Poshtosser
Registered user
I've always had sports bikes (and still have an '08 Fireblade) and up until now the main thrill of riding for me has been the eyeball slipping surge of power these bikes deliver under hard acceleration and the adrenalin rush I get from fast riding. I recently went on a trip to France with some friends who were all riding "slow" bikes and I thought that rather than wait at every petrol station for them to catch up I would buy an adventure tourer and plumbed for an '06 GS so that I could enjoy their company.
What a revelation! There is more to biking than scraping your knee on every corner as I now know. The riding position was the first surprise. I could look over cars and see the road clearly rather than trying to look around or under them. The most pleasant surprise however was that the GS handles much better than I thought and the whole experience encourages you to take in the surrounding countryside rather than 100% focus on the road and the next overtaking opportunity.
The trip to France started badly with a puncture on the brand new Metzler rear tyre but that was sorted in Le Havre in 10 mins. It got worse that afternoon when I swapped bikes with a friend who was thinking of buying a GS too. He dropped it on roundabout and oil gushed out of the cylinder head (lesson 1 - get crash bars fitted). Being 5.20 p.m. on a Saturday on a bank holiday weekend there was little hope of repairs but a friendly Honda dealer 200 yards down the road sorted us out with a Transalp so we could continue the journey.
Rest of the trip was magical although missed the GS but such was my joy at the brief BMW experience that I have just taken hold of a new '13 GS (with crash bars!) which is brilliant. Trying hard to pile the miles on for the first service but would you believe it I got another puncture on the rear Metzler on Saturday. That's the second puncture I've had in 25 years of biking and both on GS's and both on brand new Metzlers (thought these were designed for "tough" conditions?). Anyway BMW assist were first class and incredibly helpful and bike is being returned this afternoon with new rear tyre (my cost).
Now the main point of this message is that over the last 5 years I have loved and cherished my Fireblade and spent more on it by way of modifications and accessories than I did when I bought it and as such think I probably have one the finest examples in the country. As a new GS owner and BMW novice what are the most frequent and useful upgrades that you peeps opt for or is the bike good enough as standard not to bother?
Also a little nervous about all the negative threads on here but hoping that it is a case of the vocal (and I am sure, justified) minority and the majority of satisfied owners keeping quiet. Please tell me I'm right!
What a revelation! There is more to biking than scraping your knee on every corner as I now know. The riding position was the first surprise. I could look over cars and see the road clearly rather than trying to look around or under them. The most pleasant surprise however was that the GS handles much better than I thought and the whole experience encourages you to take in the surrounding countryside rather than 100% focus on the road and the next overtaking opportunity.
The trip to France started badly with a puncture on the brand new Metzler rear tyre but that was sorted in Le Havre in 10 mins. It got worse that afternoon when I swapped bikes with a friend who was thinking of buying a GS too. He dropped it on roundabout and oil gushed out of the cylinder head (lesson 1 - get crash bars fitted). Being 5.20 p.m. on a Saturday on a bank holiday weekend there was little hope of repairs but a friendly Honda dealer 200 yards down the road sorted us out with a Transalp so we could continue the journey.
Rest of the trip was magical although missed the GS but such was my joy at the brief BMW experience that I have just taken hold of a new '13 GS (with crash bars!) which is brilliant. Trying hard to pile the miles on for the first service but would you believe it I got another puncture on the rear Metzler on Saturday. That's the second puncture I've had in 25 years of biking and both on GS's and both on brand new Metzlers (thought these were designed for "tough" conditions?). Anyway BMW assist were first class and incredibly helpful and bike is being returned this afternoon with new rear tyre (my cost).
Now the main point of this message is that over the last 5 years I have loved and cherished my Fireblade and spent more on it by way of modifications and accessories than I did when I bought it and as such think I probably have one the finest examples in the country. As a new GS owner and BMW novice what are the most frequent and useful upgrades that you peeps opt for or is the bike good enough as standard not to bother?
Also a little nervous about all the negative threads on here but hoping that it is a case of the vocal (and I am sure, justified) minority and the majority of satisfied owners keeping quiet. Please tell me I'm right!
I'm normally in your neck of the woods out weekends.
