a heavy braking zone a bit hot. It would be convenient for a new rider, but maybe troublesome for somebody that has regular downshifting ingrained in muscle memory.
michael
> TheOnelectronic
05/18/2015 at 13:02 |
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For a sportbike - I think it is comfortable. I actually think it is more comfortable than my HP4 BMW. It does not like to be a commuter - it was never intended to be in stop and go traffic.
It is amazing - the best sport bike I have ever ridden. But yes, the mirrors are worse than any motorcycle ever made.