RiDE November 2010

contents

adventure specialADVENTURESPECIAL

INSIDE

The real-world guide to conquering the planet on two wheels

EXT R A 24-PAGE SECT ION

Absolutely no need for… FANCY MACHINERY, EXPENSIVE ACCESSORIES OR QUITTING YOUR JOB

Just… IMAGINATION, A DECENT MAP AND A BIT OF PREPARATION

✪✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪

S P E C I A L

November 2010 | 3www.ride.co.uk

in this issueNovember 2010

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ride out8 Your Bikes12 Long Weekend in... Brno 18 Our Trips... Humberside, Worcester, etc20 Your Trips... France 22 Project Fit to Ride... on the couch24 RiDE’s guide to... Northern Spain30 Living with a scooter, cruiser and racer

buying & selling40 The RiDER Power Road test: 2003 Kawasaki ZX-6R versus 2003 Honda CBR600F50 This month’s best deals52 “I swapped my sportsbike for a trailie”54 Essential bikesxxxxxxxxxproducts60 The RiDE Product Test: winter gloves64 New kit68 Tested kit72 Chest protectors explained74 Essential equipment

the 360º test103 Yamaha FZ8104 2010 FZ8 versus FZ1 and FZ6 S2110 FZ8 versus Triumph Street Triple,

BMW F800R and Ducati 796 Monster 116 FZ8 versus the RiDE test fleet

diy120 Project NC30 hits the buffers122 Project Thundercat roars in to action124 Project BMW takes to the road126 How to clean your bike like the experts

new bikes130 Honda VFR1200F DCT: the pillion’s view132Honda SH300i C-ABS132Victory Crossroads134Suzuki GSX-R750137Milan bike show preview

letters144 Opinion – tell us what you think

startson page

77

WINTERGLOVES13 paIRSTESTEd

TO RiDE TODAY AND clAim YOuR edZ mid layer – p56

30

120

134

60

78 They’ve travelled the world, so can you82 Adventure rider’s rough guide to the world84 Affordable adventure

bikes tested90 Recording your trip92 Top to toe: the kit

95 Preparing for your big adventure

98 Riding skills and survival tips101 Fly-ride adventures102 Adjusting to life when you return home

ORTON WiNslOW BRNO BOBENHEim Am BERG

perfect roads with little traffic just a ferry trip away good weather even in autumn

RiDE’s guide to touring via Santander.Breathtaking rides through northern and central

Spain are on the doorstep of the docks

head for the hillsBeat the blues and

rider guide ✪ rider guide ✪

rid

er g

uide ✪

spain

Words E m m a F r a n k li n P ic ture s m a r k m a n n i n g

November 2010 | 25

RIDE OUT

inter has been hard to the British Isles. Last year’s Siberian frosts and endless snow pockmarked roads and caved-in carriageways, rupturing gravel and ruining the hints of grip that springtime eventually smuggled in. The summer’s favourite rides now seem blemished forever by scarred surfaces, as

councils and utility companies grapple over the responsibility for repairs. Now as the weather starts to turn again, it’s time for an escape. A break

inspired not just by perfect weather and breathtaking vistas, but by fast, flowing, unfettered roads. A chance to explore the best your bike has to offer, without putting up with the associated nonsense of a trackday. Or perhaps an excuse to kick back and chill out with your pillion, safe in the knowledge spines and shocks won’t be jarred as you cruise unwrinkled roads slinking between beautiful, bulging sierras. If hours of motorway slogging, burning nothing but petrol doesn’t appeal, there’s a route to this biking playground that’s no less than a couple of cabaret acts away. Head to the docks, leave the potholes behind and set sail for Santander.

A whole day at sea creates an urge for the road like no other. In the near distance, mountains rise out of the warm moist air above Santander’s concrete grey docklands. The wind seems to serenade bikes from the crests of the surrounding Cantabrian Mountains – come ride me. Sea-legged riders seem powerless to resist. Head 14 miles southeast to reach the town of Medio Cudeyo and the CA-261.

Carving a path through the dark green foothills, the man-made stone of Santander feels more than a mere 20 kilometres away. They call this area Green Spain and it’s easy to see why. The landscape is lush, fertilized by the warm, wet climate. Dark green zings against the perfect blue sky and the horizon is speckled with faded terracotta farmhouses. As the CA-261 climbs, it starts to wind. Gentle at first, a scenic meander through the lonely valley, then the corners come. At 200m, 400m, 600m, climbing all the time, the perfect tarmac transforming from fast and open to tight and sinuous in the twist of a throttle. Black-and-white Friesians laze in the long roadside grass as riders hustle around hairpins. It looks like England, but it most certainly isn’t. The summit village of Puerto de Alisas is a great place to stop and admire the view, scoffing at the Lycra clad cyclists as they puff on past.

Downhill, through another valley, then climbing once again. Continuing east through Rioseco, the BI-630 dances across the peaks and ricochets into the valleys, soaring and cresting like an eagle gliding on the thermals. Drop down and head south, riding the A-624 through Amurrio to the AP68 – the fast track to central Spain.

Vineyards grace every corner; their stainless steel fermenting vats sparking into the sun drenched sky. Rows of grapes race away from either side of the road across the fertile plains, stopping only when they reach the hard black sierra far in the distance. This is Rioja country. Directly south from the town of Logrono, the N-111 spans 60 miles of valleys, snow-topped peaks and lush green forests. At first fast and flowing, the open road spreads for miles in the distance, snaking gently into the far-flung foothills, the N-111 forever pulling them closer and larger. Staggered towers of terracotta rise from quilts of deepest green as the unruffled road climbs.

The mountains of the Sierra de Cebollera national park loom larger. The temperature falls and snow lines the road, climate now matching

40 | November 2010 www.ride.co.uk

2003 KAWASAKI ZX-6Rversus

2003 HONDA CBR600F

ROAD teSt

tHe

2003-2004 KAWASAKI ZX-6RPower 101.4bhp Weight 161kg

Top speed 160mph Rider Claire Donovan

2001-2007 HONDA CBR600FPower 93.1bhp Weight 170kg

Top speed 155mph Rider Phil Miflin

£1825-£5305

uSeD PRICe RANge

£1860-£3835

uSeD PRICe RANge

buying & selling


buying & selling

Honda cbr600fPerhaps the biggest plus point of life with a CBR of this vintage is there

are so many of them about that it’s never a problem getting new or used parts, accessories, servicing or expertise. The other side of the coin is that sometimes it can seem like every other bike on the road is a CBR. Maybe it is – it was sold for eight years in exactly this form, only the colours changing occasionally. Add in the 1999-2000 models, which were more or less identical bar fuel injection and a different top fairing, and there are thousands of CBR600Fs out there.

If that ubiquity doesn’t bother you, there’s much to appreciate in the Honda’s do-it-all attitude. For a start, it’s comfortable: the wide, long seat gives a choice of positions that suit shorties and stick insects alike. Claire’s six feet tall and

has dodgy knees from years of rugby tumbles (“Most of my cartilage is on the mantelpiece...”) and she found it perfectly comfortable. It’s good for pillions too – unlike practically every other 600 of its generation, never mind this one. You really can load it up and go touring.

One thing everyone agreed on was that the CBR’s just so easy to live with. Claire’s was her first bike after passing her test and that’s a recurring theme when you talk to owners like David Garner: “I did a Direct Access course early last year and I was looking for a good all-rounder, something that would be just as good at driving round town as on motorway commutes or touring with a pillion, with reasonable running costs. I bought a 2003 CBR-F in March and by October I’d put 8000 miles on the clock

Understated CBR paintwork can’t compete with classic Kwak green as an attention-

getter. Still looks pretty good though

The ZX-6R looks like it should be a rev-monster, but thanks to its

37cc advantage over the CBR, it’s actually pretty flexible

Honda’s amazingly competent CBR600F and Kawasaki’s GP-styled ZX-6R were both great bikes when new, but what are they like to own and ride seven years later..?

Meet tHe readers

2003 KAWASAKI ZX-6Rversus

2003 HONDA CBR600F

The road TesT

youhelp To wriTe

Claire DonovanClaire’s only been riding three years, but has packed in touring, track days and advanced training since then. A former rugby international with 75 caps for Wales to her credit, she’s just traded her 39,000 mile ’02 CBR in for a new Triumph Daytona 675.

Phil MiflinHGV mechanic Phil’s been through everything from a TS125 to an FJ1200 in his fifteen years on bikes. He’s had his ZX-6R B1H from new and modified it to suit his needs. It’s now up to 22,000 miles, and he’s planning on keeping it for a good few years yet.

Words Kev Raymond Pictures Mark Manning

T he 2001 fuel injected version of the Honda CBR600F effortlessly took up the mantle of its predecessors, becoming the archetypal all-round motorcycle. Tour, scratch, thrash, commute, trackday, repeat. Freed from race duties thanks to the parallel launch of the sportier FS version,

followed by the RR in 2003, it could concentrate on being useable in the real world rather than at the extremes. 2003’s all-new ZX-6R was also spared racing duties even though it looked the part – that was the 599cc ZX-RR’s job – and it carried on the previous year’s sneaky 636cc capacity to give it the edge over the other 600s. At the time they didn’t seem like natural competitors, but with the ZX-6R looking sensible next to the current crop of 600s, it’s time for a reappraisal, with the help of RiDE’s CBR and ZX-6R-owning readers.

Colin Overland, editor

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Women's sizes 8 to 18

Yamaha FZ8The new model799cc, 107bhp, £7799


Is Yamaha’s new middleweight the perfect balance between a user friendly 600 and a full-on 1000?

Words Matt Hull Pictures Jason Critchell

YAMAHA FZ8 YAMAHA FZ1 FAZER & FZ6 S2

versus

Yamaha FZ6 S2The smaller version599cc, 90bhp, £4699

MORE 360º tEstFZ8 vs FZ1 FaZER & FZ6 s2

Yamaha FZ8The new model799cc, 107bhp, £7799

www.ride.co.uk

The middleweight streetbike market matters. Since the launch of the Suzuki Bandit 600 back in 1995 it’s become one of the key battlegrounds for the Japanese manufacturers. Yamaha’s

biggest weapon in the sector was the half-faired FZS600 Fazer launched in 1998, using a retuned engine from the Thundercat sportsbike. It was a hugely popular bike and spawned a 1000cc version. The FZS was superseded by the fuel-injected FZ6 in 2004, which came in both faired and unfaired versions, uprated in 2007 as the FZ6 S2.

But tactics have changed in this war and, even though the 1000cc streetbikes are out there, the middleweight bikes are getting bigger. From the Kawasaki Z750 to the BMW F800R and 675cc Triumph Street Triple, capacity hikes are leaving the 600s behind. Now Yamaha have replaced the FZ6s with 799cc versions: the naked FZ8 and half-faired FZ8 Fazer.

RiDE reader Malcolm Tookis has an FZ6 S2 – though as he’s been riding bikes for ‘a lot of years’ the Yamaha shares a garage with a 1976 Honda CB750, C90, CD250, a 660 MZ, GT250 and a BMW R80/7. Where does the FZ6 fit in? “It’s for taking me to work and back. It’s so easy to

Bob ThompsonYamaha FZ1 FazerBob is a photographer from

Long Stratton, Norfolk. He uses his FZ1 mainly for fun.

Malcolm TookisYamaha FZ6 S2Malcolm is a lorry driver

delivering milk around Norfolk. His FZ6 is used as a commuter bike.

Yamaha FZ1 FazerThe litre version998cc, 150bhp, £8899

THE 360° TEST

Meet the ReADeRS


AQ+I’ve just bought a Yamaha

Thundercat similar to the one you have. I’m really happy with it, but several people have told me that the suspension must be shot because the bike’s done 34,000 miles. First, is this true? Second, what does it actually mean? And third, what can I do about it?Tony Coleshill

It’s true that most stock suspension is

past its best after about 20,000 miles. If the suspension is worn, handing won’t be crisp. You may find the bike wallows in corners or understeers. It might get flighty on bumps and feel harsh or dive excessively when you brake – and the worse the wear, the worse the ride.

What can you do? Check for signs of damage, such as weeping fork seals or a cracked rear spring. Then assess the rear shock by bouncing it. Get someone to hold the bars while you stand behind the pillion seat and push it firmly down. Does it collapse or does resistance increase as it moves down? When it comes back up, does it return smoothly or does it boing up and down? A good shock will control both its descent and return, a worn one can’t.

You can check the forks the same way (you at the front, helper at the back of the bike, clearly). Make sure any adjusters at the front are set evenly.

If you still have concerns after your checks, consider getting it checked by a suspension expert. You may not need new suspension, but it may benefit from repair or reconditioning – but it may cost a few hundred quid.

diy

Words Kev Raymond Pictures Kev & Carole Raymond

Our high-mileage Boxer has spent as much time in the workshop as on the road, but having finally rediscovered its spark (and just passed its MoT) all was well. Then the brakes started leaking...

The sTory so far

Touring timeNiggles and breakdowns resolved, the RS is finally putting in some serious miles

Life with the RS is acquiring something of a pattern. A pattern punctuated with niggling faults that can

apparently only be resolved by humbly laying large offerings of money before independent BMW specialists.

This time it was the brakes. After the MoT, the master cylinder started leaking. Actually, it had been weeping for a while, and I sneakily dried it off very carefully before the test. But this was now a proper leak, so I ordered a repair kit from Motorworks. All three calipers were

a pair of pliers. Inside though, all was well. Fortunately, I managed to find a suitable replacement circlip.

Meanwhile, I’d sent my old brake hoses to Venhill for them to make me up a set of braided hoses. I’ve always liked these, partly because they’re lovely quality and partly because you don’t tighten up all the fittings completely until the main connections are made, so there’s no straining of hoses or fittings. You can also specify just about any hose you want – I wanted the rear one slightly longer. I’m going to go into this in detail later, but for one reason or another the RS is currently about three inches taller at the rear than it used to be. One consequence is the standard rear brake hose is a bit strained, the other is that the sidestand needs a block of wood under it. I’ll sort it one day.

Let’s get some miles in first, though – if I’d wanted something that never came out of the shed I’d have bought a classic in the first place. A couple of mundane cross-Channel trips in typical summer

sticking (the rear one badly) so better have repair kits for those as well. I also ordered new washers and circlips for the front disc bobbins (the washers lose their springiness over time, and they’re so cheap to replace it’s daft not to).

That didn’t leave any change from £145, mostly because the front caliper kits include the pistons as well as the seals and cost about 50 quid per caliper (the rear, seals-only kit is a quarter of that). Annoying since my pistons turned out to be in absolutely perfect condition.

Not so the master cylinder – it’s scrap. At some point, some gorilla has ‘cleaned up’ the bore using emery paper that must have been left over from de-rusting the Forth Bridge. More expense. Fortunately a forum member was breaking his RS and flogged me the master cylinder and a few other odds and sods at a good price.

On to the rear master cylinder. Water had got in via the rubber boot and rust was eating the retaining circlip, which snapped the second I advanced on it with

DIY


Modern transport methods and medieval infrastructure don’t really mix, especially when you

ride through the pedestrian zone by mistake. The inhabitants of Villefranche don’t seem to mind though

Cheapo sat nav works a treat. Note gaffa tape over ABS lights – the ABS hasn’t worked since the brake rebuild. More hassle...

Good used one looks like this: minty

Touring time

spent thismonthBrake bits £145Venhill hoses £104.55Used parts £35

statisticsStart mileage: 86,349Mileage now: 92,182Mileage this month: 2471Average fuel consumption: 46Purchase price: £1650Spent so far: £1009.37

weather (rain) meant I was itching for a proper break and some sunshine. A few days down in the South of France ought to do the trick, but it has to be easily reachable in a day because time’s tight. I’ve got a 15-year-old memory of some great roads somewhere near Rodez and a quick look at the map says that’s about 500 miles away. Perfect.

The run down was trouble-free, the RS happily thrumming away a smidge over the 130kph limit on the motorway bits. I’ve recently (and grudgingly) joined the prat-nav generation courtesy of a fifty quid supermarket offer. Stick the car windscreen mount on the rev counter face (why would I need to see the rev counter...?), run the power cord to the ciggy socket under the seat: sorted.

Half the fun of a journey is poring over the maps the night before, though, so I’d already worked out a mix of fast and interesting roads. Where my ideas and the prat-nav differ, the prat-nav loses…

Rodez is the capital of the Aveyron

but by the Saturday night I was sweating, shivering and definitely not going to risk entering a farting contest any time soon. Sunday morning was no better, but we had to be back home on sunday night. Pharmacy, neck a handful of over-the-counter remedies, hope for the best.

And the best was what I got, in that I made it safely home late on Sunday night. I just hope I never have to do such a miserable day’s riding again. At least the RS made it easy as possible – comfortable and, more importantly, hassle-free, which hasn’t always been the case in our time together. Long may it continue. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to the doctor...

region of France, which I’m ashamed to say I’ve never heard of, despite having been though there plenty of times. If you’ve been over the Millau bridge, you’ve been there too. It was at the edge of the suppression of the Cathars in the 12th century, but right at the heart of the medieval pilgrimage boom – the church and shrine at Conques in the north made it one of the most important stops on the route to Santiago di Compostela. It still is – it’s also beautiful, and worth a visit even if you’re a heathen like me, especially as the roads nearby are superb.

The D904 and D42 from Entraygues to Conques feature some of the best, most sinuous tarmac I’ve ever ridden – but there’s no shortage of alternatives. You just have to be a bit careful to make sure you don’t come barelling round some corner and inadvertently send a few of the faithful prematurely to their reward...

Maybe such impious thoughts were my undoing, or maybe it was a bit of undercooked chicken on the Thursday,

“The D904 and D42 from Entraygues to

Conques feature some of the best, most

sinuous tarmac I’ve ever ridden”

contactMotorworks: www.motorworks.co.uk Winding Roads: www.windingroads.co.uk RS Owners’ Club: www.bikersoracle.com/rs/forumNippy Normans: www.nippynormans.comVenhill hoses: www.venhill.co.uk

Breakers, Mail order and t

he WeBPROJECTBIKE

BMWR1100RS

Old master cylinder looks like this: manky

In assocIatIon wIth DevItt

www.ride.co.uk130 | November 2010

Words Simon Weir Pictures John Noble

honda vfr1200f dct

BMW R1200RTPrice: £12,135 new (plus options), from £6000 used

Engine: 1170cc Boxer twinPower: 110bhpTorque: 89lb.ft

Transmission: 6 speed, shaftWheelbase: 1485mmSeat height: 820mm

Fuel capacity: 25 litresWet weight: 236kg

Changing gear is an action riders take for granted – one that’s so ingrained and automatic that it takes little thought. Until we

take a passenger, that is. Suddenly, any little imperfection in technique is rewarded with a jolt, shudder or, worse, a bang on the back of the head as helmets clash.

The solution has always been to ride better: slower, smoother and more deliberate gear changes to avoid provoking a lid-battering from an inadvertently headbanging pillion. Easy enough on short trips, but after a long day in the saddle? Even the best riders can, occasionally, fluff a change when tired.

This year Honda presented an alternative solution: the Dual Clutch Transmission. It has six sequential gears, like a normal bike, but uses two clutches for seamless shifts. Like a tiptronic car, it can either shift automatically or the rider can use up and down buttons for full manual control of the gearbox.

So far DCT is available as an option only on the VFR1200F, but we expect it to spread. To see how the new transmission works for pillions, we were joined by Rees and Mary Thomas, who rode from Wales with their BMW R1200RT - RiDER Power’s top-rated pillion bike. How did they get on with it?

The Dual Clutch Transmission on the Honda VFR1200F gives a silky, pillion-friendly ride – but how does it compare with RiDER POWER’s top pillion bike, the BMW R1200RT?

Just how good is this automatic

tourer two-up?

NEW BIKES


Honda VFR1200F dCTPrice: £13,175 newEngine: 1237cc V-fourPower: 153bhpTorque: 91lb.ftTransmission: 6 speed, shaftWheelbase: 1545mmSeat height: 815mmFuel capacity: 18.5 litresWet weight: 277kg

I was surprised how quickly I got used to the controls. The lack of levers did not affect my riding, as I’d expected – perhaps because it was a strange bike and so different in layout and type to the RT. I adapted without any

problems, though I had a problem with the indicators.It was very smooth to pull away. The automatic mode

was very effective in town – the changes were quicker and smoother, with no delay between them. Most of the time I used it in manual, though – especially once we got going.

On the open road there were a few overtakes and the down changes were very smooth. At one point I had to brake hard when a Post Office van started to pull out on me, but the bike put itself in the appropriate gear to continue. I was pleased to see the gear changes did not have the ‘clonking’ effect that you get with automatic cars and buses.

On the dual carriageway there were hardly any changes once you were up to speed. The changes down to leave the dual carriageway – from sixth to second – were so much quicker and easier. It was as good as a block change.

Manoeuvring without a manual clutch would take some practice and engine braking wasn’t as good as a bike with a normal clutch, but I liked the fact that it automatically went into first when stopping and starting off.

The big problem I had with the VFR was the seating position. The pegs are quite high, so my legs were a bit cramped. But the worst bit was that I was much more separate from the rider – rather than the two of us sitting

together, as we do on the RT, I was perched upright while he was leaning forwards. Also, I’m used to our RT’s topbox, so I felt very exposed. I didn’t think the seat would be comfortable when I looked at it but, to be fair, it was surprisingly good.

As for the different gearbox, it was less noticeable in town than our BMW, especially when going into first. On the open roads I didn’t feel the changes at all. Though changing down

We got someone who’d never been pillion to try both bikes. Which did she prefer?Before getting on the first bike I was a little apprehensive, but I was excited at the same time. I enjoyed every minute of it and, given

the chance, I would definitely ride pillion again. The R1200RT felt slow but offered great comfort and

stability – the support from the topbox definitely helped. Even though the rider was doing the gear-changing, it actually felt the smoother of the two bikes. The VFR was certainly smooth and comfortable, but in fact it was so smooth it felt a bit dull.

too low at too high a speed meant I had to hang on. Even coming off the motorway, when I could hear that the engine was changing down for the junction, I didn’t feel the changes.

When braking, though, there were a few slides forward on the seat – due to the distance between rider and pillion (and the rider braking a little too hard until he got used to the brake lever!). The first few miles were a bit hair-raising, as it’s such a different shape of bike to our RT – I was hanging onto the grab-rails like grim death. After a while I did become more comfortable and confident, but I still wouldn’t have liked to have done the 522 mile round-trip we did that day on the VFR. It’s no match for the RT on a long journey.

THe FiRsT-Time pillion ViewJade Pickard

THe pillion’s ViewMary ThoMas

THe RideR’s Viewrees ThoMas

RiDE November 2010

Documents

Transcript of RiDE November 2010