All Weather Fella
Guest
Hello everyone. I'm very pleased to have found this site/group of people.
A Brief History of Me
Bought a Suzuki VanVan 125 back in August 2005 and then did my CBT about a week later after a friend persuaded me to follow his example. Loved it and found that 'bike riding was for me and not as scary as my mum always told me! It gave me a new found freedom that had been lacking after giving up my Mini prior to the birth of our first child.
Almost a year later the VanVan was stolen from outside my house. Oddly though, the insurance company acted quickly and paid me the market value instead of what I listed - giving me around £400 more back than I paid for the 'bike in the first place... plus I'd ridden it all through the winter and it'd lived outside without so much as a cover - even in the snow!
With the cash burning a hole in my pocket I decided this was a sign... and booked myself on a Direct Access course. Whilst still in the throws of the course I bought my current bike, the Aprilia Pegaso 650.
It's been a good bike, but has let me down mainly due to the p*** poor care it received by the previous owners. Case in point, the brake fluid was like treacle at one end and tar the other. An amazing difference was to be had on my little trip back home from my mates garage that night, I can tell you! Other than that I've had to replace the exhaust, airbox (the previous exhaust had blown holes through it in several places!), sprockets and chain and much more. It recently had an MOT and I've been told the rear shock needs replacing soon.
So, enough is enough. Time to clean her up and move her on to somebody else to love.
What I Want
I'm after all the advice you guys n gals can offer me. My next steed will live outdoors all year round, although I do now have an Oxford pucker cover to keep the worst at bay. She'll be used daily for trips to work and client visits as well as evening and weekend blasts. I'm not overly keen on off road yet, but wouldn't rule it out.
Motorways, while the evil invention of motorcycle bashers, will have to be used from time to time. So I'd like your feedback on how the GS handles head wind as well as side wind strikes from these man made wind tunnels. My Pegaso didn't like them so much, but it was do-able.
I'm not the tallest, perhaps 5' 8" give or take. If anyone has ever sat on a Pegaso then I can say that I can get most of, but not all, of each foot on the ground. How does a GS compare - are any models/ages taller/shorter than others - are there any factory build options to be aware of?
Tank range/MPG... are these good? Does cold weather affect short morning runs - as I will have to the office?
Is there any preventative maintenance I should be aware of considering how it will be used and where it will live? How does a GS live with salty British roads?
Lastly, would a £3-4k budget get me a good example (provided I knew what to look for, of course)?
Many thanks for getting this far in my post! I don't normally write this much, honest. Feel free to read my blog over at my family web site at http://savery.me.uk to learn more about my 'bike experiences or just more about me and my family.
A Brief History of Me
Bought a Suzuki VanVan 125 back in August 2005 and then did my CBT about a week later after a friend persuaded me to follow his example. Loved it and found that 'bike riding was for me and not as scary as my mum always told me! It gave me a new found freedom that had been lacking after giving up my Mini prior to the birth of our first child.
Almost a year later the VanVan was stolen from outside my house. Oddly though, the insurance company acted quickly and paid me the market value instead of what I listed - giving me around £400 more back than I paid for the 'bike in the first place... plus I'd ridden it all through the winter and it'd lived outside without so much as a cover - even in the snow!
With the cash burning a hole in my pocket I decided this was a sign... and booked myself on a Direct Access course. Whilst still in the throws of the course I bought my current bike, the Aprilia Pegaso 650.
It's been a good bike, but has let me down mainly due to the p*** poor care it received by the previous owners. Case in point, the brake fluid was like treacle at one end and tar the other. An amazing difference was to be had on my little trip back home from my mates garage that night, I can tell you! Other than that I've had to replace the exhaust, airbox (the previous exhaust had blown holes through it in several places!), sprockets and chain and much more. It recently had an MOT and I've been told the rear shock needs replacing soon.
So, enough is enough. Time to clean her up and move her on to somebody else to love.
What I Want
I'm after all the advice you guys n gals can offer me. My next steed will live outdoors all year round, although I do now have an Oxford pucker cover to keep the worst at bay. She'll be used daily for trips to work and client visits as well as evening and weekend blasts. I'm not overly keen on off road yet, but wouldn't rule it out.
Motorways, while the evil invention of motorcycle bashers, will have to be used from time to time. So I'd like your feedback on how the GS handles head wind as well as side wind strikes from these man made wind tunnels. My Pegaso didn't like them so much, but it was do-able.
I'm not the tallest, perhaps 5' 8" give or take. If anyone has ever sat on a Pegaso then I can say that I can get most of, but not all, of each foot on the ground. How does a GS compare - are any models/ages taller/shorter than others - are there any factory build options to be aware of?
Tank range/MPG... are these good? Does cold weather affect short morning runs - as I will have to the office?
Is there any preventative maintenance I should be aware of considering how it will be used and where it will live? How does a GS live with salty British roads?
Lastly, would a £3-4k budget get me a good example (provided I knew what to look for, of course)?
Many thanks for getting this far in my post! I don't normally write this much, honest. Feel free to read my blog over at my family web site at http://savery.me.uk to learn more about my 'bike experiences or just more about me and my family.
And thanks for the warm welcome, too, iletts.
