04-12-2018, 05:57 AM
After just under a year owing the CB1100RS I've succumbed to new bike lust. I have always had a soft spot for big adventure bikes and have owned a few over the years. Some of those have left fond (maybe rosetinted) memories some were sour ownership experiences. So after getting rid of a very sour bike to get the CB1100 I had thought I was done with Adv bikes as there wasn't any that were tempting me back .... I had occasional thoughts of getting one of my previous old flames a KTM950Adventure. as the bugs (which i endured as a 1st year adopter) had all been found and it would just have been fixing wear and tear issues, but I didn't have any space to take one on and the desire to re-visit the old KTM wasn't enough to get rid of any of my current garage occupants so I just contented myself to watching them come and go on ebay and parked that idea.
This continued as a status quo until Honda teased me with the updates to the Africa Twin in the Adventure Sport anniversary model. I still thought theres no room at the inn and none of the current occupants were candidates for eviction. I watched the press teasers and early ride reports and then visited my local dealers when the 1st models hit the shop floor. Looks wise it hit me , love at 1st sight? swinging my leg over it reminded me a lot of the old KTM950, height weight etc and a chat with my old CB11 salesman got me a test ride on their DCT demo once it was in and the weather improved as we were still in the depths of winter. The test ride came and went fortuitously during a spell of calm dry weather and it was a success(for the salesman?) I loved how it rode sounded and looked. Up to that point I was still on the fence and I didn't have an eviction candidate in my mind.
After my heart was made up I had to deal with the maths issue and the best way to pay for the new AT was getting rid of the CB11RS :/ . it was a difficult decision but made easier in that the plush sussies of the AT addressed my only issue with the CB that of the short travel rear shocks that I would have had to address if I kept it and maybe with limited success given the old school twin shock design. So a deal was struck and I awaited delivery of my new ATAS DCT.
Arrival was today, delayed by a week due to a pirates (that's what I was told!) and I said goodby to the CB11RS. I could see me returning to the CB11 after a few years time when my current sports bike garage inhabitants are retired due to being no longer a fit for my body but for the moment I'm glad I've had the pleasure of that big 1100 aircooled legend. Some pics of the new beasty. I also struggled mentally with subjecting the CB to inclement weather as it was too much a looker, I wont have that block with a rufty tufty adv bike.
This continued as a status quo until Honda teased me with the updates to the Africa Twin in the Adventure Sport anniversary model. I still thought theres no room at the inn and none of the current occupants were candidates for eviction. I watched the press teasers and early ride reports and then visited my local dealers when the 1st models hit the shop floor. Looks wise it hit me , love at 1st sight? swinging my leg over it reminded me a lot of the old KTM950, height weight etc and a chat with my old CB11 salesman got me a test ride on their DCT demo once it was in and the weather improved as we were still in the depths of winter. The test ride came and went fortuitously during a spell of calm dry weather and it was a success(for the salesman?) I loved how it rode sounded and looked. Up to that point I was still on the fence and I didn't have an eviction candidate in my mind.
After my heart was made up I had to deal with the maths issue and the best way to pay for the new AT was getting rid of the CB11RS :/ . it was a difficult decision but made easier in that the plush sussies of the AT addressed my only issue with the CB that of the short travel rear shocks that I would have had to address if I kept it and maybe with limited success given the old school twin shock design. So a deal was struck and I awaited delivery of my new ATAS DCT.
Arrival was today, delayed by a week due to a pirates (that's what I was told!) and I said goodby to the CB11RS. I could see me returning to the CB11 after a few years time when my current sports bike garage inhabitants are retired due to being no longer a fit for my body but for the moment I'm glad I've had the pleasure of that big 1100 aircooled legend. Some pics of the new beasty. I also struggled mentally with subjecting the CB to inclement weather as it was too much a looker, I wont have that block with a rufty tufty adv bike.
