Longer ride

mykaos

mykaos

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During my vacation we (my stepson and me) have continued to get addional ride time in. Yesterday my fiance joined the adventure so we were able to get 3 bikes out.
We did a modified version (read extended) on one of my favorite loops. Plenty of twisties to chase, mix in 6% - 10% grades and great scenery the Winkleman loop is a lot of fun.
My lame pics do not do this run justice.

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My R18 "thoughts" at this time:
My riding "style" isn't so much focused on maximum miles in a given time frame, more along just "wandering" back roads. This loop was only 210 miles round trip. Ergonomically it is all I wanted. Waist up I was ok. The small Piug windshield worked good. Butt ok w/ the Weekender seat. Legs / knees begged to differ and I didn't think I would miss cruise control that much. Lots of stops involved....
Owning / riding a K1600GTL for 7 years / 40,000 + miles doesn't help..lol.
The R18 is a beautiful bike (just plain sexy IMO..lol), handles extremely well for what it is, runs out pretty good, I love what BMW did w/ the R18 and the "modifications" will continue ("stuff" ordered, paid for and just waiting for deliveries). It just probably won't be my 1st choice for the "longer" rides.
 
I test drove a K1600GT. WAY too much bike for me.

I had a 2000 R100RT. I have a 99 Gold wing.

I can ride my R18 FE ALL DAY. When I bought it, I rode home 1100 miles. It now has 25,000 miles and is most comfortable for me. 5 feet seven inches, one hundred eighty pounds.

The RT and Gold Wing are ok to ride, but too tall and heavy for little me. Two years ago I took the gold wing to the Adirondacks. I tipped it over twice doing what I should not have been. I can still pick it up, but ........ The same for the RT. I rode it 5 years (36,000 miles) and tipped it over more than any bike because I am short.

Next bike was a 2012 R1200R. I can flat foot that one, and it weighs 495 lbs. It now has 80,000 miles sitting next to me as I type.

I have been to other states on all these bikes. I can ride all day on the R18, storage is minimal, so no camping on it is out.

The gold wing was not put on the road this year. R1200R is the grocery getter. R18 FE is my daily and long distance bike. I had a ball on it when I went to Ohio. I like taking it to lunch.

A ride home on the R18 Its the perfect way to end a work day.

David
 
David R said:
I test drove a K1600GT. WAY too much bike for me.

I had a 2000 R100RT. I have a 99 Gold wing.

I can ride my R18 FE ALL DAY. When I bought it, I rode home 1100 miles. It now has 25,000 miles and is most comfortable for me. 5 feet seven inches, one hundred eighty pounds.

The RT and Gold Wing are ok to ride, but too tall and heavy for little me. Two years ago I took the gold wing to the Adirondacks. I tipped it over twice doing what I should not have been. I can still pick it up, but ........ The same for the RT. I rode it 5 years (36,000 miles) and tipped it over more than any bike because I am short.

Next bike was a 2012 R1200R. I can flat foot that one, and it weighs 495 lbs. It now has 80,000 miles sitting next to me as I type.

I have been to other states on all these bikes. I can ride all day on the R18, storage is minimal, so no camping on it is out.

The gold wing was not put on the road this year. R1200R is the grocery getter. R18 FE is my daily and long distance bike. I had a ball on it when I went to Ohio. I like taking it to lunch.

A ride home on the R18 Its the perfect way to end a work day.

David
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Good stuff. You certainly have done some 'research' with your experience with your bikes! 👍
I've posted before that I thought I was going to get a K1600, wanted one since they came out. Fortunately, the dealer had both the K1600 & the R18 TC on the floor. I was able to do rather lengthy back-to-back ride comparisons, and surprised myself by preferring the R18, both at low-speed manuevers & on the interstate. The R18 is a great bike for my current primary riding needs. If I go on another high-mile camping trip, I'll still probably take the GS. But maybe not! 😊
 
Glad your getting in a few miles on your R18. We're all so different in our ergonomic comfort, but I also have 30 inch stump legs with a weekender seat on my Classic and find this setup works fairly well for me, but obviously this is a very subjective topic as to results.

I ride a bunch too and came off an RT when I got my Classic. I found similar comfort results like on all my bikes I've changed to it in that it takes me a 1000 miles or so to see if I need to start changing parts or most often I have adjusted to how the new bike fits with my tired old hide. I had to get the "weekender seat" as I found the stock seat had me squirming after 300 miles and by 400 I was crying "Uncle". I've now ridden mine back and forth across the lower 48 and thousands of miles locally and am very happy with the weekender even when doing weeks of back to back 400-600 mile days. That said, if you need a bit more legroom you could easily sell the weekender and go for thicker padding with the "touring seat" or similar custom options. Others have changed the footpegs for the optional mini floor boards and indicate a beneficial ergonomic flexibility too.

No cruise control is a shame as it is the one modern electronic control that I use all the time and was so happy to see it was finally being made available on so many bikes nowadays. I've used most of the "old" mechanical cruise control options over the years, but found a rubber "o-ring" or even a "hair scrunchy" type friction modifier placed near the inside end of the throttle grip was cheap, easy and reliable to work with.

YRMV, but my universal "go to" regardless bike or length of ride may also provide you some relief. Due to an injury I now need to stretch a bit during a ride and find a moment standing on the pegs works wonders for me and the R18 is as easy and stable to do this on as my BMW or KTM "Adventure" bikes have been.

Enjoy your 18, it's a gorgeous motorcycle and while almost a polar opposite of your K16 I find riding it for "what it is" to be tremendously enjoyable. For a big, heavy, long, etc., etc., etc. :ROFLMAO: motorcycle it is much more "Roadster" than not and while happy to cruise along in tourist mode it also loves to have you stretch her legs and be happy your on a BMW riding at a very spirited pace.

Good luck with her 🍻🍻
 
It may seem odd to some folks (especially on the K1600 Forum) but for most rides under 200 miles I actually much prefer my R18 FE to my K1600 Grand America. After less than 100 miles on the R18 I ordered the Weekender seat and it is the first bike I EVER bought a new seat for because it was so painful for me and my pillion.

I really like my K1600 GA with the Bren Tune and Remus exhaust but I love the visceral feel of the R18 and I always keep it in Rock mode. I have a 34" inseam but the GA seems really top heavy/tippy to me and it's not the weight since my Rocket 3 Touring weighs 100+ pounds more. I really didn't like the R18 when it first came out but when the price dropped like a rock, I bought one and after riding it, we quickly loved it. I do ride the GA on shorter rides but mostly for when I need the bags and/or trunk.
 
David R said:
D04, I once test drove a Kawasaki C-14. Felt like a crotch rocket with saddle bags.

David
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The C-14 is a really good bike when it leaves the factory and is a GREAT bike with the proper tune. I really liked it but wanted a little more so I bought a Ninja ZX-14R the next year. Later that Summer I found out about a guy who specializes in C-10/C-14s and he does super tunes. I got the tune and it really unleashed the full potential. Kawasaki left a lot of performance on the table... If I had gotten the tune first, I wouldn't have bought the ZX-14R. I call my C-14 my "Fat Ninja" and if I could only have 1 bike, it would probably be the C-14 for all around versatility and FUN. It is my most modified/farkled bike and it really checks all the boxes for me...
 
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