2000 km through Andalusia

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In 2018, Jan F went on a trip to the Sierra Nevada with Clubmot, a Belgian organizer of motorcycle trips and trainings, and he really liked it. When he suggested the idea of ​​starting our motorcycle season early and with a lot of miles on a new Clubmot trip to southern Spain, I was sold immediately. Our biker bud Shih as well. Vamos a Andalucia!

The formula

The formula for this trip was the same as the trip to the Sierra Nevada: Fly & ride. Clubmot books the flights and the hotel, and provides you with routes. Your bike travels there and back via truck transport. Nicely arranged.

We left early on Saturday March 19th (so that we could already start riding on Saturday afternoon) and Continue reading →

Mine! Yamaha Ténéré 700 Rally Edition

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When I first rode the T7 in 2020 I asked myself if it would become the successor to my 800 GS. After writing that review, I couldn’t get the bike out of my head. And if you follow Jean Le Motard on Instagram, you know what happened eventually.

Last October I visited my local Yamaha dealer who needed a bit of luck to find one of the last 2021 Rally Editions for me. Two weeks later I said goodbye to my 800 GS. 110,000 km on the counter, 12 years old. Thanks for the good times!

In the meantime I have equipped the T7 with a few extras: a centerstand and a shorter Yamaha license plate holder, a Donner-Tech GPS holder and connections for a trickle charger and my heated jacket. I also hopped by at Allroadmoto for Bumot Defender panniers, Barkbusters handguards, Double Take mirrors and Outback Motortek crash bars. Coming soon: an Altrider clutch arm.

Still on my wishlist: heated grips and a small (but hard to find) rear luggage rack.

Meanwhile I’ve put some decent milage on the bike, riding 2000 km’s through the south of Spain. Really happy with the switch from the 800 GS to the T7!

Review: KTM 1290 Super Adventure S

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In 2018 I tested the KTM 1290 Super Adventure S and during that test week I developed a profound love for the bike. So much so that the Super Adventure made it to the number 1 on my list of favorite test bikes that year.

That experience made me very curious about the new 1290 Super Adventure S, which got a big make-over for model year 2021. Even though an untrained eye perhaps wouldn’t notice much of that update.

The headlight is probably the biggest eye-catcher. It now contains the sensor for the (standard) adaptive cruisecontrol. Quite easy to spot as well: the new 23-litre tank hangs like two large cheeks along both sides of the also renewed frame. Furthermore, the LC8 V-twin has been thoroughly revised: it weighs 1.6 kg less now, received a Euro5 diploma and spits out 160 hp/138 Nm. The steering head was moved 15 mm rearwards for sharper handling, while the swingarm was extended by 15 mm for more stability and grip. And there’s more, but we’ll discuss that later.

When I hop on the bike, I immediately notice that the adjustable seat (849 / 869 mm) is lower and narrower at the front than on the previous model. At the same time, Continue reading →

Quick test: Indian Scout Bobber Twenty

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You often hear the term bobber in the cruiser segment. Harley-Davidson, Triumph and Moto Guzzi each have one in their line-up. And with the Scout model, Indian even has two: the Scout Bobber and the Scout Bobber Twenty. But what makes a bobber so special, and how does it ride?

Minimalist

‘Bobbing’ originated in the custom scene of the 1930’s. By removing unnecessary parts, motorcycles were made lighter and therefore faster. No front fender, a minimalist rear fender, as little metal or chrome as possible.

Today, a bobber has more to do with looks and ‘coolness’ than actual weight savings. This is also the case with the Indian Scout Bobber: short fenders, a solo seat, low and far forward positioned handlebars on the Scout Bobber and a mini ape hanger on the Scout Bobber Twenty. Both with forward controls.

The seating position seems spartan but when I sit down in the showroom it feels quite comfortable. Whether I’ll still think the same after half a day of riding … we’ll come back to that later on.

Beach cruiser

I mainly ride Continue reading →

Review: Suzuki V-Strom 1050XT World Adventure

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This year Suzuki is offering the V-Strom 1050XT in a World Adventure edition on the Belgian market. Due to Corona perils, we weren’t able to wander off with the V-Strom to the other side of the globe, so we picked out a worldly adventure close to home: the two of us went for a ride from the Belgian coast to the Pajottenland.

Suzuki pimps the World Adventure with a decal set with reflective details, aluminum cases, adjustable footpegs that they got from Gilles Tooling, a GPS mount, a Hepco&Becker aluminum bashplate with World Adventure label, heated grips and LED high beams.

You can get this adventurer in a yellow-blue, gray-blue or black livery. The black sparkles in the sun, which you can expect from “Glass Sparkle Black”. The many stickers are a bit over the top, but all in all it looks quite right.

When revamping the V-Strom in 2020, Suzuki returned to the legendary Dr. Big from yesteryear – just like they did before with their Katana. The new lines and the square headlight look nice and are reminiscent of the oldschool adventure bike.

However, the looks were not the most important innovation. Suzuki finally put its biggest adventure bike on the same level as the competition by adding a full electronics suite thanks to ride-by-wire. For example, Continue reading →

Review: Harley-Davidson Pan America 1250 Special

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The story of Harley-Davidson has been a soap opera in recent years. The fully electric Livewire that was revealed in 2014? Quite the plot twist for a brand that’s usually linked to classic choppers and rumbling exhausts. And if that wasn’t already hard enough to swallow for the average Harley rider, they had to stomach an adventure bike and a streetfighter a couple of years later. Or at least the announcement. Preproduction models of both bikes (the Pan America and the Bronx) were shown at the 2020 Brussels Motor Show. Shortly afterwards the storyline spiraled even further with a new CEO who immediately decided to ditch the Bronx. Just to quickly give you an idea of a few plot lines.

The announced adventure bike did appear in showrooms this year, so I took the Harley-Davidson Pan America 1250 Special on a little trip to Germany to discover how it rides.

The Special version of the Pan America differs from the standard version with a range of extras: semi-active suspension, tire pressure monitoring, crashbars, handguards, heated grips, steering damper, centerstand, bash plate, radiator guard, cornering lights and a brake pedal that can be easily adjusted to two different heights. Starting prices: $17,319 for the standard Pan, $19,999 for the Special. My version also had the optional spoked wheels and the adaptive seat height.

If you don’t like the design of the Pan America: it looks a lot better in real life than it does in the pictures. The striking front will probably be the pitfall for this model even though owners will think of it as ‘different’ or ‘original’. After one week, Continue reading →

Review: Triumph Trident 660

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“Ah, there you’ll have it.” That’s what crossed my mind when Triumph announced the new Trident. Because isn’t it logical that Triumph, with its rich triple history, also offers a more “classic” three-cylinder naked in the current range?

The new Triumph Trident 660 is the third Trident generation. From 1968 to the mid-1970s and well into the 1990s, Triumph built its first two generations. The new one received a 660 cc engine, as its name suggests.

That engine is very different from the one in the Street Triple S, which also has a 660 cc heart. Of course the Trident takes over some parts from the Street, but just under 70 new components provide a different engine character. While the Street’s three-cylinder mainly emphasizes sporty top end power, the Trident aims at the lower and middle revs. You can also see it in the Continue reading →