Modular helmets

I think BMW was the first to market a modular helmet back in the 80's. Almost all helmet manufacturers have at least one of these designs now. They make a lot of sense for riders who wear glasses--like me. The convenience of putting on an open-face helmet with full-face protection.

Buell Blast

The Buell Blast is a 500 single derived from half of a Sportster V-twin engine. It's belt-driven and very underpowered. It's also the cheapest bike Harley makes. But, if you want a street thumper over 250cc that isn't a cruiser or a supermoto, this is your only choice here in the States. What this bike needs is a displacement increase to 650cc...

Café racer

The Triumph Thruxton is an homage to the old café racers of the 70's. Riders would install rear-set foot pegs/controls and clip-on handlebars for a road-race seating position. They were just going out of style when I first got into riding as manufacturers were beginning to come out with more sport-oriented models right off the showroom floor. This bike reminds me of one of my favorite classics: the Norton Commando.

Makin' it mine...

Every motorcyclist adds some personal touches to his bike to make it his own. A few of the factory options I'd like for a DR650 are a luggage rack, skid plate and the shorter kickstand necessary when the suspension is adjusted to lower the seat height. I've decided since I'm not going to be racing it like an idiot off-road I can live with a little less ground clearance and suspension travel (it's still more than a KLR or any street-only bike).

Kawasaki Ninja 650R

Kawasaki's Ninja 650R is a liquid-cooled inline-twin with an upright riding position and a full-fairing. This bike would be ideal for commuting and solo sport-touring. It was designed with beginning and returning riders in mind. It's certainly a more attractive bike than Suzuki's 650 V-Strom (cooler name, too).

Honda Nighthawk

The engine in this motorcycle has been around since 1978 in it's first incarnation as the CM185 TwinStar. The displacement was increased to 200cc and finally 250cc with the name briefly changing to the 250 Custom. It now powers the cruiser-styled Rebel and this bike. For some reason this sportier version has drum brakes while the laid-back Rebel gets a front disc. My mother used to have a 200 TwinStar. The Rebel and Nighthawk are favorites of Motorcycle Safety Course programs, but their limited power is quickly outgrown by most riders.

Honda XR650L

I've always liked Honda motorcycles. My first bike was a Honda. Unfortunately, the only dual-sport Honda sees fit to import to the US is their towering XR650L with it's 37" seat height and tiny fuel tank. Wish they'd bring back the XR400 and XR250F and slap-on street-legal lights, mufflers and an L-suffix. Oh, yeah...and bring back round headlights!

Honda Shadow Sprit 750

Honda put this bike together with riders like me in mind: middle-aged men getting back into the sport after a long hiatus. A friend at work wants to get a bike like this (being vertically challenged he really appreciates the low seat height). Personally, I think I'll save a couple grand and stick with the DR650.

Safety first

Here's an interesting helmet design. The face shield flips up with or without the visor being attached. Both are removeable (it is not recommended to wear the visor at highway speeds).

Just thinkin'...

...'bout what it would be like to have these two black beauties parked in my garage!

Check out the tires

The Honda XR650L is skewed more toward the dirt side of the dual-sport equation than Suzuki's DR650SE. More ground clearance and suspension travel, but this results in a greater seat height. Lighter weight, but at the cost of fuel capacity and range. More low-end power and agressive tires, but less comfortable at higher speeds on the road.

Yeah, I'm back with the DR today...

Just thought this looked cool...

Maybe this...

Maybe this is what I shoud get. Air-cooled and simple, electric start with a six-speed transmission. Low seat height and a 2.3 gal. fuel capactity (it probably gets more than 70 mpg). $1000 less than the DR650 and $600 less than the KLX250S. It would also be the perfect bike to teach my wife and son how to ride--if they're ever so inclined.

Dual-purpose or strictly street?

Let's face it, most people who own dual-sports ride 80-90% of the time on the pavement. There is a big difference in power output between a 650 single and a 650 twin. So it comes down to a choice between versatility (a multi-surface mount) and performance (more than adequate speed and handling). The SV650 is less than $1000 more than the DR650 and is more comfortable for long highway stints. Would I want to give up on exploring dirt roads? Decisions, decisions...

BMW G650 X

BMW is updating their F650 motorcycles with the G650 line. The XChallenge (top) is the more dirt oriented model, while the XCountry (bottom) is described as a "scrambler" (i.e., dual-sport). I do like the round headlight on the XCountry, but it needs a larger fuel tank and a higher front fender.

Warm days, cool nights

It's a perfect, early fall day and my favorite riding weather. Just the right temperature for wearing a helmet and jacket. I used to love riding in the fall. I remember riding my old 550 Yamaha to school for a night class, just enough of the cool air brushing my knees and shoulders from around a Plexifairing®. Cool weather riding was the best!

Hayabusa

Isn't this a bad-ass looking bike? It reminds me of something out of a Japanese anime. This is the kind of motorcycle Ben Rothlisberger almost killed himself on. I'm pretty sure I'd much rather look at it than ride it. Can't think of a reason I'd need to go 200+ MPH on two wheels...

Bandit 1250S

After a 2 or 3 year hiatus Suzuki has brought back the Bandit, now liquid-cooled with a 50cc bigger displacement. On the way home from Kansas City with my wife yesterday we came upon a guy on an older 1200 Bandit with Givi luggage. I think this new bike would be an excellent sport-tourer with soft bags. This bike and a DR650 together would cost less than a Honda Gold Wing! Wish I had some bucks today...

New KLR

Kawasaki has made my decision a lot easier by redesigning the KLR and making it more like a pseudo-adventure bike and less like a dual-sport. The suspension travel has actually decreased! Braking should be improved, but I don't know if they fixed the "doohickey" problem. I don't think this is what I want...

Sexy Beast

The new Triumph Tiger for '07 is something to lust after. This would be a terrific 2-up sport-tourer. If I had the bucks I'd be seriously looking into getting one. Heck, if I won the lottery I'd get one of these, a Scrambler and a little dual-sport like the Kawasaki KLX250S, Yamaha XT225 or KTM 400 EXC-G.