NancysToy
Motorbike Professor
Picked up the RT-S from the dealer again today, after some minor repairs, and rode it home. I did not feel right about having trailered it home when I picked it up initially. Having it sit in my garage with one lousy mile on the odometer was killing me, even though we hadn't seen the pavement on our street in a month. I feel better now.
Not thrilled with the external audio on a bike. This one is probably as good as they get, but it is not my cup of tea on a bike. Too much wind noise interfering, even with good wind protection. Between the reflection of the exhaust sound popping in my helmet and the staccato sound of the music due to the wind buffeting across my helmet vents, it was annoying. Probably has a lot to do with this noisy Scorpion helmet. I'm sure a heavy balaclava didn't help, either. I'll try to be open minded, and re-evaluate it in warmer weather, or with a different helmet. Considering a new Arai, anyway. Not sure of the value if I wear my earplugs. Still, I can't wait to get my Starcom1 comm system in it to put the sound into my helmet speakers once again. I like those best. The iPod integration was swell! Nice to be able to change songs or playlists at will, and adjust the volume. It got real cold in the rear trunk, but it didn't seem to bother the iPod. I have to study the audio system instructions again, to remember which buttons to push. I don't like the presets the dealer left on the radio.
Temp was 31-33 degrees. I had on too many clothes. Not even any heated gear, either. Haven't hooked up the harness yet. I dressed as I would for a ride on my Beemer or Nancy's Spyder, and I was overdressed. Not bad! :thumbup: My left foot got a little cool after an hour, but not really cold. The wind protection on this thing is superb! Could ride for hours at these temps. The heated grips seem too hot. Way hotter than my BMW. I had to turn them on and off, and never got to the high setting. I had on glove liners and a medium weight pair of gloves with no insulation. I'm not sure you could ever get a better motorcycle for the winter. Great protection, and no worries about falling due to a sudden patch of ice or snow.
Had to vary the rpm a lot, due to break-in, but I tried the cruise control briefly, and it works fine, as expected. I had tried it out on the demos, so I knew what to expect. Cruise on a two-wheeler worries me, but it seems natural for the Spyder. The light "fly-by-wire" electronic throttle will take some more getting used to, but it is nice not to have to fight it. I do miss my Throttlemeisters, which allow me to remove my right hand whenever I please, though.
I didn't even get laughed at, or booted out of the BMW shop for showing off the pictures of my new ride, when we stopped there earlier to pick up an additional Accumate charger and a Motorcycling Across Indiana book. Lots of old guys there who understand the difficulties in wrestling a monstrosity of a touring bike. I think they were actually jealous. Al lot of them commented on how close it was to being a BMW K1200LT on three wheels.
Nice day! Only 35 miles, but some smiles along the way. Sun may actually come out tomorrow and it may get closer to 40. I just may ride it a while again, even though getting all those clothes on is a pain in the neck.
Not thrilled with the external audio on a bike. This one is probably as good as they get, but it is not my cup of tea on a bike. Too much wind noise interfering, even with good wind protection. Between the reflection of the exhaust sound popping in my helmet and the staccato sound of the music due to the wind buffeting across my helmet vents, it was annoying. Probably has a lot to do with this noisy Scorpion helmet. I'm sure a heavy balaclava didn't help, either. I'll try to be open minded, and re-evaluate it in warmer weather, or with a different helmet. Considering a new Arai, anyway. Not sure of the value if I wear my earplugs. Still, I can't wait to get my Starcom1 comm system in it to put the sound into my helmet speakers once again. I like those best. The iPod integration was swell! Nice to be able to change songs or playlists at will, and adjust the volume. It got real cold in the rear trunk, but it didn't seem to bother the iPod. I have to study the audio system instructions again, to remember which buttons to push. I don't like the presets the dealer left on the radio.
Temp was 31-33 degrees. I had on too many clothes. Not even any heated gear, either. Haven't hooked up the harness yet. I dressed as I would for a ride on my Beemer or Nancy's Spyder, and I was overdressed. Not bad! :thumbup: My left foot got a little cool after an hour, but not really cold. The wind protection on this thing is superb! Could ride for hours at these temps. The heated grips seem too hot. Way hotter than my BMW. I had to turn them on and off, and never got to the high setting. I had on glove liners and a medium weight pair of gloves with no insulation. I'm not sure you could ever get a better motorcycle for the winter. Great protection, and no worries about falling due to a sudden patch of ice or snow.
Had to vary the rpm a lot, due to break-in, but I tried the cruise control briefly, and it works fine, as expected. I had tried it out on the demos, so I knew what to expect. Cruise on a two-wheeler worries me, but it seems natural for the Spyder. The light "fly-by-wire" electronic throttle will take some more getting used to, but it is nice not to have to fight it. I do miss my Throttlemeisters, which allow me to remove my right hand whenever I please, though.
I didn't even get laughed at, or booted out of the BMW shop for showing off the pictures of my new ride, when we stopped there earlier to pick up an additional Accumate charger and a Motorcycling Across Indiana book. Lots of old guys there who understand the difficulties in wrestling a monstrosity of a touring bike. I think they were actually jealous. Al lot of them commented on how close it was to being a BMW K1200LT on three wheels.
Nice day! Only 35 miles, but some smiles along the way. Sun may actually come out tomorrow and it may get closer to 40. I just may ride it a while again, even though getting all those clothes on is a pain in the neck.
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