Spokey

So……I did pull the plug and let the funds flow from account……..I did end up with the BMW R1100S Boxer Cup Replika in the Mamola colours. Sure the Certificate of authenticity from BMW Heritage in Munich has added to the cost but hopefully adds to the overall collectibility. Anyhow, despite all that………the machine is a delight to ride. All of 97 HP, less than my big KTM 1190 in off road mode, but what a lovely bike, decently fast without soiling ones Y fronts! I am adjusting to the quirky rocking of a Boxer engine and I love it. This is a 2003 and bought to keep the km”s low…….this will be tricky!

That little Duke is gorgeous. I saw a really beauts 749 in SA but my bike budget for the year is largely exhausted!

Bought me a new bike. I was in Cafe Mille Miglia in Dubai a while back and saw a lot of this art from the Argentine artist Guillermo Forchino. Managed to obtain this last week. Anyways………now to get it home!!!

Righty Oh, I have gone a little “off piste” so they say, with regard to the bikes that I have constantly on my radar. Bought this today…….. She is a 2003 Randy Mamola R1100s Boxer Cup Rep, with a Certificate from Bee Em SA as an authentic rep and not just the painted 1100s.Really looking forward to acquainting myself with this machine in 39 days when I get home!

Oh yes,I am off to London around 5 June for a few nights, think I will make the effort to go there. Been once before but many years ago, it had recently opened.

This os gorgeous!

Yes, love them, but I like fact that with my 1190 I can blast off on all roads…….though in all honesty, today I avoided the dirt to Sedgefield after all this rain……..not as much faith in the Trail Max Missions in the mud as other tyres!

I am looking at a 748 in Cape Town to complement the 1098. Undecided though. Another Katoom RC8 is available!

This looks good. I need to find suitable waterproof gloves. I do not mind riding in the rain but I do not like cold hands. The heated grips of the Katoom are super but my gloves….mmmmmm

Took my little red bike to Somerset West for a service, decided to ride it there, a 450 km exercise in managing discomfort ha ha. Was indeed a challenge, so much easier on my big KTM. However, I am happy I did it. The N2 is not as smooth as it seems in a saloon car! Pic just outside Caledon.

The bug has bitten……..fantastic!

I try to get to the Ace when I am in London. So, not too often then. Each time I wonder why I bother, food is shite, service not much better, yet I feel I need to get some stickers or a T Shirt…………must be better to arrive on a bike, train and walking perhaps not the way! Anyways, next time in Londinium I will trundle down to The Bike Shed for a gander!

16 KTM’s for me!

Jeepers yeah, agreed. I love the look of the T700 but a very few ponies more than my 690 at a much heavier weight…….ouch…..yes, it is better on the tar, but so far I have decided to treat my 690 to more lekker bits and just keep to the dirt and give my self time when on the tar. I know peeps ride them at 140plus on the tar, sure it will do it easily, just not comfortably! I shall keep the big 1190 for my two up riding, that beast does Karoo dirt very well. The 690 will be treated to a Seat Comforts Seat and a Giant Loop Coyote rear pack. A Sotts Steering damper is on the cards too. Then a Vanasche rear fuel filler so I can ditch the key. I have the Raid garage under seat tank so have around 18 litres……..I think! So……enough randellas to throw at this without troubling myself on a new bike! This bike still puts a silly grin on my dial on every ride!

The last pics I posted of a potential purchase…….well, things have changed. I am still looking for nice investment machine but bloody hell, my brain bounces around too much with that. Options on another post to follow. My search for a mid weight ADV bike led me to look at the Ducati Desert X and then I saw a Norden 901…..ahhhhh, awesome, my gosh!! But I like the power to weight of the KTM 790. I can’t get my head around the fact that the 890 is built in China……that just Pi**es me off. I am also feeling that I do not want too much in the way of electronics, I honestly do not need all that…….no boast, just a lot of riding years and a belief in simplicity as I ride into the boondocks on my own. If I can manage my Ducati 1098 with no aids at all, I feel I can cope with most. So……….Yammie T7 sounds so appealing and then I hear it is so top heavy….hope I can test ride one. They do look the Mutts Nutts though! At this stage, I am keeping the 1190 for a two up tourer and will develop my Katoom 690 into a more suitable light weight ADV bike despite the single cylinder.

Bit of a read, apologies in advance! Sitting in the hotel in Miami with sleep eluding me, may as well be active on the forums! I did a super trip on the 690 Hoekwil out and return just before I left SA for my current stint at work. I travelled via Montagu Pass, Paardepoort, Kamanasie valley to Uniondale then a wonderful side road where I turned left off the Uniondale to Avontuur road. This road become a farm track with a lot of rain damage with sandy patches and therefore a ride that focused the brain a bit! With the odd river crossing it was reminiscent of the Baviaans, just shorter. Glad I was not on the 1190. I rejoined the road near Haarlem and rode to the Prince Alfred Pass. I blitzed that faster than I would normally as the day was beginning to shorten with all my stopping for a chill and coffee! Kom se Pad followed then the track through Gouna Forest to Simola at Knysna before the tar leg home. The 690 will run all day at 140 on the tar, but seems very unnecessary to me………wastes my Pirelli MT21 on the rear, which only gives me 3000kms anyways! If time allowed I would have taken the seven Passes road home. Mechanically my only issue was a loose right hand mirror, a leisurely coffee stop to tighten!

This machine appeals big time. In all honesty it is for me personally, a very left field choice based on my preferences ( though I like most bikes) but the Rocket……..it just lights a small spark each time I see one. Second hand ones seem to be reasonable value, a lot of machine for the money.

Jeepers Dude, this is shite…….my actual language was definitely not suitable for these forums. I would still ride with that but pay attention to it. I am used to monitoring the tyres on our company jet. The tiniest cuts can be fine for ages and then suddenly seem to get to limits quickly. They are up at 186psi though.

I do have the original pipes. They need a little TLC for some dents. They are double walled while this aftermarket one from David Silver Honda is single pipe hence the discolouration.

The baby Honda (‘75 400F) has not been run in 18 months. I had installed new front brake pads with a new calliper from David Silver in UK. On tightening it all up the wheel was immovable. I have managed to shave off some of the after market pads, that was a lesson in face masks and glasses! Anyways, wheel turns, brakes bled, fresh fuel and oil, ready for a spin………waiting for a rain free day and dry roads!

I am going to head to Cape Town tomorrow if anyone is around for a coffee. Target is Flying Brick and the KTM dealership.

I have been lucky enough that the Boss sent us home for Ramadan, so day one of being home and the FZR called…….This old girl is 29 this year and still runs strongly. We left home for the Hartenbos, Oudtshoorn George circuit. The Robinson Pass is very bumpy, suited more to the ADV bikes. First pic is top of the pass. Second pic is on the turn off to Volmoed from the R328. That stretch saw a quick 120 plus perhaps another speed limit to get the cobwebs out. Love this bike. When the ZRX is back from the spray shop I will send this ones bodywork and wheels in.

Man, you made me laugh, my wife and dogs say that to me often!………just kidding. The RC8 is at Fire it Up in Josie. I have bought two bikes from them and both had serious problems. The ZRX1200 they sorted, the 1098 not. The Duke cost me a quite a bit of beer money. I do still have it, I do not ride it as often as I should. It really is a wonderful bike but I need to adjust the suspension to be a little more street friendly. After all, I can’t use the Outeniqua Pass as my race track all the time. The 999 is also in Josie, I feel a trip to the Highveldt in my near future!

Thinking that route, no mention of the odd ball Harley?? I very much agree on the RC8. Having the 1190 S Adventure, man, I would love to twist that RC8’s throttle over the Outeniqua Pass! Thanks for the input, there are so many really cool bikes around. There are a lot of machines that I think will hold value, but the special ones are rapidly becoming out of reach. I love an early Beemer……..a ‘90’s RS will push R175000 right now, more costly than the RC8…….by several pairs of Pirelli’s!

This is my conundrum, perhaps a mistake to look at any of them, but supported by a wife who loves bikes! The Harley is very rare, built for just two years I believe, as close to Harley ownership as I imagine myself. The Duc is the Pierre Terblanche design that polarised the Ducatista, did not sell well due to being an ugly beast, yet it has a certain beauty now. The RC8 is also rare and perhaps still a bit odd looking but that engine is a peach. Of coirse the 93/94 GSX1100 is just a classic work of 90’s art!