Does anyone bother with the R1200GS Adventure here?

[Hondarider]

Couldn't bring myself to sell the GSA. Took it off the market and went riding. This bike makes me want ride further and further from my home. It is a big fat top-heavy pig, but once you're moving, it's fantastic.

...and I dig that GS sidecar rig.

[Bighead]

1200GS owner here. This is the only bike of the many I test rode that put a big smile on my face.

[dsy]

12,000 miles on mine in 7 months. From Thunder Bay to Key West, on and off road and it never fails to put a big smile on my face every time I climb on wheather I'm heading to the store or heading out on a week long adventure.

My jeep has been getting lonely. Have only put gas in it twice all summer.

Doug





2012 GSA Adventure

[BIGVAN]

One of the MANY things I love about mine is that I can load up the wife and all our gear and go. I like my DR-Z and my KTM alot but for me, my R1200GSA is the best! (My 4x4 Van is also getting lonely!)

[Snarky]

Thought I'da chime in here again. I've gotten about 9000 miles on in 9 months. It's generally my daily driver. I did run into a little mishap out in the middle of nowhere (not mechanical, topographical, damn arroyos), with no cell signal, and I had to walk out of a national forest to a town (which also had no cellphone signal). But I recovered it, and repaired minor damage. No damage to myself other then pride.

I've collected a bit of kit, for survival, fishing and camping, I don't carry everything all the time, but I at least carry water, granola bars, and fire starting implements. Here is a photo of all my basic camping stuff.

I think in this photo there is:
A dry bag with my sleeping bag stuffed in it. (32 degree)
A compression bag with my tent, stakes, poles, rain fly, and sleeping pad in it. (I also have a smaller hammock tent for when I'm in areas with trees [there are never any trees])
A LED Lantern.
A Small LED flashlight / personal defense stake.
A swedish knife/fire starter combo.
A small fixed blade knife.
A firestarter.
A small folding knife.
A small multitool.
A Leatherman Wave.
A rape whistle, compass, signal mirror combo, with matches stored inside.
A small first kit.
A space blanket and poncho.
Paracord.
MSR Whisper Stove and fuel bottle.
A Jetboil pot.
Freezedried food, 1L water, Granola bars.

In addition to that I have some fishing supplements for when I plan on fishing.

A tacklebox with:
Lures, small weights, hooks.
Floats, surf weights, rigging items.
Small filet knife with sharpener.
Stringer.
A few pain killers and new skin for cuts.
A collapsible rod that has been shortened even for for pannier storage.
A small spinner reel with 10# line.

On the back there is a Pelican tool case.
It is full of various things such as torx bits, torxs sockets, tire repair tools, CO2 inflater, extra engine oil, GS-911, filter wrench, bit drivers, zip ties ratchet, etc, etc...

Then there is basic riding gear:
Bike has changed a little since this picture.

I have a REV'IT Defender Jacket and Pants.
An Arai XD-4 helmet with two shields. (one tinted, one not)
Moose Racing M1 MX Boots.
Swaney Gloves from REI.
(Gloves and boots are due for an upgrade)
3.7 liter military camelbak


On the bike there are some pretty basic mods.
Trax Panniers w/ adapters for GSA racks.
Garmin Zumo 665 with weather and traffic.
55w 6000k HID bulbs in the stock aux lamps.
USB Charging port on the factory powerlet.
Stupid aluminum protector plates that probably don't do anything.
TKC80 Tires

Oh and I got one of these.


If you get one, I recommend you program one of the messages with "I'm not dying, but I do need assistance". I haven't had to use it yet, but it seems to transmit okay. People have mixed results with them. But it's better than nothing.

[Longtallsally]

Did you ever find ADV? There are a slew of lunatics there on them. Some with more money than sense, many that don't do much other than keyboard surf, but even a greater number that are insane and done more miles than I can count.

As for the GSA, it is a love it or hate it bike. People like to clown them due to cost and the strange amalgam of parts and tech out there. And then of course Ewan and Charlie. However, it is the bike that most epitomizes the adventure touring machine with roots in the original flavor of the Dakar.

Personally, I've got 45,000 miles on my '07. I doubt I'll ever sell it. In the first 3 years I put 36,000 miles on it. Then, sadly, we moved to Germany where the drivers scared me and I lost interest. Now we are back and I work from home, so I don't commute any longer. But the odd 1k weekend still comes up.

I've bent both rims, crashed at least a couple dozen times, and beat the machine so bad I fully expected it to cry uncle. In all it's big fat pigness, it doesn't care. Staggering machine.

[DIHOWARD]

I bought a GS only because I didn't feel comfortable with the standover height of the GSA.
All the GSA accessories except for the panniers.2009-R1200GSA-Grey-013-e1350158298750.jpg

[elmo_4_vt]

I actually just decided to sell my GSA. It's the bike I've always wanted...it's fantastic for travel...it's more than capable off-road...it's even better than my R1150GS...it's an outstanding machine. However...a month or so ago I was on a 2500 mile trip with a buddy of mine and I had an epiphany of sorts...I realized that traveling to beautiful places, meeting new people, scenic vistas, restaurants, adventures...was somehow less fulfilling when I left my wife and kids at home. I suppose its corny, but after a lifetime of motorcycle travel and winters spent dreaming of even more distant locales to explore, I think I may have lost my taste for leaving my family for a week at a time...I want to share those adventures with them...I think I might want a family expedition vehicle of sorts...I need a GSA with seating for 4. I still love riding and will always have bikes, but I don't think I need the big GS for poking around fire roads or riding to work or one day outings with the boys...probably switch to a single cylinder dual sport that costs roughly as much as the panniers on GSA. I expect crippling buyer's remorse the day after I sell it though.

Well said, and exactly my thoughts. I was planning to upgrade to a GSA a couple years ago. My wife loves to ride, but when we had my son (4 y/o), I didn't want to leave them behind. My solution was to build a small toy-hauler and keep a smaller bike... For now. So when we go camping, but bike comes with me, and I can take an hour to two to explore during nap times or what have you. Seems to work well for now anyway, but I am looking forward to when the wife and I can do weekend trips together again. I might compromise on an 800 (BMW or Triumph) in the next couple years and start building it to be dual purpose. Time will tell.

Don

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[Robert B]

I bought an R1200 GS last year. I looked long and hard at the GSA, but it is a tad too tall for me. So, I had the dealer swap out many of the GS pieces for GSA pieces, including the top and side cases, windshield, aluminum head guards, etc. While it is big and heavy and does not sound as cool as my old GPz, I really enjoy riding it, including carving the local canyons with the sport bikes. One of my New Year's Resolutions is to ride more this year.

[BlackdogGS]

I have one. This is my second GS. The best bike ever. I have many problem free miles on BMW's. there were some final drive issues with the early R1200's but that is fairly rare now. I love my bike and wouldn't consider anything else.