2005 Sports touring on steroids
SPORTS TOURING HAS long been a popular pastime on RIDE. After all, who doesn’t love riding a long way on entertaining motorbikes? The trouble is, when you’re trying to make a magazine story out of it, a quick trip to the seaside doesn’t always cut it…
That was the position assistant editor Tim Cummins put himself in for the September 2005 issue. While his neighbour set off on a weekend ride to Skegness, Tim and regular tester Des O’connell pointed their bikes towards the Harwich/hook of Holland ferry and plotted a course for Poland. They were riding a brand-new BMW K1200S and a three-year-old Kawasaki ZX-12R.
Rolling off the ferry in the early morning, they crossed Holland briskly… and set about demolishing the distance to their destination on the autobahns. How many cars did they pass? About 10,000 each, they reckoned. How many passed them? Only one – a twin-turbo V8 500bhp Audi driven by a blonde lady in her late 20s. “Classic German good looks.” Tim was, he admitted, in love…
The biggest speeds coaxed from these enormous machines on the de-restricted roads were an indicated 175mph from the BMW and 185mph from the Kawasaki. They didn’t spend the entire journey at that velocity, but cruising speeds were generally in three figures, with occasional faster bursts. “High velocity is like a drug,” Tim wrote. “I indulge heavily.”
They calmed down as they reached Poland – pausing for passport control in 2005 – and headed for an overnight stop. Next day saw them exploring the countryside, buying berries from the old ladies by the roadside but not sampling the wears of the ladies of the night who thronged the laybys near the border.
The roads in Poland provided a contrast to the high-speed madness of the German autobahns. Some spectacular, others little more than cobbles covered with overbanding – so bad that Des had a massive tankslapper on the Kawasaki, while Tim on the BM found it made his “back and kidneys ache”. It was glorious weather, so they did head for the seaside – this time the Polish town of Swinoujsckie. But after a day and a half, they had to turn and head for home. Again, moving quickly…
Both bikes did well on the trip (though the ZX-12R’S rear brake did start binding on). They didn’t kill tyres – though Tim reckoned the wear accelerated to the point that the BMW would get through the rear hoop in 4000 miles. While riding fast increased fuel consumption by about 8mpg, demanding slightly more regular fuel stops, that was offset by the time saved by riding really fast.
What emerged was just how tiring the testers found sustained high-speed riding. “It knackers you mentally and physically,” Tim said. “You have to stay alert, look after your body with rapid food and drink stops, and watch of the signs of fatigue.” Tim’s final observation could well be the sports tourers’ manifesto: “It’s a big world out there. Get on the bike and explore.”