Notes
Easy run with Jake. Another 5 miles in the books. Ran before heading up to Souhegan Valley Motorsports for their annual open house. This was my first time going and it was an absolute blast.
Jake and I test drove a side by side first. It was the...Maverick Turbo I think? Had to google it, looks like the right one. 172hp and 1470lb. I am finding out just now that it does 0-60 in 4.4 seconds. It certainly felt quick. It was in rear wheel drive mode for the test drive which was a ton of fun in the dirt. They had a short track set up and the back half was gnarly. There was a big whooping downhill followed by a very short straight into a jump. Then after the jump was a long 180 degree turn. So I basically floored it into the downhill/straight into the jump, then a bit on the brakes before stuffing the throttle to get the rear end to come around. Then counter steer and throttling out, going back up the hill and to the start of the track. This also confirms I need rear wheel drive in my life :)
After the side by side I test rode 3 different motorcycles. I really wanted to test ride the Versys 650 since that is at the top of my list for next bike. But they only had a Versys 1000 available. Since I didn't wanna start on the big boy first having never ridden a 1000 before, I started on the Ninja 650. The 650 is basically the updated version of my 500, so it was instantly familiar to me. Except it had significantly more power. There was instant torque in most of the powerband and it pulled hard. Felt very nice :) Not the most power in the grand scheme of motorcycling but more than I'm used to and gave me the "pushed back in your seat" feel. Felt like my own Ninja in terms of handling too. Like I said, very familiar. I was pleasantly surprised by it.
When I got back I wanted to test ride the Versys next, but somebody else called dibs first. One of the group ride leads recommended I try the Z400. I'm really glad he did. That bike is so much fun!!! It is insanely light. 380 lbs wet!! It felt amazing under me, I could throw it anywhere. Tons of confidence. And it was fast enough too. Not nearly as fast as the Ninja 650 but it still pulled harder than my 500. Which is really awesome to see the advancement of technology, that a modern 400 has the same horsepower and outperforms a 500 from 20 years ago. And gets 70mpg! Overall really great package. I was smiling and laughing a lot more on this bike than on the 650, and I was having a lot of fun on the 650. And this thing is $4800 brand new! That's so awesome! Surprise contender for next bike if I can find a way to mount a top box on it.
Finally, the Versys 1000. This was a beast of a bike. It was a lot taller than the 650 and 400 (both of which I can comfortably flatfoot) and I had to be on my tiptoes. And this thing was at least 100 lbs heavier than either, if not closer to 150. With the weight up high. So it was a little uneasy getting it out of the parking lot. But I got used to it and it was fine on the roads at intersections and whatnot. Once we started riding I was comfortable on it. And by comfortable I mean nice and comfy. This thing has a great riding position and awesome wind protection. And with that giant engine I had all the power in the world in my right hand. The thing had super long gearing and I ended up staying in 2nd pretty much the entire time. And I doubt I used more than a quarter throttle ever. Partly because I didn't need to and partly because there really wasn't an opportunity to open it up. The test ride was way too slow. But just rolling onto it I could feel this thing had endless power. Such a fast bike. And did I say it was comfy? I was very relaxed on it. Almost too relaxed...as the ride went on I thought to myself how much more I was smiling on the Z400, and was on the very same test ride loop! And isn't that more important? I really wanted to test ride the Versys because I wanted to see if the handling was still fun. And it is fun, don't get me wrong. But I wasn't giggling madly like I was on the Z400.
I think this has to do with a couple things. First was the smaller engine on the Z400, and with that the shorter gearing. So I was shifting more, and revving it out more, on the Z400. And that engine wanted to scream. Revving an engine out, upshifting, downshifting, that really plays a huge role in my enjoyment of the bike. It was nice to have a mountain of torque at my right fist, but never needing to shift must have dulled it out.
The other thing is the weight of the bike. The versys handles fine and felt confident in the corners, but the Z400 I could shimmy around under me and just place it wherever I wanted. It felt way lighter than my Ninja 500, and my 500 is pretty light all things considered.
So I am conflicted. The original reason the Versys appealed to me so much is because it seems like my Ninja 500, but with a more comfortable seating position and the ability to carry a ton of luggage. But this Versys was just plain not as fun as my ninja or the Z400. And at the end of the day, isn't that the most important reason for riding?
I am holding out hope that the Versys 650 is more Ninja 650 than Versys 1000. In that it will have the gearing and more zingy engine of the 650. But then it will of course retain all that sweet sweet storage space. But thinking back to the Z400, it was more fun than the Ninja 650. But then again the 650's torque was super satisfying and I would miss it a bit on the 400. I will really have to test ride a Versys 650 and do a lot of thinking before my final decision. Which won't be for at least another year or two when my loans get paid off, but I want to start to get an idea.
And I still have more bikes to test ride...the Triumph Tiger 800, Street Triple, and Bonneville; the Harley Sportster, Street Bob and Fat Bob just for the heck of it, and that new Kawasaki W800 also looked quite nice. We'll see if I can get to them all this summer. Man motorcycles are so much fun :) So glad I got into it. It is great to hop onto the bike and make the boring everyday commute that much more enjoyable.