Last weekend I did something like 1500 miles on the KTM 1190 Adv by riding it to Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val to see some friends and back. As I was visiting friends I just got on the autoroute and cheesed it. I camped half way down, near Orleans, and did the same on the way back. The bike was pretty good but I decided pretty early on that I wanted something more comfortable, less top heavy and, in short, I was done with the adventure bike thing and the way that this bike puts you out in the wind at 80mph+. So I went to see a 2012 VFR1200F DCT today, loved it and will be trading the KTM against it next Saturday. I only really got a chance to ride it in and just out of Bournemouth which was very busy today. I got it up to 60 odd a couple of times but had ample time to check out how it felt while filtering and general in town manoeuvring. In short I loved it. It was comfortable and the engine was strong. It felt no where near as heavy as the KTM despite being heavier. It was an absolute piece of piss to navigate traffic on. The riding position is mid-way between the KTM and the cbr1000rr which is what I want. The bolt upright position on the KTM is good for back road blasting but on a motorway it's really not very good at all. This is much more of a riding position I'm familiar with I think. Time will tell anyway, you never really understand what a bike is like until you've done many miles on them. The DCT though is something I'm completely sold on. I was concerned that setting off would be difficult along with low speed handling but it's all piss easy. Normal drive mode is just ok but sports mode is excellent and manually changing the gears works really well too. I really like it.
Nice one, they're meant to be a decent used buy. Someone was hustling one round Anglesey track day last week.
Great bike. I reckon Honda 'could' do a comeback with the VFR, if they pitch it right. I don't think they will though sadly. Would love to have a properly fast sports tourer.
Why Honda aren't competing against the Kawasaki Ninja 1000SX and the Suzuki GSXS1000GT is a total f***ing mystery. A new Blackbird with 08-16 Fireblade DNA would do well. Lots of people have been banging that drum for years.
Picked it up today and did about 100 miles on it to get it home. The engine is epic and the gearbox is superb in manual mode. Very happy with the bike.
I think you may have tempted @Boothman into getting one of these @dern !! Be a bit comfier for the twos up riding mate
Yes & no @PauloHRC - have been weighing up a VFR crossover as an option for the NC500 rather than a GS. But the blade remains the go to bike for weekend/evening blasts solo or two up. PS I intend to be at Barton later
I’ve done about 500 miles on it so far and it’s so much better than the ktm. The only downside is the slow steering but it just needs a slightly bigger shove. Doesn’t feel as heavy even though it is heavier, very comfortable and very quick. Not just a bike for long distances on big roads either. Very happy with it.
