Initial Ride Report.
I picked the bike up yesterday 7/22/05 and put the initial oil change miles on it last night. I added the necessary Farkles (more to come) and put about 150 miles on it today. I am impressed with the bike but do not find it to be the End All that I thought it would be. Here is what I found. Keep in mind that all I have to compare it to are the other bikes and while it does everything well it is not the best at anything.
Comfort: My aching back. The Ducati is more comfortable that this thing. I can tell I have a whole new set of muscles to train for long distance riding on the FJR.
Handling: Not bad here. It does not handle like the Duc but I did not expect it to. It kind of reminds me of flying a 737 (FLUF Jet
(pilot joke)). It does not change directions very fast but when you put it into a turn it is super stable. In Taking it easy today with new bike and new tires, The chicken strips are smaller than on the Duc. Of course the Duc has a 737 size tire on it compared to the FJR Cessna 150 size tire. :blink:
Wind: I really like the bike here. With the stock windshield I get a good feel for the ride with it all the way down. I can move it up and disappear inside the quiet zone.
Weather: I am also pleased here. I did manage to get caught in a Colorado mountain down pour with winds and all today. No complaints at all.
Heat: The FJR is not as hot as the Duc but quite a bit hotter that the Harley or BMW. I think I will be doing the heat fix in the near future.
Power: What is with the built in Turbo Lag?
It takes this thing a while to build up steam and really start to run. Maybe I am just taking it too easy on it for break in or maybe I am just used to twins where the torque is down low and available RIGHT NOW. I am sure I will get used to it.
Over All I give the FJR an 8 of 10 on the Lomax scale. It is tied with the BMW. Some day I will find that 9 or 10 bike but I'm just not there yet.
Ride Safe.
Marc