Great day!
Went up to MC after my volunteer fundraiser gig, got signed up for a test ride. I was actually looking to ride the fuglystrada, but it was booked for the afternoon. So instead I got to ride this:
It was out riding when I signed up, so I thought it was just yer plain ole Sport1000S (the red one with the half fairing). The ride gets back... and I see this. Ohlins fork, Termi pipes, and the 70's style racer-wannabe fairing. Very cool looking, actually, these pics don't do the bike justice.
They had a cool group ride set up. Safety guys in the lead, following, and mid-pack. Looks like there were around a dozen bikes. Planned route: Out from MotoCorsa, south on 405 to Hwy 26, 26 to the top of Sylvan Hill, from there to Skyline, north on Skyline to Germantown Rd, down the hill to Hwy 30, and back to MotoCorsa.
The verdict: that bike is a friggin torture rack!
The clipon clamps of the S-model are spaced about an inch below the upper triple, lowering the bars quite a bit when compared to a regular Sport1000 (which has the tall ST3-style clipons). After ~40 minutes of riding, my right hand was in pain and tingling. Left wasn't quite as bad, but definitely not pleasant. It takes 2 hours on my SS to get my hands to the same level of discomfort. Then about halfway in my hip started bothering me... the pegs felt nicer than the SS at first, but either the peg position, or seat shape, or some combination thereof made it highly uncomfortable.
I wasn't fond of the 1000ds motor in that bike, either. Vibrated like a SOB, got buzzy, really harsh on/off throttle transitions, just all sorts of nastiness. I
much prefer the behaviour of my 900ie mill. Mine hardly vibrates or buzzes once you get it above 3500 rpm. Clutch action would take come getting used to. I thought my dry clutch was harsh... I had a harder time making smooth upshifts on that wet-clutch 1000ds. Not sure if my problem was the clutch or the engine's throttle response.
Sooooo..... I won't be buying one of those. I should have signed up for the old-man bike, the GT1000.
Alls I know is, when I climbed back on my 900SS it felt like a well-broken-in glove, which was a very welcome sensation. Not perfect (I still need to lower the pegs a tad), but the clipons and seat are darn-near perfect for me.
Also saw JD & one of his engineer friends, talked to Kat about some of the new Dainese gear they've gotten, and since this was a DNA-sponsored event I enjoyed some free beverages.
Since I cannot leave MC without buying something, I picked up a can of Plexus plastic polish. Now my helmet is nice and shiney.
And of course, can't forget window shopping for crap I can't afford... Speedymoto pressure plates for $300... and Marsee makes a really cool tangbag that mounts on the Ducati gascap so the bag is securely bolted down, but doesn't touch the paintwork. The Marsee 11litre Rocket Pocket tankbag is normally ~$120 for the standard version... this Ducati specialty bag? $199.
Couple hundred here, couple hundred there... pretty soon it starts adding up to real money. C'est la Vie.
So yeah, decent day, neat ride, but the bike is definitely not one I'll ever be buying. I think that permanently knocks the Paul Smart off the list, too. Still need to go test ride the fuglystrada and an ST. Of course, if I can ever get a rearset lowering adapter made for my SS, I may just stick with it, considering how well the rest of it fits. Motorcycles are like shoes for me... it's a PITA to find one that fits right, and often it's worthwhile to just stick with styles I know work. It doesn't hurt that the Supersport is getting more than its fair share of compliments this spring, particularly from some of my ladyfriends...
Before I go, here's a couple more cell-phone camera pics...
(^ "Fresco" effect applied in photobucket)
