Calgary Motorcycle Show

I love motorcycles.  I also love bicycles.  Things with two wheels are just generally more fun than other modes of transportation.

This year's motorcycle show I was there the first day at the first minute that those doors opened.  There was a lot of interesting stuff there this year, including some things that SHOULD have been there last year, but weren't.  I thought it might be fun to write a blog post about which bikes I thought were most interesting and why.  I'll start off with what I thought was the best in the show.

Ducati Diavel

The picture really doesn't do justice to how aggressive this bike looks.  The back tire is humongous!  I managed to see it early in the show; and even though it was roped off, the reps let me sit on it for a minute.  It's very interesting, it has almost a cruiser-style feel to the way a person sits on it.  The feel of the seat is great, and it really puts the rider in a relaxed position that still has a good sensation of control.  The bike is a little heavy for a Ducati; but it's not so bad, the whole body is made of carbon fiber.  The engine makes 164 horsepower and it looks like it has more power than anyone really needs.  I was a little skeptical that the handling would be alright with that huge back tire, but the rep had tried the bike and said he thought it handled great, even by Ducati standards.  Still, the bike looks seriously badass!

2011 Kawasaki ZX-10R

I ride a Kawasaki ZX-12R, and there's something about a high horsepower track-eating monster that just sits right with me.  I like it even more when the riding position is comfortable and the fairing looks like a bird in flight.  The new ZX-10R really impressed me this year, in one part due to the great new styling and also due to the 200 horsepower output.  Yikes.  The riding position feels higher and more relaxed than the BMW S1000RR and the Honda Fireblade, but it is still very "track".  I wouldn't want to ride this for more than a few hours...actually, now that I think of it...I might!

Yamaha Super Tenere

I walked into the show expecting to hate the Super Tenere.  I was all like "That thing is soooo ugly.  The engine output is low in its class (compared to the Ducati Multistrada) and the frame is so low you couldn't even use it as an adventure bike anyway.", and I wasn't entirely wrong.  Fortunately, I wasn't entirely right either.  Yes, the Super Tenere is horribly ugly.  The fairing is unfinished and sloppy, you can see exposed wires on the gauges and lights and the paint scheme looks like a third-rate kids' toy.  However, when I actually sat on the bike it was surprisingly comfortable.  It rides street style and low for its class; even lower than the Multistrada, and would probably be pretty good on the road...gravel or otherwise.  It reminds me a lot of my old 1984 Yamaha XJ750.  It is very much an 80s style ride, and that's not necessarily a bad thing.  Would I buy a Super Tenere, though?  Probably not.

Honda VFR1200F

By contrast to the Super Tenere, I walked into the show expecting to love the Honda VFR1200F.  The design is innovative, the intent is unique, and from all reports I've read it is incredibly versatile.  It is also short and weird.  The pegs on the VFR feel like they're in a track riding position.  I can understand the bike being a bit sport, but not THIS high.  I have a hard time imagining profession riders saying something like "I love riding around the track, but I wish I had some grip-warmers and a nice plush seat to set my record times with.", but that was what the bike was saying to me.  Very bizarre.  Pegs aside though, the rest of the bike was really nice.  I sat on two versions, one was the automatic and the other the manual transmission.  The automatic was really weird, I kept reaching for the clutch and grabbing nothing.  I think the standard will be much more popular, but who knows.  Either way though, it's still a nice bike.  I'd ride it, and maybe buy one if the price were right.

BMW K1600GTL

The BMW K1600GTL was something I absolutely wanted to see this year.  It's the largest engine cruiser BMW currently makes, and I thought their 1200 was a pretty cool machine.  The K1600GTL is BMW's tourer with all the trimmings.  It's cozy alright, and it's just as heavy as you might expect, but the dash is so high and far it's unnerving.  It's very hard to see in front of you!  Isn't that dangerous?  I thought it might be.  Even the Goldwing doesn't have a dash as high as this.  You can barely see anything at all.  I'm sure it's comfortable and nice to ride, but for me?  No thanks.  I like not running into things.

Triumph Sprint GT

I'm a big fan of the Sprint ST, it's a really cool sport-tourer blend.  I was very interested to try the Sprint GT, the new variant from Triumph.  I still think the ST is a cool sport-tourer blend.  The GT is unusual in that it's just a very long ST.  I think Triumph took the general criticism of the ST to heart, that the bike was too much sport and not enough tour.  I personally thought that was the bike's strength.  Oh well.  The GT is still a nice bike, but between that and the ST...who cares if you have a bigger back seat?  I still think the Sprint is my top pick for the sport-touring class; even more than the VFR1200F, just because it has that light weight and performance while still keeping that cozy riding position.  If you need a back seat, the GT is great.  If you don't need one, why bother?  Go with the ST!

Honda DN-01

Now my pick for "Weirdest in show".  The Honda DN-01 is...something.  I'm not sure what it is.  It seats like a cruiser, drives like a scooter, and rides like a sport bike.  It's some kind of crazy mutant.  It also looks incredibly dumb.  Who is this bike for?  It's heavy, so it's not for new riders.  The performance isn't real high, so sport riders won't want it.  It's kind of uncomfortable, so tourers won't want it.  It's sporty and kind of like a scooter, so it's not for cruiser riders.  It's expensive, so scooter riders won't want it.  Seriously, what is it?  I'm sure there's someone out there who would love a DN-01.  If you are that person, then congratulations.  Honda made a machine just for you.

Victory Hammer

My vote for "Worst in show" is definitely the Victory Hammer.  What a piece of crap.  It's horribly uncomfortable, the controls barely work and it looks like a badly botched Suzuki Marauder.  I nearly broke my fingers off trying to pull in the clutch, the throttle felt goofy and the seat was made for someone with a size 45 waistline.  I felt these things must be problems with that particular bike, so I tried 3 other Hammers and they were exactly the same!  I didn't see it run, but from the looks of that engine I can't imagine it feels very smooth.  The guy in the picture above is actually overcome with sadness and has stopped his bike to cry.  Why did he buy this bike?  I pity this man.  The Hammer is a good name for it alright, this bike is a blunt instrument.  Some people might like that, but I'm not one of them.  If you want a cool, easy-riding cruiser, I think Harley has a lot better offerings than this.

Harley and Suzuki didn't really impress me this year.  It was basically the same stuff they had the last few years, which I guess isn't that bad.  The Electra-glide and the Gladius are still my favourites from them.  The Gladius is a nice entry-level ride with good style and interesting mechanical design, and the Electra-glide is about as cool as they come in an American-style easy-rider.  I also tried out a Royal Enfield, and you know what?  I discovered that I like bikes from this century.

Here is a video of the Diavel.  It looks like even the professional rider is having a hard time with that huge tire.  You know what though?  It still looks amazing.