Body Position
Throttle Response
Handling
Ease of Use
Perceived Weight
Click to see the video on YouTube!
Similar Bikes
Bike Provided by:
First Ride - 2016 Honda Africa Twin
Full Review coming soon...
( To distract you here are some pretty images and a sound clip)
First Ride - 2016 Triumph Speed Triple R
Body Position
Throttle Response
Handling
Ease of Use
Perceived Weight
Here we have the 2016 Triumph Speed Triple R and this time it came straight from the manufacturer! Triumph America actually loaned me this bike so I could make some content on it so of course I rocked out a first ride. Highlights of this bike have to be the comfortable body position and the instant usable torque. I took this thing through the 2 hour trip to the mountains, road all day long and after the 2 more hours of highway home I was still wanting more. I can't explain how much fun I had out riding and the playful nature of the bike actually made me want to ride more. As far as visuals go I'm not a huge fan of the headlights, but I do absolutely love the color combo of the model I was given (you guys know I'm a sucker for red). While the double exhausts weren't my favorite Triumph did tell me that this bike is able to come with a low mounted short exhaust. My main issue (if you want to call it that) with this bike was it seemed a little heavy when not moving and overall seems kind of big. Other then those small things along with the slightly higher price this bike was an absolute dream to ride. I highly recommend you jumping at an opportunity to check one out if you can!
Click to see the video on YouTube!
Similar Bikes
Bike Provided by:
First Ride - YummiR6's 2008 Yamaha R6
Body Position
Throttle Response
Handling
Ease of Use
Perceived Weight
The YouTube motovlogger and great friend of mine YummiR6 lent me his 2008 Yamaha R6 "aka Nessy" to do a C2W First Ride on. You can check Yummi's Channel out here and see many more videos of him riding this bike around there. Being on another R6 for a first ride was very interesting. While some things felt similar like something I'm used to there were a good bit of differences about the bikes. Most notably I could really tell a difference of a bike that a custom tuned map to go with his M4 headers and akrapovic megaphone exhaust. These mods really gave the R6 some bite down low where I'm used to my 2009 R6 bogging down tell you get it revved up in the RPMs. I was also surprised at how sluggish the bike felt moving side to side, but I feel that had much more to do with the old tires that are currently on the bike. Replacing them with some new ones would definitely fix the issue. Final highlight of the bike was the breaks or lack there off. To be fair, before heading out Yummi did warn me that the bike was in major need of some new brakes and now I can say I really do know what it feels like to ride a bike with bad breaks. In ending, I do also have to give the "Loudest Bike I've Ridden" award to this bike! Congrats Yummi!
Click to see the video on YouTube!
Similar Bikes
First Ride - 2012 BMW S1000RR
Body Position
Throttle Response
Handling
Ease of Use
Perceived Weight
This is that weird moment where I have to make some notes on a bike that felt like it literally took the best parts of all the other supersports that I have ridden and put them into on machine. I'm not 100% sure how BMW came out with such a monster of a bike on their first try at a supersport. Regardless, this bike really is the one that has everything. It's packed full of electronic rider aids if you're into that, it is stupidly fast and agile and somehow remains comfortable while doing that. It is worth noting that the seating position on this bike is pretty far towards the race'y side which is why you see a score of 7 to the left. I also dropped the throttle response score to a 7. The reason for that is that there is an overwhelming felling of "riding through a computer". I didn't mind that feeling too much, but I imagine there are a good bit of riders that wouldn't prefer that feeling. Other than small gripes like the few listed I really think this is one of if not the most polished supersports on the market right now! If you have the opportunity I definitely recommend taking one for a test ride.
Click to see the video on YouTube!
Similar Bikes
Bike provided by:
First Ride - 2016 Kawasaki ZX-10r
Body Position
Throttle Response
Handling
Ease of Use
Perceived Weight
I have to start this blog post with one simple statement. The 2016 ZX-10r is one of, if not the most, easy to ride motorcycle in the liter bike category. The throttle on this bike seems as if it is easily set up to deliver the power that this bike possesses in a very controllable way. At first it did seem as if the bike's power band was just high in the rev range, but after spending some time on it I came to realize that it was probably built that way to make the bike easier to ride from a stop. With such a short time to ride and get a feel for this bike I didn't get to really dive into all of the different controls that this bike has equipped. When researching this bike I was blown away at the shear amount of tech Kawasaki somehow crammed into this two wheeled machine. If you haven't looking into it yet I highly recommend jumping over to Kawasaki's website (here) and reading up on this bike. To sum this bike up it's a little on the heavy side, but maneuvers amazingly once you get going. It is extremely comfortable and an absolute joy to ride. This is one of those bikes that I would like to have for a month or so to get a real feel for everything this bike has to offer!
Click to see the video on YouTube!
Similar Bikes
Bike Provided by:
First Ride - 2016 Yamaha XSR 900
Body Position
Throttle Response
Handling
Ease of Use
Perceived Weight
I have to say lately I have had my eye on some cafe racers and then Yamaha drops this XSR 900. This thing has just the right mix of retro style with new age technology. It's powered by the same FZ-09 engine that everyone has adored with a little different tune. After spending a little time on the XSR 900 I can say this bike is super comfortable and has a massive amount of power. I personally think the bike has a little too much power. While the bike does include 3 different modes (A, B and Standard) I feel the engine didn't match the bike perfectly. I feel riders that pick this bike up will find themselves in Standard mode for the majority of their riding. I was super excited to finally see a larger naked style bike come out with ABS and Traction Control under the $10,000 price tag though. Having those features in an affordable package makes it much easier for riders to get these features that they would typically have to spend much more on a bike. Overall the XSR 900 was a great bike, with the included modes I can overlook the "too much power" argument for this style of bike and could easily see myself spending an entire day riding this bike. What do you guys think about the bike? Let me know in the comments below! For much more info on my thoughts of this bike make sure to scroll down and check out my YouTube video over on the Chaseontwowheels channel!
Click to see the video on YouTube!
Similar Bikes
Bike provided by:
First Ride - 2016 | Kawasaki Versys 1000
Body Position
Throttle Response
Handling
Ease of Use
Perceived Weight
Here we have the first ride of the Kawasaki Versys 1000. Ever since I rode this bike all I can think about is how amazing it would be to do a really long road trip on it because it really is perfect for that kind of thing! It has a seat that is extremely soft and large enough that your entire butt fits on. The handlebars are in a very natural location and with even a small amount of input the bike just leans all the way into a turn. You are also going to find an engine that is very capable while still having that little bite for the fun technical riding. Everything just makes you want to ride it for a long period of time. That being said, if this bike isn't moving down the road you are going to have a very heavy and tall bike on your hands. I guess there's just one solution to dealing with the weight..."keep riding!". I'm personally not really "ready" for this type of bike yet, but I easily see myself getting something in this category down the road or if long trips ever become something I do regularly.
Click to see the video on YouTube!
Similar Bikes
Bike provided by:
