Overland covers Adventure bikes...well some of them.

[RunninRubicon]

In the latest copy of Overland magazine (Spring 2014), Scott Brady wrote a very good editorial on Adventure Motorcycles. I truly enjoyed his investigatory skill on the latest offerings (except the BMW 2014 GSA and Suzuki 1000 Adventure that he admitted were not available yet). Great pictures abound and I appreciated the opinions offered of what turned out to be a fair sampling set up in nearly identical aftermarket accessories. The KTM 1190 seems the best choice there, I agree.

To me, riding a KTM or Triumph Tiger off-road the machines seem to be in there element. Just don't stop after a long hard ride for any length of time. The radiator fans will cook you with the heat that vent back toward the rider as you sit. To me the KTM at speed, the wind will buffet you dreadfully. The Tiger and especially the KTM have the uncanny ability to find you a speeding ticket in rapid succession! A 0-60 time of less then 3 seconds is not what I would deem necessry in a Adventure bike but it's an attribute that sets one's hair ablaze and accellorates the pulse rate as the speedo runs to triple-digits. But in the end, it's what makes you the rider, happiest.

Here's to a great article on what is becoming a bigger and better segment of motorcycling and off-road adventuring.

Great job Scott!

 

[peneumbra]

I wish they would have tested the Moto Guzzi Stelvio as well...

 

[Scott Brady]

I wish they would have tested the Moto Guzzi Stelvio as well...

Thanks guys. Interesting comment on the buffeting. I am having a heck of a time with buffeting on the BMW, but found the KTM fine in the lower position. How tall are you? (I am 6'1"). These bikes really seem to buffet more than expected.

We get a Stelvio in a matter of weeks. We will report.

I am currently testing a new GSA. I really like it... Needs a snow mode though

 

[RunninRubicon]

Wind whip

I am a big fan of Adventure Motorcycles and Jeeping Offroad. I have ridden several versions (True enduro bikes, road-bikes and several Dual-Sport machines) in an attempt to find "the one" that filled the bill for ME. I agree with you Scott that they all share a various degree of wind whip/buffeting at speed. An Adventure bike is a compromise in many aspects of motorcycling. Which one suits you is your choice and I have to say I am amazed with the always improving selection to chose from. I am 73" tall and weigh in my Klim riding gear about 230lbs. So with my "luggage" it takes some beef to move me about while over-landing especially in deep sand and gravel. A big machine is both a good and a bad thing. They are great on the highway to tolerate the cross-winds associated with confronting approaching semi-tractor and trailers in the opposite lane. A big machine has the uncanny ability to fly up mountain passes while nearly everything else labors to the top. Canyon carving becomes an art form. On hard-pack two-track dirt roads and forest roads....they are sublime! They are in their element. But on the opposite side of things....on single track trails (that I feel is a requirement for the adventure to the REAL outback) the weight is the challenge. Every magazine speaks to the compromises made to accomplish both of these tasks.

...in the end I suspect it's how much you are willing to tolerate on the long haul between your off-road adventuring that settles that question. I agree with you that the KTM is a monster and more adapt off-road then the Triumph or even the BMW GS. IMHO none of these machines see much 3rd gear time because of their weight on single-track runs. Slinging 500lbs of motorcycle over rocks, up and down ledges, through deep sand or gravel is a gas!! But, admittedly they don't like both wheels off the ground as you would a single cylinder dirt bike.

Some windscreen is better than none to me. I have recently sold my GS for a GSA w/the Wilbur ESA shock package built for my mass on K60s as my compromise for these fore-mentioned rational.

Admittedly, I am envious of your position to "trial" the numerous machines available for Dual-Sport motorcycling. A perfect example is your snow-cycling on the GSA-WC exhibiting this.
I noted your windshield was in the high position to keep the fridge air away as much as possible. More great things about today's Dual Sport.

 

[CDMartin]

Just felt like posting, I love see more ADV bikes getting some exposure

 

[RunninRubicon]

Nice Zega Pros. Looks like a nice ride.

 

[Scott Brady]

I do feel the love for those Super Teneres. IMHO, it is the Land Cruiser of adventure bikes.

 

[CDMartin]

I do feel the love for those Super Teneres. IMHO, it is the Land Cruiser of adventure bikes.

Probably why I gravitated to it. I have been a TLCA member for way too long. Now if I could figure out why a TT top case is more expensive than an ARB Bull Bar