I consider myself a novice rider, having only owned my 850 Roadster for about a year. Before that it was dirt bikes as a kid, so take this observation in that context.
I always though my Norton was a pretty comfortable ride, but I've really had nothing to compare it to. I just always assumed that a modern big bore German engineered touring bike would be smoother. Lately, I've been getting the bug to purchase a "modern" machine, good for those all day cross country rides. Saturday, I found myself at a local BMW dealer test riding an R1200-RS. I put about 30 miles on it, back road and highway. Nice bike, but I was surprised that at speed I felt vibration in the foot pegs not unlike my Norton. It wasn't bad at all, but I guess I just expected a glass smooth ride for 20 grand, and I certainly didn't expect it to compete with my Norton in this department!
After having done some Internet research on earlier model BMW's (ones I can afford, like the R1150-RT) I discovered some of the negatives of owning such a sophisticated machine. Namely maintenance! After reading more than one story of ABS brake failure resulting in a $2,000 brake job, my interest in the bike is beginning to wane. Today, I rode my Norton for the first time since test riding that BMW, and I came away even more impressed with my old bike. Sure, it shakes like a wet dog at idle, but get her up to speed and man, what a ride! How they do that?
I always though my Norton was a pretty comfortable ride, but I've really had nothing to compare it to. I just always assumed that a modern big bore German engineered touring bike would be smoother. Lately, I've been getting the bug to purchase a "modern" machine, good for those all day cross country rides. Saturday, I found myself at a local BMW dealer test riding an R1200-RS. I put about 30 miles on it, back road and highway. Nice bike, but I was surprised that at speed I felt vibration in the foot pegs not unlike my Norton. It wasn't bad at all, but I guess I just expected a glass smooth ride for 20 grand, and I certainly didn't expect it to compete with my Norton in this department!
After having done some Internet research on earlier model BMW's (ones I can afford, like the R1150-RT) I discovered some of the negatives of owning such a sophisticated machine. Namely maintenance! After reading more than one story of ABS brake failure resulting in a $2,000 brake job, my interest in the bike is beginning to wane. Today, I rode my Norton for the first time since test riding that BMW, and I came away even more impressed with my old bike. Sure, it shakes like a wet dog at idle, but get her up to speed and man, what a ride! How they do that?