Another Appreciation For My CB1100

[Mandrau_imp]

I was riding my 2016 CB1100 in a remote forest area on a narrow road where the pavement was cracked, broken and pothole strewn with no shoulders to speak of except bush and ditches. You know that feeling you get when the growing realization that you are lost starts to surface and dominate your consciousness. Coming to an intersecting road I turned unto it in second gear and applied a little throttle short shifting into third then forth before the pavement abruptly ended and I was on gravel, the loose kind. The bike began weeving under me and even I knew that touching the breaks or cutting the throttle was going to put me down. Without thinking I stood up on the pegs which is what I would have done on my mountain bike in the past and immediately felt more balanced and in control to the point where I began to breath again as I gradually guided the bike to the tracks left by other vehicles where the gravel was not so dense or loose.

I discovered that the "Jack of all Trades" CB1100 could be a bit of an adventure bike when standing on the pegs. I followed that road for 25 Kilometers standing on the pegs getting the hang of it and actually enjoying it. I found a place to turn around and was able to traverse back in half the time. For a bit there though, I thought I was going down.

Getting home (after some loggers helped me find my way out), I googled "standing on the pegs" only to discover that this is a core Adventure/Enduro/ Trail riding skill which the CB1100 lends itself to quite well when things get dicy underneath you such as road construction etc.

I will never be jealous of forward controls again. I find myself wondering what a set of aggressive rubber might open up for me.

Hope you are all keeping the shiny side up and enjoying the summer...Cheers.

[Nortoon_imp]

I assume standing on the foot pegs lowers the center of gravity. I weigh more than 225 pounds wearing my motorcycle gear. Moving that from the seat to the pegs seems to stabilize the CB on sand and gravel roads.

We have two seasons in Ontario, hockey season and construction season. Handy to have learned some motocross practices when you have to ride torn up paved roads and fresh gravel. Then there are the occasional explorations onto unknown roads that turn to gravel, become single lanes, and later rocky trails.

[Roper_imp]

Standing on the pegs also lets you see and plan your line better, adds extra "suspension" in the form of your legs, and better enables you to shift your weight in the direction needed.

I've ridden dirt bikes for 35 years. I hate taking the CB1100 off pavement. The tires suck off road, the suspensions sucks off road, the headers and crankcase are rock magnets, and the bike moves like it weighs a ton. It's a big fat heavy slow pig off road.

[SportsterDoc]

Standing on the pegs is helpful going over speed bumps.
I have seen a dirt bike rider get bucked off going over a berm, while sitting on the seat.

Standing on the pegs also lets you see and plan your line better, adds extra "suspension" in the form of your legs, and better enables you to shift your weight in the direction needed.

I've ridden dirt bikes for 35 years. I hate taking the CB1100 off pavement. The tires suck off road, the suspensions sucks off road, the headers and crankcase are rock magnets, and the bike moves like it weighs a ton. It's a big fat heavy slow pig off road.

With the CB, I avoid dirt roads, but do frequently pull off a two land onto a sandy/gravel shoulder for photo ops, stretch breaks, etc. Which is why I am giving scrambler tires a try.

Riding with a friend (883 Sportster) from Duck Creek to Zion, we stopped at a German bakery along highway 89 in Utah. A section of parking lot is pea gravel. As hard as it is to lock up the rear on pavement, it does so quite easily on anything loose.

[LikeAfox_imp]

I occasionally ride though a gravel/dirt road, it's the only path to that particular destination. I've ridden that road on a Road King, various small cruisers, a Ninja 500 and a bicycle. CB1100 was the worst of the lot. I'll try again with my new tires and also standing on pegs, but so far, an adventure bike it ain't.

[SportsterDoc]

I occasionally ride though a gravel/dirt road, it's the only path to that particular destination. I've ridden that road on a Road King, various small cruisers, a Ninja 500 and a bicycle. CB1100 was the worst of the lot. I'll try again with my new tires and also standing on pegs, but so far, an adventure bike it ain't.

Not at 540#!

My trade-in for the CB1100 was a 2018 Yamaha XT250 at 293#
Before that a 2016 Moto Guzzi V7II at 417#, so the CB is indeed relatively heavy, but my Sportsters were 518# and 537#. I think my 76 CB750F was 503, stock.

However, I do love the 4 cylinder torque!

[Nortoon_imp]

The CBs weight and the slick style of their skinny tires make it a real challenge downhill on sand or gravel. Taking Miss Piggy on the Burnt Bridge Road was alright at first because the sand was really packed down by the lumber trucks. But after passing the point of no return the hills became steeper and the sand was deep and loose. Even at slow speed in first gear she waddled side to side down the hills.

It worked to my advantage when the road ended at an unfamiliar T-intersection. I wanted to go left (south) but was facing a very steep sandy hill. Right (north) was sandy but not hilly, so I chose the easier and safer route. Turned out after getting directions from one of the locals that it was the proper way to the paved road I was seeking. Going left would have dead ended about 10 miles later, if I had made that far.

Good thing the Ferret was not with me. He doesn't like roads without center lines, let alone no pavement.

[SportsterDoc]

The CBs weight and the slick style of their skinny tires make it a real challenge downhill on sand or gravel. Taking Miss Piggy on the Burnt Bridge Road was alright at first because the sand was really packed down by the lumber trucks. But after passing the point of no return the hills became steeper and the sand was deep and loose. Even at slow speed in first gear she waddled side to side down the hills.

It worked to my advantage when the road ended at an unfamiliar T-intersection. I wanted to go left (south) but was facing a very steep sandy hill. Right (north) was sandy but not hilly, so I chose the easier and safer route. Turned out after getting directions from one of the locals that it was the proper way to the paved road I was seeking. Going left would have dead ended about 10 miles later, if I had made that far.

Good thing the Ferret was not with me. He doesn't like roads without center lines, let alone no pavement.

Yep, but don't think it is just the CB.
In 2013 I took my Bonneville (495#) to our Arizona ranch.
The last 3/4 mile is a steep, rutted, rocky, rough Jeep trail.
Getting it up was not so bad, although I spun out at a turn - fortunately did not drop it.
Going down was much more tricky.
~220 miles from home, 8 miles from pavement, 13 miles from civilization and I rarely see a neighbor.
I did not take the lighter Moto Guzzi (417#) and I most certainly have no intention of taking the CB there, even after getting scrambler tires.

[Bheezy27403_imp]

I have had the CB in places it was never meant to go. Up and down the sides of two mountains in the Pisgah Forrest. Single lane, terribly rocky roads, that I wouldn't want to take my Accord on. I was pleasantly surprised with her composure. I was in a bad situation and she pulled me through.

I wouldn't ever put her in this situ on purpose but she rose to the occasion. Only needed a chain adjustment when I got her home.