The others
We welcome Tracer 9 GT, KTM 1290 SA and Monster
WITH INCUMBENT CUSTODIAN Si H off bothering the Italians for a month, I got to take RIDE’S new Tracer 9 GT for its first proper outing.
I spent a lot of time with the original Tracer but skipped the second-generation bike, yet the new GT feels immediately familiar. It helps that I’m fairly average-sized and the controls, seat and pegs all feel just right. The Groucho Marx-alike split clocks are a tidy evolution of the original industrial dash and while the main info on the left seems a bit crowded at first, the 3.5in fullcolour TFT is easy to read in any light. The right side is customisable with multiple options via a simple jog wheel on the right switchgear. I set mine to ODO, trip, fuel and air temp.
Firing up the CP3 motor generates that same wonderful sharp rasp, despite the completely revised design. A 3mm longer stroke bumps capacity up 43cc over the previous Tracer 900, giving a 7% hike in torque at 7000rpm, making
overtakes practically telepathic. The new 890cc unit is rotated 5° to make room for the new, longer, lightweight swingarm while keeping the wheelbase at 1500mm, as per the previous Tracer 900. Weight is up 7kg over the standard Tracer (RIDE, May 2021) mainly from the addition of two leak-free, ignition-matched panniers each big enough for a full-face lid, and brains that control the sophisticated electronic suspension.
Heading to Wales for a two-day tour, the GT dispatches the first part of the route effortlessly. The riding position is just on the sporty side of upright but this is no adventure bike. Yamaha pitches it as a sports tourer and on a chilly Tuesday morning, perched comfortably on this leggy road bike with the easy-to-use cruise control and excellent heated grips set, I get the feeling we could go all day. The seat feels firm but that helps give the Tracer its sporty feel. The screen is one-hand adjustable but it was stiff and awkward to alter on the move. At 5’9” I found it
quietest for me in the high position but not enough to feel cocooned in a bubble of serenity.
Crossing the border into Wales, the Tracer reveals its livelier side. The first Tracer often had me riding harder and faster than usual, and this new version encourages the same. Except you’re now protected by the six-axis IMU originally from the R1 (and new to a Yamaha sports tourer) and there’s a whole bunch of acronyms to learn — traction control (TCS), slide control (SCS), front wheel lift control (LIF) and brake control (BC). Not that you need to memorise them because you’ll rarely notice them doing their thing. The bike is so stable that on fast A and B-roads it gives complete confidence. With the electronics set to moderate intervention, I had air under the front wheel off every crest and occasionally under the back wheel too yet always felt totally in control.
Over the two days, we took in every type of road the UK has to offer, from motorway slogs to sketchy, damp, gravel and poo-strewn singletrack mountain passes. We saw heavy rain and cloudless sunny skies. From the valleys to the coast, the Tracer GT soaked it all up so easily. Yamaha calls it a multi-ability bike and after 350 epic miles of riding it’s hard to imagine what it can’t do. It’d be a short list.