[ST] My Sprint Doesn't Suck

["Garry Simmons" <garrysimmons@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I went to the local BMW-Duc-Tri open house today. I've been shopping for an 
"all roads" type adventure bike and the chance to ride a Multistrada 1000 
"S" (the fancy one with Ohlins suspension) as well as the BMW R1200GS was 
too good a chance to pass up. I've bitched (not much here) about the 
suspension on my Sprint. I have the HyperPro "Combi Kit" (new springs front 
and back) on my bike. The stock shock has probably seen 20K+ miles and is no 
doubt a bit tired. It wallows when pushed and is harsh over the sharp-edged 
bumps we have way too many of here in western PA. So I had a really nice, 
traffic free, blast on my old twisty commute route to get to the shop. 
Really good fun when everyone is still asleep (8am).

I lucked out and got to try the Multstrada "S" first. What a fun bike. 
Spunky motor. Effortless handling and great suspension. Way heavy clutch 
pull and a stiff gear change though. I liked it more than I thought I would. 
Seat feels weird when stopped, but felt fine once my feet were on the pegs 
and moving. I was starting to devise ways to convince SWMBO that I needed to 
spend 14 large on a not particularly sexy Italian...

The guy that was scheduled to demo the BMW R1200GS Adventure cancelled and I 
grabbed his spot on the second demo ride. Felt big and tall, not lithe and 
nimble like the Duc. The Duc liked to rev a little, the BMW wanted to be 
short shifted. Nice little torque kick between 3K and 5K RPMs. At times I 
felt like I was floating on a big Teutonic couch with the long suspension 
soaking up the bumpy demo route. Motor didn't really impress though. It felt 
like a big, substantial bike (which it is). Turns easy enough, but didn't 
feel nearly as flickable as the Duc. On the fun scale, the Duc was the 
winner for me.

I didn't get out for any more demos, but I rode "tail" (to keep an eye on 
the pack) on my RS for the third demo ride. The demo route was all paved, 
but it had slow, twisty stuff and more than a few miles of nasty, bumpy 
pavement. The RS felt like the old friend it is. Even after riding much more 
expensive bikes, it was faster than either one and the suspension I usually 
bitch about, really wasn't that bad, even on the bumpy stuff, as long as I 
rode jockey-style and put weight on the pegs, not my butt. The two demo 
rides were certainly a bit more composed, but the RS did very well. I was 
surprised. I ended the day more impressed with the RS than when I started. 
Granted, had we ventured onto dirt roads with loose gravel, some mud and 
whatnot, the limits of the RS in that environ would be obvious, but if you 
stay on paved roads, it' really does hold its own.

All that said, while talking to another member of our RAT pack, he mentioned 
he has a friend looking to unload a totally tricked out Multistrada for 
cheap and it has less than 1000 miles on it. The guy owns an Italian bike 
shop and bought every option for it and hardly rides any of his fleet of 
exotic Italian bikes. Hmmm..... Given that the upcoming Tiger(?) looks to be 
Triumph's version of  a Multistrada, perhaps I should just hang tight. But 
the thoughts of a tricked out Italian are dancing in my head.

Bottom Line: the Sprint rocks!

Garry 

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