A quick 16-hour test ride
BMW’S R1250RS joins our test fleet, so Mike gets acquainted on a dawn dash to Goodwood Revival
SOMEWHERE NEAR Brackley on the A43, my friend Dom Mattock pulls alongside making frantic gestures at the clutter on the back of my BMW. Stopping in a layby I find that the rollpack is still there, and so is my Abus Granit Power U-lock and chain. The Oxford lock I’d also brought is conspicuous by its absence, however. That’ll teach me to use crap bungees. Being partial to old machinery, dressing up and early starts, Dom and I are doing a day trip to Goodwood Revival (see p18). The 400-mile round trip will be a convenient first test for our R1250RS Exclusive. Neither of us have been to Goodwood before, so I’ve downloaded an app to use the satnav in the all-singing BMW’S dash. And then done more downloads for all the bizarrely separate bits of map. Sneaking out at 6.30am, the RS’S pannier rails make it a doddle to strap on a bag of smart attire and some mobile security (though I clearly make a hash of it). Scurrying along lanes and hopping onto a deserted A46, initial impressions are that the opposed-twin engine is a monster, heated grips are ace, and the seat is squidgy – it feels like it’ll compress and treat my buttocks to the subframe. It’s also quite low, with not a lot of room for my lanky limbs. I meet a cheery Dom at Leicester Forest East services. ‘There’s something life-affirming and exciting about setting off on a journey in a chilly sunrise, with a tailpack full of clobber,’ he says. I couldn’t agree more, so we decide to ignore the nail in the rear tyre of his KTM 990 Super Duke (it’s probably been there ages) and crack on. All the camera warning signs on the upgraded ‘smart’ M1 make me paranoid, so we turn off to take the A43 and M40. With the BMW’S screen in its highest position there’s decent wind protection with enough breeze to keep it feeling like a bike, and with quiet roads and the cruise control set at 85mph the miles click off in swift order. After a couple of fuel stops (for the small-tank KTM, not the RS) we see-off the 181 miles to Goodwood by 10am (plus a few more thanks to my inability to follow really simple satnav instructions).
BMW R1250RS MILES RIDDEN: 400 CLOTHING: Stylish LOCKS LOST: One
‘You’re a lucky bugger,’ says Dom as we smarten up and join the throng. ‘My KTM isn’t uncomfortable, but when you flicked cruise you could sit back and light a King Edward. And the big twin flies when you gas it off roundabouts.’ Things fall off the back too... The Revival is even better than we hoped. Not just the ace bike race, but the cars, planes, music, clothes. I’d not realised how big and engrossing it is. We leave after 7pm, the BMW’S auto lights flicking into action in shadows under trees. We’re glad to be on two wheels, sliding past lines of cars held up by cool things going slowly, like the lovely late-50s Standard Atlas pick-up doing 25mph on a big hill. There’s a broken Porsche 356 too. Its flustered driver is Howard Donald from middle-aged crooners Take That. Low-speed balance makes filtering on a clogged M25 effortless, before the RS romps back up the M40. The posh semi-active ride is pleasing, lights are ace, and it’s sure-footed in a downpour nearing Leicester. The concerns about the seat are long forgotten – I arrive home after a 400-mile round trip, lots of mincing in a flat cap and a 16-hour day feeling way livelier than I expected. What a bike.