While wrestling with the decision between a SD or Speed Triple, I spent quite a few evenings pouring over the wealth of information in this forum. It was such a big help (thanks guys!), I thought it only fair to add my impressions for the next guy who comes along who might be facing a similar decision. So, at the risk of boring those that already know all of this... (sorry, it's a little long)
Just bought my SD, in black (the fast color, of course). Picked it up as the dealer was closing the doors. Got it home just before a storm rolled in, nixing my plans for an evening ride. So this morning I was up early, (which doesn't happen very often on a Sunday) and decided to go out for coffee. Not intending to be out for very long, I hadn't put on my leathers, just jeans, summer gloves. helmet and a mesh jacket. Somehow the bike just kept rolling past the coffee shop, and next thing I know, I'm on 400 headed north towards the mountains! (I swear, this thing has an evil mind control circuit which makes you do as IT wants...) Anyway, the bike felt petty good on the highway, cruising along at 85mph or so, in 5th not even close to 6500 rpm, the KTM mandated "break in" limit. Still had another gear to go. Cool. Wind blast at 85 was no big deal. I took her up to close to 100 (don't blame me, I was hypotimized by the evil mind control circuit), and there, the wind gets challenging.
As I'm on the highway, a guy on a Harley pulls up next to me and is looking me over (I didn't even know Harleys could do 85mph?). I ignore him, as one must do when encountering a Neanderthal on a Harley, and continue on my merry way. Stopped to get gas (dealer sent me out the door with a mostly empty tank ) and the gas attendant walks over and asks about the bike. I answer his questions, fill up, and before I suit up, another guy in a friggin SUV has to ask me about it! I'm thinking man! This thing get more attention than Lorane Bobbit at a vasectomy clinic! Throuout the day, I think I fielded more questions and comments about my bike than I cared to talk about. And I love to talk about bikes! The attention was non-stop! What? You guys never seen an SD before?
OK, on the the good stuff. The first "real" road as you get into the North Georgia mountains is highway 60. It goes up Woody's gap and has lot's of great curves. Problem is the DOT, in their infinite wisdom, decided to patch the aging tarmac with "tar snakes" this last month. So many, in fact, that the road looks like a jigsaw puzzle. (many of the local riders question if the intent was not to patch the road, but to slow down the bikes) Just made the road horrible for riding. Even my 1200GS gets tossed around on that stuff. Very unnerving when you're leaned over in a corner. So as I begin my 20mph crawl to the county line where the fresh pavement begins, I notice I'm not being tossed around like all of the other bike are. So I pick up the pace a little. Feels planted! Holy crap! I don't know what they did with this suspension, but I'm able to go over this stuff almost like it wasn't there! (look here to see the roads I'm talking about http://s303.photobucket.com/albums/nn12 ... =slideshow ) Unbelievable!
So I make it past the "repaired" roads and up into the mountains. I'm still breaking the bike in, and, in my mind at least, taking it easy. But something strange is happening - it feels like the rest of the world is moving in slow motion, and I'm moving normally. I'm passing cars and other bikes like their sitting still, and I don't feel like I'm pushing at all. The bike is so planted and confidence inspiring, I just think and it goes! And the torque coming out of the curves is simply amazing! I can't ever remember feeling this connected to a motorcycle - it's like the bike and I are one.
I spent the rest of the day riding, occasionally stopping to "show off" a little at the local bike hang outs and chat, but mainly riding. By 4pm, I realised I was having so much fun, I had forgotten to eat! (does the evil mind control circuit want me to diet?) As the day wore on, I became more comfortable with the bike - the handling and engine are simply spectacular! Makes child's play out of the decreasing radius curves. Can't wait to get past the break in so I can rev her up some more.
The engine is a little "viby", but not in an irritating way. Bike just has character (unlike some Japanese bikes that feel like there is more plastic inside them than Pamela Anderson). What is cool is the bike "tells" you when you need to shift, hardly even needing to look at the rev counter. And the torque, man, gotta love that! Like I said, it's like I was somehow connected to the bike.
The seating position is just perfect for me - a slight forward lean, but just enough to feel connected to the bike. Wrists, shoulders, everything (except my butt) feel just fine after an 8 hour day. Tank lasted 142 miles before the light came on, but I suppose that will improve as the bike breaks in. Just an awesome ride!
I was suspect of the bike because of the fueling issues I read about before buying. I will say, that on my 08', they exist, but are not nearly as bad as one would believe, having read some of the threads. Compared to my Ducati St4s I had a few years back (aka the "bucking bronco"), this thing is smooth as Heidi Klums' bum. It's not perfect, and slow traffic can be a challenge, but considering everything the bike does so well, it's a no brainer to me. Bike is currently bone stock. I've ordered pipes which should be in next week, along with the map for them.
Not everything in life is perfect; the things I could see improving would be:
1) The gauges are small, takes longer to read than I'd like at speed
2) if you are wearing polarized sunglasses, it's difficult to read the gauges
3) kick stand takes a little fumbling to find, more difficult than it should be
4) seat could be a little more comfortable
5) suspension is a little stiff for the highway - I haven't set it up yet, I suspect it will be better after I do
6) fueling problems.
Oh, and I can already tell, this thing is a tyre shredder!
As self admitted bike junkie, my SD will be my 21st bike I've owned in about as many years of riding. Hopefully that makes my opinion worth something. Out of all the bikes I've owned, this is the most fun.
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Just bought my SD, in black (the fast color, of course). Picked it up as the dealer was closing the doors. Got it home just before a storm rolled in, nixing my plans for an evening ride. So this morning I was up early, (which doesn't happen very often on a Sunday) and decided to go out for coffee. Not intending to be out for very long, I hadn't put on my leathers, just jeans, summer gloves. helmet and a mesh jacket. Somehow the bike just kept rolling past the coffee shop, and next thing I know, I'm on 400 headed north towards the mountains! (I swear, this thing has an evil mind control circuit which makes you do as IT wants...) Anyway, the bike felt petty good on the highway, cruising along at 85mph or so, in 5th not even close to 6500 rpm, the KTM mandated "break in" limit. Still had another gear to go. Cool. Wind blast at 85 was no big deal. I took her up to close to 100 (don't blame me, I was hypotimized by the evil mind control circuit), and there, the wind gets challenging.
As I'm on the highway, a guy on a Harley pulls up next to me and is looking me over (I didn't even know Harleys could do 85mph?). I ignore him, as one must do when encountering a Neanderthal on a Harley, and continue on my merry way. Stopped to get gas (dealer sent me out the door with a mostly empty tank ) and the gas attendant walks over and asks about the bike. I answer his questions, fill up, and before I suit up, another guy in a friggin SUV has to ask me about it! I'm thinking man! This thing get more attention than Lorane Bobbit at a vasectomy clinic! Throuout the day, I think I fielded more questions and comments about my bike than I cared to talk about. And I love to talk about bikes! The attention was non-stop! What? You guys never seen an SD before?
OK, on the the good stuff. The first "real" road as you get into the North Georgia mountains is highway 60. It goes up Woody's gap and has lot's of great curves. Problem is the DOT, in their infinite wisdom, decided to patch the aging tarmac with "tar snakes" this last month. So many, in fact, that the road looks like a jigsaw puzzle. (many of the local riders question if the intent was not to patch the road, but to slow down the bikes) Just made the road horrible for riding. Even my 1200GS gets tossed around on that stuff. Very unnerving when you're leaned over in a corner. So as I begin my 20mph crawl to the county line where the fresh pavement begins, I notice I'm not being tossed around like all of the other bike are. So I pick up the pace a little. Feels planted! Holy crap! I don't know what they did with this suspension, but I'm able to go over this stuff almost like it wasn't there! (look here to see the roads I'm talking about http://s303.photobucket.com/albums/nn12 ... =slideshow ) Unbelievable!
So I make it past the "repaired" roads and up into the mountains. I'm still breaking the bike in, and, in my mind at least, taking it easy. But something strange is happening - it feels like the rest of the world is moving in slow motion, and I'm moving normally. I'm passing cars and other bikes like their sitting still, and I don't feel like I'm pushing at all. The bike is so planted and confidence inspiring, I just think and it goes! And the torque coming out of the curves is simply amazing! I can't ever remember feeling this connected to a motorcycle - it's like the bike and I are one.
I spent the rest of the day riding, occasionally stopping to "show off" a little at the local bike hang outs and chat, but mainly riding. By 4pm, I realised I was having so much fun, I had forgotten to eat! (does the evil mind control circuit want me to diet?) As the day wore on, I became more comfortable with the bike - the handling and engine are simply spectacular! Makes child's play out of the decreasing radius curves. Can't wait to get past the break in so I can rev her up some more.
The engine is a little "viby", but not in an irritating way. Bike just has character (unlike some Japanese bikes that feel like there is more plastic inside them than Pamela Anderson). What is cool is the bike "tells" you when you need to shift, hardly even needing to look at the rev counter. And the torque, man, gotta love that! Like I said, it's like I was somehow connected to the bike.
The seating position is just perfect for me - a slight forward lean, but just enough to feel connected to the bike. Wrists, shoulders, everything (except my butt) feel just fine after an 8 hour day. Tank lasted 142 miles before the light came on, but I suppose that will improve as the bike breaks in. Just an awesome ride!
I was suspect of the bike because of the fueling issues I read about before buying. I will say, that on my 08', they exist, but are not nearly as bad as one would believe, having read some of the threads. Compared to my Ducati St4s I had a few years back (aka the "bucking bronco"), this thing is smooth as Heidi Klums' bum. It's not perfect, and slow traffic can be a challenge, but considering everything the bike does so well, it's a no brainer to me. Bike is currently bone stock. I've ordered pipes which should be in next week, along with the map for them.
Not everything in life is perfect; the things I could see improving would be:
1) The gauges are small, takes longer to read than I'd like at speed
2) if you are wearing polarized sunglasses, it's difficult to read the gauges
3) kick stand takes a little fumbling to find, more difficult than it should be
4) seat could be a little more comfortable
5) suspension is a little stiff for the highway - I haven't set it up yet, I suspect it will be better after I do
6) fueling problems.
Oh, and I can already tell, this thing is a tyre shredder!
As self admitted bike junkie, my SD will be my 21st bike I've owned in about as many years of riding. Hopefully that makes my opinion worth something. Out of all the bikes I've owned, this is the most fun.
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