Yo Campers
Before I bore you completely shitless, some background.:dowhat
I am a 54 year old Welshman who has been riding bikes since I was 17.
Suzuki 250 Hustler, Suzuki GT250, Kawasaki KH500, (nearly banned for speeding) Honda XL500 (this will slow me down - 3 points for overtaking geriatric on double white lines!) Kawasaki H2 750, Honda CB900F2, Suzuki Katana 1100, couple of Harleys (9 points again!) Monster 750, Fireblades, etc etc
Point being I have ridden bikes before and some of them were V twins.
Bought my RSV-R in Feb 2011
Took it out for first spin March 2011 - it broke down (cooked rectifier) Came home on a lorry. Handling didn't feel right, real tall 1st gear, engine won't rev (past 12,000!)
Late March 2011 - got banned for a year (my own fault, serve me right)
Most of 2011 - RSV-R in shed. Respray and tweak Fazer.
Licence back December 2012 (did the course!)
Fazer 1000 brill - first spin 125 (kph of course Ocifer) RSV-R feels like ****. Feels 3 meters tall and like it's going to fall into every corner with an expensive crash.
Set all suspension settings back to handbook default. Still feels like ****, have zero confidence at all going around corners. Have tried it all ways, hot in, slow out. Hot in hot out. Slow in, hot out, it all feels like I am riding a penny farthing and it's going to fall over any second. Replace tyres - new Michelins (thanks Trev in Bont):thumbup
Next spin - getting to love the engine (no need to change grear much once you get it to 3rd/4th around here in the Wild Wild West) but handling still feels bad enough to meake me want to sell it for a Lambretta! Am thinking I will break it and put all the Ohlins bling on my Fazer (wonder if the swinging arm will fit) and flog the rest on fleabay.
All spins on fine days from now on will be on my Fazer.
My best mate buys an Aprilia Shiver GT
Next day (today Sunday 06-05-2012) we go out to get some miles on his Shiver (cos we're all going to the MotoGP in Barcelona in three weeks and he's got to run it in) so despite all misgivings I wheel the RSV out of the garage for an Aprilia day.
Cos I haven't ridden it for a few weeks (since the last time I **** myself because I thought I was going to crash it - or it felt like it was going to crash me!!) I checked my tyre pressures before going out and fired them up to 36F + 42R (put 5 psi in each to get there)
Went out around the bendy roads here in the Wild Wild West and travelling at running in speeds for my mates new Shiver everything came together on the RSV. I think we wre riding slow enough for me to have time to feel what was going on with my bike.
This bike has to be ridden, not just pointed. You have to get totally immersed in the 1000cc V twin experience. It's all about how that wonderful engine interacts with a frame that looks like a work of art, and suspension that would cost a couple of grand to fit to any other bike, when you ride it right.
It got to the point where I was getting so confident on this bike (that I thought was going to crash at every bend) that I had to cog down, rev up and **** off from my running in buddy and attack the bends between Brecon and Llandovery. I had a brill afternoon!
What a ******* motorcycle!! Hit over 120 (kph of course) past some dipshit M3 on the way home, steady as a rock.
Everything now comes together. This bike goes where you nod your head at, as long as you are actually RIDING it instead of just sitting on it! It's truly brill!
With an engine that could tow the UK down to somewhere near the equator (from standstill, in top gear!!) and orchestral music coming out of the arse end of it I am just amazed that I didn't get it earlier.
May now go to Barcelona on the RSV, might as well 'cos it's got new tyres!!
The moral being - if at first you think it handles like a cart, don't quit, ride the ****** the way you are supposed to!
PS Paul at Kickstart - book me a service slot - not a sales slot!
Before I bore you completely shitless, some background.:dowhat
I am a 54 year old Welshman who has been riding bikes since I was 17.
Suzuki 250 Hustler, Suzuki GT250, Kawasaki KH500, (nearly banned for speeding) Honda XL500 (this will slow me down - 3 points for overtaking geriatric on double white lines!) Kawasaki H2 750, Honda CB900F2, Suzuki Katana 1100, couple of Harleys (9 points again!) Monster 750, Fireblades, etc etc
Point being I have ridden bikes before and some of them were V twins.
Bought my RSV-R in Feb 2011
Took it out for first spin March 2011 - it broke down (cooked rectifier) Came home on a lorry. Handling didn't feel right, real tall 1st gear, engine won't rev (past 12,000!)
Late March 2011 - got banned for a year (my own fault, serve me right)
Most of 2011 - RSV-R in shed. Respray and tweak Fazer.
Licence back December 2012 (did the course!)
Fazer 1000 brill - first spin 125 (kph of course Ocifer) RSV-R feels like ****. Feels 3 meters tall and like it's going to fall into every corner with an expensive crash.
Set all suspension settings back to handbook default. Still feels like ****, have zero confidence at all going around corners. Have tried it all ways, hot in, slow out. Hot in hot out. Slow in, hot out, it all feels like I am riding a penny farthing and it's going to fall over any second. Replace tyres - new Michelins (thanks Trev in Bont):thumbup
Next spin - getting to love the engine (no need to change grear much once you get it to 3rd/4th around here in the Wild Wild West) but handling still feels bad enough to meake me want to sell it for a Lambretta! Am thinking I will break it and put all the Ohlins bling on my Fazer (wonder if the swinging arm will fit) and flog the rest on fleabay.
All spins on fine days from now on will be on my Fazer.
My best mate buys an Aprilia Shiver GT
Next day (today Sunday 06-05-2012) we go out to get some miles on his Shiver (cos we're all going to the MotoGP in Barcelona in three weeks and he's got to run it in) so despite all misgivings I wheel the RSV out of the garage for an Aprilia day.
Cos I haven't ridden it for a few weeks (since the last time I **** myself because I thought I was going to crash it - or it felt like it was going to crash me!!) I checked my tyre pressures before going out and fired them up to 36F + 42R (put 5 psi in each to get there)
Went out around the bendy roads here in the Wild Wild West and travelling at running in speeds for my mates new Shiver everything came together on the RSV. I think we wre riding slow enough for me to have time to feel what was going on with my bike.
This bike has to be ridden, not just pointed. You have to get totally immersed in the 1000cc V twin experience. It's all about how that wonderful engine interacts with a frame that looks like a work of art, and suspension that would cost a couple of grand to fit to any other bike, when you ride it right.
It got to the point where I was getting so confident on this bike (that I thought was going to crash at every bend) that I had to cog down, rev up and **** off from my running in buddy and attack the bends between Brecon and Llandovery. I had a brill afternoon!
What a ******* motorcycle!! Hit over 120 (kph of course) past some dipshit M3 on the way home, steady as a rock.
Everything now comes together. This bike goes where you nod your head at, as long as you are actually RIDING it instead of just sitting on it! It's truly brill!
With an engine that could tow the UK down to somewhere near the equator (from standstill, in top gear!!) and orchestral music coming out of the arse end of it I am just amazed that I didn't get it earlier.
May now go to Barcelona on the RSV, might as well 'cos it's got new tyres!!
The moral being - if at first you think it handles like a cart, don't quit, ride the ****** the way you are supposed to!
PS Paul at Kickstart - book me a service slot - not a sales slot!
