There are always ‘better roads’ off everywhere. The B500, like for instance the Stelvio, is iconic for what it is, a stretch of road snaking down through the scenic Black Forest and was in its time a major engineering feat. In that sense, it is no different than the Hochalpenstrasse / Grossglockner High Alpine Road, another ‘must do’ road, which is also iconic. Are there ‘better’ roads than the Grossglockner? Arguably yes, just as there are perhaps ‘better’ roads in Austria outside of the Tyrol.
What is sad perhaps is that bods, when they say “There are better roads off the B500” don’t then give some details as to where they are and, more importantly, why they are better. Is it that they are narrower, more ‘technical’, less policed, bumpier, go through more interesting places, got more biker friendly hotels on them? And, not least, why the great secrecy about them?
The Black Forest is a vast area of roughly 6,000 square kilometres. That is roughly half the area of Yorkshire and twice that of Essex. Nobody is ever going to fill it up, so throw out suggestions on the ‘better roads’ or hide them away in a dark box of mystery, if you must.
PS Had you been on a FireBlade and passed someone on a GS, they might have had you and Micky marked down as a MotoGP wannabe and castigated as such. Indeed, the very phraseology used: “…excellent bit of B500 fun….when we were ‘ahead of the others’ for a good few miles…” with all that that implies, is not so very far removed from the words used in the more popular bike magazines. It does sound fun though, so I am only jealous.