BMW enters the Scrambler scene with the R nineT Scrambler! This bike is an obvious sequel/sister to the R nineT considering this bike has been due a scrambler version since the day it was conceived.  BMW’s R nineT Scrambler was available for viewing at the One Moto Show in Portland last February and I was there to take a close look at it.

Pre-production 2017 BMW R nineT Scrambler

This bike has been shown already in the BMW Motorrad site and it has been on the BMW Motorrad channel with a video including commentary by its designer and product manager with additional information not available in print yet, such as a discussion of option packages or accessories that will be available for this bike.  BMW has also released videos of the bike in action and it was also on the cover of BMW’s Motorcycle Magazine in its Spring 2016 edition.

In other words, this bike is nothing new at this point, you probably have already seen videos and photos of it.  According to BMW’s site this bike will be available at BMW dealers by the third quarter of 2016 as a 2017 model.

Pre-production 2017 BMW R nineT Scrambler

Scramblers, from Cool to Mainstream to…

Motorcyclists have been making scramblers out of standard motorcycles for decades, and continue to do it.  Some people make them into real scramblers but more likely they are standard bikes turned into nicely designed works of art, cool urban machines, some of them are not ridden at all.  Bottom line, the scrambler function has long been gone since dirt bikes, enduro bikes, and adventure bikes are designed to do it so more efficiently.  A scrambler motorcycle is something different today.

Moto Guzzi Scrambler at One Moto Show, 2015

And it is under this new meaning of scramblers that we have witnessed a mainstreaming of these motorcycles in the last few years.  It started with Triumph selling a scrambler version of the Bonneville in 2006 while Moto Guzzi has been offering a somewhat of a blank canvas for scrambler designs via its standard V7 machines.

It was not until Ducati’s massive campaign of 2014 though, launching the Scrambler Ducati brand, that scrambler bikes came out of their niche to become a mainstream style, a movement of sorts happening in synergy with a hipster revival moment.

The Stage for the Launch of the Ducati Scrambler at EICMA, Fall of 2014

The word “heritage” has had a substantial presence on scrambler marketing campaigns, usually in the context of rebuilding a past that in some cases existed in the exception to sell it as mainstream today.  As a consequence in 2015 and forward we saw a wave of scramblers flooding the market.  These bikes are not only coming from Ducati or Triumph, it includes the ready-to-bolt-on scrambler kits for the Moto Guzzi V7 as well.

2015 Moto Guzzi V7 II with Scrambler Kit

Another example is Yamaha’s nicely done XSR700.  This bike uses the FZ07 (MT07 in Europe) parallel twin motor with its 270 degree crankshaft angle, a motor people have been praising for its performance and lightness and many adventure riders have been begging Yamaha to use in a mid-level, light weight adventure machine.  But that is another story.

Accessorized 2016 Yamaha XSR700

Besides BMW and its R nine T Scrambler, which is a reality now, other manufacturers have scrambler concepts in the drawing board. We will know what will turn into actual product sooner or later, probably depending on how the scrambler “movement” goes from here.

The wave has come, will stay for a while… how long will it last?

Just as an example of the impact of the scramblers in the motorcycle industry, last year the Scrambler was Ducati’s best-selling model, turning 2015 into a record selling year for Ducati motorcycles.

Scrambler Ducati

“Wave” is to me a good analogy because although I assume scramblers are here to stay,  perhaps they will not be at the prominent level they reached in 2015 and so far in 2016. Who knows what will happen 2017.  Maybe it will go the same way flannel shirts and beards have gone – who are these so-called hipsters again? Ducati has since launched another version of its Scrambler, the 400cc (de-tuned version of the 803cc versions) Sixty2, which should help keep the sales momentum going.

The 400cc Sixty2 Scrambler Ducati

Still, I speculate the peak for these Ducati bikes has passed or it will pass soon and going forward sales volume of the Scrambler Ducati should normalize at good levels but likely at lower levels than what we’ve seen in 2015 and what is anticipated for 2016.  Although I use Ducati as the example, I assume the same will go for scrambler models from other manufacturers as the hipster revival movement settles down.

The rational I use to build my opinion is as simple as what these motorcycles are meant to be.  When standards and scramblers were first available in the 60’s, their motors were good for something like 50-60mph cruising speeds.  Today all bikes come with significant increases in power and riders expect their bikes to cruise at 70-80 mph on major freeways.  And all these scramblers on the market today are powerful enough to cruise at speeds higher than 80 mph. However, upright bikes without fairings become a bit of a chore at those speeds.  That is, these bikes are not exactly touring machines.  These bikes are not dirt nor adventure bikes either, despite what their name says.  Of course, people can modify them, they can add wind protection and take them on adventures and long distance travel.  I can see someone taking these bikes, any of these scramblers, around the world easily.

Triumph Scrambler

The point is that mostly these bikes are meant to be fun, easy to ride urban machines, fun for relaxed rides on the curvy roads on hills around towns, and maybe some short dirt road adventures thrown in for scrambler sake.   What really works for them are the retro looks and what they represent (or what you want them to represent).  But if you want to do any serious riding, if you want canyon riding performance, if you want practicality, if this is your only bike and you want to go adventure riding or touring with it, it will do, but it is not necessarily the best bike for you.  Unless you want it to be, of course, and this is an important point about these bikes.

803cc Air-Cooled V-twin

Therefore, I believe the tendency is for these bikes’ sales to eventually settle down at lower volumes simply because they are more of an exercise in style than a functional machine. After Ducati’s campaign, certainly scramblers are now well-known by the public.  People looking for these bikes are new riders looking for their first motorcycle because they are simple and lighter. Or they are riders who are looking for a second (or third or…) motorcycle, considering they already have their motorcycle of choice (sport, touring, adventure, cruiser, etc.) and practically is not in their mind for this bike. They want something else, that something on the side for that extra fun.  How many motorcyclists have this bike as their only bike, as a true option for seeking the joy of riding?  There are some of course. And that’s what makes this bike the exception and a part of a popular movement.  That’s mostly what will sustain their sales going forward.

To summarize, simplicity is the essence of these machines.  They are fun urban and around town riding machines.  They are bikes to have and enjoy just for the fun of riding  if you can afford such luxury, that is.  This is what real freedom of riding is all about, with an appropriate price tag.  And that’s exactly what I have in mind, if I ever buy one of these machines, I will enjoy it and proceed to ignore the price tag.  They are fun machines, they are stylish, they are simple, but they are not practical nor cheap.

Is BMW’s scrambler late to the party? 

Yes and no.  It probably won’t sell as many as R nineT’s or Scrambler Ducatis were sold in their first couple of years of production.  But BMW R nineT Scramblers will sell well and will probably have a good shelf life.  I could be wrong, meanwhile here I offer a few points on this matter.

BMW started its heritage campaign with the R nineT and that bike has been representing BMW on the heritage wave in a roadster fashion.  BMW could have turned it into a scrambler right away, instead, it seems, BMW timed its release to enter the market when the R nineT sales would be projected to cool down. Good for a production line that will be share by these two bikes, actually.  A third quarter of 2016 for their Scrambler to enter the market, as BMW anticipates, seems just perfect considering until recently R nineT deliveries dealt with waiting lists.  Therefore, the Scrambler will be a new entry when this market will have matured and would be looking for something new.

BMW R nineT

Because it is already following the footsteps of the R nineT model, it will likely have both an immediate following and it will also bring fresh air to the R nineT line.  It may not sell at the levels the original R nineT sold when it was first launched, but who knows, BMW motorcycles with their boxer motors have been the base for many riders’ scrambler projects.  Chances are the new Scrambler will be a “natural” for many potential buyers looking for a scrambler.

Luis Moto’s Scrambler version of the BMW R nineT – it will look and perform better with the 19-inch front wheel of the BMW R nineT Scrambler

Furthermore, the motor on the R nineT and R nineT Scrambler is the last generation of the BMW air-cooled boxer.  I’ve been estimating this run of air-cooled motors to end after the water-cooled boxers arrived and I have been proven wrong by the R nineT project. Then I thought the R nineT would be short-lived in air-cooled fashion and that soon its motor would be changed to the water-cooled version of the motor.  I was wrong again, so far.  Air cooled motors, because of their need for broader temperature tolerances are in general less fuel-efficient therefore more difficult to pass increasingly tighter emissions legislation.  This last generation of the 1200cc boxer is one of the best BMW air-cooled motors (the est in my opinion) and that on itself is a reason to get this bike, especially when you consider, who knows when, these motors will eventually be extinct.

The air-cooled boxer motor lives on – and 19-inch front wheel

The motor is the essence of a motorcycle.  Scrambler Ducati’s L-twin motors are also air-cooled and in Ducati’s model line up the Scrambler motors are also the only version of the original air-cooled L-twin motors that made Ducati into what they are today, when in the 70’s Ducati transitioned from single cylinder to twin cylinder motors.  Moto Guzzi’s V-7 motor is another great version of traditional air-cooled motors still being sold today.  Triumph, on the other hand, has abdicated of their air-cooled motors in their re-modeled 2016 Bonneville line, Yamaha’s 2016 700XSR is also water-cooled.  Therefore BMW, Ducati and Moto Guzzi will have their scramblers carrying the heritage of these companies’ air cooled motors which were so important for them in the 60’s and 70’s, and which have a following today.

Steel tank on the Scrambler, as opposed to Aluminum in the R nineT

Finally, the Scrambler’s branch on the R nineT will enter the market at a lower entry value than the R nineT did.  How much, I don’t know, I would estimate between US$1,000 and US$2,000, perhaps closer to the latter, less than the R nineT prices.  Reports indicate it offers less expensive components, including the tank which is made of steel and not aluminum like in the R nineT.  It will have alloy wheels instead of spoke wheels.  It will have only one clock as the instrument cluster. Who knows what else is on the list that will help lowering its price point.

Alloy wheels on the scrambler as opposed to spoke wheels on the R nineT

Having said that, BMW Motorrad video indicates this bike will be offered in packages such as the option of two clocks in the instrument cluster, spoke wheels, different seat options among other possibilities.

Traditional fork gaiters

By the way, the spoke wheels that will be available for the Scrambler, at least in what has been released in official BMW photos so far, indicate it will be similar (if not the same) to the wheels you find on the R1200GS: it will be tubeless, which in my opinion is better than what we find on the R nineT today and I do think they look better too!  But it will certainly jack that price of the Scrambler to closer to that of the R nineT.

BMW Motorrad photo – Spoke Wheels for tubeless tires – same or similar to the R1200GS wheels

In other words, I predict this bike will sell well because air-cooled boxer motors land well with the idea of scrambler motorcycles, because the motor represents one of the last chapters on BMW’s Motorrad air-cooled boxer motors history, and it will be the least expensive model (more affordable model?) one can find with a boxer motor in BMW’s line up.

Single clock on the Scrambler (BMW, could you make it the RPM gauge with speed digital?)

It will sell well, but it will still be a scrambler. Not a GS. Not a roadster. However, considering how many R nineTs are out there, who knows. Time will tell. I do think BMW’s Scrambler line will have its own trajectory, different than what we see on other scramblers.

Akrapovic Exhaust

Will I buy a Scrambler?

I’ve never owned a scrambler machine but several times I toyed with the idea of building my own, which is part of the fun about owning a scrambler.  I thought about 70’s Honda CB’s, and 60’s or 70’s BMW’s as a good starting base. I actually looked for 1970’s BMWs for sale at some point and eventually test rode one as a real option for building my own scrambler.

BMW Scrambler, similar to what I would like to build – photo source: web images

I also thought about the ready-made Triumph Bonneville or the ready-to-be-made-into-a- scrambler Moto Guzzi V7.  But in the end, I never quite made the move.  And then I rode the BMW R nineT and I fell in love with its boxer motor.

I’ve ridden GS boxers before, from 1970’s air heads to 2000’s oil and air-cooled to 2013 and newer water-cooled machines.  The water-cooled machines were the only ones I liked up until the R nineT experience.  I confess I was not expecting much from the R nineT which is based on the last generation of the air/oil cooled boxer motors I’ve ridden before.

Air-cooled boxer motor: going, going…

Somehow this motor in its R nineT form caught me by surprise.  Perhaps it is because these machines are not meant to be ridden fast and they are so much fun at the meat of their torque curve, and the R nineT is a lighter machine when compared to a GS.  Perhaps the air-cooled motor has been worked some for the R nineT application.  The result is that this motor’s torque at low to mid range, its sublime gear box, its sounds, they all work its magic in the R nineT making it one of the most fun motorcycles I’ve ever ridden in a 60-70/100 pace – which is ideal for these machines – and it is ideal for my riding style on pavement.  I was sold.  Except that its styling didn’t quite work for me. Maybe I should build my own scrambler out of the R nineT.

“Home made” scrambler out of BMW R nineT

I decided to wait.  And it was not in vain, as the BMW scrambler version of the R nineT seems to check all the fun boxes better than what I could make it be myself.  I really like the looks of this bike, what they changed from the R nineT to make it happen.

Nice lines!

It looks retro, it is subdued, it has better ergos (in my opinion) than the R nineT.  And I really like the color combination as well.  Just wished the seat was real leather and the single clock showed RPM and not travel speed (BMW here is a suggestion, use the digital space on the clock to show speed, make the analog clock a tachometer).

I want one.

In the end, all it needs to do is to have the same motor characteristics as that of the R nineT, which it will (there is no reason to think it won’t).

I definitely want one.

If so, it is a bike I would like to own. It would probably be in the front of the line in my shed, the one I will likely take on most of my rides around town.  I look forward to the third quarter of 2016 (July-September) when, according to BMW, this bike will be available.

Next series of posts will be about my new-to-me bike, a 2015 CB500X I purchased with slightly more than 300 miles on the clock.  It will include posts about the building of this bike into an adventure bike using a Rally Raid Products kit and its maiden dirt voyage in the Death Valley in California earlier in March.

Thank you for reading and Stay tuned!

I stopped by the European Motorcycles of Western Oregon for a quick chat with the guys at the shop and was caught by surprise by the 2016 XDiavel S at display on the show room.

I did not have my cameras with me, so my smart phone camera took care of documenting this bike.  Do you remember, not too long ago, when we had those first cameras on mobile telephones, from the time when they were called cell phones? Today’s telephones have great cameras, and we refer to them as smart phones. What’s next?

Anyway, there it was, the XDiavel, the machine that evolved from the Diavel, bringing this family of bikes closer to the cruiser style.  Well, you could say it is a cruiser, if for anything, this bike has the forward foot controls, wide handlebars, and a low seat height.

And it has a V-twin motor… which is the most typical configuration for American cruisers.  Yes, let’s call it a cruiser.

However, when you look at the scale of the bike and the spec sheet, the story start diverting. This bike is compact, for starters.  Which is a good thing in my book.  Second, the motor, a 1262 cc it is different enough from the 1200 DVT you find on the Multistrada. It is tuned for torque at a lower RPM range but still has the Ducati DNA (according to reviews of the people who have ridden this machine). The motor is rated at 95 ft-lb of torque at 5,000RPM with a substantial portion of it reached as low as 2,500RPM, but it still has 156 HP to be reached at 9,500 RPM.  You see what I mean? Not sure there is a cruiser out there with these specs.

I can’t wait for an opportunity to ride an X Diavel to not only experience this variation of the DVT motor, but to learn how it matches with the ergonomics of a cruiser.  Can you imagine a canyon ride with this bike, going fast, with feet forward?  It allows for a 40 degree lean, I hear.

For now I was happy for the opportunity to look at the details of what this bike offers.  For example, the foot controls have adjustments for three forward positions.  If you don’t want the controls set forward, you can get a kit and install them at the regular Diavel position.  If you consider you can also change the seat and adjust handlebars, the combinations of all changeable options allow for 60 different riding positions according to Ducati.

Left foot controls positioned at the most forward setting

The motor has all oil and coolant passages routed internally.  You are not going to see hoses hanging out. And the motor looks looks good with styled belt covers.

No oil or coolant hoses hanging out. Nice looking motor!

I like the glossy pain finish of the S model, including the detail of a center matte black stripe, edged on one side by a fine red stripe.  The XDiavel base model has a black matte color.

Matte black center stripe with fine red stripe. A detail that makes a difference.

The exhaust comes out from the side just ahead of the rear wheel.  It looks great, although we will probably see some interesting variations on the theme by the after market industry.

Short exhaust exiting on the side with a dual pipe configuration , if we can call that a pipe…

Interesting cartoon look to the exhaust pipes, that are so short they are more like tips.

The wheels are very nice as well. These rims are exclusive for the S version.

The seat, not sure how it goes when riding, but it feels good, looks good too. Want to bring a passenger? There is an adapter that extends the rear seat and offers a short back support. Not sure how that will really go, but passengers probably need to have a good sense of adventure to get on the back of this bike – irrespective of the rider’s abilities. The bi-material of the seat, it has what seems to be an imitation suede, is also exclusive for the S version.

Same goes for the billet rearview mirrors.

Billet rearview mirrors – exclusive for the S model

The S model also has LED Daytime Running Lights and larger Brembo M50 monoblock calipers for the front brake.

Brembo M50 monoblock calipers for the SA model

And this billet support arm.

Then there is this interesting swing arm, and a first for Ducati, belt drive!

Single swing arm, belt driven.

Want interesting quirk on this bike is the launch control, called DPL (Ducati Power Launch). Anyone interested in a drag race? Is this something important? Of course not, but I would put the thing to use if given the opportunity…

Ducati Power Launch – DPL

The bike offers three default riding modes:  sport, touring and urban.

Bluetooth module connects a smartphone to the dashboard, displays incoming calls, text messages and shows what music you are listening to.

And each one can be customized in terms of engine power delivery.

Engine can be set for high, medium or low power delivery.

The eight levels of traction control.

Eight levels of traction control.

And there are four settings for ABS.  There is ABS “off” and then three levels of intervention:  Expert, Sport and Safe & Stable.  By the way, this bike has the last generation of the Bosch “cornering” ABS, which is likely to be the “safe and stable” mode, the ABS 3 which is the default mode for Urban and Touring modes.

This bike has Bosch’s “Cornering” ABS

Overall, this is a good looking motorcycle. Yes, it is a cruiser of sorts.

You can clearly see the similarities between the XDiavel and the regular Diavel. However, the XDiavel seems to be a completely different motorcycle.  I like the XDiavel’s delicate features compared to the Diavel chunky panels.  I understand Ducati’s branding of this model via its headlight shape, but I wished it had a round headlight.  I think a round headlight would contribute to this bike’s cruiser vocation.

The XDiavel and the Diavel

I can’t wait for an opportunity to take this interesting bike for a ride. The local shop does not have a demo, so I will have to wait.

Who are the potential customers for this bike? Maybe Diavel riders?  Would a Harley Davidson rider switch to a Ducati?  Hardly (pun intended). Other Ducati riders looking into cruiser style riding and who were not convinced by the Diavel?  Anyone interested in something different, what this Ducati really seem to offer which has a foot on what cruisers are all about, the other on performance? Time will tell, but I’m certainly interested on this bike and how well it will do.

This post was supposed to be the beginning of the next series of posts covering my new-to-me bike, a 2015 CB500X I purchased with slightly more than 300 miles on the clock.  But I came across the X Diavel yesterday and I decided to report it before starting the series of posts about the building of the CB500X.  The following posts will describe what you need to transform the CB500X into an adventure bike using the Rally Raid Products Level 3 kit and its maiden dirt voyage in the Death Valley in California earlier in March.

Thank you for reading and Stay tuned!

This last February I spent a good amount of time in my garage, building a CB500X into an adventure motorcycle.  I never minded the winter with its cold and rainy evenings, the build of this bike in my garage was a fun process, a good portion of why I decided to buy a Honda CB500X.  This build process included preparing the shop, sourcing parts, and building some of the accessories myself.  The CB500X is relatively inexpensive and Rally Raid Products has a great plug and play kit for this bike, which helped on the decision.

How to forget about cold rainy winter evenings.

A second reason is to have a multi-cylinder adventure motorcycle that I can use for solo rides into the the unknown.  It slots nicely between my WR250R and my Tiger 800XC.  I was looking for a bike with a good level of reliability allied with as light weight as possible so I can pick it up from the ground, or be able to turn it around on tight trails or from a down hill situation, all by myself.  The CB500X’s weight is at the upper range of what I wanted (or can handle), but it is today the lightest multi-cylinder bike for such a project.  And it carries Honda’s reliability reputation.  It was about freedom, I wanted this motorcycle to not limit my choice of roads to travel or the desire to travel solo.

The 2015 Honda CB500X – Ready for adventure!

An added reason for this purchase was a friend of mine from High School and College, Julio (Juca) Petersen who lived in Florida.  He was diagnosed in October of last year with cancer.  He was a Honda rider, and along his life he had an XL250, an XL350, a Transalp and more recently an NC700X.  Should the treatment he underwent had worked, I was hoping he could make it here at some point for a ride with me.  This Honda would had been a perfect bike for him.  Unfortunately the progress of the disease was faster than what the treatment could do for him.  He passed away on February 3rd 2016.  This one is for you Juca!

Purchased the bike on January 9th, 2016.

Turning something negative into an opportunity, working on this bike during the month of February was a source of positive energy for me.  It was about working on motorcycles, something I always had wanted to do but had never felt the energy to pursue it.  Juca’s diagnosis and its outcome hit home pretty hard.  It was about losing a friend.  It was also about someone at my exact age and with similar trajectory in life, and who lived a healthier lifestyle than I did.  Therefore, let’s not procrastinate any longer, let’s build this thing, let’s do things I always wanted to do. We only live once…

Bike came with TKC80 tires, and the I got the Pirelli original tires as well.

I purchased the bike in January and immediately started sourcing parts for it.  The bike had 312 miles on the clock and came with several Rally Raid parts already installed including bash plate, adjustable levers, wide foot pegs, and rear brake reservoir protection.  It also came with TKC80 tires. I could not use the front tire as I was to change the 17 inch front to a 19 inch wheel, but the rear tire was new and re-mounted on the new spoke wheel that came with the Rally Raid kit.

Practically new!

In the next few posts I will document the process I went through for building this bike.  It includes setting up the shop for the build, what parts I bought for it, the parts I built, and its maiden voyage in the Death Valley.  The project included setting up the shop for the build, doing maintenance work on the WR250R that I also took to Death Valley and also maintenance on the truck to transport the bikes to California.

The project included setting up the shop and the CB500X itself. Because it culminated with taking this bike to Death Valley, I also worked on the Truck and the WR250R that I took as a back up bike.

There were steps of this build when the bike was disassembled to almost its core, but somehow I never doubted I could put it back together.  I was on a roll!

Working on the front forks.

I completed the project in time to join a couple of friends for the Death Valley ride.

Somewhere along Highway 89 in California, on my way to the Death Valley

The bike performed well in its maiden adventure.  Its main claim to fame was to conquer Goler wash and make it to the top of Mengel pass.

On top of Mengel Pass

It also survived a major sand storm, which covered the road I was traveling on with more than a foot of soft sand for several miles.  The bike did rather well on sand!  But that is a story for another chapter.

Sandstorm at the confluence of Warm Spring Canyon rd. and West Side rd.

Since the bike build was completed, and I went to Death Valley and back, I’ve been enjoying some of my free time on my reorganized motorcycle shop, having fun working on my bikes.  Stay tuned for the next set of posts about the building process and a more detailed account of this motorcycle’s first adventure.

Thank you for reading.

How many times I stared at this ad which is found on the last pages of American motorcycle magazines, where this Harbor Freight, made in China, Pittsburgh brand motorcycle lift is available for US$299.99.

Has anyone ever paid the “official” full price on this thing (what ever it is)?

I never bought it until now because I would likely not use it, I thought, or I wasn’t going to honor the idea of a having a lift in my garage if it was only to be used for oil changes, even if it is an inexpensive Harbor Freight lift.  At the same time the oil changes and air filter maintenance have been done with bikes on center stands too low to the ground.  The idea of building the CB500X into the adventure bike and the other reasons discussed earlier helped with the decision to finally buy this thing.

It is heavy in its box and getting it out of the truck by myself required ingenuity. I’ve seen better methods than dragging it out of the truck, the best so far was a guy who unboxed it on the truck bed itself, making it lighter (several pieces are not attached) for unloading.

Dragged the thing out of the truck using my motorcycle ramps, a car jack, and a pulley

I decided to paint the table of the lift, so now it looks like an upscale version of itself, version 2.0. Well, I do think it looks better in gray.

Harbor Freight lift version 2.0

The wheel chock that comes with these lifts needs an upgrade as well.  I used another Harbor Freight / Pittsburgh (what a team) part, and now it works very well.

Haror Freight lift version 3.0. It struggles a bit to lift the Tiger 800 XC, but it gets it done.

I like this chock, once you have the bike stable on the lift, if you need to work on the front of the bike, clamp the rear wheel down, you remove the front wheel clamping structure of this chock.

Front wheel clamps moved out of the way without the need of using tools

Now that I have the lift, I realize it is such a fun tool to have at my disposal.  I will use it to do a much needed oil change on the lawn mower, for example! Can you see the fun of having it on any shop?  It turns the shed into a shop in the first place.  If for anything it adds another work bench to the shop, even if I never use it to work on my bikes again.

On motorcycle forums everyone always find a point of disagreement on anything, from tires, to oil, to ABS, to motorcycle brands and even to things you think everyone would agree on.  Well, there is one exception just to make the rule: everyone agrees Harbor Freight tools are the lowest in terms of quality.  Their prices are ridiculously low as advertised, the reason for the low price, though, is different than what they claim.  It is the quality thing… everyone agrees, that’s a joke.  You have to have a good sense of humor to buy and use these tools. But you know what?  Most of the time they work.

Tools sourced from Harbor Freight, some from Home Depot.

Yes, I have a little cemetery of broken tools somewhere in my shop.  But then, the store is a couple of miles away, I just go back there and buy a replacement one.  On the other hand, some of their product selections will work really well, like this $29.99 chair I bought at Harbor Freight.  It is doing well, staying out on my office’s deck after 10 rainy winters so far.

Horbor Freight chair

As a bonus, when you walk into a Harbor Freight store they will have plenty of staff answering questions, they seem to know their stuff, and they are likely to have any tool that you need as specific and out of the ordinary as it may be.  Yes, I wish my shop was furnished by Snap On tools. But the Pittsburgh and Husky brands have been good to me.

Back to the lift, another good thing is that once you are done using it, you can move it out of the way, tuck it on the side of the shop on its side, and we can even park the car inside the shop.

Lift tucked away, on its side, car can be parked in the garage when lift is not being used

That was that for setting up the shop: I got the lift, I painted it, I got a better wheel chock, and it was ready for action.

Now for the most important element of the project, shop for parts for the bike.  The main item was the Rally Raid Products, Level 3 kit for the CB500X. It includes inserts for front suspension adding two inches of travel to the front forks, a rear shock, triple tree, spoked 19-inch front wheel and 17-inch rear wheel, extended side stand, front fender, and dog bone.  Bike gets an extra two inch of suspension travel and height.  Please note, I just checked Rally Raid’s site and they are selling this kit as they make them and there is a back log on the wheels. I got mine just in time, I realize…

Rally Raid Products Level 3 Kit for the CB500X available at Giant Loop

I also ordered a smaller slip-on exhaust (Leo Vince Corsa), luggage side racks (SW Motech), bark busters (Storm), and a tail tidy (R&G). I think that was it.  All suppliers were timely on their delivery of products.

Rally Raid came via FedEx, Giant Loop is just around the corner from me, world map speaking.

Rally Raid kit, three boxes, came via Fedex, the rest via UPS. Everything delivered on time and as promised.

The pile accumulated at the shop, and in between work travel, my evenings and weekends were dedicated to the building process.

Lots of goodies for the CB500X

There were a few other parts to complete the CB500X adventure project that were not available at the time I  was building the bike. One of them was a radiator protector (always on back order), so I built a temporary one which is staying for time being, very important item if you will ride this bike off pavement, especially on gravel roads! Another one is a headlight protector, that one I still haven’t ordered now that I know of a potential source – that’s the only item missing to complete the project as of now. I also built a GPS mount using the windscreen structure as a base and built an inner fender for the rear wheel to protect the shock.

On the next post of this series I will document the building (disassembly / assembly ) process.

Thank you for reading.

The purchase of this bike, the research about the adventure kit, the communication with Rally Raid Products team, sourcing or building the parts not included on the kit, getting a few odd tools here and there and getting the shop ready has been a great adventure already, and you can read about it on the two previous posts.  The result of this effort is a simple but effective adventure motorcycle and riding it has been a positive surprise.  However, that is for Part 4 of this story, on today’s post I will document the actual building of the bike.

Job completed! March 2016

Rally Raid Products took on the challenge of building an adventure bike kit for this machine.  They designed and developed three do-it-yourself kits for this bike and a few other parts and accessories to complement the kit.  The Level 3 kit, the one I got for my bike, is the version geared for more off road riding.  Below is a picture of what is included on the kit: 19 inch front and 17 inch rear spoke wheels, triple tree, revised dog bone, new shock, springs and valves for front forks, taller side stand and front fender.

Rally Raid Products Level 3 Kit for the CB500X available at Giant Loop

Getting the Rally Raid Kit

I purchased the kit via Giant Loop here in Oregon, who happens to be the sole representative of this kit by Rally Raid here in the United States.  I got top notch treatment by Harold Cecil at Giant Loop and Jenny Morgan at Rally Raid Products.  All my questions were answered within hours of my asking via email or telephone.

The instructions for the build, in chapters for each of the components of the Level 3 kit, are available on line in the Rally Raid Products site.  These instructions are well written, they have enough detail, step by step from the very start, with good quality photos.  Anyone with limited mechanical experience can give a shot at this build.  Believe me, if I can do it, you can do it as well.  I printed the instructions and consulted it along the build process.

Rally Raid Products – set of instructions for Installing Level III Kit on CB500X

Beyond the Rally Raid official instructions, Juan Browne‘s videos were invaluable to complete the job.  Juan is a CB500X owner and an enthusiast of the adventure kit, he has a great way with words and produces nice videos.  Juan’s videos on the build explain the steps of the process with a similar amount of detail as what you find in the instructions, but for some people, like me, a video is a better learning media.  I watched each video a couple of times and by the time I got to work on my motorcycle I knew exactly what needed to be done and in what order.  Still, I followed the printed, official instructions from Rally Raid Products on critical areas of the build.

Check the Rally Raid Instructions and Juan’s videos out before you make a decision whether you should give it a try to build it yourself or get assistance for certain parts of the build or you can get it completely done by a motorcycle shop.  Giant Loop itself offers to build the bike for you, or you can get a bike already built by them, a turn-key deal (at least they were making such an offer at some point).

Building my CB500X Adventure

I’m not going to give you step by step building instructions here, as the two sets of instructions I described above are excellent and I can’t possibly improve upon them!  I will simply document a summary of my steps and then show you a time-lapse of the entire build.

Reading the instructions and watching the videos was essential for planning the build.  By the time I got the kit I had all the tools I needed, I had the knowledge of what to do and had the shop ready to hit the ground running when everything arrived (see Parts 1 and 2 of this build).  I used my new lift to do this work. What a difference it makes to work with the bike at the right height for each part of the work.

Bike strapped to the lift

Day 1 (Saturday afternoon)

I decided to start with the easiest end of the build, the rear shock.  If you are new to to working on motorcycles I recommend breaking the process into clear steps and start with what you consider the more straight forward and simple step.  Once you accomplish the first step you will likely gain the confidence to move on to the more complicated parts of the build.

Lifted the rear of the bike with jack

Once the bike was strapped to the lift I used another jack to raise the rear of the bike.  The flat jack I used works well when you have the RRP bash plate installed already.  My bike already came with the bash plate, which was installed by the previous owner.  I removed the rear wheel and followed the steps on the instruction.  It was very simple and easy to make progress on this work, especially considering all fasteners are new (no rust in sight) on this bike.

Ready for new rear shock

The kit raises the bike 2 inches, the rear height increase comes from two changes: 1) the rear shock is taller, by almost two inches.

The white spring is on the new shock assembly, the black spring is on the OEM assembly

2) a revised dog bone provides a different leverage to the spring & shock structure completing the 2-inch increase on this bike’s ground clearance.

The RRP dog bone on the right

I did ask John Mitchinson, the Rally Raid Products owner and kit developer, about the strength of the revised dog bone, considering the shaft portion attaches to the bike and shock at an angle.  He did test it and showed the results where it will sustain the forces it needs to sustain, without breaking. Anyway, the shock went in without a hitch.

RRP rear shock installed

The remote reservoir with the clickers was installed close to the passenger peg, for easy access.

Shock reservoir and clickers, nice position, easy access

The rear shock was a rather easy job.  Certainly the lift made things a lot easier.  Of course, the RRP’s well written instructions and Juan’s videos were instrumental to make this build move smoothly.

The next step for day one was to prepare the bike for the triple tree and removal of the forks.  It turns out removing the front fairing was very straight forward as well, except for finding the right way to remove the electrical connections for the lights and turn signals which are inside the fairing with no easy access until the fairing is lose.  The entire front fairing is removed as one piece.

End of day 1, bike is ready for Day 2, front end work

At some point on Day 1 I installed the longer side stand.  Or did I do it on day 2?  That was a simple side project, pun intended.

Day 2, Sunday afternoon: Remove triple tree, remove forks, install Rally Raid triple tree

In theory this was the most difficult part of the build. And it turned out it was. I started by removing the front wheel.

Getting ready to tackle the most difficult part of the build

The difficult part of this step the drilling and removal of the security bolts of the ignition cylinder.  After destroying one platinum and two titanium drill bits I learned the key to success for this job is slow RPM on the drill.  Keep it cool and lubricated if needed, then it works really well.  Lesson learned.

I spent two much time drilling these security bolts

Once those bolts were removed the process went back to its easy and straight forward removal of parts and re-assembly, plug and play mode.  I removed the forks and the triple tree, getting the bike to its highest state of disassembly at this point of the project.

Highest state of disassembly for this project

Now is basically reassembly. First thing was to install the RRP triple tree.

Rally Raid Products Triple Tree for the CB500X: machined and anodized in black

And that was it for day 2.  Spending so much time drilling those bolts and having to go to the hardware store two times to get more drill bits eliminated my chances for finishing the job on this second day (well, actually I’ve been only working half days…).

Day Three (Monday Evening)

On day three (Monday evening) I started by preparing the folks (drain oil, remove OEM springs and valves and install RRP springs and valves, replace the oil).  I used the original tire chock that came on the lift and turned it into a vice to work on the forks. It gave me great leverage to remove the allen bolt at the bottom of the fork and then used the vice to keep the fork in the right position to drain the fork oil.

Secure fork to remove drain bolt and drain oil

Removing the OEM springs and valve is a very straight forward job.  On the photo below you will see in the middle the OEM springs (progressive springs) and valve and the RRP level 3 springs and valves. Notice that white plastic tube on the OEM set up.  That is a spacer and it is what allowed Rally Raid to conceptualize the idea of using the original forks for this bike and still gain two inches of travel with improved valves, springs and all.

RRP Level III springs and valves compared to OEM spring, valve and spacer (center)

Fitting the RRP fork internals was also a straight forward job.  The kit even included the fork oil!  Once I reinstalled the forks I was able to stabilize the bike so I could have both wheels out.

Both wheels out! Ready for final step.

That was it for Day 3, bike is now only waiting for the wheels, seat and fairing to be reinstalled.

Day 4 (Tuesday Evening)

On the morning I took the wheels to a local bike shop.  The bike came with Continental TKC 80 tires installed and the original Pirelli Scorpions which had been dismounted offf the wheels with less than 300 miles.  All I needed to do was to buy a 19in TKC 80 to complete the set (I have an extra 17 inch front wheel TKC 80).  A local shop mounted the 17in and 19in TKC 80s on the spoke wheels and re-mounted the Pirelli Scorpions on the original alloy wheels.  Now I can re-install the original wheels on the bike when I want to have it in Super Moto mode!

Wheels ready to be set up with the proper tires

Once I installed the wheels on the bike I took it out of the lift to see how it stood and to check if everything looked and felt okay.  And of course, to see how much taller the bike was.  And it is taller by at least two full inches as mentioned by other reviewers.

All I have to do now is install the fairing, with the dashboard, windscreen and headlight.

The bike was looking like a real adventure bike by this time. It looks interesting without the fairing.  One day we will have an adventure bike that will not look like a transformer toy.  It will not have a beak, no tall dirt-bike front fender, no fairing (just a small windscreen), and with round headlights.  Yes, one day, a scrambler-styled motorcycle build around a solid adventure motorcycle platform (suspension, electronics) set up properly for adventure (subframe for travel with gear).  But I digress.

Almost ready!

From here on it was all about getting the fairing and side panels back on the bike and the job was complete. There are some rubber grommets on some of the side panel fasteners that you need to make sure you know they are there and keep track of them on disassembly.  You will need them to secure the panels properly during reassembly.

RRP Level III Kit installed, bike is almost ready for an adventure

Here is a time lapse of the building process.

A Few Final, Important Touches

The RRP Kit is the major step on this build.  However, to complete the “adventure” project this bike required a few more steps: a GPS base, 12V power source by the handlebars, side racks, bags, tail tidy (well this one is not an adventure requirement), a radiator protector, a shock protector, bark busters, and Leo Vince slip on exhaust (well this last one is not an adventure requirement but it is smaller than the OEM exhaust allowing more options for bags).

GPS base and mount.  I like the GPS to be as tall as possible so my eyes to do not need to divert much from the road when I want to check information.  This bike’s structure for the windscreen is perfect for such a tall installation.  I checked the pile of scrap metal in my shop and found two pieces of aluminum that only required a slight convincing (cutting, bending and drilling) to take the shape required for their new job.

GPS mount: Checking my scrap metal box and parts bin I found what I needed

And here it is installed on the bike, where it positions the GPS just above the instrument cluster.  Perfect!  It has an extra RAM base for a second GPS or other gadget.

GPS mounted (this GPS is a car GPS, a cheap Nuvi something or another (the smallest I could find)

12V Power Source. Power for the GPS was via a cable connected directly to the battery and brought forward to the instrument cluster area.

I always have these cables around.

The cable has to be long enough to travel from the battery (under the seat) to the front of the bike.

Powelet 12V power source by the instrument cluster.

It allows connecting various types of plugs and devices at the front of the bike.

Several options available

I have a second cable that I use to trickle charge the battery.  It also works for charging devices carried on the bike’s bags.

Cable for trickle charger for the battery.

R & G Tail Tidy.  This is not an adventure requirement but it makes the bike more compact, and works better for the smaller American license plates.

OEM on the left, R & G on the right, ready to be installed

It requires a good amount of disassembly on the rear of the bike for installation but it is all plug and play.  R & G offers a smaller tail tidy which will require sawing a small portion of the metal structure on the rear of the bike.  I picked the size that allows the bike to be reversed back to OEM condition.

Ready for installing R & G tail tidy

SW Motech Side Racks:  I like soft bags, I have two sets of Giant Loop bags (Coyote and Great Basin) that work really well on this bike.  However, I like the practicality of side bags, smaller side bags, how I have on my WR250X.  I chose side racks because they offer more options for soft, side bags.  Particularly I chose the SW Motech racks because they can be easily disassembled when they are not needed and they are positioned closer to the bike and not too far back.

SW Motech side racks

However, with the tail tidy bringing the blinkers back, there is a fight for space between the side racks and the blinkers I did not anticipate.

SW Motech side racks and blinkers relocated with tail tidy fight for same space

The blinkers are still visible.  This may need to be addressed. Or not.

Softbags.  I like my WR250X dirtbaz as mentioned earlier, for practicality (easy access, small).  Therefore that’s what I installed on this bike. I also like the idea of a same set of bags that can be transferred from one bike to the other. I can use my Giant Loop bags on all my bikes.  The dirtbagz work only on the CB500X and the WR250R.  You will see the dirtbagz are installed on reverse position on the CB500X, when compared to how they are installed on the WR250R.  It allows the shape of the bag to give room for the CB500X’s lower but angled up exhaust.

Dirtbagz

The problem I encountered is that the bags attached with straps did not stay in place on my first dirt ride in the Death Valley.  As a result they fell backwards, turned, and landed on the exhaust.

At the cabin on Hunter Mountain in Death Valley. Dirtbagz is burned…

The right (exhaust side) bag burned really good.

Dirtbagz burned…

I bought a new set of Dirtbagz and installed a loop on my SW Motech racks to keep the bags in place, similar to how they are installed on official racks made by Dirtbagz (they do not make a rack for the CB500X – I wish they did – it would certainly work much better and be lighter).

Temporary solution, will look for a larger loop and then seal the connections.

Having said that, my rigging of the rack does the job now, the bags are installed firm now, they don’t move and clear the exhaust very well.  And now the bags are placed forward enough that they do not interfere with the blinkers.

New set up. Bags do not interfere with blinkers.

After 200 miles riding with the new bags carrying a good load of heavy tools and spare tubes and the new attachments on the loops were approved, the bags did not move and did not burn either.

New Dierbagz – survived 200 miles of riding carrying a typical load

For over night camping trips all I need to do is place a duffel bag on the back of the bike and I’m all set. I could also fit my Great Basin Giant Loop bag (or the Coyote) and I should be fine as well. Please note, neither my Giant Loop bags nor my Dirtbagz are waterproof.  I purchased a water proof duffel bag to keep camping gear and clothes dry if it comes to that.  For everything else, camera equipment and electronics, I have waterproof containers that fit in the dirtbagz.

Radiator Protector.  R & G makes a great plug and play radiator protector for this bike. Unfortunately during the entire time I was building this bike and getting it ready for its maiden trip at the Death Valley they were on back order. What to do? Build your own. I used a piece of gutter leaf guard, cut it to the appropriate dimension, doubled up a portion of it to get more structure to it, and zip-tied it to the bike.  Works wonderfully well!

Gutter leaf guard (aluminum) and zip ties do a great job!

Shock protector.  There are neoprene sleeves for the shock available in the market.  But I like to see that nice white spring. The solution was to fabricate my own inner fender (from car carpets, a left over from my Triumph Tiger project – similar application) and screw it to a plastic frame under the seat. Perfect.

Inner fender – shock protector

Hand guards. Hand guards are very important to protect brake and clutch levers during a fall.  I chose the Barkbuster Storm, another straight forward job.

Barkbuster Storm works well.

The only item missing is a protector for the headlight.  I found a Thai made metal guard, which should work really well.

This is it. The bike, with the Rally Raid Products level 3 and a few other accessories looks great and it has shown it delivers the adventure riding experience. The bike, Level 3 kit installed, is surprisingly good on pavement, does rather well on the twisties, and it is awesome on dirt roads.  If you like to ride a bike fast on gravel roads, I can assure you the “adventurized” CB500X will deliver.  No need for traction control when the power delivery is somewhat soft, you can ride it with abandon, push it, and it will perform rather controlled rear wheel slides on dirt and gravel roads.  Just not quite a rally machine, but good enough for plenty of fun.  I really like it.

But this is what we will talk about on the next post.

Thank you for reading.

This was my fourth visit to Northern California with the 2013 Ducati Multistrada Pikes Peak.  There is no question, this type of travel, bike loaded with travel gear and all, and ride it on nice roads we find in Northern California is perhaps what the Multistrada is all about.  Much more than urban, and I should not even mention enduro, this motorcycle is about sport touring.  Emphasis on sport or not, it does very well on touring duty.

2013 Multistrada Pikes Peak – All packed and ready to go for another trip to Northern California!

We could leave the urban and enduro modes of this motorcycle as a function of its upright riding position, which I actually like and is what makes this motorcycle look they way it does, unique when it was launched in 2010.  Today we have so many other bikes offering similar interpretations to sport-touring on an adventure-style shape.

I basically only ride it on Touring or Sort modes.

Now that Ducati has developed the Multistrada Enduro, perhaps we can free ourselves from interpreting the Multistrada as a four-mode machine.  I’m on my fourth year of ownership of this bike and I never used the “enduro” mode, even when I’ve taken this motorcycle off-pavement.  And I only use “urban” in very few instances when I get stuck on traffic and want the bike lower for a better reach to the ground from my 30 inch inseam.  I can confirm, after three and a half years of ownership, this bike is a sport tourer.

Raring to go!

In Touring or sport mode, my rides rides to Northern California, or anywhere requiring 500 mile days, with a good section of twisties, from tight to long sweeping curves, are the ideal environment for this motorcycle.  It is where I get the most satisfaction from riding it, it is where this motorcycle makes the most sense to me.  In my opinion, the Multistrada did set the bar higher for motorcycle travel offering a great combination of performance, comfort, and capacity to carry gear. Very few motorcycles offer this combination without compromising much one or the other functions. On top of that, since 2013 the Multistrada has the option of semi-active suspension, besides ABS, traction control and other electronic aids. It was the first to bring riding modes and a suite of technological riding aids to this type of motorcycles.

The Multistrada with Mt Shasta on the background

As an Italian citizen, I’m amazed my compatriots have conceptualized and delivered such a machine, and even more, have created a new segment for touring motorcycles.  This bike is no longer unique in its configuration for several years already, and this field is growing each year with new bikes such as the KTM 1290 GT, the BMW S1000XR, and there are so many other great sport-tourers, bikes with great and powerful motors built on travel-ready frames with comfortable adventure style ergonomics, and packed with a suite of high tech riding aids.

KTM 1290 GT

The Multistrada remains such a great product, it has been the leader of this segment, and since the 2015 model, with its DVT version, it has raised the sport touring bar.  We, the consumers, benefit from such improvements as these bikes have brought to the market riding modes, motorcycle stability control (cornering ABS), semi-active suspension, traction control and of course, more power…  When time comes to upgrade my Multistrada, there are so many other options out there, but for now the Pikes Peak DVT is at the top of my short list.  For now, though, I’m really happy with what I have.  And the report on this trip describes why.

The Multistrada Pikes Peak entering California for the fourth time.

As I was saying at the beginning of this post, before I got distracted declaring my respect to this type of motorcycle and in particular to the Ducati Multistrada Pikes Peak, this was my fourth trip to Northern California with this bike.  These gatherings are organized by a group of Ducati riders who participate in the Ducati.ms forum.  Locations are chosen with the goal being to provide riders with a great selection of fun roads.  This gives me a chance to talk about the Butler motorcycle maps.

Butler Motorcycle Maps

There are a few books describing great riding roads, and like those books, these series of maps rate roads based on a motorcycling criteria.  I would have color-coded them differently, going from yellow to orange to red as a gradient.  Instead, they rate yellow at the highest level, then red and last orange.  Bottom line, yellow, red and orange roads are expected to be fun riding roads.

Wouldn’t you change the colors to from yellow to orange to red or vice-versa?

Although not using Butler maps in specific, we decide the location for these meetings using a similar criteria to what Butler maps provide.  On my first two years attending these meetings the get together was in Graeagle.  And the last two years have been in Weaverville.

Weaverville, surrounded by G1 (yellow), G2 (red) and G3 (orange) roads.

For next year, there has been talks about Topaz Lake close to the birder with Nevada and not too far from Yosemite.  Who knows, these decisions are not final until the winter, when we dedicate more time to planning, but I like the idea of changing locations every two years or so and exploring new areas.  I’ve never been to Yosemite.

Next year, Topaz Lake?

Back to 2016, this year’s ride from Eugene to Weaverville was rather eventful.  I was supposed to leave early in the morning with a plan to go to Crater Lake and from there to Klamath Falls and then Weed (now in California) and from Weed take SR3 to Weaverville. Since I didn’t leave until 10 in the morning, I by-passed Crater Lake on this trip.

These trips happen in the later part of June, which usually is already settled for summer at these parts of the world, meaning chances for rain are very small.  Not the case for 2016.  My choice of roads turned adventuresome as I got low temperatures at the Cascades.

And lots of rain for good portions of the trip, including hail!

And then all sorts of deer… can you see this one right in the middle of the road?  Well, deer is not the result of my choice of roads, but I had never seen these many deer crossing roads like on this trip.

And even one elk.  That thing was tall!

From these two pictures it looks as if the deer and the elk are far away, but remember, this is taken with the GoPro camera on its widest angle.  In other words, they were not too far from me.  And this is just a sample of the more than seven deer I encountered on this trip.  The ones that I saw, that is, because they crossed the road in front of me, I would guess there were plenty more.  Be careful out there!

I made it into Weaverville by 6pm under a good amount of rain.  I got settled at the hotel, I was the first to arrive, so I went on a walk to “downtown” Weaverville for dinner.

Downtown Weaverville, June 2016

By the time I was back from dinner others had arrived.  The plan was to go decide which way to go on the next day, chose a set of the many nice roads in the area.  Instead, it rained, it rained a lot!

The bike in the porch of my hotel cabin, protected from torrential rains

That’s sheets of water…

Sheets of water, literally.

A few guys ventured out of town and got a good day of riding, as the rain was mostly circumscript to Weaverville, after all.  I joined the lazy bastards crew.

Shooting the sh!t and bench racing under the porch

And that’s how things stayed until the caterers showed up with dinner.

Portable barbecue

On the next day, Saturday, my last day on this trip, we woke up to a sunny day, no indication it had ever rained in that area.

Packing the bike, ready to ride back to Eugene, first stopping at Eureka.

The plan was to go to Eureka and have lunch at the Black Lightening Cafe, an establishment owned by a rider and which has become a hangout for local motorcyclists or any rider traveling on 101.  People would come back from Eureka and leave Sunday.  Because Eureka is on my way back home I decided to travel north from Eureka in the direction of home.  Everyone got ready in time and we were off towards Eureka, traveling on SR3 and then SR36, two great, highly recommended roads (check the map photo above, plenty of yellow, red and orange rated segments on these roads).

Getting ready to leave towards Eureka

I have some video of the ride on SR3, but it is taking me a long time to get it ready, editing video is not my strongest suite (yet) but I promise I will put something together for your enjoyment.  It is a lot better in telling how fun these roads are, much better than any words I could use to describe what it is to ride on these roads.  We stopped a couple of times along the way.

We made it to Eureka just at the right time for lunch.

Exclusive motorcycle parking in front of the Black Lightening Cafe

All settled for lunch!

Motorcycle-only parking!

Great food, great conversations.  The Black Lightening Cafe also sells riding gear, by the way.

Black Lightning Cafe, Eureka, California

From there I said my goodbyes to the gang and started my ride back home via 101, enjoying the coast.

Somewhere on 101 already in Oregon

I thought about spending the night at some place along the way but in the end, as I continued north, I realized I could make it home before dark.

Made it back home just before it got dark

Despite the rain on the way down to California, despite the heavy rain on the day I had scheduled to ride in the area without the travel load on the motorcycle, I can’t complain.  It was fun riding in the rain and it was fun riding on the way down from Weaverville to Eureka, even with the bike loaded.  After all, this is what this bike is all about. 500 mile-days is nothing for this bike, traveling with it loaded, not a big deal.

An amazing motorcycle

Sunday morning I washed the bike, checked all fluids, cleaned and lubed the chain, it was ready for the next adventure. What an amazing machine.

Also, I want to make a note, this is a great group of riders and I really enjoy this annual event, I’m already looking forward to next year’s meeting, be it in Topaz Lake or not.  People from several riding backgrounds show up, some don’t even ride a Ducati (they once had a Ducati motorcycle).  There is a great sense of camaraderie within the group and to me, in particular, these events are part of my road riding school.  Among this group of riders there are some excellent riders and following them on the road has been a lesson on fast but safe road riding every time. Thank you!  And I want to include a special thank you to Scott and Jessica who organize these events!

What’s next for this site? I still have several reports to draft and publish: The CB500X Adventure and its maiden ride in the Death Valley; riding the XDiavel, riding the BMW R nineT (again!), and talking about motorcycle GPS.  And videos to edit to complement the stories!  Stay tuned!

Take a look at this  motorcycle.  Doesn’t it look great in my garage?

It feels at home!

I like the boxer motor, the nice shape of the tank and the overall nice lines of a standard concept.

Air-cooled (oil-cooled) boxer motor and a nicely shaped tank. Overall, a standard motorcycle!

But I prefer the Scrambler version of this bike, based on what I saw on the One Moto Show in Portland earlier this year.

The R NineT Scrambler at the One Moto Show in Portland, February 2016

The BMW R NineT Scrambler is just about to be released in the United States, and I think the Scrambler would look great in my garage.  Although it is called a “scrambler” it remains a street machine, in my opinion, just that I like better the scrambler looks and it will match my other bikes.

The main differences between the R NineT and its Scrambler version? A 19-inch front wheel (you can get the tubeless spoke wheels of the GS on the Scrambler), riding position might be slightly taller, the bike overall should be an inch or two taller. The other changes are a steel tank (instead of the aluminum tank of he R NineT) and lower specs, but hopefully still good enough, for components such as brakes and suspension.

BMW Motorrad photo – R1200GS Spoke Wheels

When did I start wondering about a BMW Scrambler in my garage?

A standard motorcycle has been on my short list of bikes to have for a while and this BMW package in Scrambler guise seems to check all the boxes of my wish list.  Several years ago I was considering the Boneville Scrambler and the Moto Guzzi V7.  I also thought about buying a 70’s BMW to turn into a scrambler, a look I like.  I wanted something simple, not too tall, not too heavy, with no fairings or windscreens, just an essential motorcycle for every day riding and for relaxing rides not too far from town.  Just a fun, back to the riding basics, lay back motorcycle.

An honest Moto Guzzi V7 or something similar to this BMW Scrambler is what I ultimately wanted

Motorcycles have been evolving over the years. If we assume a past point in time, let’s go back to what we may call the standard bike, the basic upright motorcycle with a round headlight and no fairings of the 60’s and 70’s.  For sake of argument, let’s consider those bikes the “common ancestor” of today’s bikes because they already had all the essential elements and operating gear we see in motorcycles today. (Maybe we need to leave cruisers out of this scenario as “our” common ancestor with them may have been produced a few decades earlier.)

People would buy those standard motorcycles, be them BMW’s, Triumphs, Hondas, and the many others available at that time and would take upon themselves to make changes to them, usually by eliminating parts to turn them into scramblers and flat trackers, adding lowered and narrower handlebars to turn them into roadsters, or adding fairings and bags to turn them into tourers.  Eventually manufacturers themselves offered a line of accessories, like fairings and bags to make money with the transformation process.  And later on some equipment came with the bikes as standard options.  Gradually more differentiation took place to a point where today these bikes are designed from the ground up for a specialized and specific use, and hence look and perform so differently one from the other.

BMW’s view on motorcycle types for the American market

From the original scramblers we today have dirt bikes, enduro bikes and adventure bikes. From the basic standards with windshields and bags we today have touring and sport touring bikes. From roadsters and cafe racers we got sport bikes and street fighters.  I enjoy my Ducati Multistrada because it is such an awesome sport-tourer and no standard motorcycle with mods and all could match this bike’s performance on 500-mile days, carrying gear and all.  I enjoy my WR250R because right off the box it performs on dirt  better than any scrambler has ever been able to.

Despite all the benefits we have gotten from this evolving process however, a standard motorcycle has been increasingly capturing my imagination mostly because the specialized bikes have distanced me from the pure riding sensations, something only a standard motorcycle delivers.  And I always enjoyed riding standards, since the first standard I’ve ever ridden, a Honda CG125.

Honda CG125

But there is one remaining contradiction with my enjoyment of riding standard motorcycles. Let’s go back to my idea of getting a BMW of the 70’s and turn it into a scrambler. When I got to ride one of them recently, it became a turning point on my plans. I test rode an R90 and it felt like a tractor and handled like if the frame was made of rubber with the front wheel going on a direction, the rear wheel on another.  And what about the brakes?  They were made of wood it seemed.

My memory of the fun riding experiences from the past had been obfuscated by time and the gradual improvements on technology that occurred during the last 30 years.  I realized riding new motorcycles had raised the bar on what to expect from a motor and chassis.  The 1970’s BMW is extremely cool, but it does not deliver a basic level of performance I expect today without modifications that are certainly beyond my capacity or perhaps the bike’s capacity itself.  Yes for the standard’s basic shape, ergonomics and feel.  No for the motor, chassis and brakes.

A BMW /5 of the early 70’s

But there were newer and traditional motorcycles in the market, as I mentioned earlier I had been thinking about the Moto Guzzi V7 and the Triumph Boneville.  My idea about buying the V7 or Boneville was put on hold when I heard about the new Scrambler Ducati.  The air-cooled Ducati L-twin motor was a major attraction. So I decided to wait until I could ride a Scrambler Ducati and make my mind.  However, before I had a chance to ride the Ducati, BMW launched and offered demo rides on the BMW R NineT.  And that was quite the experience, and another turning point, this time a very positive one.

Riding the 2015 BMW R nineT, April 2015

I must have ridden more than 50 different motorcycles since I started riding.  The BMW R NineT was clearly my all time favorite for relaxed rides on pavement.  It was the one which provided me with the best riding experience. It is a basic formula: a standard motorcycle with a great motor, brakes and suspension.  Because it is an air-cooled boxer motor it retains some of the older motorcycles’ tradition alive delivering the sound and the feel of the past.  However, this motor was on the very successful and mainstream BMW GS line until four years ago and because of that it has been through many upgrades, it is basically a modern motor, with modern touring dynamics and performance. Now you put this motor on a compact package with a solid well designed chassis, and the result is phenomenal.

Riding the R NineT, April 2015

Once I knew a Scrambler version of this bike was on the works, I had a feeling it was going to be an interesting motorcycle.

Riding the BMW R NineT, Spring 2015

While we don’t have the Scrambler available for a ride yet, the best way to have a feel for how the Scrambler will ride would be to take the current R NineT bike for a ride again, and while at it purposefully project how it would possibly behave in Scrambler guise.

Riding another R Nine T. July 2016.

I had ridden the R Nine T in Spring of 2015, that has been more than a year already. What I remembered from that test ride of the R  NineT was how I enjoyed the motor in terms of performance, especially at low to middle RPM ranges. I also remember what a great and smooth gear box it had.  A motorcycle that seemed perfect for in-town riding or for relaxed and even somewhat spirited rides on the many great roads on the south hills not too far from town.

Perfect for an after work trip to the wineries.

The 2016 model I took for a ride this last month (July 2016), had the brushed aluminum tank with the visible weld on the tank.  I actually like this package better than the black one.

Brushed aluminum tank with visible weld on the 2016R NineT

But the Scrambler matte gray with the brown seat looks even better in my opinion.

Steel tank on the Scrambler, as opposed to Aluminum in the R nineT

Back to this last month’s ride, turning the motor on, there it was, that nice sound of the boxer twin I had almost forgotten already.  I assume the R Nine T and its Scrambler version will sound about the same, although the R Nine T has the exhaust on a lower position.

R Nine T Exhaust

And the Scrambler has the pipe exiting in the typical higher scrambler position.  I want to think the Scrambler version with the Akrapovic exhaust will sound as good as the regular R NineT does.

R Nine T Scrambler exhaust.

Placing my feet on the pegs of the R NineT and I immediately started wishing the Scrambler has a higher seat to peg distance.  I had forgotten this tighter roadster style rider triangle of the R NineT.  The Scrambler will be taller so there is a possibility for lower foot controls.  I checked on the motorcycle ergonomics site (cycle-ergo) and the BMW scrambler data is not there yet.  I examined photos of the two bikes side by side and it seems the frame is the same on both bikes, which makes sense.  But looking more closely, the foot controls of the Scrambler appear to be positioned about one inch lower than that on the regular R NineT.  I hope this is the case, if not someone will likely put together a kit for lowering the foot controls.

Boxer twin looks funny, looks traditional, behaves distinctively

Back to the motor, it vibrates like a motorcycle motor should vibrate.  Except that it has that boxer motor side torque push when you rev it in neutral. I think about it as a badge of tradition, the reminder that I was revving an unique motor. Once I put it in gear and started moving, the vibration and the side push disappeared. From that time on all I was enjoying was its torquey power delivery matched by a smooth gear box finished with the traditional boxer sound enhanced by a nice exhaust tune.

Riding the BMW R NineT, April 2015

Once on the hills, I was enjoying the bikes overall performance, its turn-in speed, and projecting whether it would maintain some of its characteristics on scrambler form. I like bikes with a taller stance, I like the way they fall into the lean. On taller bikes with taller front wheels the turn-in is slower and gradual, but wider bars (the general case for taller, enduro bikes) give you more leverage and compensate against the resistance, allowing light counter steering input to generate proper and quick lean action.

19-inch front wheel on the Scrambler

If the 19-inch front wheel slows things down a bit on the front while in motion, my dirt riding bias will actually appreciate this anticipated front end stability.  Just that I doubt it will have wider handlebars. I have heard, however, the Scrambler has a different rake and trail, and is expected to neutralize the effect of the larger wheel on turn-in speed.

Wider bars? Taller probably.

Moto-journalists from Europe have already had a chance to ride the bike, and the two reviews I’ve read so far have given exactly opposite opinions on this very matter.  One of them said turn-in on the Scrambler was faster than on the Roadster version while the other one said it was slower.  These two opposing perspectives that we have so far tell me there isn’t a clear difference among the two bikes.  Therefore, even if the actual turn-in speed is different, it is likely not by much.

Riding the R NineT, April 2016

For the rest of the changes that might make an impact on riding experience between these two bikes we have suspension and brakes.  We hear in both cases BMW procured lower quality components for the Scrambler… well, let’s say they procured more affordable components.  And again, the two journalists disagreed on how the Scrambler’s suspension behaved when compared to the R NineT.  One said he was surprised the Scrambler’s front end was stiffer than the R NineT despite its longer travel, while the other said the front end was softer on the Scrambler when compared to the R NineT.  Again it tells me the Scrambler will be fine.

BMW R NineT Scrambler at the One Moto Show, Portland, February 2016

Will I buy the BMW R NineT Scrambler?

I’m seriously considering it. Price is something to take into consideration, of course.  Pricing has been released in Europe, but not here in the United States.  We can make some projections based on European prices, with the caveat that this never quite happens in a simple way as it depends on the manufacturer’s world and local marketing strategy for the product as well as on what are local legislation requirements and taxation levels.  Having said that, here is a simplistic mathematical way to project US prices for this bike:

• Starting price in Italy for the R NineT: 15,950 Euros
• Starting price in Italy for the R Nine T Scrambler: 14,000 Euros.

That makes the R Nine T Scrambler valued at 88% of the R NineT’s price (in Italy).

• Starting prince in the USA for the R NineT: US $ 15,095
• Projected price in USA for the R Nine T Scrambler: US $ 13,250 (88% of R NineT’s price in the USA)

Adding the four items I would like to have:

• ASC: 350 Euros (maybe, not a priority, but I will check insurance quotes with and without ASC, and see the difference, it may be a good investment)
• Heated grips: 230 Euros (it would be good to have, not a necessity)
• Spoke wheels, tubeless (from R1200GS): 400 Euros (this will definitely be an to include!)
• Two clocks (R Nine T style): have heard comments, have not seen in photos, nor have seen quotes of price (not needed but I like analogue rev counters).

With the options I want, it will probably be priced at almost the same level as the starting price of the R Nine T.  Given the caveats discussed above, we know pricing will be different  for the bike and accessories than what I projected. This is just about getting a ball park figure, where we know it will be priced above the level of the Boneville T120 line, closer to the Thruxton R price.

BMW R NineT Scrambler at the One Moto Show, Portland, February 2016.

Therefore, who knows what will be the out-of-the-door price for the first batch of these bikes. In other words, we need to wait to see if it will become a member of the “I’d Rather Be Riding” garage or not. It is a very strong candidate, it is currently ahead of any other bike at the moment.

If you live in central or western Oregon and are considering the BMW Scrambler, go to the European Motorcycles of Western Oregon and schedule a test ride on their R NineT demo (if they still have it, as these bikes have been selling fast).

That was it for now, folks. I’m slowly catching up with my posts, so what’s next?  My report on the unique XDiavel or my awesome adventure with the CB500X in the Death Valley?

Stay tuned and thank you for reading!

The launch of the Ducati Scrambler and the Scrambler Ducati brand in 2015 followed one of the most intensive marketing campaigns in the moto industry.  Ducati would release pictures, videos, had a website, made use of social media.  When the bike was finally out people were experiencing, well, I was experiencing an overdose of publicity, of hipsters, beards and flannel shirts.  Thank goodness that is all gone now and we can move on.  It took me a while to get to ride a Scrambler, an Urban Enduro, and it only happened after the dust of the launch had settled and journalists’ and even new owners’ reports had already been out. It was worth the wait, though, what a a lovely machine it is: fast, torquey, nimble and a true Ducati with its air-cooled V-twin soul.

The 2016 Urban Enduro Scrambler Ducati

By the time I got to ride it there were already rumors about expansions to the Scrambler Ducati brand, how this family of bikes would have new models soon.  In fact, it was announced by the Ducati officials themselves during the launch of the bike.  People assumed new models would be larger, Ducati went smaller.  The Sixty2 was it, named after the 1962 year, the year when the Scrambler Ducati was produced for the first time.

I actually participated on a survey on the Scrambler site, even before I got to see a first Scrambler live, and on this survey there were questions about my perceptions about the bike and one of the questions asked whether I thought the Scrambler was too powerful.  There was no option on the multiple choices for this question saying “No, I want more power” or something similar.  But it did ask if the bike’s 803cc motor, rated at about 75 hp,  was too powerful.  Ducati was gearing for the Sixty2, with the motor modified to deliver 400cc displacement, significant less power tailoring the bike to the beginner rider.

The 400cc Sixty2 Scrambler Ducati

Over in Europe new riders are regulated in terms of how much power they should have at their disposal on their first years of riding.  The Sixty2 complies with the European A2-class driving licenses, which restricts riders to motorcycles of up to 47 hp (The Sixty2 is rated at 41 hp).  It works in Japan where 400 cc capacity of a motor (the Sixty2 is actually 399cc) is the boundary for lower level licenses. And then the bike is more affordable as well. It was a move to produce a bike to a new segment. Incidentally here in the US a beginner can show up at any motorcycle dealer and exchange cash for whatever bike they want, I believe they don’t even need to show a motorcycle endorsement on their license to make the purchase.  Darwin law rules here, which is somewhat ironic, actually.

Anyway, now there is hope Ducati is going larger in the family branching of new Scrambler models. Or at least different. A new (spy?) picture circulating on the internet shows a bike of the Scrambler Ducati family, just that this time it is not about the displacement of the motor, it seems (or only), but about the bike’s shape and function.  People have been expecting an 1100cc machine, Ducati has that type of motor from many iterations on other models.  Maybe this is it, maybe not.  What we can see from the photo is more of a true enduro machine.

Scrambler Enduro?

Upside-down forks, rear rack, side racks, spoke wheels, maybe a larger front wheel (19 or 21, cannot tell from the photo) and we could be talking here about a more realistic Enduro version (as opposed to the “urban” enduro).  Maybe it will have the same motor, it seems it still has a single disc upfront, so the 803 motor seems like a good match. Who knows, these “spy” photos may not mean anything and this bike could be a side, dead branch on the stages of the Scrambler evolution (seems like appropriate language since we mentioned Darwin earlier).

What I see in this photo seems very interesting to me.  I would welcome a round headlight enduro machine with no windscreen nor front fairing, but with capacity to carry travel gear. Light weight and probably keeping the essence of what I experienced on my test ride of the Urban Enduro: a fast, torquey and nimble machine. If it is kept simple, as it seems, and it is dirt and travel oriented as well, then why not?  Bring it on Ducati, we need to redefine adventure in the context of motorcycles. This revolution might as well come from someone as unexpected to ignite it as Ducati.

Stay tuned.

Cruiser motorcycles never featured on the list of motorcycles I would like to own or even ride one day.  My opinion about these bikes has always been subjective, either linked to the looks of these bikes or the lifestyle associated with owning them.  But then things changed.

Before a test ride, let’s test the ergonomics of forward foot controls

This changed this last couple of years when manufacturers started producing bikes with cruiser ergonomics, especially forward foot controls, but with somewhat of a sport aggressive demeanor with a motor that goes with it.  These bikes can been referred to as urban sport cruisers. Three bikes among this group of bikes, very different from each other, I see them as cool urban bikes, drew my attention: the Ducati XDiavel, the Victory Octane, and the Moto Guzzi V-9. Yes, the Guzzi is more different than the other on this group of different bikes.

This report is about my thoughts about urban sport cruiser machines, but primarily it is about the XDiavel.  I will discuss in more detail this bike, will provide my riding impressions on it from the perspective of someone who had never ridden a cruiser before.  I will also speculate whether there is change on the urban motorcycle scene, since I believe I’m not the only one who has become interested in cruisers for the first time as part of this crop of interesting urban motorcycles coming out in the last few years.

An XDiavel line up – ready for organized test rides in the PIR, May 2016

The Background

If you have been following my stories, I’ve been posting thoughts on what would an ideal urban motorcycle be, a motorcycle someone could use on a daily basis.  This search has been very predictable for me, an adventure and enduro motorcycle rider, leading me straight to “standards” of the scrambler variety, like the Ducati Scrambler and the BMW R NineT Scrambler.  Old habits die hard, I know.

This search, however, brought to light other interesting motorcycles on a style I’d never paid attention before, bikes that are definitely out of the adventure riding box.  On this vein, the XDiavel was one of the bikes I was most interested in riding because I’m familiar with this brand and have ridden most of its products. Therefore when Ducati organized a national tour to offer test rides on the XDiavel, I jumped at the opportunity.

The XDiavel promotion tour, truck with motorcycles for organized test rides and merchandise, was at Portland International Raceway on May 2016

Before getting into the Ducati, though, let’s talk about the other two bikes on this short list.  The Victory Octane became an interesting option for me especially because at some point it had been rumored we would see a Victory model based on Project 156.  Many of us heard about project 156, as the promotion was well orchestrated especially around the Pikes Peak event.  Just in case you haven’t heard about it, Project 156 was the result of Roland Sands teaming up with Polaris to deliver a concept bike under the Victory brand with the design and the performance to conquer Pikes Peak in 2015. The bike did not win it but it certainly left a mark.  Job well done, Victory.

Project 156: Roland Sands and Victory, teaming up to conquer Pikes Peak. Great looking motorcycle.

Some say the descendant of the 156 is the Victory Octane, which it turns out, has the look and feel more to a cruiser, much more similar to its Polaris cousin, the Indian Scout, than the more upright and standard or even aggressive stance of Project 156.

On the other hand the Victory Octane motor delivers a more aggressive riding experience than the Scout does, according to reviewers (I have not ridden the Victory Octane nor the Indian Scout), and the Octane certainly looks more aggressive than the Scout.  The Octane’s 1179cc motor is a V-Twin rated at 104HP at 8,000 RPM and reaches a maximum of 76 ft-lbs of torque at 6,000 RPM.

What this motor can possibly deliver in terms of performance is what makes the Victory Octane interesting to me.  The riding experience described by others resonate with what I’m looking for, especially because it comes on a compact package, with an interesting, very urban demeanor.  Meanwhile, Polaris, here is my question to you: is the Octane really the bike meant to have been originated from project 156?  That is, will we see something more upright like the 156 instead of the Octane and the two other Octane-derived concepts (the Ignition and Combustion concepts)?

2017 Victory Octane: shinier version.

The other urban sport cruiser that has caught my attention is Moto Guzzi’s V-9 in bobber style.  The controls are not too far forward, more of a standard look, but still offering a relaxed approach to riding.

2016 Moto Guzzi V-9 Bobber

The motor is an attraction on itself, an 853CC transversely mounted V-twin in Moto Guzzi tradition. This motor is attractive not for its performance, but for what it represents, its tradition, a true classic and one of the remaining air cooled motors. From several reports from the people who have ridden it, they say although rated at only 55HP, the way its torque is delivered (the maximum torque is 47 lb-fts, but at a very low 3,000RPM) they never felt power was a missing element on the riding experience. On paper and on looks itself, this seems like a great urban machine to me.

An interesting aside here is that Moto Guzzi appears to live in a special place in the mind of moto-journalists.  On all reviews they are very quick to point out the limitations on these bikes, and there are several limitations.  On the other hand, they hardly dismiss these bikes for their short-comings.  Quite the contrary, they always seem to find something positive to say about these bikes. Is it because these bikes deliver a feeling, a riding experience that can take you to years past, but with traction control, fuel injection and ABS, and perhaps 21st century reliability? Is this today’s interpretation of what a true motorcycle is?  It only makes me curious about this bike, and I think it deserves a test ride.

2016 Moto Guzzi V-9 Bobber

Since I’ve been discussing the BMW R NineT Scrambler on several posts, including this one, and it is on my short list of bikes I would like to own one day, let’s see how it rates in comparison to the Victory Octane and Moto Guzzi V-9 Bobber in terms of specs.

BMW R NineT Scrambler, One Moto Show, Portland, February 2016

The BMW R NineT Scrambler, if the motor is the same as the R Nine T for the United States market (for the European market it has changed to meet Euro 4 standards) is likely to be rated at 110HP at 7,750 RPM and reaching maximum torque at 85 lb-fts at 6,000 RPM, figures that put this bike very evenly matched to the Victory Octane.  But BMW edges the Victory on torque and is set on a lighter weight, “scramblerized” package. These are different leagues of bikes, in terms of style, but the BMW is probably a bike that you can take for a ride with your sport bike friends and not be left behind.  The Victory Octane, who knows. The BMW is a more versatile machine. But I digress. From this short list of bikes, with two of them closely matched in performance, the Moto Guzzi sits alone with its lower HP and torque. It should be about the subjective riding experience, right? That’s what counts in the end.

What about the Ducati XDiavel?

Talking about the importance of the riding experience, let’s get back to the main protagonist of this post, the Ducati XDiavel. The XDiavel is a departure from the Diavel concept, more refined and clearly more defined towards the cruiser domain.

2016 XDiavel S

The Diavel immediately looked out of place when the XDiavel was put next to it with its more sophisticated appearance, trellis frame exposed, more traditional shapes for the tank and seat. And foot controls set forward. And we are not even taking in consideration the DVT motor yet.

The XDiavel and the Diavel

Thanks to Ducati’s marketing campaign which remains bold on motorcycle launches, they brought the motorcycle “launch” experience to me on a truck that toured several parts of the country.  In May of 2016 the XDiavel truck was in Portland with several motorcycles on board for a three-day window of organized test rides. I was there for the experience and I got to ride the XDiavel twice.

Ducati’s mobile “launch” of the XDiavel in Portland, May of 2016

Incidentally, Ducati still makes use of umbrella girls. I confess I find it difficult to criticize Ducati for using this approach to draw attention to their products, who knows when this practice will end. I bet they were happy to get a check for this work. And they were very nice as well, and patient and dedicated to their jobs, they posed for me.

Nice motorcycles

Since the XDiavel has been out since last year, you probably already know its specs.  But just in case, and because I mentioned the basic specs of the Victory Octane and the Moto Guzzi V-9 (and also the BMW Scrambler), I should talk about the Ducati as well.  Although the Victory Octane brings a new level of performance to the urban sport cruiser scene, the XDiavel is on another league in terms of power and technology, it is a different beast altogether.  Let’s not forget, it is a Ducati.  So let’s see those numbers.

XDiavel Specs (from Ducati’s website)

The motor is a new Ducati Testastretta DVT (Desmodromic Variable Timing), L-Twin, with 4 desmodromically actuated valves per cylinder, dual spark, liquid cooled and driven by a belt (instead of chain).

Here are some numbers:

• Displacement: 1262 cc (77,0 cu in)
• Bore x Stroke: 106 x 71,5 [mm] (4,17 x 2,81 [in])
• Compression ratio: 13:1
• Power: 156 hp (114,7 kW) @ 9500 rpm
• Torque: 95,0 lb-ft (128,9 Nm) @ 5000 rpm

If this summary of the motor specs are not enough, or because of them, the Ducati comes with a full host of riding technology aids that is usually associated with high-end sport, touring and adventure motorcycles.  Its standard equipment includes riding modes, Bosch cornering ABS, traction control, a power launch (for when you want to safely show off this bike’s power to your friends or for those unsuspected encounters at red lights), ride by wire, cruise control, self-cancelling turn signals, full-led lighting, backlit handlebar switches (quite nice actually), bluetooth module, infotainment system, and I think I may have missed something or another.

This is no ordinary cruiser.  The Victory Octane, as mentioned before, is a departure from the usual scene, the Ducati XDiavel even more, and so much so that it needs a power launch control.  Some people have been referring to these bikes as muscle cruisers. Maybe you could say that in relation to the Victory Octane.  You can hardly say that for the Ducati, as it is too sophisticated and technologically packed for that association, although it has a lot more power than the Octane.  I’ll stick with urban sport cruiser, a much better match in my opinion.

Ducati Power Launch – DPL.  A muscle cruiser? Or a sport cruiser? Who cares, it moves fast!

The Design – attention to detail and exclusiveness

You can see from the motor and technology package that this is a special machine. Maybe you would realize all of that by just looking at it, especially the S version, with its glossy black paint, machined belt covers, premium seat, machined aluminum mirrors, and a myriad of other details.  As you’ve seen on my previous post about this bike, the attention to detail is incredible on this machine. It is a Ducati on its soul, besides the power, this bike’s appeal comes from its styling and sophistication.

Everything about this bike talks about style, refinement, but also aggressiveness

It is a very attractive motorcycle. Power that is unmatched, style and sophistication is what Ducati brings to the segment, something that has not been available before.  Of course, you would not be surprised, it comes with a hefty price tag. Yes, it is a Ducati.

Short exhaust exiting on the side with a dual pipe configuration , custom wheels, beautiful and sophisticated in all details

As a final result of this package, when I saw this bike for the first time at the local Ducati shop back in March, I immediately wanted to ride it.  I patiently waited until the truck arrived near me, with the bikes, the umbrella girls, and all the marketing paraphernalia.  They even gave me a T-shirt along with the ride.

XDiavel: “Are you ready for change?” summarizes the concept and campaign around this motorcycle.

So let’s see what riding this machine is all about!  Am I ready for change?

Riding the XDiavel

I arrived at the PIR on a late Saturday afternoon, so I got to ride this bike on one of its last groups for that day.  Then I came back Sunday morning and took another ride.  Lets start with the Saturday afternoon ride.

Following my ride, one more group is heading out

Organized group test rides are very limiting, as one important priority on such rides is about keeping moving as a group which limits the attention you may want give to the bike and its riding experience.  You are not encouraged to accelerate out of the pace of the group, you are not allowed to stop whenever you want to document the bike, and you have to ride the route they planned for you at the pace they selected for you, for the duration they consider will be enough for you.

Bikes ready for action!

On the Saturday guided test ride, besides the lead and sweeper riders, there were about eight test riders, a relatively large group.  The route was to leave the PIR area and head east towards the airport area on the other side of I-5 using back roads and then ruen south before going west again to return on a parallel road to the PIR.  It was about 40 minutes long, at speeds averaging between 30 and 40 miles per hour.  As I mentioned already, it is a bit lame to ride in a group but since we were testing a motorcycle with cruiser ambitions, maybe it makes sense to ride on a parade mode. We want to make sure the bike rides well on a slow pace.  Even if it has 156 hp at the ready.

The bike offers three positions for foot control adjustment. I picked a bike with the foot controls in the middle.  And I thought it was still too far forward to me.  That is something one has to get used to, if they’ve only ridden adventure or sport motorcycles. Once you are moving it is all good, the problem is when you stop.  If you remove both feet from the pegs, once you start going again it is difficult to really know where your feet go to reach the foot controls.

Foot controls (in this case for the left foot) positioned at the most forward setting. I picked one with controls in the middle position, it still felt too forward to me

Therefore here there is an advantage for being compliant with what you learned on your motorcycle safety course: if you keep one foot on the controls (bike in first gear, right foot on rear brake as recommended) it is very easy for the left foot to find its way back to the peg because you have the right foot as a reference.  Problem solved.  Anyway, I assume after a day or two of riding the new tall and forward foot controls position are going to be learned and become automatic.

I put the bike in sport mode, what’s new, and I could immediately feel the power, lots of it.  How to tame this beast for slow riding is the challenge we expect from powerful motors and this bike felt a bit lumpy on 1st gear when trying to move at constant speeds of below 20mph.  Of course those are speeds you only use when leaving a parking area.  Most of us will spend very little time at those speeds, so that is basically okay.  The bike I rode on Sunday morning, also on sport mode, felt better on those same speeds, same riding mode and it should be noted that when I tried urban mode for a little while, the bike felt better at slow speeds and you can change back to sport mode on the go.

Somewhat lumpy below 20mph in first gear

Once we got to the riding speeds programmed for this tour, between 30 and 50 mph, the bike felt good.  You have to use the gear box, though, you have to be on a proper gear for a smooth operation on this bike.  That is, if you are at 30 mph, in third gear, on a slight uphill and you want the bike to accelerate quickly, you will be better off by downshifting to second gear.  This bike’s motor has been designed to deliver a good amount of power at the lower end of the torque curve, but it still feels and deliver better performance at higher RPMs.

Therefore, you need to use the gear box to enjoy the power and quick acceleration you get when at the 4,500 or 5,000 RPM and above.  That’s where the power lives.  That is, it is still a typical Ducati, it has torque down low, but it still is a motor that revs high to deleiver performance of a true sports bike.  You need to appreciate the rush of power delivery going past 5,000 RPM to really enjoy what this bike is all about. Believe me, it is fantastic.

Bike feels much better and more responsive at about 5K RPM

Yes, each bike has an appropriate or best gear for a certain speed and acceleration depending on gear ratios and motor design.  Cruisers by tradition will actually tractor well at low speeds but they will top off too soon on the RPM range. It is one of those compromise situations.  The XDiavel is coming from the other side, it is a performance motorcycle with capacity to ride at low speeds.  Therefore, it is not a cruiser in the traditional cruiser sense. It is a sports bike, with classy urban looks, with cruiser ergonomics.  An urban sport cruiser.

Perfect at slow cruising speeds, 36mph on 3rd gear and 3.5 K RPM

Having said that, the bike felt very good on 3rd gear at above 30 mph speeds for cruising. If cruising is the thing to do, you can also resort on its cruise control.  I did test it at slightly less than 50 MPH on 4th gear.

Cruise control engaged (green light on the right side of the upper dash)

With the cruise control engaged the bike traveled very smoothly at those low speeds.

Cruise control set at 48mph, 4th gear, smooth operation and riding experience

Eventually we started our way back to the PIR and I felt this ride was not enough for me to get a feel for this motorcycle.  The event organizers told me they would be back at 9am Sunday morning, that on early mornings they have had less people show up, so they could take me on a different route.

One thing to note is that this bike has self cancelling turn signals.  I’ve always been skeptical about these systems thinking they would not work well or that they would not be timed to work the same way I would do manually. But the reality is that it worked really well, it never failed, and the timing was perfect.  Together with cruise control and cornering ABS this is something I would like to have on my next premium motorcycle.

Sunday morning I showed up at 9am ready to ride.  No other riders were ready to go at that time, so I got to ride only with the lead and the sweeper.  I felt I was riding escorted by two guards, one ahead and one behind me. Yet, we rode a little bit faster, and we took a different route.  This time we went to the opposite direction, west towards St. John.

Leaving St John

We crossed the Willamette river, which was already a much more interesting route than looping on the south area of the airport.

Crossing the Willamette

And from there we took the short cut going up towards the Skyline Boulevard. Since it has a great amount of curves, I had a chance to see what else this bike can do.  It leans very nicely, fast and sharp despite its long wheel base.  It is a bit of a strange position to have your feet up and way forward when trying to ride more aggressively.  This bike may not be able to keep up with sport bike riders on the hills, but they better keep their game up or the sport bike in cruiser disguise may catch up with them.

Cornering with the XDiavel

We reached the Skyline Boulevard and turned around from there, back towards the PIR, so the ride would be a total of 40 minutes long to be back and ready for the next group (the guided tours leave on the hour).

Back to St Johns and the PIR

Back at the PIR, at the headquarters of this tour, I could reach more informed conclusions about this bike. The Sunday ride with more variation of terrain and speeds gave me a better impression about this bike.  It can cruise well, it can accelerate very nicely (its best performance feature in my opinion), and it can lean and be ridden aggressively on curves, which is not a surprise, considering it is a Ducati.

In essence, it is a cruiser in shape and form, but don’t think the cruiser ergos will stop you from enjoying other experiences with this motorcycle.  A case in point is that as another group got ready to go on their guided test, I went with the local shop guys to a back road to test the Ducati Power Launch (DPL).  By the way, once you’ve used the DPL three times in a row the system will only be actuated again once the bike cools down (from time from the last time or miles ridden since you last tried it).

Testing the DPL

And that was it.  Overall, thank you Ducati for allowing me to test ride this wonderful machine.

The Urban Scene

The Ducati XDiavel, along with the other bikes described on this post, form a new group of cool bikes to enter the motorcycle urban scene. We’ve seen the scramblers, roadsters, cafe racers, and there were already cruisers as part of this group.  But the Ducati XDiavel and the Octane bring performance to this group of cruiser-styled bikes.  The Moto Guzzi brings a more classical and traditional performance, it seems.

These bikes are all after the cool factor that comes from the riders who created a path themselves by making modifications on their bikes to create beautiful, exclusive and desired machines. Manufacturers design motorcycles that look somewhat like these custom machines, but built on an integrated factory-built platform that allows performance, safety and reliability for real use.

Bikes lined up for group test rides at the PIR

These bikes will never be as cool as a well designed custom creation, but they are likely to perform better, and they allow more riders,who do not have the skill or the time, perhaps,  to have access to cool bikes. That larger access diminishes somehow the cool factor and here is where the Ducati comes in:  with its style, sophistication and performance, the associated price tag is likely going to keep some level of exclusiveness.

To summarize, this is a unique bike, the one you could ride wearing a tuxedo for a gala event, or ride it with your scuffed leather jacket to your local riding club, or don your race leathers and take it on a spirited canyon ride with your sport riding friends. It would do well on these three scenarios. You would potentially look cool in at least two of these three scenarios. Three for three will depend on how good your riding friends are, they would have an advantage if they ride sport bikes.

Will I buy one?

Well, I liked it, but I will likely not buy it this point.  And it is not something against the XDiavel in particular.  It is something that would apply to the Victory Octane as well, even though I never test rode one (and I still want to test ride one).

The reason is simple.  Although I find these bikes very cool, and the XDiavel is a wonderful performance machine, I just did not get comfortable with the forward foot controls.  Whenever I crossed cruisers on the road in my many years of riding, guys with their feet forward, backs arched, I always thought maybe, just maybe, there s something special about that riding position, maybe it is even a comfortable riding position.

Style and performance in cruise disguise

But in reality, I learned with two 40-minute rides, I’m much more comfortable with a more upright riding position.  It allows me to ride on a more relaxed mode.  But when things get more interesting, the upright bikes allow me to move my body so much more easily on the bike to assume a more aggressive posture. On a cruiser, you are more of a passenger on your own motorcycle, and it does not leave much room for movement.  I’m glad I had a chance experience what would be to ride a motorcycle with cruise ergonomics.  I’m not going to say “never” but for now I say: not yet.

As others have mentioned before, and I will say it again, it is really great to be a motorcycle rider these days. The XDiavel in particular is bringing something that was not available before, with its extreme power and sophistication.  I am looking forward to seeing these bikes on the road and hopefully try them again, just for the sake of experiencing that nice motor.

To see a KTM or a Yamaha in such a club, that’s not a big deal, you would expect those guys to be out there. But a Ducati?  If the Multistrada Enduro was not enough of a surprise, not only for the bike itself, but for the positive reviews it has been receiving, now we have rumors of a new dirt-oriented Ducati motorcycle of the Scrambler Ducati variety.

The 2016 Multistrada Enduro: Positive Reviews!

As posted here before, it seems more like an enduro oriented version of the Scrambler, a bike with actual capability for off pavement riding and travel, and likely with the 80occ L-twin motor.  Some claim or want the 1,100cc motor on this bike, to me, it makes most sense to have it with the Scrambler, 803cc motor, and be it a bike squarely directed at the sparse mid-size adventure market.  Overall, it seems, Ducati is diving head first into the adventure world.

Scrambler Enduro?

Let’s be reminded, Ducati has tried their wheels on dirt and sand and managed to win. Those were the days of the Cagiva, with the Ducati L-Twin motor, and their days under the sun, winning the prestigious Paris-Dakar race.

1989-90 Cagiva Marathon. Winner Paris Dakar, 1990 (Ducati museum, Borgo Panigale).

Then we have the rumors about a Yamaha mid-size Ténéré, with the 700cc parallel twin, 270 degree crank motor. Following the launch of the Africa Twin, which to most was a hit but to some a disappointment when it was learned the bike tipped the scales above the 500lbs mark, this idea of a mid-size Ténéré has become very popular. It would be another candidate for the potential mythical, lighter weight but still adventure capable machine people seem to want.

Is this Yamaha’s mid-size adventure Ténéré?

Yamaha has struggled to make their 1,200cc Ténéré gain the space it deserved in the market as the competent large adventure motorcycle that it is.  Its relatively low sale volume is a puzzle coming from a motorcycle that has the name, Ténéré, which has been traditionally associated with winning Dakar, it is a capable round-the-world adventure riding machine. Add to it Yamaha’s reliability and you would expect a winning formula.

2012 Yamaha Super Ténéré. December 23, 2011 and already on sale

Instead bikes sell at discounted prices. The speculation has been that Yamaha fans wanted a lighter weight Ténéré, a bike to replace the single cylinder 660 with a parallel twin motor, similar to the original  Ténérés, instead of a 600lbs + machine.

1991 YZE750T Super Ténéré

That is, people may have been wanting a mid-size 700cc version of the Ténéré, using the 75 hp parallel twin motor, with the raved 270 degree crankshaft, which is available already in a few other products.  This motor has been receiving plenty of positive reviews, and such a bike, built around this light and compact motor, could be the ticket.  It could be a serious contender for off pavement riding.

Last but not least, we have KTM’s 800cc parallel twin motor.  This has been more than a rumor, as this motor has been on an official announcement from KTM. Although this motor is expected to appear first on street bikes, likely on a 270 degree crankshaft, the real speculation here is whether it will find its way into an adventure motorcycle or not.

Famous photo of KTM with supposed 800cc parallel twin motor

KTM used to produce the 950 and then 990cc Adventure motorcycles until a few years ago. Then they moved to the BMW GS world (bikes around 1,200 cc) with their 1190 series.  Who didn’t want to try their odds at the most competitive and lucrative portion of the adventure market, right? Full circle, there is the Ducati Multistrada Enduro, the latest entrant to that still growing full size club.

On the left, a model of the first year and first series of the KTM 950.  On the right, my Tiger 800cc

For many, though, the 1190 was a solution to a problem that did not exist, they miss their beloved 950-990 bikes.  An 800cc from KTM could be the replacement to the missed V-twins nut on a more compact package using the parallel twin motor, perhaps lighter than the V-twin bikes, but likely rated at the same power as the missed line of V-twins. Perhaps this new bike will be a rally or enduro ready machine. Ready to race, tight?  That would be something to almost match their own 700 cc single in dirt performance but beat it in long distance travel comfort and reliability.

Of course, we have had the BMW F800GS for many years already, and it has been quite a successful motorcycle, suffering only evolutionary changes since its launch in 2008. It was the starting point of this segment. And the Triumph Tiger 800 XC and subsequent models, which followed the BMW coming to the market in 2011 have been there fr a while as well.  Both these bikes were or still are very popular in the adventure riding world as a lighter alternative to the 1,200 series of bikes.  They don’t sell as well as the large bikes, thought.

That’s where these new bikes speculated from Ducati, KTM, and Yamaha seem to fit, hopefully they will be geared to an even lighter end of this spectrum. That is, maybe, just maybe, the time has come when we will finally have more adventure bikes with real enduro aptitude, bikes that will be fun to ride on dirt at speed, my bias, and fit that elusive multi cylinder mid-size gap.

That’s the gap, the gap that has brought to us adaptations to existing bikes to fill that vacant space, such as my own Honda CB500X, with its Rally Raid Level 3 package.

My 2015 Honda CB500X, with Rally Raid Level 3 “adventure” kit, in Death Valley, 2016

Let’s see if there is a punchline to the KTM, Ducati and Yamaha’s entrance to the mid-size adventure world.  Although I really enjoy my CB500X, and it is the bike I actually want to ride when the plan is ride around town and on off pavement adventures, the 25 extra hp that a similar packaged Ducati or Yamaha could deliver is something to pay attention to. An extra 25 hp makes a difference, especially if these new bikes weight the same as the CB500X.

KTM, if tradition is followed, is likely delivering something with a bit more power than 75 hp from its 800 parallel twin motor and certainly will be reasonably light and hopefully with the “ready to race” attitude.  Either way, it seems we will have the options we have been wanting and speculating about for several years already.

However, if Ducati delivers something interesting for this segment, that will be the real punchline to this story. It would be an example of real change coming from the unsuspected group of guys.

The Death Valley in California is a great location to test an adventure motorcycle. It has gravel roads, sandy roads, rocky roads leading to challenging technical passes, and also paved roads, connecting the many fun riding sites.  On Part 4 I will report how the CB500X did on easy roads, Saline and Hunter Mountain roads.  On Part 5 we will raise the bar by testing it on Goler Wash and Mengel Pass.

The CB500X Adventure (Rally Raid Level 3 Kit) in the Death Valley

If you’ve followed Parts 1, 2 and 3 where I describe this bike and the build process, you know I bought this bike for three main reasons: 1) I wanted a smaller multi-cylinder adventure motorcycle that is reliable and manageable for solo rides to isolated places; 2) I wanted to work or build my own adventure bike, which with a kit from Rally Raid designed for this bike, it makes the build process really easy, anyone can do it; and 3) I wanted this bike to be an option for visiting friends. There is more on these items on the previous posts about this bike.

Highest state of disassembly for this project

To summarize Parts 1, 2 and 3, I bought the bike used, but with very low miles, and purchased the Rally Raid kit and then some other parts, to turn it into an adventure motorcycle. Then I spent the cold and rainy month of February building the bike.  This involved researching and procuring parts, organizing the shop for the build, getting the parts shipped, and then the build itself.  Installing the Rally Raid Kit itself takes only a couple of days, maybe three, if you have all the tools you need and some experience on the basics of working on bikes.

The project included setting up the shop and the CB500X itself. Because it culminated with taking this bike to Death Valley, I also worked on the Truck and the WR250R that I took as a back up bike.

It was a busy February.  Besides organizing the shop and building the CB500X adventure itself, I had a few other tasks to do preparing the WR250R which I also took to Death Valley, and some work on the truck, which was my means of transportation for the almost 500 miles to get from Oregon to the Death Valley.

Bikes and gear loaded on the truck

The Death Valley trip itself involved meeting two other riders who are based in California, Scott and Hugh.  I know Scott from my Ducati trips to Northern California, a great guy whom I’m lucky to call a friend, and his long time friend Hugh.  The three of us connected really well, we had a blast riding our bikes in the Death Valley, and we already have plans for a 2017 ride.

Cesar, Scott and Hugh: Last day of riding on this trip to the Death Valley, March of 2016

Overall, the CB500X did very well on its adventure riding test.  It can go most anywhere, but it really shines on packed gravel roads and it struggles on technical, rocky terrain, the kind that requires slow moving, slip-clutch type of work. I will discuss all of these issues in detail.

Getting to the Death Valley, weather issues

March is the perfect time to be in the Death Valley, it is the time of the flower bloom, it is the time when temperatures are not too cold nor too hot. On average. Since it is also the time of transition from winter to summer, though, you can call the month of March the Death Valley’s spring, but it is more like one day is winter the next day it could be like the kind of summer weather we find in Oregon. And this transition can be violent, you may find yourself on unexpected situations, like strong winds, rain storms, sand storms, and even snow storms. Add to it that in my case I was traveling from Oregon to California and had to cross a few passes, as a result on this trip I encountered all of the above conditions on the way in, while there, or on the way back.

I studied the weather forecast to find the best route to get there.  The first obstacle was the strong winds I faced on I-5 near Mount Shasta.  The winds were so strong my five-speed truck struggled even on down hills, the small 5L V-8 requiring the engine to be on 4th gear, even on a down hill, to keep up with traffic.

4th gear on I-5, fighting strong head winds

I had several options of routes to get to the Death Valley and I had to make course corrections on the fly.  One of them was to get out of the I-5 and the strong head winds with which the truck was fighting.  I turned onto SR89, going south east towards Susanville.  My fear about taking this route was the possibility of finding snow on high elevations and then it is an area with less traffic, so if you need assistance you can be waiting for a while, if you can get in touch with someone, that is.  I was ready to sleep in my truck’s cabin if needed.

On the way south, only snow I encountered was on the side of the road, roads were clear.

I arrived in Susanville and it was dark already. However, once I got past Susanville the road conditions improved, I cruised on 395 going south with no problems. I was going to spend the night at some point, and I knew Scott would be with his RV in Bishop, CA to spend the night. My goal was to meet him there, but I had left my house several hours behind schedule, therefore my plan was to go as far as I could, stop and take a nap if needed, and catch up wit him on the following day.

Susanville, CA

South of Carson City I got a text from Scott who was driving from Sacramento, California, and while updating each other on our progress, we realized we were just a few miles apart.  We met and drove together to Bishop where we spent the night at the Paiute Casino RV park.  The next day the weather was perfect and we arrived at the Death Valley park with no problems.  I will discuss more about the weather on the second day of riding and on my return to Oregon on Part 5 of these series of posts.

Close to the entrance to Death Valley, following Scott’s RV.

We arrived at the camp (Panamint Springs), setup the RV, unloaded the gear and the bikes and went out for a ride. I was really glad to be there and to have this chance to test the CB500X in the real conditions you would expect such a bike to perform.

Bikes unloaded, ready for action

Riding the CB500X on Saline Road and Hunter Mountain Road, Death Valley

This first ride was an afternoon ride, so we decided to take it easy, go towards Saline road and from there make a right on Hunter Mountain road and check the cabin.  Then go back the same way. I was really anxious to try the CB500X off pavement.  The bike is a bit tall for my 30 inch inseam, but it is and feels a good amount lighter than my Triumph Tiger 800XC. I was counting on that for when I would need to stop on uneven terrain.

On the way to Saline road, a quick stop for pictures

As soon as we got on the gravel, the bike felt really good.  I did not air down the tires, just rode it with regular pressure.  The bike felt very stable on gravel and I was able to get it to just around 70mph without any problems.

At 70mph, bikes feels solid

The bike did very well on the sweeping gravel curves of Saline Road.  This is where less power is a benefit, as you can twist throttle with abandon, well, some level of abandon, and the rear is not going to step out too much or risk passing the front. It just settles the bike very nicely.

Pin it and the rear wheel will keep the front where you want it to go

The one thing that bothered me at this point was how much the front bounced on the kind of rocks you find on these kinds of roads, the ones that are lodged on the road but protruding slightly through the surface of the road.  In part this was happening because I did not air down the tires, but mostly it seems it could be coming from how stiff the front end felt as it reacted to these smaller bumps at speed. It seems everything was transferred directly to the handlebars.  My Tiger 800XC does a better job, my WR250R does a really better job at these situations.  Even my Multistrada could do better, I think.

The rear suspension, on the other hand, felt perfectly suited to any situation, I never felt the rear wheel to be fighting for grip and traction, even when going fast on washboard situations.

Rear wheel traction was good, great Tractive suspension setup for this bike.

The bike did very well on the odd mud holes we encountered on the way up the mountain, much more a function of the tires, perhaps. Same happened on the sand patches we encountered.  The bike always felt solid and stable on mud or sand, really, really good.

No problems handling sand.

While the front suspension did not absorb well the two- to five-inch rocks and edges on the road when going at speed, it did well on the larger more rounded obstacles, such as this erosion ditch on the final approach to the cabin on Hunter Mountain Rd.

Bike handled well erosion ditches.

It turns out, the bike and its upgraded suspension do very well at slower speeds on rough terrain, as long as there is momentum going forward. I would learn more about this on the second day, and I will go on more detail on Part 5 when I talk about it. Upfront I can say it is about power delivery on first gear and a narrow, maybe too narrow clutch friction zone.  That’s were a street bike’s set up, the part of the build you can’t quite change, find its limits when going off road type of situations (not off-pavement).  But more on that later.

When riding steep uphill on rough terrain, if you slow down too much, the bike struggles to continue. It is a power (low torque) and clutch friction zone (too narrow) issue.

What is important is that we made to the cabin without a problem, just a slight moment, something that gave me pause to think this bike may reach “adventure” limitations at a lower level of challenges than what I had anticipated.  I have to say that, overall, I was very satisfied with what the bike delivered in this first day.  It is nothing more, nor less, than what I could be expected, with a small adjustment on the less side of it.

Te bike made it to the cabin on Hunter Mountain Rd.

The only real problem that happened on this first day had nothing to do with the bike, but with the dirtbagz that moved from its position when I was riding and got too close to the exhaust. Obviously my job attaching them to the side rack was not good enough, and the bag on the exhaust side burned, and with it a spare tube got burned as well.

The burned dirtbagz bag

Since then I already bought a new set of dirtbagz (they fit both the WR250R and the CB500X) and found a better way to attach the bags on the CB500X.  Two tests so far and they still haven’t moved or burned.

We returned to camp the same way, and as expected it soon was dark.  The CB500X headlight is okay, but there is room for improvement.  This is a limitation that is not particular to this bike, as most bikes will do better, a lot better, with auxiliary lights. This is something I will upgrade on this bike during this next winter, by adding a set of good auxiliary lights that will work for both the Cb500X and the WR250R.

Headlight is okay, would benefit with the addition of auxiliary lights. I already have something in mind.

Going over Saline and Hunter Mountain roads was just an appetizer of a test.  The real test was to see how this bike behaved when going up Goler Wash and from there Mengel Pass.

On the first day it was only Scott and me for the Saline Rd and Hunter Mountain RD adventure, as Hugh was still traveling, arriving only at night.  Hugh joined us with his 2013 BMW R1200GS. As you can tell, for joining us on this adventure on Mengel Pass with his large adventure motorcycle, Hugh is either courageous, or a great rider, or both.

It turns out both were true, and the large BMW motorcycle gets its credit as well! It turns out having the R1200GS along for this ride was a great way to learn about the importance of having a very tractable at low speed, torquey motor to ride on challenging technical terrain.

On top of Mengel Pass, looking towards the east, storms brewing…

But this is something for the next chapter, when I will report how the CB500X did on the ride towards the Mengel Pass.  I will report one crash, or two, and also, the horrible weather conditions we encountered as we descended towards Badwater, including a blinding sand storm. It was another night ride back to camp, with some drama to make things better – it was about confirming the definition of “adventure”.  All with a good ending, mind you.

Part 5 will include a summary of my perceptions of the CB500X as an Adventure motorcycle and a brief report on the return of the WR250R to the Lippincott trail (I was there with that bike in 2010) and my trip back to Oregon.

Thank you for reading and stay tuned for Part 5 where the real action unfolds.

The Death Valley adventure continues. Today we will ride Goler Wash Road and go over Mengel Pass, it will be a great opportunity to test the CB500X on various types of roads,  the kinds of terrain an adventure machine is expected to manage.  The previous day was a preliminary test of this motorcycle, on today’s loop, with new and more challenging obstacles, we will gather more data to discuss how much of an adventure machine the CB500X can possibly be.

The CB500X Adventure Conquers Mengel Pass… but… do you see rain drops on the bike?

The Mengel Pass Loop

This loop is 177 miles long, starting from our camp on Panamint Springs, to Mengel Pass via Ballarat and back to camp via West Side road and Furnace Creek. I subdivided the route into these six segments:

1. Panamint Springs to Ballarat – 32.8 miles
2. Ballarat to Goler Wash Road – 15.2 miles
3. Goller Wash Road to Mengel Pass – 9.1 miles
4. Mengel Pass to West Side Highway – 24.3 miles
5. West Side Highway to Furnace Creek – 39.6 miles
6. Stovepipe Wells back to Panamint Springs – 56 miles

177-mile loop

The terrain on this loop offers a great variety of riding conditions:

• Pavement at the beginning of segment 1, the end of segment 5, and the entirety of segment 6;
• Gravel highways with nice sweeping curves on most of segment 1, the entirety of segment 2 and most of segment 5 (Note: gravel roads are my all time favorite type of road for motorcycle riding, especially when it includes sweeping curves);
• Gravel two-track roads (my second favorite type of riding) on the majority of segments 3 and 4;
• Rocky, slow going, pick your line or you will not have ground clearance, on steep terrain. We fund this type of road on small portions of segments 3 and 4 (Note: this is something I’m not good at, making it my least favorite type of riding); and
• The bonus segment…. deep sand riding thanks to a major sandstorm that in less than one hour covered a portion of the West Side road with more than a foot of sand, in the beginning of segment 5 (Note: I kind’a like riding on sand).

The segments included terrain descriptors and my riding ability/preference on each type of terrain, to provide a better context for my review of the CB500X Adventure (Rally Raid Level 3 kit).

To get some perspective on how other types of bike performed on this same loop, Scott and Hugh were on this ride with me, riding a KTM 500 EXC and a 2013 BMW R1200GS respectively.  The smaller more dedicated motorcycle for technical terrain (KTM) as well as the large and well known great adventure motorcycle (BMW) provide a good range of types of motorcycles to help make comparisons with the Honda Cb500X Adventure which is sort of on the middle of these two other bikes.

KTM 500 EXC, Honda CB500X Adventure, and BMW R1200GS – in Ballarat, Death Valley, CA

Adventure starts when things go wrong

As a preamble to this ride and review, let’s talk about adventure.  The old saying “adventure starts when things go wrong” is true. Not sure someone would question its applicability. What people could question, perhaps, is whether they want to be in a situation that would possibly turn into an adventure as defined per that saying.

When riding a motorcycle you are automatically on adventure mode. It is even more the case when riding off pavement, in desolate areas with limited traffic and difficult access.  If something happens, you want to be ready for it.  That’s one element, getting ready for the unknown, something that attracts me to motorcycle riding, and it is a large component of my interpretation of what is “adventure” riding.

The 177-mile loop planned for this ride can easily be done in a day, considering all terrain involved, the easy and fast, and the challenging and slow segments.  In our case, besides the terrain itself, three elements conspired to make this ride into a real adventure.

The first one being that we left camp late, meaning we would likely be in the most desolate part of the ride deep in the afternoon.  The second was the weather forecast, indicate a 70% of rain. Here in Oregon, 70% of rain means it will rain.  In the Death Valley, I thought, well… 70% means perhaps maybe it will rain, but the skies were so blue, the park is so large, we will likely dodge it…  Still, I brought my rain gear with me.

We could have worked with these first two items and gone for a plan B of sorts.  We could have departed earlier in the day or decided for another destination.  But we didn’t.  As a result, 70% meant 100% and we got rained on and it made riding on rocky terrain more slippery, hence more challenging, and the rain helped make things darker sooner, when we were still in the mountain.

The third item was a sand storm and you already know about it as I have mentioned it on the other posts where I mentioned this bike and this trip.  We knew about the chance of rain, we did not know about the sand storm.  Storms like this seem to be very localized and not too infrequent in the area.  I had never been on a sand storm before, I have to say it was quite the experience.  It was the icing on the cake, making this a real adventure, as it was an ultimate test for me and for the machine. An experience not to be forgotten.

The combination of all these factors contributed to making this day, this ride, a legitimate adventure. Mother nature and the weather it throws at us is beautiful, incredible, powerful, overwhelming.  Because the conditions turned so quickly, we had no shelter, not even a tree or an overhanging rock anywhere.  When the sand storm arrived further reducing visibility it introduced deep sand as a new element to the road conditions… we had no choice but to keep moving.  It caused the group to get separated after a small incident with one of the bikes.  We were able to resolve it, kept moving, hoping for the best.

Maybe it is not a big deal.  How often when you ride you are cold, wet, and also hungry, right?  But when you add all of that together, and then take n consideration where we were, and when we were there, things get really interesting.  We were the last people traveling in the area just east of Mengel Pass for that day, as far as I could tell. Just to give you an idea about its intensity, we had food with us, but the conditions were such that we did not want to stop, dig it from the bags, and eat it. Well, it definitely would not be possible to eat during the sand storm. Earlier when it had started raining, I did not stop to don my wet gear either.

We made it through it all, and the group reconnected before going back to camp.  Because the outcome was a positive one, we were able to celebrate this ride like no ordinary ride would be celebrated.  I know other riders have been through challenges much more realistic and overwhelming than the ones we encountered.  Still, in the end, our little adventure was felt like the real thing.  This ride, this small 177-mile loop, was one of the best rides of my life, for what I endured on my own perspective, for the friendship I hope to have strengthened and developed with Scott and Hugh during this full day of riding. We already have a plan to go back there for another ride together.

Having said all of that, let’s go back to the evaluation of the CB500X with its Rally Raid Kit as an adventure machine.  When we call a motorcycle an “adventure motorcycle” we are talking about something different than the adventure I just described. We are not precluding the possibility of such an unexpected adventure to happen, but we are talking about “adventure” as the evolved definition of a type of motorcycle based on its capacity to travel long distances, carrying gear, including camping gear, and which can traverse all types of terrain, from pavement to some off-pavement roads.  That’s how the CB500X with its Rally Raid Level 3 kit, the adventure kit, will be evaluated.

But there is a lot more to this story.  So, don your helmet, let’s start this ride!

Panamint Springs to Ballarat – lots of fun and the first incident with the CB500X

This was my second time in the Death Valley.  The roads, the landscape, it is always good to be there, experience the scale of it, there is a lot to absorb. No wonder it has attracted so many people to visit or to live there, even considering, or perhaps because of its often inhospitable weather conditions.

We were all set. The BMW carried our lunch.

Lunch on the bag on the back of the BMW

I carried tools, spare tubes, and camera equipment. Because one of my dirtbagz burned the day before, I improvised with small bags from Mosko Moto that I had as a back up.  Two 4-liter storage pouches attached to the side racks, with camera equipment.

Back up plan for bags: Mosko Moto 4-Liter storage pouches

Two 2-liter storage pouches attached to the engine bars, with spare tube and tools.  Ready for the action!

Two 2-Liter storage pouches, for tools and spare tube

We started by going south on Panamint Springs road. It was already windy, and the winds were blowing from the south.  You can actually see some sand blowing on the horizon already.  But that was not a big deal at this point, and nothing compared to what we would face later in the day.

Going south on Panamint Valley Road

We turned into the fun gravel roads in the direction of Ballarat, our first destination, a total of about 33 miles from our camp.  The CB500X is light enough to move fast on these roads, power seems just appropriate for the kind of speed you can safely manage on gravel  roads.  The bike feels composed with the Rally Raid’s upgrade to front forks and rear shock. Front fork has about 7 inches of travel (almost 2 inches more from stock).

Yes, this road is a lot of fun to ride and the CB500X did very well on these roads.

When we reached a section with sweeping curves, that was the ultimate fun with this machine.  Because it has limited, well, low power, about 48 hp, it makes it really easy to simply twist the throttle with abandon and have the bike settle nicely on gravel curves, with very little risk the rear will pass the front.

When riding on gravel I like to crank the power at the very beginning of the curve to help settle the bike and relieve the front from steering functions.  With this bike you don’t need to fine-tune the throttle, there is no need for traction control, just go for it. Besides its soft power, Rally Raid’s Level 3 kit with its Tractive shock and spring on the rear was probably another decisive factor on keeping this bike settled so well. It never feels to be hunting for traction even on washboard surfaces. Perfect.

Fast sweeping curves, perfect for the CB500X

I kept cranking the speed up and up, the bike always feeling composed.  I was having a blast! And then I was riding at about 60-70 mph on straights, slowing some on curves, I was on the zone, when out of a curve I came to a straight stretch and I see a sign on top of an erosion-damaged area on the road.  I had been through others on this road, but this one was different. There sign was on top of it.  I arrived too quickly to do anything about it.

On the photo below, just before I hit it, it looks like nothing.  Actually it was not too deep but it had a sharp edge on the other end with just the amount of height to make it a big deal, especially when hitting it at about 50 mph.

I hit this thing at about 50 mph, major impact

It was a major impact and I felt it hard, but the bike kept moving.  I could not believe the bike was in one piece.  However, the handlebars moved on the clamps, the front rim (tire inflated at regular pressure) got slightly bent, and the bike developed a light clank from the triple tree area.  I could not find the source of the clanking at that time so I kept riding it, but kept checking on things at stops to see what was damaged from the impact.

Checking to see whether the wheels were still round and tires still inflated after the shock.

After a closer look I learned the steering stem bearings were smashed pretty good from the impact, the bike developed a slight notch on the steering.  Therefore, here goes another upgrade I recommend for this bike if you want to take it on serious off pavement adventure riding.

Tapered bearings: Part number 130279 or AB22-1020 or 22-2020 will fit the CB500X and costs about $35 on ebay

The CB500X comes with ball-type steering head bearings.  I recommend substituting it with tapered bearings.

After some research, and talking to the chief mechanic from the Honda dealer in town, I learned this “All Balls Racing” tapered steering stem bearing (left) was a fit for this bike.

I purchased the kit and the bike has now a more appropriate stem bearing.  However, I would recommend this bike be ridden more carefully, it is not a rally machine.  It can be even more of a problem if you do not have the Rally Raid Level 3 wheels.  Can you imagine hitting this bump at speed with the 17-inch alloy wheel that comes with this bike?

Slightly bent front rim (and did you know these “German” Conti TKC 80 tires were made in Korea?)

We arrived in Ballarat without further incidents.  I’m glad this Dodge power wagon truck is still there. I had seen it in 2010 and six years later it is still there, like it belongs to the landscape.

1940’s(?) Dodge Power Wagon

Ballarat is one of the many interesting places in the Death Valley. It is worth a stop.

The Trading Post in Ballarat

The “Trading Post” is still there, with the same guy who manages or owns it or lives there.

The piano in the porch of the trading post, Ballarat, CA.

What was different this time was this beautiful model who was taking advantage of the peculiarities of Ballarat as a background to photograph and model for her vintage clothing shop.

Interesting juxtaposition of subjects

She graciously accepted the request to be photographed with us.

The beautiful and the beasts (men and machines).  Photograph taken by the model’s photographer

To conclude this first segment, the incident where I hit the erosion across the road was not the bike’s fault.  But it does point out that if you want to push this bike hard, and again I do not recommend anyone ride any bike that way, then you should replace its stem ball bearings with a set of tapered bearings.

It also shows the importance of having having a set of spoke wheels which are stronger than alloy wheels. And the larger, 19-inch size helps going over obstacles as well, when compared to this bike’s original 17-inch wheels.  This is exactly the kind of scenario that justifies the Rally Raid Level 3 kit, or why bikes with alloy wheels are not recommended for this type of riding.

Overall, on gravel roads the CB500X does a great job.  I enjoy its power and power delivery for this type of road, when you are already on the range of the torque curve, you can accelerate it on gravel curves and it is solid and settled on how it feels and behaves.  Gravel roads are my favorite type of riding by a great margin and this bike, with the Rally Raid kit, allows for twisting the throttle with abandon. With a 100 hp machine you can have fun as well, of course but you will need to manage to manage it carefully, unless you rely on traction control.

You may not even need the Rally Raid Kit for gravel riding on this bike. You can always go slowly and enjoy the scenery and in that case this bike on its OEM configuration, maybe better tires, would had been fine on this first segment of the loop. But with the rally raid kit you have better suspension which makes quite a difference if you like to ride faster.  It is not a rally machine, though, and if only the already improved front suspension dealt better over the smaller rocks, this machine could be considered a perfect gravel monster.

Ballarat to Goler Wash Road to Mengel Pass – More fun and the second incident with the CB500X

After the short stop in Ballarat we were back on track.  After that first incident I re-adjusted the handlebars, did a final check on things and considered it good to go.  I did start slower this time though.  The road continued south with the same type of gravel, just a bit rougher on spots, until reaching Goler Wash Road (Goler Wash Road is part of Coyote Canyon Road), some fifteen miles or so south of Ballarat.

Continuing south of Ballarat and changing skies

Take a look at the picture above and the one below, the skies have completely changed from what you see on the first photos. No more blue skies, no questions, a storm was brewing.  We carried on.

The skies have changed…

Soon the road starts climbing as we enter the canyon.  It is about 9 miles from the main road to reach the summit of Mengel Pass through Goler Wash.  It turns out there is a mining site that has been operational for the last 6 years or so in the area, it is about half way to the summit of Mengel Pass, and is reached through the Goler Wash Road.

That means the road has been graveled to support the back and forth traffic of trucks carrying mining equipment,fuel,  supplies and whatever they are mining.

Goler Wash… deep gravel, not very compacted yet.

As a result, there are no more “steps” on Goler Wash. Instead, it is this gravel that is not very compact.  On the picture above it looks like a simple gravel road, but it is very steep and the deep and loose gravel made me lose traction when I got half way through it.  I was the first to hit it, and had no idea how steep and loose it was until the bike lost traction some 10 yards from the top.  Once I lost traction the bike fishtailed one way, than the other, and when it got sideways I dropped it.

Dropped the thing

To the CB500X’s credit, no bike made this little hill on their own power. Also, there was no damage done to the bike. It crashes well (well it was almost stopped by the time I dropped it).

We ghost-walked the KTM.

Ghost-walking the KTM on this steep with gravel portion of the road.

The BMW almost made it on its on power after Hugh got some speed to start the short but steep hill.  But it also lost traction close to the top and once it lost traction it dug its own trench and required attention.  We have to give credit to Hugh and the BMW, although it also lost traction, the bike looked stable all along.  The problem was how to extricate this heavy bike from this trench on this steep incline… Two of us pushing, Hugh on board, a few back and forth moves, that’s how we made it.

The BMW dug its own trench, but did really well, almost cleared it without assistance

All bikes needed help but the three of us made it to the top of this small patch of road.  This steep hill was not a big deal, considering what we would face next, but we did talk about maybe turning around here. We decided to keep going.

First obstacle cleared!

From the picture below you can see how the road abruptly disappears. It was a steep section of this road.

To understand how steep it is, take a look at hour it disappears abruptly behind the BMW

The road continued without any other major challenges after that.

The road continued with no other challenges until a few miles after the mining operations

At some point we reached the mining operations. The road continued to be good for a couple of miles after that.

Mining operations on Goler Wash area.

But then the road started to degrade and segments with rocky terrain appeared.  Not too bad, though. The section below was the worst portion on this road and it was just before hitting the summit.

Rock garden!

Most of the time, though, it was just rough going, but fun and and we kept moving.

Rolling stones rocking our going

This kind of terrain, with rocks creating very rough spots is hard on the CB500X, even with the Rally Raid kit.  The front suspension does not have the travel to allow more shock absorption, hence the bike feels really hard, transferring shocks to the handle bars, giving the sensation that it crashes onto these rocks instead of hovering over them.  You do need to slow down. And sometimes you lose the momentum, especially if you add the characteristics of the motor.  What is good about this motor on pavement and on gravel, may not translate too well on technical terrain.

But we made it to the top!

We all make it to the top of Mengel Pass

As a summary, for this segment, especially the nine miles to reach the summit, I would say the bike did well.  What makes this bike interesting as a lightest multi-cylinder adventure motorcycle available is the capacity to use it on solo travel.  Perhaps I could have picked it up on my own and recovered from the incident on that steep area of the gravel road.  I’m not sure because in this case I had assistance to pick it up and ghost-ride it to the top.

Based on this incident, which most riders would encounter when riding off pavement and off the beaten path, my conclusion would be:  the KTM could do it on its own power or the rider could manage to drag it to the top of that hill one way or another if needed, it is a very light machine; the CB500X is likely to need assistance; the BMW definitely needs assistance if it doesn’t make it.  The BMW has more weight and in part because of the weight, and in other part because it has the appropriate power delivery and gearing, it seems more stable to tractor up that steep incline. But if or when the BMW gets stuck you will definitely need help to get it going again.

The CB500X, on the other hand, does not have the “tractoring” type of power on first gear, that low speed torque delivery you need on these conditions. It is a bit frenetic (is there a better word to describe it?) on its power delivery from first gear, which is a problem for this type of riding condition. It works well in the city, it is fun on the twisties. Here it is a nuisance. A better rider would have perhaps cleared that little hill without problems.  But chances are these experienced riders will be riding something different.  And that is the point about the CB500X, with Rally Raid kit or not, its essence, the combo of motor, transmission and clutch, was not designed for this type of riding.  More on the clutch next.

From Mengel Pass to the West Side Road:  Third incident with the CB500X

As we were on the top of the pass, taking pictures and celebrating our accomplishment, it started to rain. Very lightly, though. We had felt a few drops here and there before, but now we know it is really coming, we could see it in the horizon.  The total distance to reach the West Side road from here is about 24 miles.  And mostly down hill.  Not a problem, right?

On top of Mengel Pass, looking towards the east, storms brewing…

However, going down the other side, the road does not get any easier.  Actually it gets worse before it gets better.  There are some more rock gardens, with larger rocks than on the other side.

Real rock gardens on the other side of the pass. Notice the projected light of the bike on the pile of rocks – it is getting dark

For this type of riding, you need to feather the clutch to go slow while keeping that very important momentum going.  This happens with most any motorcycle on these riding situations.  In particular with the CB500X, as discussed earlier, because of its its low and somewhat peaky torque, which feels more pronounced at slow gears and speeds, reliance on feathering the clutch becomes yet more important.

That’s when I found another potential challenge for this bike as a true adventure machine: it has a narrow friction zone for clutch engagement. It was about one inch of travel at the lever at the beginning of the ride and operating on this narrow margin was difficult, I stalled the bike several times.  At some point either the cable stretched or the clutch plates started wearing down, I was down to less than one inch of engagement travel. I adjusted it on the spot, which improved some, but there is only so much to work with, I learned.

Struggling to move forward… narrow friction zone on the clutch

The friction zone is something important for an adventure motorcycle, we need a good amount. On the street, no problems, we want fast gear changes.  Kudos to Honda for making a DCT version for the Africa Twin, designed to prevent the bike from stalling, exactly what makes it good for these types of circumstances. It is also what makes the Rekluse auto-clutch so popular on dual sport and adventure bikes. Maybe Rekluse has something for the Honda CB500X? I doubt it, but it would be an awesome upgrade!

The challenge to make the CB500X a true adventure machine is that you can’t broaden a clutch’s friction zone on a bike. You can maximize it by adjusting the cable and lever properly for the largest range it can deliver.  You can change friction plates to have them last longer or change springs, but stronger springs, which would be required for this type of riding, may actually shorten the friction zone.  I don’t know what I will do with this yet, but it is an area that may require some research.

After a few more challenging spots the road finally started getting better. And dark.

As an alternative, now that the bike has more miles with the Tractive suspension, I can go back and properly adjust the sag, which based on a recent preliminary measure requires an increase of about half an inch of sag, reducing the pre-load may actually make the bike lower, and hence easier to maneuver on these situations.

If you have a long inseam this issue can be resolved with the old leg assist. In my case, I have to use balance and rely on a steady throttle to have the bike climb and crawl over obstacles.  I never wanted to be a trial rider, but you need these skills on these types of riding or a bike that will work with you.  The CB500X is not one of these bikes.  The BMW seems to do it so well… or was it Hugh’s riding? Both, I would say.  The KTM is light and Scott maneuvered everything very nicely as well.  They both had to wait for me and sometimes help me, each time we encountered one of the several areas of the road when such steep or rocky terrain required slow going.

Back to the ride, after a while the road finally got better and we were cruising.  I think at some point we went past Striped Butte.  Nothing to see, really, all we wanted at this point was to get out of the mountain as it was raining more and of course, getting darker.  We will come back to this area next time and I hope to spend more time on this very beautiful plateau.

Road gets better, we were cruising!

At least now we were past the trouble zone, and only had rain to contend with and darkness was approaching fast.  I was just saying to myself “will there be any other surprise” ahead of us?  I was thinking about road conditions as surprises, but something else happened.

I was following Hugh and his BMW R1200GS when he hit a rut that had an odd camber to it, and it was right where there was a deep ditch on the side of the road. Perhaps it was the only portion of road with a ditch!

As Scott cleared the hump ahead with his KTM, Hugh crashes his BMW into a ditch (Part 1)

His bike hit the rut and went out from under him and veered to the right where the ditch was.  There was nothing he could do. The bike went “head first” into the ditch. Check the sequence of events, below is part two.

Part 2 of the sequence

Part three.

Part 3

Part four.

Part 4

Part five.

Part 4: front of the bike has fallen on a deep rut

Part six, the most important thing: Hugh is fine.

Part 6, The most important thing, Hugh is fine!

This happened when it really started raining.  Scott had just cleared the next hill so he had no knowledge this was happening right behind him and continued. We were assessing the situation, waiting to see if Scott would come back to help us move the BMW from the ditch.  But with that rain falling steadily we figured we should not wait, we should try to extricate the bike ourselves.

We tried different ways, the best approach, we found out, was to drag the bike on its side to bring the front wheel back on the road.  It took a while but we managed to bring it back to the road and from there we stood it up.  There was damage to the beak and front fairing, and especially worrisome was the information cluster that was completely loose from its anchoring points.  I know some bikes need a working cluster to be able to start the motor and run.  Hugh turned the key on and it lit up and the bike started right away. What a relief, Hugh was fine, the bike was running! Great job BMW.

However, we lost a good amount of time there.  Scott by this time was probably almost out of the mountain.  He was completely oblivious to our issues, and, at the same time, he knew the road had been good since the last time he had seen us, so he had nothing to think that we were not just right behind him.

The incident with the BMW was something completely out of the ordinary, as Hugh is a great rider. “Sh!t happens”, is the best way to describe it.  Later we learned that once Scott reached the West Side Road, a good point to stop and wait for us, the sand storm was are already in full swing.  Have you been on a sand storm? There is no way someone could stand there, waiting, with all the wind and sand hitting you.  Especially when you assume we were not too far behind him. Scott carried on, he was worried, but assumed we were fine. I would had done the same, given the circumstances.

Meanwhile, Hugh and I did not know anything about the sandstorm, we are now riding again, maybe some 30 minutes or more behind Scott, it is still raining but road conditions are improving as we are getting out of the mountain and in more open areas.  It was a beautiful scenery, too bad I had stopped the video camera and never thought of turning it back on.

All along I was following Hugh and we were checking Scott’s tracks.  All of a sudden I got distracted and when we reached a more frequently traveled area, I could not see Scott’s tracks anymore.  What if Scott had gotten lost or fallen on the side of the road and with the rain and darkness we missed him?

With these thoughts in mind we made it out of the mountain and when we got to the West Side road the sand storm was going at full tilt and had already covered the road with a feet or more of sand.  The last leg of the adventure was just about taking shape.

In five minutes from the time we stopped, our own tracks had been already covered by the sand storm (West Side Hwy.)

These photos do not make justice to how dark it was, nor it documents the wind level, nor how much sand was flying. It was a scene of total desolation, which, once again, explains why Scott did not wait for us here. Hugh and I talked, maybe screamed at each other over the wind noise and blasting. Assuming Scott was ahead of us, we decided to carry on, hoping for the best.

The BMW is fully operational, except the headlights are aiming to the skies instead of the road ahead.

From West Side Road back to Camp:  No more incidents with the CB500X, just a curious thing

My main concern at this point was about the bikes, how would they perform on this deep sand?

The next morning I photographed the G1X camera to show how much sand it accumulated after about 1 minute of exposure to the sand storm (when I took the sandstorm pictures)

The CB500X felt very stable and easy to ride.  When I realized this was not going to be an issue, and now that it was completely dark, we started riding side by side, as the BMW’s headlights were useless after the crash, aiming to the night sky, and Hugh had to rely on my Honda’s lights.  We went side by side for basically all the distance back to pavement.  Luckily the sandstorm stopped a few miles north (or we rode out of it).

A scene of total desolation

When we were very close to reach pavement, just south of Furnace Creek, my GPS indicated I had received a phone call from Scott’s wife (the GPS connects via blue tooth to my phone).  I stopped to check my phone, it did not have reception at that point, but I let Hugh know we had received the call.  That was good news, it meant Scott was looking for us. Soon after I got a call from Scott. Great, he was waiting for us at the Furnace Creek gas station.  We arrived at the gas station just before 9 pm, just before it closed. It was great to regroup, even emotional. Very celebrated indeed. The adventure was complete.  Or was it?

Hugh filled his BMW’s tank, and I did not fill the Honda’s tank. We were 56 miles from camp, and we had ridden some 121 miles so far and I confess, I did not start this loop with a full tank. It was one bar down…  But 177 miles would be plenty good for the 50 mpg this bike does on average. As we were hanging out at the gas station I had a second thought and decided it would be a good idea to fill it up, but by that time the gas station was closed.

Zipties to adjust the BMW’s headlights.

We worked a few minutes on the BMW, using zipties to adjust the headlights.  It worked, they were now pointing on the right direction.

It is “fixed”

We continued on the last leg of the ride back to camp, we had 56 miles to go.  I don’t know this bike very well, this was the first time I was riding it with an emptier tank. In my history of motorcycle ownership, all my bikes had a reserve petcock or a a reserve amber light on the dash.  I was somewhat confident the Honda would make it back to camp with the gasoline I had on the tank.  But then we were climbing from Furnace Creek, the fuel gauge had two bars remaining and then it went fast to one bar and soon after it started blinking. No amber light? What the heck was that? Was I past the the traditional amber light point and did not notice it?  The dash would flash the last bar, alternating with a red bar (the red bar is part of the dash but it is covered by the lowest black bar when you have fuel).

The dash would flash the last bar, which would show this red box

The dash eventually showed a number on the right, which started from 0, and then the word “gal”.

Then it should the last black bar with a number on the right

Therefore, not having read the manual of the bike, I had no idea how much gasoline the bike had at this point.  I did not realize until then, instead of counting miles from the time the tank hits the reserve (when it starts flashing the last bar – that’s the amber light equivalent for this bike), the bike starts counting the amount of gallons consumed form the reserve amount.  The point is, I had no idea how much gasoline there is on reserve on this bike. So I started riding on save mode.  Hugh and Scott were way ahead, I could see their lights, but I was just not going to accelerate too much to keep up with them.  When we started going downhill again I started pushing it a bit more and finally reconnected with them.

Somehow the bike made it and now I know I can ride at for least 50 miles, if ridden carefully, after the reserve starts. Gladly this last part of the adventure did not mean I was going to be waiting on the side of the road for one of them to go back to camp to bring me some extra gasoline (we had plenty of gasoline at the camp).  The Honda sipped fuel, as the number on the right did not go past 0.2 in those last 50 miles or so. Now, after the fact, I checked the manual and it doesn’t say how much gas the bike has on reserve.  It does state “refuel right away” and the manual says that when you go past 0.26 miles (1 liter) it will start blinking faster.

Is the CB500X an Adventure Motorcycle?

To conclude, the CB500X Adventure is just what it is, a street bike with an adventure kit. You can expand its adventure boundaries with the kit, and then add your riding skills to the equation, and it will still have its limitations.  If your adventure riding is limited to dirt and gravel roads, the bike will be more than fine.

If you want to push it hard, this is not going to be your bike. The limitations are a city riding torque curve, narrow friction zone, and overall, parts that are not made for dirt riding, such as the stem bearings.  Besides the Level 3 kit, you can work around some of these issues. If changing the gear ratio for shorter gears, you may take care of two problems (torque curve and narrow friction zone). Maybe it will work with a different clutch spring or more rugged clutch plates.

Having said that, I would not have taken my Tiger 800 XC to Mengel Pass.  Would I have taken a BMW R1200GS if I owned one? From what I saw, it worked really well.  It was probably the best bike of the three on the slow going technical terrain.  Partly it was rider skill, as Hugh showed great balance, great throttle control, and picked his lines very smartly. However, I’m not sure I would take an R1200GS on these roads…  but as I always say, if I had to have only one motorcycle, it likely would be a BMW R1200GS.

The key issue here is that if you get in trouble with the CB500X, and you’re alone, at least you may be able to extricate yourself from the situation because it is a relatively lighter bike. Well, it is not light. It is about 440 lbs wet (“official” wet wait is 430 lbs plus the Rally Raid kit’s heavier wheels).  But it is the lightest multi-cylinder adventure motorcycle currently available.  If you want to go lighter than the CB500X you have to pick a single cylinder motorcycle.

The weight issue…

So what are the alternatives for the CB500X? Short of a single cylinder motorcycle, there is nothing out there. Yes, there is the BMW F700GS, but you may need to put spoke wheels on it. The Suzuki Strom DL 650 is also an option.  But both the BMW and the Strom are heavier than the CB500X. The small Honda with its Rally Raid kit is what is available at the moment, one of the few options out there on the just above 400lbs weight.

Not many options around the 400lb mark

However, rumors are showing up indicating KTM will have a mid-weight, 800cc adventure bike.  Yamaha could be working on a 700 cc mid-size Ténéré.  And finally Ducati seems to expanding its Scrambler line with something that looks like an enduro machine (or a Scrambler with real scrambler ambitions). I would not be surprised if these other bikes really come out, since this is a real empty space in the market, for people who do not want a single cylinder machine.

One of the things a like most about the CB500X is that it is an unassuming underdog of a machine. Maybe I can make it slightly better for future endeavors. Meanwhile, this bike delivers lots of fun when riding it fast on paved or gravel roads. It is an interesting machine.

If you are an expert rider, look elsewhere.  If you want a real enduro or adventure performance from a machine, this is not for you either.  But if you want to enjoy the back roads with an inexpensive unassuming machine, this bike will deliver fun in spades.  I will keep mine. Unless Yamaha, KTM or Ducati convince me otherwise.  They will have to deliver something good to convince me to trade my Honda.

Final Day in Death Valley and Return home

That was it for the review of the CB500X in the Death Valley. The next day I did not ride it, for one thing I did not want to exacerbate the head bearing problem. And second, I had taken with me the WR250R and I wanted to take it out for a spin.

Took the WR250R for a ride, this time Lippincott trail from the top (in 2010 it climbed it)

It was great to ride the WR250R again, it is so light. It shows also, that one bike is not enough… it is always good to have an alternative. Or so I want to believe.

On the next day I loaded the bikes and traveled back to Oregon.  The strange or strong weather patterns continued. Around Susanville the winds were really strong, enough for the highway patrol to prevent trucks to travel on certain portions of the road.  And then I encountered snow close to Mount Shasta.

Snow on the way back home

In the end the weather played an important role on this trip. I had strong winds on the way in, strong winds on the way back, rain storms, snow storms and sand storms. And a lot of fun with two great guys who are great riders.

I’m already looking forward to my next trip to the Death Valley.  The CB500X will gain auxiliary lights, a sag adjustment, maybe a shorter gear ratio, maybe mirrors that don’t flop around.  I’m sure it will be fun to ride it again on the dirt.

Thank you for reading.

While I was entertaining the possibility that Ducati would come up with a real enduro machine based on the Scrambler line, a reader from Moto.It came across this disguised motorcycle that looks a lot like the Multistrada, but in a smaller version.

A 939 Multistrada?

The folks at Moto.It believe it is based on the 939 line (as in Hyperstrada, Hypermotard).  It makes sense to me.  When I tested the previous Hyperstrada version, the one based on the 821 motor, I thought it was a perfect machine.  At 110 hp at 9,250 RPM and 65.8 lb-ft at 7,750 RPM I thought it lacked a bit of grunt, but that was not quite and issue, it actuallty moved fast and was smooth at it.  Overall lack of comfort for touring and some, well, lack of “maturity” to the design was more of an issue to me. Nothing wrong about it being a hooligan machine, at 450lbs of weight.

If Ducati develops a 939 Multistrada, though, that would make this smaller size bike such a perfect motorcycle for so many who, like me, think the Hyperstrada just doesn’t cut it, and for the ones who think the Multistrada 1200 is a bit too much.

To keep things in perspective, the 939 motor in the Hyperstrada delivers 113 hp at 9,000 RPM and 72.2 ln-ft at 7,500 rpm.  That’s plenty of grunt for fun riding, but on a Multistrada package it would likely have some extra pounds to contend with.

Overall, a 939 cc Multistrada would fit a perfect spot in the market and it would show how Ducati seems to be investing more on adventure machines.  Talking about that, Ducati, please hurry up and put together the Enduro version of the Multistrada 939.  Am I dreaming too big?

Lets see if this possible Multistrada 939 will show up at EICMA.  Or if they deliver an Enduro Scrambler. Or both bikes and then some.  Will this happen at this year’s EICMA? Well, that’s just around the corner, so maybe it is too soon. Time will tell.

I got a text message earlier today… “bring your camera!” it said.  I was involved in so many calls and conversations today, it was hard to wait until I could find the time to get to the European Motorcycles of Western Oregon to check this thing out in person.

The 2017 BMW R NineT Scrambler is here!

I had seen one of these for the first time in February at the One Moto show in Portland. But this time I could see and touch it as well.

It is something!

I don’t know what angle is the best angle to photograph this machine. They are all nice angles.

Beautiful from all angles

It doesn’t have the nice front forks of the R NineT roadster.  Nor the aluminum tank.  And a few other items here and there, showing BMW wanted to make sure this bike started at a lower price point than the R NineT Roadster.

Another nice view…

However, you can build your own. ABS is standard.  As options you can get traction control, heated grips, cross-spoke wheels and off road tires, for example.  As accessories you can get items such as a short seat and the aluminum tank.

Footpegs are positioned slightly lower than on the roadster. The Akrapovic exhaust is “scramblerized”

The cast wheels are okay.  The cross spoke wheels are better looking in my opinion.  My complaint? The one-clock. Really? I guess that is an issue of preference.  Not my preference, in this case.

Single clock. Looks nice but…

On the other hand, I like the Metzeler Karoo 3 tires.

Metzeler Karoo 3 tires. A no extra cost option.

It comes only on this matt gray color, called… Monolith Metallic Matt. Despite the name, I like this color a lot. I actually prefer it to the original black or the aluminum tank.  It works well with the orange tones of the seat.

Gray tank and orange seat, good match, in my opinion.

By the way the seat is not leather. It looks like leather, they did a great job at it, even with stitches in some areas.  But it is plastic.

I want one!

I had a chance to check the ergos. It is taller than the roadster, but I still can flat foot it (my inseam is between 30 and 31) with both feet.  The handlebars are taller than on the roadster.  It checks all the boxes.

Another ’round the world machine?

I can see riding this machine around the world. Or just around the corner. It looks like the perfect essence of what riding is all about, unassuming, old school but modern, a classic motor. Based on my test rides on the R NineT roadster, it is powerful and a lot of fun to ride. One of the best machines I’ve ever ridden.

Ready for adventures!

If you want to see one of these bikes in person, contact your local BMW shop, they should have one ready.  If you are in the general proximity of Eugene, check with Mickey at the European Motorcycles of Western Oregon. Who knows till when they will have this bike available… I bet not too long.

Thank you for reading.

Should I upgrade my 2013 Ducati Multistrada Pikes Peak with the 2016 Pikes Peak model? That’s the question.  I’m not the only one grappling with this question since 2015, when Ducati incorporated many upgrades to the Multistrada, especially the DVT motor.

2016 Ducati Multistrada Pikes Peak on the left, my 2013 Pikes Peak on the right.

On this post I will discuss ten reasons to keep my Multistrada Pikes Peak or to get the new DVT model.  These reasons are not “either or” scenarios, they are just considerations on specific items, where, on my personal view, I would favor one motorcycle or the other.  Your take might be different than mine item by item, but you can use this framework to reach your own conclusions.

2016 Ducati Multistrada Pikes Peak

A premise for this comparison is that besides the DVT Multistrada I haven’t seen other motorcycles that would work as an upgrade to my Multistrada.  There are some motorcycles that are better on sport or touring performance.  When you combine sport and touring, though, and put together on a upright riding position package, the Multistrada is still my favorite so far. I say “so far” because I’m open to other motorcycles, and will look for alternatives if something comes up.  For now the Multistrada DVT is the natural upgrade to my sport/touring motorcycle, the 2013 Ducati Multistrada Pikes Peak.

The 2016 Mutistrada DVT Standard model I test rode

Within the Multistrada line the alternatives have improved with the addition of the Enduro version.  But it is the Pikes Peak primarily the one that gathers my attention, hence the one that will be discussed here.

My 2013 Ducati Multistrada Pikes Peak

Now that we have discussed the context at hand, we are ready to start bringing up, one by one, the items, the differences between the 2013/14 and the 2015/16 Pikes Peak bikes, that can make me, or you, favor one or the other.

Reason 1: The Testatretta motor!

No question, one of the most critical elements that makes the Multistrada successful is its motor. When this bike first came out in 2010, the motor was all the rage. This bike was a first on that front and has created a new segment, we now have a few other options delivering similar or better level performance from their motors from KTM, BMW, Aprilia, and others. So let’s start with the Testastretta motor.

The case to keep the 2013: The dual spark motor performance and characteristics

Although the DVT motor has more power, is more stable on low RPM, and is smoother throughout the rev band when compared to the 2013 motor, its power delivery at the mid portion of the RPM range does not feel as strong as what I experience in my motorcycle’s Testratretta dual spark motor.

Testastretta twin-spark motor, Multistradas 2013 and 2014.

The 2013/14 Multistrada’s motor is a re-designed version of the original Testastretta motor on the 2010/12 models.  The re-design included several modifications that improved the management of spark, fuel, and the air mixture maximizing its efficiency and stability at lower RPM.  It was a subtle but critical improvement.

The 2013/14 motors maintain just enough of the characteristic vibration of a V-twin, it is something I actually like.  But it is not overwhelming at all, it is just a light touch you feel via the handlebars, seat and pegs. When you add the v-twin vibration to the dynamic forces of acceleration and sound, it does give a feel of raw performance, it delivers an aggressive attitude. It is telling you there is a strong v-twin in there, taking you on this high performance adventure, and in the case of this specific motor, it is willing to give you more as you climb the rev range.

The Evolution of the Multistrada Testastretta motors (the 1198 was the original motor)

In preparation for this write up, I rode my Mutistrada over the weekend, just to be reminded of what this motor is all about. At 4,500 RPM that motor is already very responsive and linear. The magic spot, the characteristic of a motorcycle where I enjoy the riding experience the most, happens at the confluence of vibration, RPM gain, speed gain, and induction sounds.  On this bike it starts just above 5K RPM on the “150 hp high” setting.  That’s the sweet spot of its motor, all the way to about 8K RPM, giving me a great latitude, a wide range for fun.  This is ultimately the reason I like this motor, and why I keep it at the 150 hp and on the high setting, where its delivery is sharp, even when on Urban mode.

Even Urban setting is kept at 150 HP with the High (150 HIGH) acceleration on my bike

The case to get the DVT bikes: The DVT motor performance and characteristics

As a counter point, though, the DVT motor is sublime. Although it is smooth at higher RPMs, you would never question there is a V-twin pulling you through when riding this motorcycle, especially at lower RPMs. There are several advantages to this motor, from technical to experiential in relation to the motor on my motorcycle.

The DVT Motor

From the technical side, it is yet more efficient than the motor from each it evolved.  Actually, there are so many differences, it is a different motor altogether.  The most important one, of course, is on its name, the variable valve timing on intake and exhaust valves.  It delivers more power and yet more improvements to low RPM motor stability, and better fuel efficiency, without compromising performance on the higher end of the rev range.  As a matter of fact, this motor has about 10% more torque than the dual spark motor.

On the experiential side of things, when comparing to my 2013, the DVT motor does feel more stable at low RPM.  However where I noticed the most improvement was on how smooth it is under strong acceleration.  And since we are talking about strong acceleration, there is rush of power you get above 6K RPM from this motor… it is something out of this world. That’s where the sweet spot of this motor resides.

Although that rush of power is great, it comes with a down side. If you are in touring mode you will experience a slow down on the acceleration rate when the motor goes from 4K to 6K RPM. It is somewhat of a disappointment to have that flat spot on the torque curve, but it only makes the acceleration you experience above 6K so much more intense.

In conclusion, I would say both motors are great. The dual-spark motor delivers more of a raw performance, it is an in your face performance, and you get some nice induction sounds along the way, it is a true v-twin motor, perhaps the last of a generation.  The DVT motor, on the other hand, is a lot more refined, but it is still delivering a thrilling performance. It requires a change on how you use the gears, if you want to be on the sweet spot, but when you are there you will be rewarded! For as much as I like the feel of the dual spark motor, there is no looking back, the DVT motor on itself is already a good reason to upgrade to a 2015 or 20156 model.

Reason 2: Reliability and Service intervals

Anytime someone knows I ride a Ducati one of the questions that comes up in the conversation is about reliability and service intervals.  These are important items to consider when we know these bikes are expensive to maintain and service.

The case to keep it: reliability

The twin-spark motor turned out to be reliable.  My motorcycle has never had any mechanical problems.  It was also the first Ducati motor to have a 15,000 mile service interval, which is great progress for these service demanding Ducati motors.  However, it still requires belts to be changed every two years.

My 2013 Twin-spark motor, 24,000 Km, 15,000 miles service interval.

The case to get the DVT bikes:

While we are still learning about the DVT motors, who knows what reliability level they will reach, they incorporate lots of changes and new technology.  What we know is that these motors have yet a longer service interval than the motor they substitute. Its service interval is 30,000 Km which translates to 18,750 miles.  And I hear (to be confirmed) the belts need to serviced only every 5 years.  That is not bad at all.

DVT Motor: Desmove service every 30,000 Km, 18,750 miles

I would say, in the long term, the DVT motor, with its longer service intervals, will carry more value, not even considering what it already gains in performance and efficiency from the variable valve timing technology.

Reason 3: The Suspension

Aside from the motor, another important item that makes the Multistrada successful is the suspension.  The 2010-12 models had the Öhlins suspension, and from the 2013 model the Multistrada line comes equipped with Sachs semi-active suspension, also called the Skyhook which with Ducati’s name added to the acronym it becomes DSS.  In 2015 the Multistrada continues with the Skyhook, but with evolutionary upgrades.

However the 2015-16 Pikes Peak comes with an evolution of the Öhlins you would find on the first versions (2010-12).  This makes for a difficult decision here, and it will probably be the most important one for several people.  I remember on motorcycle forums in 2013 some people were very passionate for Öhlins or for Sachs semi-active suspension. The reason for the controversy is obvious: they are both good suspension systems.  But they are also different.

The case to keep it:  Sachs Skyhook Suspension (DSS)

The case for Skyhook is comfort and the easiness to get performance from it.  You can dial it in to your own style of riding going through a series of menu items. It is incredible how the DSS, Ducati’s semi-active suspension, works.

DSS: Ducati Skyhook Semi-active suspension.

Once you ride a motorcycle with it, and you happen to like it, which is my case, you want all suspensions to work the same way, especially when you travel on rough surfaces. On sport mode, for example, it keeps the damping you need for aggressive riding, but softens the edges of imperfections on the road. Overall, it is likely to keep the wheels on the ground on a more evenly fashion while making the ride more comfortable as well.

Therefore, you should get more performance, safety, and also comfort out of it.  The tendency is that more and more motorcycles will have semi-active suspensions. We already these systems on premium brands such as KTM, Aprilia, BMW, and MV Agusta.

The case to upgrade to the DVT: Öhlins suspension, including the fully adjustable Öhlins TTX36 shock

On the other hand, Öhlins is known to deliver high performance suspension. I rode a 2010 Multistrada with Öhlins and liked it. I also rode the 2016 DVT with the standard  suspension (not semi-active) more recently. After so many years riding Skyhook semi-active suspension, I’ve gotten used with it. However, riding the standard Multistrada I got reminded about how good it is to have better feedback from the front end of the bike.

Ohlins  front forks, the gold stanchion is back…

Semi-active suspensions don’t give you that important detail, the feedback you may want to feel at the handle bars. The feedback makes it easier to ride faster, even if semi-active suspensions deliver optimized performance in varying conditions. You need to trust the semi-active suspension, you read the bike better on “analog” suspension.

Overall, I would like to have both suspensions, and then switch to one or the other by a flick of a button. Since that is not possible, if I had to opt, I would give a try to Öhlins next.  I know I would miss the Skyhook, though.  That is a tough decision.  You can go with Multistrada S with DVT, in which case you get the DVT motor, but an evolutionary version of the semi-active suspension.

Reason 4: Riding technology package, the case to get the DVT bikes

Since both bikes offer high level of technology, and the choice is between these two bikes,  having technology is not an issue favoring one or the other bike. As a matter of fact, riding technology is another element that characterized the Multistrada, since it was one of the first motorcycles to have a full package including riding modes, power delivery modes, suspension settings, levels of ABS and traction control.

That is, if you like a Multistrada, chances are you like the technology that comes with it as well.  Therefore, when comparing the 2013/14 Multistradas to the 2015/16 models, there is no question, advantage goes to the DVT bikes.

Latest version of Bosch’s ABS, with stability control (the “cornering ABS)

And that’s because of the upgrades it includes.  Two items are probably making the case unambiguous:  Bosch’s ABS with stability control, the famous “cornering ABS”; and cruise control.

Thanks to Bosch and KTM for introducing the cornering ABS to their Adventure models, a technology that has become a requirement on all top brands since then. KTM has it, BMW has it, and the DVT Multistradas have it.  I want my next performance motorcycle to have cornering ABS.

The second item, cruise control, is not the most important item, but there are moments when you really wish you had it, when you need to do something with both hands, things you shouldn’t be doing  (like turning the camera on).  Or when you need to rest your right wrist on a long ride. It is very convenient even if you only use it once in a while. I’m at the “why not” camp for that one. I want my next touring motorcycle to have cruise control.

Cruise control on the DVT

Reason 5: Seat height

The DVT Multistradas have a lower seat, offering better reach to the ground for inseam challenged people.

Lowe seat height can be a major advantage for the DVT models, should you be inseam-challenged

Depending on how tall you are you may find this a reason to upgrade or not.  For me, this is a major positive item!  When riding my Multistrada I’m always observant when stopping about how at least one foot will reach the ground and how stable that reach needs to be.

Reason 6: Marchesini wheels, the case for the 2o13/14 models

On the previous Pikes Peak models, Marchesini wheels has been the one major item that characterized the model, besides the color scheme.

Marchesini wheels on the Pikes Peak, discontinued on the 2015 and 2016 models.

That’s no longer the case, the DVT Pikes Peak models come with cast wheels.

Cast wheels on the 2015-16 Pikes Peak

This is not a priority item, but it makes a difference on performance and strength of the wheel and is one of those contributing items that help with the decision.

Reason 7: Information display, the case for the DVT models

This is a no-brainer. The new TFT color display of the DVT models is so much better than the monochrome displays of the previous series.

2010-14 Multistrada Monochrome displays

Some have complained the new TFT displays scratch easily. There is always a downside, right? You can apply protective film to them, problem solved.

The TFT color display in the DVT model. More informative, easier to navigate

Aside from looking better, the DVT model offers a much easier navigation process. Just one more reason to go for the DVT models.

Reason 8: Engine sounds and the Termignoni silencer, the case for the DVT Models (2015/16)

When Ducati announced the Pikes Peak model in 2013 it showed pictures of the bike with the Termignoni slip on. It happened that it was not included on the bikes destined for the American market. Now it is part of the Pikes Peak package.

Termignoni slip on on the DVT Pikes Peak

It happens that I like the sound of the DVT bikes better and with the Termignoni silencer it gets even better.  It is the case of getting the Pikes Peak DVT.

Item 9: The overall package, the case for the DVT bikes

There are so many other items on the new model, like cornering lights (lights that come on when the bike is leaned to illuminate the direction when cornering), back lit switches. I also like the shorty carbon fiber wind screen on the DVT better.

Carbon fiber shorty on the Pikes Peak DVT, another point for the DVT bike!

The overall fit and finish quality seems to have been improved as well. It is, overall, a more refined motorcycle.

Item 10: The looks! So subjective…

It took me a long time to acquire a taste for the Multistrada, what with the beak and the  angry bird face. The Pikes Peak bikes were always a better paint scheme in my opinion. And the 2013/14 Pikes Peak models in particular are unique when compared to the other two Pikes Peak versions.  The first Pikes Peak version had the red and white and black and the shiny carbon pieces, a nice looking beast.

2012 Ducati Multistrada Pikes Peak – official Ducati photo

But the 2013-2014 model is the only one that is only red and white.  It looks more aggressive, sharp, and the satin carbon fiber adds a nice touch to it. It is my favorite.

2013 Ducati Multistrada Pikes Peak – Official Ducati photo.

It is not that I don’t like the new Pikes Peak paint scheme, but on looks alone, I prefer the 2013.

2016 Multistrada Pikes Peak

Of course, this is very subjective. And it should not be a determinant factor on someone’s choice.  But it helps.  I doubt Multistrada motorcycles of this vintage (2010-2016) will become collectible items some day, but if it were the case, I would bet on the Pikes Peak models more than the others to have that space in history.  And perhaps the 2013-14 models are a special case on that scenario, or so I would hope. Aside from the Pikes Peak versions, a potentially collectible version of the Multistrada could be the black color on the 2010-2011 S models which are rare motorcycles.  And those black bikes look great as well.

Conclusion

In my mind, there is no question the DVT is a much improved motorcycle. If my Pikes Peak checked all boxes when I got it, the new one comes with “optional” boxes that did not exist at that time.

Which Pikes Peak? 2016 DVT or my 2013?

At this point, I want the DVT motorcycle. I have other priorities at the moment which do not allow me to indulge on the new level of performance and quality the DVT bikes deliver, and in specific the Pikes Peak, my unambiguous choice.  Also, I think I have a few more adventures to accomplish with my Pikes Peak. It is still my favorite and the best motorcycle I’ve ever had.

I’m not done with  my Pikes Peak, I want to have more adventures with it

But if someone is considering the upgrade, Ducati has a campaign with the Pikes Peak where you can get 1.99% financing or $1,200 cash for accessories.  That should make it easy, right?

I will dream about the DVT, but I can’t complain, my Pikes Peak is an awesome motorcycle.

Disclaimer:  I write this blog as a hobby and a reflection of my passion for motorcycles and motorcycle riding. I’m not affiliated with any business or organization, I’m not paid to write and publish my posts. The potential income generated by advertisements you may come across on my posts are going to WordPress, the organization hosting my content. I pay WordPress to manage and host my content, I would have to pay more to have advert-free posts.

Mobile phones rendered landline telephones obsolete. Smartphones are killing the digital consumer cameras which only a few years earlier rendered film cameras obsolete. Uber has disrupted the taxi cab industry. Youtube and Netflicks are disrupting cable TV faster than cable TV displaced network TV.  Do we need a definition of disruptive innovation or will these examples suffice for us to understand it? Calling these innovations “disruptive” is a way to understand change, see how quickly it can be ignited, and how unexpected it can be.  Let’s talk about how disruptive innovations could change the motorcycle industry.

BMW Motorrad Vision Next 100

Let’s start with the obvious:  the automotive industry.  Most innovations taking place in the auto industry trickle down to the motorcycle industry, and changes are happening at a fast pace in the auto industry. As pointed out by GM’s CEO in January of 2016, at the launch of the Chevy Bolt, the “auto industry is set to change more in the next 5-10 years than it has changed in the last 50 years”.

Mary Barra, GM CEO at the Launch of the Chevy Bolt in Detroit, January of 2016: “The auto industry will change more in the next 5-10 years than it did in the last 50 years”

The recent 2016 Paris Motor Show was a showcase of these changes that are coming to the auto industry.  Mercedes Benz is a great example, they are embracing the inevitable by using the very set of disruptive innovations as a marketing campaign for their next generation of cars. They call it the CASE Pillars, where the next generation of Mercedes cars will be Connected, Autonomous, Shared, and Electric.

Mercedes Benz EQ Concept Car, 2016 Paris Auto Show

Volkswagen is on a similar trajectory. Call it perfect timing, brilliant strategy, shrewd, or all of the above when Volkswagen uses the infamous “Diesel Gate” to leverage a revolutionary marketing campaign.  VW’s marketing campaign aims to change the public perception of the VW brand as the emissions cheating company to become the leading manufacturer of electric cars, which they state will be accomplished by 2025 with a full line of electric cars, including autonomous vehicles, such as the I.D. concept shown in the Paris motor show.  Clever strategy at a minimum.

Volkswagen I.D. Concept Car, 2016 Paris Auto Show

Many other car manufacturers are on the same boat, besides the ones who are already invested on this future, including BMW who has been selling electrical cars for several years, and Nissan who has been the bastion for affordable electric cars with its Leaf.  While Nissan is currently working to get more powerful batteries on the Leaf, Chevrolet’s Bolt is set to be the first high performance, and still competitively priced, 200+ mile-range electric car, beating Tesla’s Model 3 to the market. The Leaf, the Bolt, and the Model 3 will be followed by several other cars from other manufacturers, very soon, in the next couple of years perhaps, which will be priced similarly to their internal combustion engine counterparts and will perform at the same level, if not better.  No more excuses will be needed not to jump on the electric bandwagon.

There is one other example I will mention, which is the Wanxiang Group from China.  I mention this group because China will be the largest market for vehicles in the world and they already have several small electric cars in the market.  However, when they aim at the top of the market, squarely at Tesla, when Wanxiang Group’s purchased Fisker assets a few years back to resurrect the Fisker Karma, to be renamed the Karma Revero. You know they are serious, they understand this change is inevitable.

Karma Revero (PRNewsFoto/Karma Automotive)

Electric cars are, no question, the one change that is inevitable.  The question in many people’s minds is when will internal combustion engines stop being produced. Some analysts say as early as 2030.

That number, 2030, seems to be coming too fast, but it is not unrealistic, and it makes sense when we look at how fast land lines or film cameras or horse-driven cars, for that matter, stopped being produced when disruptive innovations took a hold of the market. Some historians indicate it took about 10 years for larger urban centers to substitute horse-driven cars for gasoline driven cars.

All I can say is “the times are a changing” and with that goes a small homage to Bob Dillan’s 2016 Nobel Prize in Literature.  So what’s next? Electric is a given, what about the other pillars? Will connectivity, autonomous and perhaps shared be the next set of benchmarks?

Autonomous is of course already happening as well. Tesla is currently on its version 8.0 of its operating system which includes improvements on the cars’ automation. Last year I was waiting for my Uber at the San Francisco airport when I spotted a BMW with what seems to be a Bosch derived automated driving system.

BMW with Bosh Automated system, spotted at San Francisco airport in July 2015

Connectivity is happening already on basic levels. When you buy a car today there are versions or options where you plug in your smart phone and it uses it for navigation, music, communication. Blue tooth has been around for a long time.  Cruise control is already available using sensors to adjust speed with traffic ahead. It is just a question of continuous improvement, both from the cars’ perspective but also from the streets, roads, traffic signs, which could likely be adapted to passively or actively communicate with cars.

The shared part has been around for a while as well. We’ve had the Zipcar in our town, for example, but it still is a niche product. It will likely go to another level when automated cars become the norm and anyone can share their automated car with others when not using it. It’s the Uber of the future, the Uber sans driver.  Actually the shared car could disrupt Uber like Uber is disrupting the cab industry.  The shared car should also be disruptive to auto industry overall if it reduces individual car ownership.

Zipcar – still trying to find solid footing

To summarize, we are almost at a critical mass with electric cars and the related disruptive innovations, so much so I already wonder whether people will remember Elon Musk and Tesla as the visionary guy and his company who brought to us this main change to the auto industry.

2016 Tesla Model S

Just to be reminded, by entering at the top of the market with a luxury car that was electric, expensive but better (in many accounts) than the internal combustion cars of its time, Tesla was the success story people wanted to see happen to be able to embrace this change.  It would likely not have happened if the Gee Wiz had been the poster child for electrified cars.

The G-Whiz

By the way, do you know what automobile manufacturer and which model, using gasoline powered motors, was the main disruptive technology of the 1900’s, and which was responsible for eliminating horse-driven or electric cars from urban streets?

Victorian London, circa 1900’s – close to the end of horse drawn cars

Yes, I did say horse-driven and electric cars of the 1900’s, as many first cars were battery powered electric vehicles. We are just coming back to electric cars after a 100 years detour with internal combustion engines.

What about Motorcycles?

Let’s get back to what matters to us, motorcycle riders. As we mentioned before, most innovations on the motorcycle industry are derivatives of innovations taking place in the auto industry. ABS, fuel injection, semi-active suspension are good examples.

Do you remember in 2009 when the 2010 Ducati Multistrada was introduced? That motorcycle was the pinnacle of technology, it still is, but in 2010 it represented a dividing mark on the motorcycle industry. The Multistrada had electronically actuated suspension compression and damping levels and menu driven riding modes (urban, enduro, touring and sport) which controlled ABS levels of engagement, traction control, and engine fuel maps which together changed the motorcycle’s dynamic characteristics.  And you could further customize each of the four pre-set riding modes on any of the variables (ABS, traction control, suspension damping) to better match your riding style or the ride you planned for the day.

The 2010 Ducati Multistrada 1200.

Although the Multistrada was innovative, it probably could be seen more of an evolutionary than a revolutionary motorcycle, if we keep in perspective the latest changes in the auto industry. Nonetheless the Multistrada was a dividing mark when in 2010 that motorcycled packed the full set of evolutionary technologies available at the time. Seven years later and those technologies are now ubiquitous on the top of line models offered by all manufacturers and some of those items such as ABS and riding modes are now common on middle of the range models across almost all brands of motorcycles.

Yamaha FZ-09 (MT-09) dashboard, with riding mode selection

Soon all bikes will have ABS (already the case in Europe), and eventually all will come equipped with cornering ABS (still somewhat new), throttle by wire, cruise control, and riding modes.  It’s simply a question of time.  Can you call these sets of technologies disruptive? Perhaps and more likely you can call them disruptive if you were a carburetor or drum brake maker and did not retool your industry to become a manufacturer of fuel injection systems and disc brakes respectively.

Connected, Autonomous, Shared and Electric

Which of the set of disruptive technologies of the auto industry will impact the motorcycle industry? Again, let’s use Mercedes’ four pillars (connected, autonomous, shared and electric) to discuss possible scenarios of what the future will look like for the motorcycle industry. And then we should talk about BMW’s vision described by its Next 100 concept.

Electric is the easiest and already available technology, so let’s start there. We already have electric motorcycles, and scooters.  But very few manufacturers are entering the viable production zone at this point.  Zero has been around for a while, for example, and is one of the few manufacturers of electric bikes selling these bikes to the public. Their latest model the SR ZF 13.0 with the “power tank” is claimed to reach up to 197 miles with one charge.

2016 Zero SR ZF – Up to 197 miles of range with the “power tank”

Harley Davidson has created its electric motorcycle concept, the Livewire. It created a lot of buzz especially because it came from Harley. The Livewire toured the United States in 2014 and the following year in Europe, but apparently there is no actual movement from Harley Davidson indicating this bike will be produced any time soon.

Harley Davidson Livewire concept

Victory Motorcycles has purchased Brammo and has been developing motorcycle concepts and has entered them on specific races and has been competitive on these races. In 2016 they entered the Pikes Peak race with an electric motorcycle, claiming second place. Incidentally, this Victory electric motorcycle, which was piloted by Don Canet, could have won this year’s Pikes Peak race if it weren’t for them qualifying first and because of it they  started the race early in the morning when the track was still wet on the last few miles at the top.  If they had started their run later in the morning they would have won it based on their times on the lower sections of the mountain where the road was dry (and you know electric motors do not lose power at higher altitude). If Victory keeps up the effort they are on the path to win the 2017 race with an electric motorcycle.

Victory Empulse, Pikes Peak 2016. Second fastest Motorcycle overall with Don Canet (notice the wet track)

Before the Pikes Peak race we had been witnessing the evolution of electric motorcycles on the prestigious TT race as well. Electric bikes competing at the TT races, called the TT Zero race, have been improving their performance year after year, from about 89 mph average speed per lap on the first iteration of this race in 2011, they have now reached close to 120 mph in the 2016 race, only on the sixth year after that first TT Zero race.

Victory electric motorcycle – TT race 2016

Although the performance of electric motorcycles both on the TT races and the Pikes Peak race has approached and perhaps surpassed the performance of internal combustion motorcycles, it has hardly made a dent on the consumer market.  Victory’s Empulse TT starts at US $20,000. Do you see these bikes on the street?

2016 Victory Empulse TT

Zero motorcycles and other electric motorcycle brands have struggled to develop a competitive edge on the motorcycle industry.  There is no Nissan Leaf or Tesla Model S equivalent in the motorcycle line up. You don’t see many video bloggers with electric motorcycles like you see in the auto side of the equation, where Tesla, Nissan Leaf and BMW I3 owners have popular Youtube channels simply because of the cars they drive.

2016 Zero S Streetfighter (photo from Zero site) Price starts at US $9,895 already deducting a US $1,110 federal tax credit

It is easy to conclude motorcycles are lagging on the change, the electric disruptive innovation has not made a mark on the industry yet. Connectivity, yes, top of the range motorcycles are now blue tooth hubs for helmet to helmet and smartphone communications. Autonomous, well, that is a challenge for two-wheel vehicles, although BMW seems to be aiming at that (more on that later). Shared, I doubt it for what motorcycle represents, unless we are talking about small displacement urban mobility.

But electric motors have not created the same critical mass for the main motorcycle markets as you see on the auto industry. A couple of explanations come to mind. One of them is that motorcycles already are more efficient means of transportation to begin with, so they are not bringing that environmentally conscious consumer to the show room to write a check and ride away with an environmentally friendly motorcycle.

Another reason could be that motorcycles are not viewed as means of transportation in many markets, but as a symbol of adventure, a sport or a hobby and with that, there is no incentive for getting rid of the internal combustion engine, which is an intrinsic part of the riding experience. If riders don’t view a motorcycle as a means of transportation, and I’m on this camp, electric motors are not a target. Motorcycle riding is my hobby and my escape route to adventure.

Again, that potential environmentally conscious consumer is not available when we talk about motorcycles as a sport and hobby product. And when we talk about adventure, electric motors are not there yet (no re-charging stations in the middle of nowhere), although I bet electric motors with their high torque figures and linear acceleration would perform really well in some technical situations for as long as the batteries have charge.

Adventure riding – not ready for electric motors yet – although they could perform very well, when there is charge on a battery

At the model range where people see motorcycles as means of transportation, however, at the low cost, or low displacement and scooter levels, where people use the word “mobility” to refer to two-wheel vehicles, that’s where we see more movement towards electric models.

Jetson Electric bike – a Gee-Wiz of the motorcycle world

While the auto industry seems to be riding just at the edge of the wave of cleaner emissions, motorcycles seem to be towed behind by world leading legislation such as Euro 4 and California emissions legislation in Europe and the United States, respectively. That means only one thing: motorcycles will lag behind on the changes but eventually will be dragged to make it happen by legislation. The writing is on the wall.

BMW Motorrad:  ACES and the Vision Next 100

Today one of the most successful motorcycles on BMW Motorrad line up is the 90th anniversary of BMW Motorrad celebratory models (BMW was found in 1916, produced its first motorcycle, motorrad, in 1921).  These celebratory bikes are the retro-looking and retro-driven (air/oil cooled motors) R NineT and its models: the Pure, Racer, Scrambler and the first one, the well known Roadster.

2017 BMW R NineT Scrambler

That’s 90 years of BMW Motorrad.  BMW itself is celebrating its 100th anniversary now and to celebrate it, BMW has launched an international exhibit to kick start its next 100 years with a renewed vision, which they call the Vision Next 100.  This exhibit has started in Berlin and traveled to two other places in the world before ending in Los Angeles last week.

BMW Vision 100 Next

As part of this international celebratory exhibit, we can call it a marketing campaign, BMW presented futuristic concept vehicles based on the ACES idea across all their brands. ACES? Does it sound familiar? Yes, they are talking about Autonomous, Connected, Electric and Shared vehicles, the disruptive innovations discussed earlier, that Mercedes organized as CASE.

The Great Escape

BMW Motorrad is part of ACES as well, but I was so glad to hear BMW was referring to motorcycles as “the last or the final great escapes from every day life (…) providing an experience for all the senses” on this marketing campaign. This means there is hope that in this vision BMW motorcycles will continue be fun to be ridden.

BMW Motorrad Vision Next 100: Does it have to look like a boomerang?

A two wheel concept vehicle, well, a futuristic looking motorcycle, was presented in this traveling exhibit.  It is not a prediction of the future, not a prediction of BMW products for the next 100 years, but part of the vision for the future of each of the BMW brands.  The concept is to show “what could happen in three or four vehicle generations from now”, according to their presentation in Los Angeles. I agree with the BMW official who said, as part of this presentation, “the best way to predict the future is to start to create it”.

BMW Motorrad Vision Next 100

As part of the presentation of this concept, BMW officials talked about six trends related to mobility (yes, another list – but I’m adding it here because I think it can be applied to my day job and life in general) which are used for product development:

1. Mobility is becoming versatile
2. Connectivity is becoming second nature
3. Mobility is becoming tailor-made
4. Technology is becoming human
5. Energy is becoming emissions-free
6. Responsibility is becoming diverse

BMW Motorrad Vision Next 100

The look of the concept itself is described to reflect the triangular frames of the 1920’s BMW motorcycles and the obvious boxer motor we still see today on BMW motorocycles, although it is clearly an electric vehicle.

It makes me wonder… does it have to look like a boomerang?  The R NineT motorcycles are a hot item today and they look so much less futuristic than the contemporaneous 2016 R1200GS line does. Therefore, I wonder, can you have all the technology you need to put in practice this Next 100 vision, but still make it look like a regular motorcycle?  I bet that is not only possible but when 2030 comes around and we see the motorcycles being produced, and we look back at these pictures of 2016, we will realize how wrong the BMW concept was in terms of looks. Call it wishful thinking from my part.

Besides looking like a boomerang, this concept packs some interesting technology. The bike was ridden onto the stage and stopped and self-balanced itself on two wheels, no side-stand or rider feet touched the ground.  According to the presentation, the only time the bike needs a side stand is when it is turned off.

BMW Motorrad “next 100” concept

Another technology included on this bike was related to connectivity to the road. A video shows the motorcycle display (which is on the rider’s visor as a heads up display and not on the dash of the bike) the ideal line the rider should take through a coming curve and overlaid a picture of the handle bars to indicate the ideal lean angle of the bike. For beginner riders, the bike would change the lean angle to improve safety (to have the bike follow the ideal line for the curve at the speed of travel), and for the experienced rider, it can just show the best line and lean angle and let the rider pick it by him or herself, or can actively boost the motorcycle dynamics ( did not hear an explanation what that does or how that works).

According to the description, the bike’ s sensors add foresight to the experience, more than what we, humans, can see, and only the laws of physics would limit the riding experience.  The vision 100 concept was described as a motorcycle that combines the analog and digitized worlds generating more safety and fun to the riding experience. So much more safety, they continued, the rider does not need to wear a helmet or other protective gear. Well, I would say, for this to work it has to be imagined that all other vehicles on the road, and deer jumping out of forests and other wildlife crossing our roads, will not interfere with the path of this motorcycle or the motorcycle will anticipate those incidents as well.

Next 100: No need to wear helmets or other protective gear

I’m not so sure about all these innovations envisioned by BMW, if they will all be possible in the real world, but I would welcome more safety, if it is possible.  BMW did not mention electric motors, but one can assume it is a big part of the equation.  They did mention that motorcycles should continue to provide pure emotion when being ridden involving all senses, the sound, and the wind.  So there is hope their vision of the “great escape” means motorcycles will continue to be what I call a sport, a route for adventure, or a hobby and just not an efficient transportation.

My personal take on disruptive innovations and the motorcycle industry

I am all about playing my role in reducing carbon emissions and making sure we slow down, and if possible stop global warming. In the last three years I’ve been five times to the Marshall Islands, a nation made out of 24 atolls. I’ve seen upfront what it means to live in a place in the middle of a vast ocean where the highest ground is only about 6ft above sea level.

Majuro Atoll: higher sea level and storm created waves that destroyed the foundation of this cabin (July 2015).

It is scary going to this atoll, in the middle of nowhere, when you know you cannot escape a storm going to “higher ground”. And if you do need to escape, the airport may have been flooded, the runway destroyed, and rescue planes cannot land.  But I’m only a visitor, I’m only there a few days at a time.  What about the people who live there? One of my clients took me out on a quick tour the last time I was there, this last July, and pointed out to a flat slab of concrete: “that is where my house was” she said.  And that story happens in other places of the world, and eventually other impacts from global warming will also hit closer to home, our farmers and our urban living conditions will be affected as well. South Florida comes to mind.

Landing in Majuro atoll, Marshall Islands, July 2015

On the other hand, I love motorcycles and a major part of what I enjoy while riding is about the internal combustion engine. I like all types of motors, be them a single cylinder, parallel twins, V-twins, boxer-twins and even in-line threes or fours. They all sound and vibrate in their own specific way, have torque and acceleration dynamics based on their configuration and displacement.  I won’t mind eventually getting an electric car, but an electric motorcycle is something I’m not looking forward to having if that is the only alternative I would have.

My 2013 Ducati Multistrada Pikes Peak

For the people like me, perhaps most of you reading this post, who love an internal combustion engine, motorcycles will likely lag behind on this revolution, even if the disruptive innovations will open new frontiers and new technologies that will improve the riding experience.

I consider ourselves to be lucky for still being allowed to ride when safety has regulated the auto industry many times over (seat belts, deformation zones, airbags, anti-lock brake systems, and eventually connected and autonomous cars) while motorcycles do not need to have a bumper neither most of those active or passive safety systems. As a matter of fact, in some American states you do not need to wear a helmet! How fortunate we are.

My 2013 Ducati Multistrada Pikes Peak

Electric is a given, but for now we should not be complaining about California’s clean air regulations or Europe’s Euro 4 standards either.  If by 2030 manufacturers will no longer produce internal combustion vehicles, and that will also apply to motorcycles, well, that’s only 13-14 years from now!  We may not have a choice eventually, so we should get on with the changes, but enjoy, while we can, our internal combustion engines. I will do that.

Thank you for reading.

Disclaimer:  I’m not a professional rider, and obviously not a professional writer. I write this blog as a hobby and because of my passion for motorcycles and motorcycle riding. I’m not affiliated with any business or organization related to the content of my posts, I’m not paid to write and publish my posts. The potential income generated by advertisements you may come across on my posts are going to WordPress, the organization hosting my posts. I pay WordPress to manage and host my posts, I would have to pay more to have advert-free posts.

There is no question heritage, classic, retro-looking motorcycles continue to be popular.  There is something about that basic motorcycle design where a gas tank looks like a gas tank, the motor is visible and it is air-cooled, and headlights are round.

Scrambler Ducati: Italia Independent (limited edition, 1,077 models)

Back in 2014 at EICMA, two years ago exactly, Ducati jumped on the heritage motorcycle trend creating the Scrambler Ducati brand and introduced the four heritage models: Icon, Urban Enduro, Classic and Full Throttle.  At that very same time they announced the Scrambler brand would be expanding its line of motorcycles very soon.

And they followed up on their promise and less than a year from that time three new bikes were announced.  These new bikes carry very small changes to the themes already available, they are the Sixty2, the Flat Track Pro and the limited edition Italia Independent. In total today there are six different Scrambler models, seven when including the limited edition Italia Independent.

The six versions of the Scrambler Ducati brand available today, plus the limited edition Italia Independent.  Tomorrow, though…

Now the Scrambler Ducati brand is getting ready to announce two new models: a cafe racer and a desert sled.  The question is, how different will these new bikes be from the bikes in the current range?

First of all, if we really go down to the essence of these bikes, there are only two different models on the current line up: The Sixty2 and the rest of them. The Sixty2 is the entry model with the 400cc motor (the same 803 cc motor from the other bikes, but stroked for less displacement to meet entry level rider requirements in key markets). Along with the less powerful motor, the Sixty2 has a list of components that were downgraded to bring the bike as close as possible to a better entry level point, or lower price point, including a double swing arm, for example.

The 400cc Sixty2 Scrambler Ducati

The other five models are variations on the Icon theme. What changes from model to model are colors (tank and seat), tank side cover, handlebars, fenders, wheels (spoke or cast), exhaust (silencer only) and a small set of accessories.  That is, aside from the Sixty2, all other bikes on the Scrambler line are, in essence, the same motorcycle in different configurations.

The Cafe Racer

We have not seen photographs on the cafe racer, the new model which be will announced on November 7th, except for the few seconds of video on the Scrambler Ducati site.  But we can speculate freely, right? What we know is that from all the 803cc bikes, the one with more radical differences from the rest is the Italia Independent and it is the one that mostly resembles a cafe racer. But it is a limited edition motorcycle.

The Italia Independent, a limited edition Scrambler in cafe racer style

My take on the upcoming Cafe Racer is that it will have some similarities with the Italia Independent, but it will be priced to be more affordable.

It will likely have the same 803cc motor because, well, with Euro 4 emissions, I doubt Ducati will invest on the upscale of that portion of the bike. It is just a guess, but if we take in consideration these are bikes are designed for urban use, then 803cc and 70+ hp is plenty of power for urban and around town riding.  What matters on these bikes is that the motor is air-cooled, and it sounds like a real motorcycle, and a V-twin makes a lot of sense for a Cafe Racer styled motorcycle.

Picture this with spoke wheels

Based on the very short video on Ducati’s site, one other item to consider for this bike would be spoke wheels.  Judging by what we could see from that video, the mirrors could be bar-end mirrors but positioned above the handlebars, and the handlebars appear to be taller than what you find on the Italia Independent.

On the other hand, there is the Full Throttle, which is the most “urban” of the Scramblers, in my opinion, with lower handlebars and its color.  I believe the Cafe Racer will be an improved Full Throttle or a downgraded Italia Independent.  Same motor, black color or other dark color(s), lower handlebars than Full Throttle, but higher than what we find in the Italia Independent.  Outside of the middle position between these two other bikes it could have (or I would hope to see) a flatter seat, spoke wheels, and a typical cafe racer tail to complete the package.  Of course, it should have a different exhaust note as well.

2015 Scrambler Ducati Full Throttle (customized using currently available accessories)

As a consequence of this speculation, and if I’m halfway correct, I would not be surprised if the Full Throttle is discontinued, since Ducati already offers the Flat Track Pro as an option for what the Full Throttle seemed to be destined to do in the first place. Actually, to me the Full Throttle had an identify crisis, a split personality, as it looked more urban than all the other models, but at the same time it seemed as the most appropriate flat rack version on the Scrambler line.

The Desert Sled

The other Scrambler to be launched in a few weeks from now is going to be called the Desert Sled. We have seen a spy photo of this bike before, and we have written a post speculating about the bike on the spy photo as a more appropriate Enduro version on the Scrambler line.

Desert Sled

When I say more appropriate, I’m talking about more appropriate enduro than the Urban Enduro is on the Scrambler line.

2016 Scrambler Ducati Urban Enduro

However, again, I believe the upcoming Desert Sled will only be a variation on the current theme. Will it be a better Urban Enduro? Similar to how I see the Cafe Racer, I believe the Desert Sled will have the same 803cc motor, for example, and from there just accessories but hopefully components that are more tailored for real enduro use than the current Urban Enduro is.

Judging by the spy photo, for example, the Desert Sled will have the same single front disc as the Urban Enduro, the same high fender, the same tall handlebars and single clock.  One important item for an off road machine is suspension travel. It is difficult to tell from the spy shot and comparing to the current Urban Enduro, whether the Desert Sled has gained any suspension travel.

2016 Urban Enduro Scrambler Ducati

It could have other improvements such as a 19 inch front wheel instead of the 18-inch wheel of the Urban Enduro.  Also, the spy picture shows side and top racks, which indicates some touring or adventure type of riding may be possible out of this machine. It could also have the double swing arm of the Sixty2, just to make it a stronger and more apt desert machine.

I know I’m part of a very small fraction of the buying public who would want a real desert sled, but because I know I’m part of this small niche in the market, I do not hold my hopes up that this Ducati will be the machine to make me sell my Honda CB500X yet. In the end, our guess is that the Desert Sled will only be an improved Urban Enduro.

Likely the Desert Sled, and the name seems to tell the story better than the pictures, is more about bringing back, in the Scrambler Ducati brand fashion, the styling from the 60’s immortalized by Steve McQueen’s desert machines. The short promotion video, not showing the bike in complete form but showing people hanging out on a typical California or Nevada desert motel and swimming pool completes the story of this being another lifestyle motorcycle.

Desert Sled, likely a better version of the Urban Enduro

What’s Next?

In essence, I would guess these new bikes, the Cafe Racer and the Desert Sled, will continue to be variations on the Icon theme.  Perhaps this time around though, the variation will go a bit beyond the line of accessories and go into different components and perhaps, on a more optimistic scenario, appropriate changes to these bikes frames.  And, likely it will be the case that these two bikes will have their own set of accessories. In my case, where I would be wanting to see a real desert racer, the desert sled will likely fall short of my expectations.

On the other hand, I’m glad the Ducati heritage or classic or retro-line, whatever you want to call it, will retain the air-cooled v-twin motor that is an evolution of the original motor that in the 70’s brought Ducati to the forefront, and which to today remains the signature of Ducati motorcycles, although it today comes in much more efficient and powerful water-cooled versions including the super-quadro and DVT versions. The scrambler line is the only line, unless a new 2017 entry level Monster or Motard would prove otherwise, where the v-twin motor in its air-cooled version remains alive.

Talking about heritage, it is good to be reminded, Ducati considers these bikes to be post-heritage, actually, and here is their definition from the time of the launch of the Scrambler line two years ago, and which still can be found on their site today:

“Post-heritage” design means taking the best from the past to create something unique and absolutely contemporary. The Ducati Scrambler is not a vintage motorcycle, but the ideal result of how the famous motorcycle from Borgo Panigale would be if Ducati had never stopped producing it.

We will be hearing from Ducati at their annual world premiere which will be broadcast live on November 7th, the evening before the EICMA 2016 starts (EICMA runs from November 8 to 13).  Besides these two new or improved versions of current scramblers, Ducati will be announcing a series of new models as it continues its production growth and product line expansion. A Super Sport, a smaller Multistrada and improvements to the DVT motor on the 1200 Multistrada will be hot items for this year’s launch. And who knows, what other surprises Ducati will have in store for us.

Back to the Scramblers, I’ve been talking about heritage bikes for a long time, yet I have not committed to getting one yet. However, such a motorcycle is what will likely be next on my motorcycle line up. Will it be a Ducati of the scrambler variety? Or a BMW Scrambler? Or a real standard, something real and original from the 70’s? I don’t know, except that it will have round headlights.

Thank you for reading.

Disclaimer:  I’m not a professional rider, and obviously not a professional writer. I write this blog as a hobby and because of my passion for motorcycles and motorcycle riding. I’m not affiliated with any business or organization related to the content of my posts, I’m not paid to write and publish my posts. The potential income generated by advertisements you may come across on my posts are going to WordPress, the organization hosting my posts. I pay WordPress to manage and host my posts, I would have to pay more to have advert-free posts.

Are you ready for this?

Yamaha T7 concept

Exactly two years ago, at EICMA 2014, Honda delivered a concept motorcycle, the much rumored and anticipated Africa Twin.  To many it was the answer for what they always wanted.  To others, myself included, it missed the mark.

New Africa Twin prototype

Honda delivered a great motorcycle, and perhaps it was the first motorcycle to make a dent on the BMW and KTM hegemony at the top of the charts of adventure motorcycles.  But aside from DCT (dual clutch automatic transmission which is not a consensus as a needed equipment to begin with) and a dual air cleaner system in the place usually taken by the fuel tank (which helps with a lower center of gravity when most of the tank volume sits lower), it had nothing really new to offer.  It is lighter than the large, 1200cc series of bikes, but it is heavier than the already heavy middle weight, 800cc series.

Honda Africa Twin – may have a true adventure competitor soon!

As an adventure rider, I appreciated what Honda brought to the equation. It is a compromise that many many riders appreciate, the bike certainly filled the gap left by the KTM 9X0 series and then some. It is a success story! However, the so called dual cylinder, lighter weight, rally looking and hopefully rally performing adventure motorcycle gap was not closed with the Africa Twin.

The ellusive gap… are we finally there?

Since the Africa Twin did not answer my questions, and no other manufacturer answered these questions (or dreams?) up to now, I went my own way and “built” my own lighter weight, dual cylinder adventure motorcycle using a Rally Raid kit on a Honda CB500X, a  city bike (CB).  The existence of the Rally Raid kit on itself is a sign there is an unresolved gap on the motorcycle industry.

Honda CB500X Adventure: Rally Raid Level 3 Adventure Kit

It turns out the CB500X Adventure is a fun machine. Power, a low 48hp, is not an issue at all.  But power delivery is the issue that prevents this motorcycle to become an ideal bike for technical riding, when clutch slippage (wide and strong friction zone) is needed.  Add to it the 19 inch front wheel and limited front suspension and this bike is not there.  I enjoy it, but it remains a temporary solution.

The 2015 Honda CB500X, with Rally Raid Level 3 “adventure” kit, in Death Valley, 2016

EICMA 2016 and Yamaha T7 – Renewed Hope!

Two years later, and Yamaha pulls the same trick at EICMA, releasing a prototype machine. Just that it looks much more like what we have been wanting, dreaming about,  and expecting, you are on the same boat I am: a dual cylinder motorcycle that is a serious off-roader, not only an adventure machine, but one that is also a rally machine. Something that has some power, but does not compromise its fun factor with extra weight or reliability issues. Is this the sweet spot?

After the Africa Twin failed to fill that spot, which is my opinion on the matter, mind you, since I know many of you like the Africa Twin, I turned my attention to other motorcycles that could fit the sweet spot.  Besides the Yamaha T7, two other motorcycles in several states of development called my attention.  One of them was launched this year at EICMA and was somewhat of a surprise, is the Ducati Scrambler Desert Sled.

It is not a rally machine but it is a lot closer to the real thing when compared to the outgoing Urban Enduro.  It has more suspension travel which is adjustable (fully adjustable on the rear), more ground clearance, a 19-in front wheel (as opposed to the 18-in wheel) and the simplicity of the design.  With no fairings, it looks like the real thing!  It is not what I’m looking for, but bet it is a fun machine.

Scrambler Ducati Desert Sled

Another motorcycle that will rock this market will be the long speculated KTM 790 adventure, which in KTM fashion would likely be a rally ready machine.  KTM machines are ready to race, right?  That bike has not materialized itself yet, but a street version, the KTM Duke 790, with the anticipated parallel twin motor, has shown up in concept form at EICMA 2016.  If the motor exists, then the KTM 790 in adventure form is likely in the works.

KTM 790 Duke concept

Meanwhile we have a true concept, in my opinion the star of the 2016 edition of the EICMA, the Yamaha T7.  This is the third bike on my short list of ideal adventure machines, and top of my list pf desired machines, the dreamed and rumored Yamaha XTZ 700.  The Yamaha T7 concept is a potential appropriate size Ténéré, the real inheritor of what the XT600Z (and 750) meant to enduro machines, it seems. On looks alone this concept seems to be exactly what we have been asking for.  And Yamaha’s own words seem to confirm it.  This is what Yamaha tells us about the T7:

Many of the current middleweight Adventure models are perceived as too oriented to the street and too sophisticated. They are therefore not suitable for use in real off-road conditions. The Adventure universe needs new specimens that can offer the versatility to tackle long distances and great endurance, typical of the original Ténéré, combined with a contemporary design and top technologies.

I agree with Yamaha.  Or they may have been reading my posts and, of course, I’m only one of the many who have been asking for this motorcycle in motorcycle forums and motorcycle reviews.

Is the T7 the holly grail?

The T7 is obviously only a concept, looking very rally, enduro like, a bike ready for serious off road riding. It was developed by the Yamaha teams in Europe which include, according to my Italian friends, engineers from Yamaha’s rally team in France, research and development by the Yamaha team in Italy, and design by the Dutch team.

Yamaha T7 Concept, EICMA 2016

The concept bike seems to have a steel frame designed specifically to cradle the 700cc parallel twin motor, lots of carbon pieces, a flat dirtbike seat, and an Akrapovic exhaust.

Yamaha T7 Concept, EICMA 2016

Add to it a very rally-like fairing, almost vertical wind-screen, and tall cockpit and the bike looks like the real thing.

LED lights on the Yamaha T7 Concept, EICMA 2016

These are items that will likely be toned down on a consumer version.  The spy or leaked photos we shared here on a previous post did not display some of the innovative design carbon pieces we see on the EICMA 2016 concept, for example. Who knows what direction Yamaha will take from this concept.

Is this Yamaha’s mid-size adventure Ténéré?

What we know is that the motor is the CP2 (cross-plane two cylinder), at a minimum it is an adventure-dedicated version of the compact and light weight parallel twin, 270 degree crankshaft, 700cc, 74hp motor available on several models on the Yamaha line up (MT-07 / FZ-07 and XSR700).

MT-07 (FZ-07) 700cc parallel twin motor

Another item we can see are the 21-inch front wheel and 18-inch rear wheel.  All in all the motor, the frame, and the wheel sizes offer the backbone, the combination of parts, materials and shapes that makes this bike look like a serious off-road machine.  Even if the actual product is toned down, you know what can be done.

Yamaha T7 Concept, EICMA 2017

The weight of such a beast should be anywhere between 450 and 475 lbs if we use the MT-07 Tracer as a base, which is rated at 433 lbs wet.  The added weight would come from a larger tank, larger spoke wheels, stronger frame and sub-frame, longer suspension, bash plate, taller fairing and windscreen, etc.

It should still be lighter than the current 800cc offerings from Triumph and BMW, and certainly looks to be a lot more dirt-oriented than those two bikes.  The motor is an already known factor, and there is plenty of praise out there for it.

Yamaha T7 Concept, EICMA 2016

We will know more about this bike in 2017. The bike should be ready by the fall of 2017, when the show season starts and it is likely that Yamaha will use that time to officially introduce it to the public in its final form. Yamaha indicated it should be available for sale to the public in 2018.

In conclusion… I’m cautiously optimistic that this bike will be the yard stick against which  mid-size adventure motorcycles with real off-road ambitions will be measured. KTM is likely to offer a competitor which will have more power, will likely be lighter, but might be more expensive and perhaps at a different level of sophistication.  It seems we are finally getting attention to this segment of the market, actually, Yamaha may be creating a new segment to this market.

Yamaha T7 Concept, EICMA 2016

Personally, it seems I will be finding a solution for a motorcycle in this segment, one that is very likely a potential replacement for my CB500X Adventure.  If I can enjoy riding the 48 hp motor on my CB500X when off pavement, having a 74hp motor, delivering a broader torque curve, better sounds and more traction from its 270 degrees crankshaft, the Yamaha might just be perfect for what I want.

More from Yamaha’s press release on this bike:

This lightweight machine is based on an all new chassis that has been designed to complement a specially developed version of Yamaha’s highly acclaimed 700cc CP2 engine, delivering strong torque and an easy power delivery for perfect traction in all conditions.

Equipped with an aluminum fuel tank, 4-projector LED headlight, a carbon fairing and skid plate, and a custom made Akrapovič exhaust – as well as high specification KYB front suspension – the T7 is a vision of the ideal adventure machine, and is playing a major role in the development of Yamaha’s next generation adventure models.

A new chapter from the book of legends will be on the street – and on the dirt – from 2018.

It indicates this bike is a concept, or “a vision of the ideal adventure machine” so we will have to wait to see what the final product will be. It certainly is a great step in the right direction.

Thank you for reading.

Disclaimer:  I’m not a professional rider, and obviously not a professional writer. I write this blog as a hobby and because of my passion for motorcycles and motorcycle riding. I’m not affiliated with any business or organization related to the content of my posts, I’m not paid to write and publish my posts. The potential income generated by advertisements you may come across on my posts are going to WordPress, the organization hosting my posts. I pay WordPress to manage and host my posts, I would have to pay more to have advert-free posts.

There is always a motorcycle that will inspire me to write or ride.  Usually they are  adventure or scrambler motorcycles. Every now and then, though, there is a different kind of motorcycle that will make me think about riding and writing. The last time this happened, in 2012, the bike in question was the 2012 848 Streetfighter.  It inspired me, I acquired it, it became an interesting detour in my riding style which culminated with my decision to get my 2013 Multistrada Pikes Peak. I miss that yellow 848 Streetfighter.

The Ducati 848, soon after I purchased it, May 16 2012

Although I did not stay with that bike for too long, I had a great time with it. It turns out, one of my favorite shots of this bike is on the banner of this site, I like keeping it there even if it has nothing to do with the bikes I ride as a rule.

McKenzie Pass, Oregon. July 4th, 2012

This winter has been exceptionally hard for me, work has been stressful and then there is the weather; I’m just looking out of the window of my office as I type these words, it is a Sunday morning, March 5th 2017, and it is snowing on my backyard.

I’m writing this post after having watched a wave of Youtube reviews on the new 2017 Ducati Supersport following its launch in Spain three weeks back.  What is interesting about this motorcycle’s reviews is that just about everyone who rode this bike is telling the same story about it.

Was it the Ducati marketing spiel during the press meeting what influenced the reviewers’ opinions? Usually a well made presentation evens up the pitch, you can hear the reviewers regurgitating the same information they had just heard from manufacturer’s officials. On the other hand, perhaps these journalists and riders who had a chance to see it, ride it on road and on track, have all of them perceived it the same way, because that’s the way the bike really is.

The 2017 Supersport has distinctly and officially piqued my interest based on these reviews.  On paper, it seems interesting as well. Now I need to see one and ride one to make my own mind about it. Meanwhile, there is no question, this bike has inspired me.

The 2017 Ducati Supersport S

The 2017 Supersport brings back an evolved view of a Ducati tradition

I do not connect this new bike with its history, the history of the Super Sport line which eventually became Supersport, simply because that history occurred before my time and before my exposure to Ducati motorcycles.  But it is an important historical and iconic motorcycle or line of motorcycles for Ducati.

The 1974 Super Sport model, the first of them, was the result of a confluence of important names in Ducati’s history: Paul Smart’s victory at the Imola 200 in 1971 on a 750 V-twin (the first series of V-twin motors), and the accounts of Fabio Taglioni’s interest in designing something more aggressive, culminating with the 1974 750 Super Sport.  The result was a bike built around that first winning V-Twin motor, created for or responding to a new and growing group of riders, street riders interested in riding sporty motorcycles.  And history tells us this bike represented a new chapter in the Ducati history books.

The 1974 Super Sport

You may be interested in looking back at that significance of Paul Smart’s victory, Fabio Taglioni’s designs, and the concept of the Super Sport motorcycle, in case you are new to Ducati and have an interest on this bike.  New Ducati owners, and I’m partly on this group, probably have today a completely different view of what Ducati is all about, which is very much representative of the brand’s evolution, where it is today after so many years of changes.

If you have an interest in the Ducati history, there’s plenty to read about the 70s, when the move from single cylinder to V-twin motors took place, it’s all over the internet, so I will not repeat that information and bother you with it here. However, in case you want to know more or refresh your memory about the Super Sport line of Ducati motorcycles I recommend you read a very recent historical review on these bikes by Bennetts which was written in anticipation of the launch of the 2017 Supersport

Ducati Super Sport

To summarize, this line of bikes has had several iterations with different levels of success. According to some, the bikes that followed the 1974 SS all remain in its shadow.  Among the several Ducati business “ownerships” during so many years, Claudio Castiglioni (ownership period 1985-1996) changed this line’s name from Super Sport to Supersport.

Some say this change in the name was because the bike had become a tamer version of a super sport bike, which seems to characterize today’s interpretation of the Supersport, a tame, easy to ride motorcycle, according to the reviews following the launch.

And to complete this model’s story, 2006 was the last year a Supersport was produced until the 2017 model.

2006 Ducati Supersport, the last one of the previous series until the 2017 model

In those early 2000’s the Multistrada was a fresh new style, offered a type of riding that was experiencing growing popularity. The popularity of the Multistrada may have been what put the Supersport line into the sidelines, and also the Sport Touring line of motorcycles. I’m not certain about this, but it is a possible scenario to explain why Ducati ended the Supersport and also the Sport Touring lines.  After all, the Multistrada is a multi-roads and styles motorcycle, with its four riding modes: sport, touring, urban and enduro, especially after the 2010 model.

2007 Ducati Sport Touring (ST3)

Perhaps the day after those motorcycle lines ended (SS and ST) some Ducati fans were already asking Ducati to bring them back to the market.  Instead, Ducati has broadened the Multistrada line which now has three main subgroups (1200, 1200 Enduro, and 950 models, aside from trim levels such as the “S” model and the Pikes Peak).

On the sport side of the equation, Ducati sharpened its sport offerings with the Panigale line which now comes in several versions as well distributed by displacement, purpose, trim levels, and special editions.  These are very specialized, technical machines.

It seems as if a gap opened up on the line up, with on one end the multi-purpose machine around the Multistrada line, which does all things well, but with compromises here and there, or very serious, specialized sport machines with the Panigale line on the other end.

2017 Ducati Supersport S

Ducati seems to have captured that missing gap, the Supersport and Sport Touring into one package, under the Supersport name.  For some reviewers, the 2017 Supersport represents the return of the Sport Touring bikes, since it can be ordered with semi-rigid panniers, it comes with three-position adjustable windshield, more upright ergonomics for the rider, and a passenger seat.  On the other hand, it obviously is Ducati’s answer for the requests for a Suportsport as well, a more subdued sport line of bikes, if at all, since Supersport is on the name of the bike.

The Multistrada is a good sport touring motorcycle, I know, I own one.  But it lacks the sport line looks, a finesse in design and in behavior.  And the Panigale line is something different, it has always been a family of precise, technical bikes for the track or for road riding, targeted to performance-oriented riders, and hence somewhat challenging to the public at large. Personally, I’ve never considered a Panigale a bike to own, except if I was a collector.

More than filling a gap, the 2017 Supersport opens the door for possibilities.  I do think it will be a good seller.

2017 Ducati Supersport S

What moves the Supersport

This bike has the same 937cc V-twin motor as the one on the Multistrada 950, the Hypermotard and Hyperstrada line.  Ducati is quoted as saying the motor is different on the Supersport, however, with different crank, throttle bodies, and different heads as the motor is part of the motorcycle frame, similar to what happens on the Panigale.

The bike’s front end is similar to the Panigale line, beautiful indeed, contrasting with the rear end which is more rounded and could be better compared to the rear of the Monster.  The bike has some components from the Monster line, such as the monochrome dash.

The bike comes with Ducati’s “safety pack” with three levels of ABS (Bosch 9 series – not sure it includes the so-called “cornering” ABS), eight levels of traction control, and three riding modes (sport, touring and urban).

It comes in two trims, with the “S” bringing on the goodies such as fully adjustable Ohlins on both ends, up and down quick-shifter with throttle blip on the down shifting, an optional color (silk white besides the Ducati red) and a rear seat cowl.

The motor produces the same 113 hp found on the Multistrada 950 and Hypermotard/Hyperstrada although with slightly different torque specifications.

• Engine: Testastretta 11°, L-Twin cylinder, 4 valve per cylinder, Desmodromic, liquid cooled
• Displacement: 937 cc
• Bore X stroke: 94 x 67.5
• Compression ratio: 12,6± 0.5 :1
• Power: 113 hp @ 9.000 RPM
• Torque: 71.3 lb-ft @ 6.500 RPM

This is not earth-shattering power, but the reviews seem to indicate it is enough for this bike.

So, what are journalists and reviewers saying about this bike?

It is interesting that journalists and reviewers seem to agree on the subjective experience about this motorcycle, on matters where usually people differ if not in direction, then on degree.  And what they agree about resonates with what I’ve been wanting on a motorcycle since I sold my Streetfighter and started to enjoy street riding with my Tiger 800XC and Multistrada.

The Yellow Ducati and the Heceta Lighthouse. September 23rd, 2012

It took me a while to feel comfortable enough on the Multistrada to eventually make it go faster then my Tiger 800XC.  Of course, the Multistrada is a much more competent motorcycle on the road, has better brakes, better suspension, a lot more power, but it is not as easy and fluid to manage as the Tiger 800 XC, with its slow but steady front end, linear fueling, fluidity of the three cylinder motor, short gears, and drama-free brakes (not efficient brakes, but easy to operate).

The Multistrada has required some getting used to, after two or three riding seasons, however, I was able to extract more of what it is all about and now it is my unambiguous choice when the plan is to reach the mountains and their curvy roads. It is much safer and faster than the Triumph.  Please note, I still consider myself a beginner when it comes to road riding and I definitely do not extract all of what the Multistrada can deliver.

Regular visit to Sisters via McEnzie Pass

Going further back on my riding history, my 848 Streetfighter was a tame version of its Streetfighter S bigger brother, but it was still a raw motorcycle in my opinion. It had plenty of power for its size and a motor that really felt good when ridden aggressively. But it was rough on the edges, which I’m sure is great for aggressive riders, but that is not my case.

That’s where the Supersport comes into the conversation.  Journalists have described the 2017 Ducati Supersport as a motorcycle that is easy to ride.  The power, they claim, is in that sweet spot, not too much, just enough.  They claim the bike’s handling is spot on, making it easy for anyone to extract more from what the bike can deliver.

Here are some quotes:

The bike is incredibly agile and easy to handle (…) It feels like a Ducati sport bike for the road, one that you can ride every day. Marc Potter, Bennetts

There are surely aging Ducati fans weary of superbike ergonomics but feel too young at heart for a touring bike. And Ducati thinks that there are sprightly newcomers who want Panigale looks without the terror of 160hp. Makes sense. (…) It’s a stately and venerable concept that deserves to be alive and well. Splits the difference between superbike and sport-tourer, true to the Ducati name. Zack Courts, Motorcyclist

The SuperSport lacks the outright aggression of a more focused bike like the Panigale 959, but on road and track it delivers a magic blend of composure, comfort and sporting agility. And it’s superb on the road; Ducati really has got the handling and ride feel spot-on because it fully delivers across the gamut of the riding and rider its aimed at. Simon Greenacre, Visordown

“Sport riding experience anywhere, anytime.” One of Ducati’s official line on this bike.

Will I buy this motorcycle?

My motorcycle budget for this year has already been topped off, so I know it will not happen this year.  I did not purchase a motorcycle this year, but I did acquire something that will hopefully take me riding to different and more places this year, and which could actually be something to consider for the Supersport.  More on that soon.

Having said that, there are three motorcycles on my “would like to own” short list and the Supersport is on this list. Of course, its permanence on the list will depend on my own perceptions of what people mean by the “comfort ergos” been talked about in reference to this bike and its performance. I definitely want to ride it, who knows, I might like it too much.

I would certainly welcome an opportunity to better explore road riding with a machine that is suitable to my riding style, it is a better machine for that job, a job that has been filled by the Multistrada and the Tiger, while adventure duties have fallen into the Rally Raid CB500X and the WR250R.

Thank you for reading!

Are you ready to acquire, right off the showroom floor, a light weight, twin-cylinder, hardcore adventure motorcycle? Something that you can take on a long adventure ride but which you can also engage on a rally-style ride if you so desire?

Yamaha T7: will it be the first to deliver a true adventure-rally machine?

Ladies and gentlemen, I think we are closer than ever to finally have this option available.  I’m not telling anything new here, we all know Yamaha and KTM have officially informed they are working on adventure motorcycles that are light and built for the off-road.  We also know these two companies are serious when it comes to designing and producing adventure or dual purpose motorcycles.  Therefore, there’s hope at least one of these two bikes, hopefully both of them, will be what we’ve been waiting for a long time.

One of these bikes is the Yamaha 700XTZ Ténéré, based on the T7 concept Yamaha presented at EICMA 2016.

2018 or 2019 Yamaha Ténéré XTZ700

The other is the KTM 790 R, or adventure, which will be built around the new 800cc parallel twin motor developed for the KTM 790 Duke, presented at EICMA 2016 as a concept.

2018 or 2019 KTM 790 Adventure or R

The names I’m using for the Yamaha (700XTZ Ténéré) and the KTM (790 R) are educated guesses based on how these companies have named their bikes in the past. T7, the official name of the Yamaha concept, an obvious short version for Ténéré 700, could as well become the official name of the production motorcycle.  I assume the KTM will have an R or SE R (super enduro) version of this adventure model.  The “R” would be similar to what KTM offers on the 1090 and 1290 adventure lines.  The SE is a reference to the super enduro version available in the KTM 950 line in 2006-2008. That would be something, right?

We don’t know much about these bikes at this point, we will likely come across more information about them along the way and we will report it here.  Otherwise we are left to our own devices to speculate at will.  Here goes a brief description of the long journey it took the industry to finally hint at building these bikes, my thoughts about why we are getting these kind of bikes now, and what I expect these bikes will realistically deliver.

The long journey… Unicorn or new Goldilocks?

Will these two bikes be what we (well, realistically speaking, some of us, maybe a few of us) have been expecting for a long, long time?  On the adventure riding world the term unicorn has been used to describe that elusive light-weight, multi-cylinder, rally-ready motorcycle which is also ready for adventure.

We are talking here something that weighs 400-440lbs (under 200kg) ready to ride, with great off-road performance, built around a twin-cylinder motor, with reasonable power (my numbers would be 70-90 hp), and capable of reliable long distance adventure riding.  That’s my set of numbers, my goldilocks set of numbers, what would make this bike just right for me.  I’m not looking at a single cylinder motorcycle, nor looking at something that is heavier than 200kg. Hopefully less than 200 kg, something that is not currently available as a production motorcycle.

Dream on, it is impossible to build such a motorcycle, what you want lies only on your imagination, a Unicorn, go get a single-cylinder motorcycle many in the riding community have said. 

Some riders have defied the general opinion that these bikes cannot be built and managed to create their own motorcycles.  Perhaps they have paved the way to changes in the industry we may be witnessing today.  By actually building something themselves, they prove it can be done.  That’s the case of a few mechanically skilled, independent creators here and there who have built one-off rally machines based on existing motorcycles and motors.

One favorite motor for these builds is Honda’s 470 cc, 48 hp, parallel twin, 180 degree crank motor of the Honda CB500 (a bit low on power but actually plenty good on a light weight frame and even on the CB500X itself).  There are at least three builders as far as I know who have put the Honda CB500 parallel twin motor on a Honda 250cc dual-purpose frame (CRF250L) and they claim great results from those applications.

The bike depicted below, built by Michael Kozera, weights around 360 pounds.  48hp matched with that lower weight seems like an extremely reasonable match, great power-to-weight, and then you add the reliability of a Honda motor, and the smooth operation of this motor and voilá, you have a great hardcore adventure machine which should be capable of long distance travel as well.

Michael Kozera’s CRF500L (CRF 250L with CB500X motor)

There are others with less radical approaches to resolving this issue, like Rally Raid in the UK, produces kits and accessories to modify existing motorcycles.  One set of kits was designed for the Honda CB500X, turning it into another option for this missing link on the adventure motorcycle spectrum.  This kit uses a Honda CB500X as a base and from there it provides a 19-inch front wheel, better suspension, and spoke wheels among other strategically designed accessories. Modifying an existing motorcycle will likely not produce a seamless result, but it shows people are working on solutions, proving that if something is not available, it doesn’t mean it can’t be done.

2015 Rally Raid Honda CB500X

The CB500X with the Rally Raid kit, level 3, the most “adventure” kit they make, does very well, extremely well actually, power slides on gravel roads are easy and fun when you can twist the throttle with abandon.  The bike does two-track roads very well, manages sand superbly, and travels on deep gravel well enough.  I know, I’ve taken it twice to the Death Valley, it has done the infamous Mengel Pass and a few other rough canyons in that area!

However it has the limitations inherent from being based on a street bike: its clutch’s narrow friction zone especially when tied to the street motor’s narrow torque band and the weight of the motorcycle, besides the absence of a 21-inch front wheel, and the although improved, still narrow suspension travel makes it hard to ride it on technical terrain. So yes, there are limiting factors, it is not a rally machine, but these factors could had been resolved by Honda if they had built this bike from the ground up with an enduro/rally application as the end goal.  Rally Raid proves it can be done.

I don’t have Michael Kozera’s skills for building a machine like what he built, therefore, and despite its limitations, the Rally Raid Honda CB500X is my compromise for now, as there is nothing out there yet, around 200kg (440lbs) or less, with two cylinders, that would take its place in my shed if the focus is rally, adventure, or back-country riding. At about 440lbs the CB500X is light enough to allow for plenty of adventure riding and it is still very comfortable on long road rides. It is a solid motorcycle that delivers good fun.

CB500X Rally Raid Level III kit: Ready for adventure – at Titus Canyon, Death Valley 2017.

Let’s not forget Aprilia. They have built multi-cylinder enduro bikes in the past, the RXV 450 and 550.  They are perhaps the best example of what can be done with two-cylinder motors while still keeping it light enough for off-pavement adventures.  These bikes have a 77 degree V twin motor matched to a dirt bike frame and vocation.  These bikes were short-lived, and the few people who owned them say these bikes were/are great, as long as they worked/work (they were famous for not being reliable, but that is another issue).

2009 Aprilia RXV 450 V-twin

Finally, at the extreme end, you would have KTM’s 950 SE.  Those bikes were the closest thing ever made by a manufacturer as a hardcore adventure machine.  At 450lbs, it was on the heavy side.  But still, rated at 98 hp and with an off-pavement purpose this bike was plenty good.  It was also short-lived, being available for only three years (model years 2006 to 2008).

KTM 950 Super Enduro R

The KTM 950 SE R, the Aprilia RXV series, the Rally Raid effort based on the Honda CB500X, as well as the individuals who have put twin cylinder motors on dual-purpose bike frames show that, technically speaking, it is possible to build light-weight multi-cylinder rally machines.

If it can be done, then why manufacturers don’t build them?

If it is not a technical issue, then what is preventing us from having a production-based, light-weight rally-adventure (or adventure-rally) beast? The answer can only be a market issue, likely in association with an industry bottom line issue.

First, perhaps most important of all, we haven’t had enough customer interest to justify building such a bike.  Such a bike would certainly be too expensive for its size and displacement.  Go to the motorcycle forums and you will see people already comparing these speculated bikes from Yamaha and KTM to Suzuki’s V-Strom 650, or talking about wanting a low price adventure motorcycle. Nothing wrong with a V-Strom, or low price motorcycles, but it is not what some of us want. I fear we have been a small number of riders in the world who want such a light weight hardcore adventure machine.  That is why production motorcycles such as Aprilia’s RXV series and KTM’s 950 SE-R series did not last. There is a strong following for these motorcycles, but it is coming from a small group of riders, not large enough to justify their continued production, to take these motorcycles from being a niche product to a mainstream product.

KTM 950 Rally, the last twin cylinder to win Dakar, 2002

Second would be the Dakar race, which is the inspiration for what has become the adventure motorcycle sector, limiting motorcycles to single-cylinder 450 cc motors. This could be playing a major role here, eliminating the industry’s incentive to produce twin-cylinder middle-size rally-style motorcycles.  It would help with the important cool, hardcore factor for such motorcycles, something that could move them from niche to mainstream.

Third, there is no question, the Charlie and Ewan Round the World and Long Way Down series has pushed the adventure riding community toward the larger displacement motorcycles.  Maybe they have created the large adventure motorcycle community, they certainly inspired many to think about the BMW 1150 and then 1200 GS models to be the end all be all motorcycle for round the world travel!  We are still on the shadow of the impact from those nice videos, although they are becoming a thing from the past.  Nothing wrong with Charlie and Ewan, I enjoy watching and re-watching both series.  Just that some of us (and maybe more are joining our team now) have always wanted  something different, more nimble, more hardcore.

Fourth, and probably related to all the above statements, we know the industry relies on profit, nothing wrong with that either.  Manufacturers maximize profit by selling upscale machines or on volume of sales of popular machines (or a combination of both along a gradient towards more upscale motorcycles). Niche products that are not on the top of the scale do not get a space under the sun in this very realistic, financial bottom-line scenario.  We all know this, and we understand how this works.

Therefore, unless something changes on this scenario, nothing is going to happen. I’m betting on a change. Reasons 1 and 3 on the above scenario are probably the ones making this happen.  That is, midsize adventure machines may have a new popular machine in the Yamaha and a more fashionable, cool machine in the KTM.  These bikes will be less of a niche, and hence there is a build up for the economies of scale needed for the industry to justify the investment on such motorcycles.

A new vision of what is goldilocks for an adventure motorcycle would start making sense to more riders out there.  Having said that, I hope these bikes won’t be watered down for the larger population and disappoint the few of us who want something special and are willing to pay the price for that.  But how are we getting there?

A Detour on a Tipping Point Example

Just recently I started hearing the term goldilocks in reference to motorcycles, starting with the Ducati SuperSport and the KTM 790 Duke concept.  In the Ducati case, goldilocks was used to describe it as a sports motorcycle with non-radical sport riding ergonomics, with reasonable power (not too much, not too little, just right, at its 113 hp), easy handling, and sufficient level of electronic riding aids (three levels of ABS, Ducati’s typical 8-level traction control, and up and down quickshifter with throttle blip on the downward action) and on top of that, it looks like a real sports bike (it carries clear hints of a Panigale in its design). It is just right for many riders out there! Heck, I want one based only on the reviews I’ve read and seen so far.

2017 Ducati Supersport S – Just Right?

The KTM 790 Duke concept is another example.  With the new 800cc parallel twin motor expected to deliver close to 100hp, it has been described by KTM themselves as a new direction, away from the top displacement and power machines, this machine is about more focus on light weight and handling. Here is text from Motorcycle Magazine, describing and agreeing with KTM’s direction:

As KTM rightly points out, with the 1301cc 1290 Duke already in its line-up, there’s not much point in trying to go bigger or more powerful. So instead the 790 Duke focuses on light weight and handling. And when the production version shows up in around a year’s time it looks like it might be able to hit a Goldilocks zone in terms of power, weight and price. Not too much. Not too little. Just right.

Maybe the KTM 790 and the Ducati Supersport are a great sign that leading motorcycle manufacturers, and riders alike (because as I mentioned earlier, we are the ones who buy the products and ultimately decide whether they are a success or not), are reaching some level of agreement, of the tacit kind perhaps, that there is room for common sense, after all.  We may be tilting to more interest on mid of the road numbers for horse power, weight and performance.  But these bikes need to be cool, they need to deliver performance.  This is where technological advancements play a role, as these machines  deliver usable performance and riding enjoyment for a greater number of riders.

KTM 790 Duke Concept: 800cc Parallel Twin

This is what I’m reading between the lines of the reviews of the Ducati Supersport. The great majority of journalists have written very positive reviews about  this Ducati, no one criticized it for being too easy to ride, or for not having enough power. Quite the opposite as a matter of fact, it seems all of them welcomed those very concepts as positive remarks about this motorcycle.  I project the Supersport will sell very well for Ducati. The 790 Duke should follow the same path both on journalists’ reviews and on sales.  And this is paving the road for a new cool and still hardcore group of machines.  It is where common sense meets performance.

You may see this as a compromise. In my case, the fun of riding (not the fun of owning a motorcycle, necessarily) does not reside on the portion of the performance and power band I never use (the one I don’t have the skills to use), instead it is based on how well the motorcycle delivers performance where I can afford to use, which is at the middle and top end of my comfort zone. I like motorcycles which I can use most of the power and performance it offers, which happens to be the motorcycle’s sweet spot. This motorcycle still needs to offer a margin of performance for me to explore my riding boundaries, go faster or learn new tricks.  It needs to challenge me but not overwhelm me.  I feel like I’m cheating when riding something that has a performance limit I will never reach. Worse yet are the high performance motorcycles which actually limit how much riding I can do with them.  I don’t want a motorcycle for others to think how good a rider I am, I want a motorcycle to maximize my joy of riding.

If these two mid of the pack motorcycles, the Supersport and the Duke 790, are indicators of a change taking place in the sports and naked bike world, where motorcycles which fall within a revised, new perspective of what is a goldilocks zone in terms of power, weight, performance, and price, and they become the new wave of popularity in their fields, could that also happen in the adventure world?  If so, what would the equivalent “just right” motorcycle be in the adventure world?

The goldilocks approach for adventure motorcycles for me, mind you, will be a mid-size adventure motorcycle that:

1. It is not necessarily an entry level motorcycle as price goes.  That is, being lighter and more compact should not equate with it being a lesser bike, quite the opposite, actually.  I’m not looking for an adventure-styled motorcycle built with inexpensive components that best suit street riding.
2. It has compromises, because the machine is geared for riders who want it to perform well on off pavement roads, even ride rally style if they so desire and have the appropriate skills.  Meaning it will have spoke wheels, suspension travel, good quality components, engine/clutch performance for technical riding, but will be light.  At a minimum it needs to have the bones (low weight, twin cylinder motor, suspension travel and wheel size) to be made into an adventure/rally machine using bolt-on parts.

To summarize, I’m not looking for a less expensive adventure-styled motorcycle that is more appropriate for city riding (we already have the Honda CB500X, BMW F700GS or Suzuki’s V-Strom 650) or a heavy or middle weight motorcycle (such as the BMW F800GS or Triumph Tiger 800XC and all the larger adventure motrcycles).  I’m looking at a motorcycle which was designed from the ground up to deliver solid adventure and rally performance.

Perhaps the Panigale and the Super Duke needed to exist before the new Ducati Supersport and the KTM 790 Duke would make sense the same way a BMW R1200GS, a Yamaha 1200 Super Ténéré or a KTM 1290 R needed to exist before something else at a smaller scale would make sense in the adventure world.

What is the tipping point that will make this happen in the adventure motorcycle world? These bikes certainly need to be cool, as mentioned before.  They also need to be hardcore enough for people to spend the money considering they are not going to be the largest or the most powerful motorcycle out there, but will not be inexpensive either. People need to see value on what this bike can deliver, when they compare it to a BMW R1200GS or a KTM 1290 Adventure.  Something like what Honda Africa Twin has shown the world, but smaller, leaner, meaner.  Definitely more hardcore.

The BMW GS and the Africa Twin Effects

The industry has its financial bottom line and they have to pursue it, we know this  already, that’s how they survive.  I understand that and the sales numbers clearly indicate larger adventure motorcycles were or still are the sweet spot in their perspective. Nothing wrong with that. But very few of us ride large machines like Chris Burch does and we still want some of the power and the comfort these larger bikes deliver.  They will likely always have their space under the sun.

The Honda Africa Twin came very close to be that lighter machine we have been talking about, and for many it is what they were expecting.  Honda advertised it as the “True Adventure” motorcycle, and they certainly made their point about it. Although it is heavier than many anticipated, I believe it has ignited a change in the industry for being a motorcycle with better dirt vocation than all other large adventure motorcycles out there. True adventure. A believe the Honda Africa Twin is a key element for the tipping point in the Adventure World.  If it did not create the change, it rides that wave rather well.

Honda’s prototype of the New Africa Twin

The industry’s expansion toward the 1,200cc (and beyond) side of this market was a result of the success of the BMW 1200 GS, I don’t think anyone can dispute that. This is what I call the BMW effect, with new models being launched every year by many manufacturers to compete with the BMW, the yard stick of large adventure motorcycles. As a result, basically every manufacturer has a 1200cc or larger “adventure” model in their line up.  That’s where “cool” has resided for the last 10-15 years.

There are plenty of options at this high end of the market with some branded words associated to their names such as Enduro, Rally, Rallye (that “e” makes it special right?), SE, NTX, R.  This is marketing at work for which is the coolest and most hardcore adventure motorcycle.

It defies technical logic when the heavier motorcycles are the ones with all the off road components while the lighter motorcycles, which seem just right for rally riding in terms of weight and size, would be the ones brought to market with less off-road equipment.  Maybe others are starting to see it the same way I do? If you want real rally performance, the average rider, and even the great rider, needs something different, not 160hp attached to almost 600lbs of weight. Maybe 80hp attached to a 400lbs machine is a good number?

When the Africa Twin was introduced, although it was larger and heavier then most expected, it actually showed to be more seriously destined to off-pavement riding than all these other larger motorcycles.  It may have been what shook things up on this top motorcycle market, since the Africa Twin has been selling very well in Europe.

Honda Africa Twin – may have a true adventure competitor soon!

Maybe now we are experiencing the Africa Twin effect. Since the Africa Twin was in the works and then introduced, coincidentally or not, KTM has bifurcated its 1190 adventure line into the 1090 R and the 1290 R models.  The 1090 R being the more appropriate off pavement machine and closer to the Africa Twin in size and performance. BMW has slightly modified its 1200GS line to make room for the R1200GS Rallye (yes, that’s the one with the “e” mentioned earlier).

There is something good here, this is a sign of a reaction, which makes me think we are on the verge of changes for the better.  Both the KTM 1090 R model and the BMW Rallye could be interpreted as manufacturers reacting to the Africa Twin presence and making their machines more off-pavement ready.  But that is not enough.  Or will not be enough.  More action is needed than putting lip stick on a pig, pun very much intended.

Overall, although we have more “Rallye” and “Enduro” names attached to motorcycles and we have the Africa Twin as a middle of the road machine, we are still talking about 500lbs or heavier machines! Far from being the Unicorn, these machines, however, may be changing the locus of what is the Goldilocks for an adventure bike.

Maybe this new focus is what is making room in the market for true rally-ready machines?  We go from adventure to true adventure to rally and true-rally, perhaps? Hopefully it will open the space for the smaller machines that will be a lot more capable for off-pavement riding.  That’s where the T7 concept and KTM’s 790 Adventure (or whatever it will be named) come to the conversation.

Yamaha T7 Concept: Unicorn or Goldilocks?

The Yamaha T7 Ténéré 700 XTZ, or KTM 790 R or…

Are we ready, as consumers, to act on such level of common sense and buy motorcycles that are smaller, that may be expensive for their size, but which could potentially be commensurate with the title “rally” for the first time? If so, a new Goldilocks for adventures motorcycles seems to be just around the corner.

Let’s talk about the Yamaha T7 first, which seems to be further ahead in development than the KTM offering.  Yamaha calls the T7 a concept and defines it as follows:

Created using the race-bred DNA that has made Yamaha one of the most successful names in the Rally world, the Yamaha T7 Concept is a fully functioning prototype developed to achieve a perfect balance between road and off road capability.

This lightweight machine is based on an all new chassis that has been designed to complement a specially developed version of Yamaha’s highly acclaimed 700cc CP2 engine, delivering strong torque and an easy power delivery for perfect traction in all conditions.

Equipped with an aluminium fuel tank, 4-projector LED headlight, a carbon fairing and skidplate, and a custom made Akrapovič exhaust – as well as high specification KYB front suspension – the T7 is a vision of the ideal adventure machine, and is playing a major role in the development of Yamaha’s next generation adventure models.

A new chapter from the book of legends will be on the street – and on the dirt – from 2018.

The Yamaha T7 was presented at EICMA as a concept based on the 700 cc parallel twin, 270 crank, 74hp motor found in the MT/FZ07 and its derivatives. The motor is a well know machine. This bike could be just the right machine, 74 hp is the right amount of power, its torque curve is great and this combo could deliver sane but plenty of fun, at the right weight, and perhaps even the right price.

Yamaha T7 Concept, EICMA 2016

Of course, Yamaha made it clear that the T7 , as a concept, is only a “vision of the ideal adventure machine” and then it says it is “playing a major role in the development of Yamaha’s next generation adventure models”.

Yamaha T7 Concept, EICMA 2016

The spy photos already show many differences from what we’ve seen on the T7 concept to what may be coming to market.

Yamaha’s 700 Ténéré – 2018?

However, what we know is that it has the right bones: a light weight motor, plenty of power at 74 hp, a compact frame, the right wheel sizes (21 front / 18 rear), and plenty of suspension travel.  That means, at a minimum, we can make it look like the T7 in appearance and in function.  Right, Yamaha?

Yamaha T7 Concept at EICMA 2017

The FZ-07, where this motor resides, is rated at 182 kg, or 400lbs.  The XSR 700, which also has this motor, is rated at 186 kg, or 410 lbs.  I’m not sure these numbers are correct, but if they are close to reality, it seems Yamaha can produce an adventure motorcycle based on this compact motor,  which could weight about 440lbs, which is what we have on the CB500X with the Rally Raid kit.  Now add 26 hp to this equation, a 270 degree crank on the parallel twin (as opposed to the CB500X 180 degree crank), the right wheel sizes, and this is an awesome machine already.

The KTM 790 R is probably going to start from a different perspective. It is likely being developed already and will be based on the new KTM 800cc parallel twin which is expect to deliver power, in KTM-style, at the upper 90’s, if judging by what has been speculated about the machine that already has this motor, the KTM 790 Duke.

KTM 790 Duke – Concept or Prototype?

Knowing KTM, we can assume this motorcycle will be “ready to race” in adventure style, meaning it will be as “rally ready” or better than the defunct 950/990 line. It will likely be light from the start, and it will come with great suspension from the start as well. It will likely be expensive but it won’t require much to be added to it to make it ready for adventure-rally riding.

KTM 790 R (or Adventure)

If the spy photos are anything to go by, the bike will be compact.  Similar to the Yamaha 700, it has the right wheel combo (21 front, 18 rear).  The spy photos also show WP suspension, which I bet will be better than what Yamaha will offer.  Check that swingarm, it talks about serious, and light. And the machine doesn’t look to be tall and still has good ground clearance.

KTM 790 Spy Photo

Finally, as a wild card, we have the revised F800GS.  I’m not sure which direction BMW will take on their 10-year revision of the tired F800GS, if they will go towards the Africa Twin and make it heavier but more off-pavement oriented than the motorcycle being replaced, or whether they will make it a lighter-weight, more rally focused machine.  I would prefer the latter, of course.

The F800GS has only had minor updates in its almost 10 years (it will be 10 years if the new F-type GS will be ready for MY 2018).  We hear this new F bike will have an 850 or 900cc motor, final drive (chain) on the left side (hence not the rotax motor consequently not the Nuda motor as many had anticipated), tank on a regular position (not under the seat), new aluminum frame (hopefully fixing the infamous shock bolt problem), and tubeless wheels.

The motor looks to be a twin but more compact than the current F800GS motor and as it has become popular these days, we hear it will have a 270 degree crank (the current Rotax motor is a 360 degree crank with a balance shaft).  The motor looks to be compact, but since most people have been referring to it as an F850 or 900 GS, it could be heavier than the current F800GS.  If the frame is being discussed as aluminum, then maybe it will compensate for the weight of a larger motor? My bet is that it should be closer to the Africa Twin in function and purpose, hence size and weight.  Let’s keep it as the wild card for now.

2018 or 2019 BMW F800GS replacement

Based on the tradition of what Yamaha, KTM and BMW deliver, based on what we know about these bikes so far (not much), we could speculate the following from these new bikes (and using the Africa Twin as a comparison):

If these bikes are launched as described above, which could be considered more wishful thinking than anything else, I would be in serious doubt whether I would get the Yamaha or the KTM.  Yamaha offers great reliability, on the other hand it could cut some corners on critical components, delivering less off-pavement performance and more weight to be on a lower price point and target more volume sales.  However, it has a known motor which is compact, so we know Yamaha can organize this bike around a steel frame and sub-frame and still be light enough.  Yamaha will likely cost less than the KTM, BMW, and also the Honda Africa Twin.

Yamaha’s potential Ténéré 700 XTZ

KTM is likely to produce something that is ready for the action, hardcore adventure off the showroom floor. However, we know there will likely be reliability issues – it is a new motor, and a new motorcycle.  Certainly it will be the coolest of the machines, especially if you’ve been addicted to the orange cool-aid or having been tempted to try it. It will be the first KTM for many (I could be on that list). And it will have great power to weight, as it is expected from KTMs.

KTM 790 R (or Adventure)

It would be a great but difficult choice to decide among the Yamaha or the KTM should they come to the market (and very likely will come to the market).  The BMW is very much an unknown factor at this point.  It would be great if they turned the F800GS into a true off-pavement contender.  BMW has had such off-pavement history with models such as the HP2. The F800GS has been a forgotten model in their adventure line up (and as consumers’ choice), with no serious upgrades since its launch in 2008 (MY 2008 in Europe, MY 2009 in US), except for the larger tank on the F800GS Adventure and details here and there.  Therefore, who knows where their priorities reside.  The R1200GS Rallye is pointing towards a more dirt worthy machine in their line up.  Is that going to be the case for the new F800GS?

Finally, the Africa Twin deserves an honorable mention.  It is not completely what I was expecting, but I have to say Honda did deliver a “true adventure” motorcycle.

Although it won’t be available outside of Italy, Honda is going to deliver a limited number of Africa Twins in a “Rally” dressing.  It is said this bike in rally version will weight 7 kg (15 lbs) less than the current models.  That will bring the Africa Twin to 488 lbs in non DCT version.  It still is a heavy machine, but once again it shows the interest of the industry in moving towards a rally focus.

Honda Africa Twin Rally

Four parallel twins with 270 degree cranks… and off-pavement vocation, which one would I get?

Based on what I know, which is not much, of these four motorcycles, my number 1 choice is the Yamaha Ténéré if it will look anything close to the T7 concept. I don’t have my expectations high about that, though.  It will still work if I can upgrade the components (suspension primarily) to fit my riding expectations.  It will have to have the bones, such as light weight, a strong frame with sub-frame, and the appropriate wheel sizes for that to happen. I think it will check all these boxes. The motor is well known, it is light, which is a very positive element, and 74 hp is plenty good.

MT-07 (FZ-07) 700cc parallel twin motor, compact and light!

The KTM 790 is my second choice. I do have hopes KTM will deliver something good, usable for the average rider and still hardcore enough to be taken on rally rides off the showroom floor, by experienced riders. The true goldilocks.  I think this will be the game changer motorcycle, this will be the new effect motorcycle.  What if KTM manages to make it weigh the same as the T7 (Ténéré 700) and then delivers 20 extra horses?  That will be tempting. We will know more about this motor when the KTM 790 Duke becomes available.

KTM 790 Duke concept, EICMA 2016

The Africa Twin is my 3rd choice.  This bike is already a known factor.  The reviews about this bike from journalists and owners have always been positive.  Too bad we won’t have access to its rally version outside of Italy, although it barely makes a difference on its weight.

The BMW is a wild card, mostly because the spy photos showed up with no information from BMW themselves on their intent with the change, therefore we don’t know the direction BMW will take.  It could go either way, as a variant to the Africa Twin or a lighter weight, hardcore machine.  This bike seems to be completely different than the current F800GS. Let’s hope BMW will have the courage to make something lighter and more hardcore out of this line.

Spy photo of the replacement for the F800GS

There could be others in the run, such as Triumph, for example.  Their problem in positioning themselves for a potential lighter weight fight is their own success factor, the triple motor.  It is heavy and offer low torque at low RPM when others are bringing compact and torquey parallel twin motors and making them behave and sound as if they were V-twins (270 degree crank).

Finally, it could be that these bikes may be introduced to the market in their standard or “popular” versions, and we may need to wait for their rally, enduro, R, or whatever they will call their more off-pavement versions, to show up a few years down the road.  Time will tell.

Meanwhile, the 2017’s EICMA will be interesting for the adventure world with some critical new models being launched or presented for the first time.  2018 might be the year when, for the first time, we will be able to buy a true adventure-rally machine in a long, long time, if ever.  Times may be changing.

Thank you for reading.