BMW test rides: Putting the sport into sport-touring

The BMW F800ST sport touring bike

I got onto four BMW motorcycles the other day, at a demo ride event at Northern Colorado Euro Motorcycles in Loveland, and it was an interesting day to say the least. The four bikes I rode were the R1200RT, F800GS, F800ST, and S1000RR.

That's a diverse set of bikes so I'll tell you about them in twos, starting with those latter two. I figure they make a good pair because the first is a sport-tourer and the second is a sport bike.

F800ST

One of the attractions for me of this bike is the price. Listed at a local shop for $10,905, this is a BMW I could afford. Plus, I'm not a large person so I figured the 800cc would be plenty of power, especially considering I still ride an old 750cc Honda.

I was not disappointed on the power. This bike screams, and it's a lot of fun to ride. While BMW talks about the ST's "full fairing" I want to make note that the windshield part of that fairing is only of the bikini sort. Still, that's enough and it makes for a comfortable ride.

Options on the bike include things such as ABS, touring bags, and heated grips. The side bags are pretty small, though, so it's good that you can also get a tail bag. Of course all these extras jack the price up.

I do have two complaints with the ST. First off, the mirrors are terrible. My friend Randy was also there and he rode the ST before I did, and told me the mirrors were useless. I soon understood what he was talking about. They're small, and if you have them adjusted to you can see what's behind you, you can't see what's to the side of you, and vice versa. Not good.

Second, and more important, is the position of the pegs. This bike really puts the "sport" into "sport-touring." The pegs are so high that I was scrunched up into a squat that I could never maintain all day. And I'm just 5'8". Any dreams I had of owning an F800ST went out the window when I discovered this, and it's a real shame because in so many other ways this could be my perfect motorcycle. If you are 5'6" or shorter this might still be your perfect bike, but if you're any taller than that I think you better forget it. Too bad.

 The BMW S1000RR sport bike

S1000RR

I had two reasons for wanting to ride this bike: I wanted to compare it to the F800ST I had just ridden, plus, I'd never ridden a sport bike before. I just wanted to see what they're like.

That said, I'm not the best person to tell you about the plusses and minuses of this bike. I know there is no way I came anywhere close to using it to the limit of its capabilities.

What I can tell you about is the interesting features and the ergonomics.

From what I gather, this is an option, but the bike I rode had what BMW calls a "Gear Shift Assistant." What that means is that you don't use the clutch on the upshift. Nor do you blip the throttle. All you do is keep a steady throttle and flick the lever up, up, up. You do use the clutch for downshifting.

It also has three modes for riding. The most conservative is "Rain" and I was told the bike makes 150 horsepower in this mode. In "Sport" mode it delivers 193 hp and even more in "Race" mode. Obviously this bike is meant for racing.

The riding position felt like I was playing leapfrog. With high pegs and low grips it felt like my hands were below my feet. I know that's not the way it actually is but that's how it felt. And yes, the peg position was very similar to the F800ST. When we came to red lights I would shift into neutral and then uncurl my whole body to get upright. Hitting high speeds on this bike was good because the wind blast took a lot of weight off my wrists.

I'm not a racer and I'm not in my twenties, so this is not a bike for me, but it may be just the bike for you. It's listed at $13,800 at the same local dealer. That Gear Shift Assistant adds another $450 to the price.

I'll follow up with my impressions of the R1200RT and F800GS soon.