10-31-2019, 02:31 AM
I think part of the equation is what many mc enthusiasts will say to explain owning more than one motorcycle: "right tool for the job". Obviously, the tool is the bike and the job is what environment we ride in. Sometimes the environment makes riding X type of bike pointless.
I have the opportunity to spend up to 2 months in a rural area of Costa Rica every other year. There's a paved, curvy, winding road that heads down to the coast, and there's a paved, curvy, winding road that heads up and over a mountain pass to a city. That's about it for paved roads that go anywhere. The curves are relentless and tight and traffic often slows to a crawl because heavy trucks have to use the "hiway" as well. Having any bike over 300cc is overkill. If I had the cb1100 there, I'd never use 4th gear. My bike of choice--a Honda CGL125. I get to rap that thing up to it's max of 60mph every now and then, but most often it's 20-40mph, and I get to use quite a bit of the rpm range. It doesn't feel like too much work for me, it feels like the right bike for the job. When I tell CR friends I have a 1100cc bike in the U.S....you can just tell they're doing some mental math that doesn't add up.
I think the CB1100 has a good balance. More power / torque is always there when I want--although I understand maybe not for everybody. But I like the low fatigue factor when I do long trips with great hiway stretches where I can lock in at 70mph and barely break, what, 3000rpm? It let's me enjoy the ride.
I have the opportunity to spend up to 2 months in a rural area of Costa Rica every other year. There's a paved, curvy, winding road that heads down to the coast, and there's a paved, curvy, winding road that heads up and over a mountain pass to a city. That's about it for paved roads that go anywhere. The curves are relentless and tight and traffic often slows to a crawl because heavy trucks have to use the "hiway" as well. Having any bike over 300cc is overkill. If I had the cb1100 there, I'd never use 4th gear. My bike of choice--a Honda CGL125. I get to rap that thing up to it's max of 60mph every now and then, but most often it's 20-40mph, and I get to use quite a bit of the rpm range. It doesn't feel like too much work for me, it feels like the right bike for the job. When I tell CR friends I have a 1100cc bike in the U.S....you can just tell they're doing some mental math that doesn't add up.
I think the CB1100 has a good balance. More power / torque is always there when I want--although I understand maybe not for everybody. But I like the low fatigue factor when I do long trips with great hiway stretches where I can lock in at 70mph and barely break, what, 3000rpm? It let's me enjoy the ride.