Tom Pappas
Guest
Hi everyone. I have now put 2000 miles on my NT700VA since I got it used in mid-April. The bike now has 13k on it.
There are so many great rides around the Bay Area and going on the freeway can frequently be avoided. From where we live in Moraga (the East Bay area), I have ridden to places like Mount Diablo State Park, near Redwood and Chabot Parks in the Oakland Hills, Tilden Park in Berkeley, and Briones Park near Martinez, Pinole Valley, etc. Also did a nice ride out to Baker Beach and Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.
Yesterday I drove through the wine country to Santa Rosa, a 160 mile round trip. The wine country is nice but too much traffic (even on a weekday), and too much urban sprawl!
Other trips I have planned will take me to the Gold Country and Lake Tahoe, and up through Marin County to Mendocino. I am also thinking fof a drive across Nevada on Hwy 50.
Heck, I even found a way to go the 22 miles to Costco in San Ramon without having to get on a freeway!
I love the bike, but the stock windscreen is too small and I get a lot of wind buffeting on my helmet. I will probably install a Cee-Bailey with +4 inches. The bike had a custom corbin seat and the original seat when I bought it and so far I like the original seat better. The corbin sort of locks you into a forward position without much room to adjust position. But this more forward and 1" lower seat does make the windshield slightly more effective. Also, the combination of the leather seat and my Olympia mesh pants is slippery, and doesn't feel as secure as the original seat. I also need a powerlet outlet for my GPS (with Ram ball mount).
My longest day so far has been about 350 miles and aside from the too-low windshield, I was very comfortable and felt good at the end of the day.
I haven't owned a bike since 1976 (honda cb350). When I quit riding my dream bike was a BMW R75, but I never had one. To me, the NT700V is the modern version of what I wanted back in those days and I love it. The right size and weight, and I like how it sounds. A nice thumping twin exhaust that is perfect for my style of easy riding!
The big question for me will come in summer 2012 when a cross country trip is planned. I might move up to an ST1300 for that ride, but so far, I think the NT700 V could do it easily!
By the way, everyone likes my hi-vis Schuberth helmet and Olympia jacket. I was pretty self-conscious about the look but I am glad I went with it!
Safe riding everyone and look forward to hearing about your adventures.
Tom
There are so many great rides around the Bay Area and going on the freeway can frequently be avoided. From where we live in Moraga (the East Bay area), I have ridden to places like Mount Diablo State Park, near Redwood and Chabot Parks in the Oakland Hills, Tilden Park in Berkeley, and Briones Park near Martinez, Pinole Valley, etc. Also did a nice ride out to Baker Beach and Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.
Yesterday I drove through the wine country to Santa Rosa, a 160 mile round trip. The wine country is nice but too much traffic (even on a weekday), and too much urban sprawl!
Other trips I have planned will take me to the Gold Country and Lake Tahoe, and up through Marin County to Mendocino. I am also thinking fof a drive across Nevada on Hwy 50.
Heck, I even found a way to go the 22 miles to Costco in San Ramon without having to get on a freeway!
I love the bike, but the stock windscreen is too small and I get a lot of wind buffeting on my helmet. I will probably install a Cee-Bailey with +4 inches. The bike had a custom corbin seat and the original seat when I bought it and so far I like the original seat better. The corbin sort of locks you into a forward position without much room to adjust position. But this more forward and 1" lower seat does make the windshield slightly more effective. Also, the combination of the leather seat and my Olympia mesh pants is slippery, and doesn't feel as secure as the original seat. I also need a powerlet outlet for my GPS (with Ram ball mount).
My longest day so far has been about 350 miles and aside from the too-low windshield, I was very comfortable and felt good at the end of the day.
I haven't owned a bike since 1976 (honda cb350). When I quit riding my dream bike was a BMW R75, but I never had one. To me, the NT700V is the modern version of what I wanted back in those days and I love it. The right size and weight, and I like how it sounds. A nice thumping twin exhaust that is perfect for my style of easy riding!
The big question for me will come in summer 2012 when a cross country trip is planned. I might move up to an ST1300 for that ride, but so far, I think the NT700 V could do it easily!
By the way, everyone likes my hi-vis Schuberth helmet and Olympia jacket. I was pretty self-conscious about the look but I am glad I went with it!
Safe riding everyone and look forward to hearing about your adventures.
Tom
