Some advice for a newbie please

[dr nick]

A sight variation on the perennial 'which one' question.

A change of job and family relocation means that come this summer I’ll be commuting from Abingdon, nr Oxford to London Bridge(ish) at least four days a week….

The 20k + miles I’ll be doing a year means that I need/want something GS shaped - with ABS – to finally fulfil many years of thinking ‘ I like those’

Despite not being tall, he says understating slightly - I’m 5ft 6 ½ - I’ve worked out from perusing this fab site that I’ll fit a big (i.e. 1100 or bigger) GS, and I’m happy to do the one foot down sideways shimmy if need be.

So, assuming I’m comfy with the feel/height of a big GS (which I appreciate no one can tell me about I’ve just got to try one or two out) my (3!)questions are:

1) Is a f650gs enough to cope with that commute - or will I find it lacking, day in day out? – my previous recent bike experience is a srx600 as a plaything, and, then 12,000 miles in a year on a pegaso 650 in a previous job.

2) Or is a 650’s lesser abilities on the m/way compensated by its increased traffic-ability – or is a big GS ok- ish through city traffic?

3) And what’s the real world difference between a 1100 gs an 1150gs and a 1200gs – budget could stretch to a 1200 – but is it really worth it?

Comments welcome please – sorry its not a more concise first post, but I want to get this right,

Cheers all,

Nick

 

[Hay Ewe]

g'day Mate

for me, one of the fantastic things about BMW is they are shaft drive, no chain to get dirty, clean, change, but of course there are plenty more chains out there than shaft drives, depends what you want, but I think riding around london and the roads all the winter will make it quite a tedious job at the weekends when all you want to do is something else, leave it too long and then you are up for a chain.

I think there are shorter people out there than you riding, you will be right, if you get an adventure maybe not but you could always swap the shocks for lower height ones.

hope that helps, my 2cent worth,
Hay Ewe - there is another one!

 

[Colban]

Hi Dr Nick..
Abingdon to London Bridge.That'll be fun.
Reckon the 650 will be OK in town..Light,narrow etc,but a bit of a chore on the M4 or M40.
The twin,the 1150 is best,but then i'm biased will be ideal for the M-ways,but can get a bit tight if you want to play despatch rider between the Chelsea tractors and white van man.
I'd still go with the twin though.

 

[Loiq]

same sort of views as the above, it all cames down to a matter of confidence in the end.

Had my 1150 for 5 years now to start with felt very scared to weave in traffic due the it being the size of a fridge freezer. So would recommed getting long rides in to build confidence or go on rider training course even the off road will help with that. 1150 is better on motorways no doubt you don't get buffered about so much and has enough power to sit with traffic at speed. A mate of mine has a 650 he does a 60+ mile commute he likes it I followed him one time for a laugh. he was buzzing along at a tremendous rate but i think he believes he's evil kanevil. For the couple of hundered pounds the rider training is i would say it's money well spent or put the squeeze on a dealer for an extended ride out. Better that than making a big mistake financially or in traffic where you'll get splattered.

 

[mrTickle]

I'd choose the 1200 for what you want to do. It has a much more refined ride and is also lighter compared to the 11xx's, so it's much better suited for city traffic.

 

[riderbob]

Heh dr nick,
I commute everyday from Maidenhead to Hammersmith which is 25 miles door to door. I've got the 12GS and have no problem filtering through traffic and on the motorway. Ocassionally traffic can become tedious because you want to open it up, but on any day of the year it is better than a car or public transport.
Having said that I'm sure a 650GS would be just as capable covering these miles in traffic. It might even be easier to handle when the traffic slows to a snails pace.
Anyway, let us know what you choose and don't forgot to join the Thames Valley tossers gathering each month (next this Thursday).
http://www.ukgser.com/forums/showthread.php?t=96846
Cheers,
Bob