Now then Now then .... (Jingle Jangle .. )
I am seriously loving this bike ...
Out for two or three hours today with her indoors, still very much being run in and not taking it over 6 .... 6 1/2 K. I still read some of the WC GS threads and have deliberately not posted there (don't want to gloat or be naffly insensitive ...) but boy am I glad I've made the switch! I had a
good WC GS but there are things on this bike that just puts the GS to shame.
The clutch and gearbox on this are as light as a feather and having come from a bike with an 'OK' box, it's
still 100% better. There are no little pieces of walnuts in the cheddar cheese that grate as the knife slices through; rolling into a junction and click click clicking on a shut throttle is ... well it's how it should be ... normal! No dramas. It's slickety slick. (The GS would have grated and crunched its way there).
The suspension on my R is just sublime. Today, we've had a tickle down some quick B roads, and (new bike - dialled in to how it's feeling) i'm feeling a pretty firm rear shock (too firm, even though we're two up) and the front is, I wouldn't say chattering, but definitely far too harsh / quick on its rebound for the roads that we were playing on. We pull over to the side of the road, neither of us get off, I reach down behind her left knee and knock off the rear spring and the soften up the damping on the right fork. We're talking 30 - 45 seconds! The result, noticeable within 300 yards, is almost perfect. So now without stopping, I fine tune it with another couple of turns at the rear, same again on the fork .... perfect ...

The bike just floats over every thing, even Mrs 'Ham-fisted take a ride in my car at your peril because I wouldn't know how to drive it smoothly even if you paid me', instantly feels that the bike is so much smoother and comments on it. A brisk but sensible hour of flowing A and nadgery B becomes an absolute delight. The bike is so composed and settled, it has wonderful drive-ability whilst still leant over in a corner. (Nutty if you're reading ... the very thing my GS
didn't have in France - all be it, it was stuck in two up .... just couldn't get on the gas on corner exit because the bike wasn't settled ... )
That suspension ..... compared to the BM's ESA, is just chalk and cheese.
I just know that the motor is going to be an absolute peach. Still pretty tight and no where near unleashed (I reckon another two or three K before is starts really performing) I just can't wait to hoon it one up. It has a wonderful mix of smooth low revs and (from what I remember on the demo bike but not found on this one yet ..) ballistic top end rush. Can't wait
We've taken a few By-ways home. And here's the rub for me on this bike. They're slippery, muddy, a bit chalky, we're on road tyres but this bike says to me .... 'Nahhhh fuck it - go for it.... what's the worse that could happen??' And we have a laugh! Rosy and I are chortling, in the middle of nowhere trundling through fields and woods, pheasants flying up from under our noses and plodding along barely getting out of second. But it's that 'fuck it, let yer hair down' attitude that the KTM just oozes in its personality. Would I have done that on my Twin Cam GSA? Yes I would and we regularly did. Would I have done it on the WC GS? No! I wouldn't - it just didn't entice me to do that sort of thing. It would have (shock horror) got dirty, the silver side panels would have smashed if we'd have dropped it ... but more than that .... it just didn't have that sort of personality that said to me, the pilot, .... 'Come on, wadda yer waiting for ... lets feck off across that field and have some fun ... '
This bike is a breath of fresh air.
There are still a few niggles though! The stand is shite - I now go out of my way to actually look for cambers to park on! and the horn is a joke. Ktm are really naughty there, that is no way on earth that's an
audible warning divice! It'll have to get changed.
A great great bike ....
Good job the tyres are brand new and have half an inch of rubber......
