KTM has a really neat “cross” bike called the 250-R Freeride. It is a cross between an enduro and trials bike, if you remember the Bultaco Alpina it was the same concept. Great beginner dirt bike or playbike for everyone.
George
Category: New Models
BSA Purchased by Indian Company
Just ran across this article in Motofire.com regarding the purchase of BSA by an Indian company:
http://www.motofire.com/2016/10/news/indian-firm-mahindra-has-bought-bsa-motorcycles/
Hope we see the return of BSA in the next few years.
Retro Comparison – Surprises
Interesting comparison by Motorcycle.com between five standard-style retro’s:
http://www.motorcycle.com/shoot-outs/heritage-lifestyle-characters-compete-on-cool-factor
I thought the Moto-Guzzi Roamer did surprisingly well. Their new V9 motor must be nice, wish they would place it in a V7 style roadster. The Roamer looks OK, but really like the styling of the V7. Guessing that the Roamer is also relatively light in weight. The Harley Sportster and Triumph T120 have nice (and similar) torque and horsepower curves, but are heavy. The Ducati Scrambler and XSR900 don’t have the low-end of the other 3 contestants, but they don’t weigh much over 400 lbs.
Lots of nice choices out there.
Ducati Stability Control
Ducati has stability control available on the 2016 Multistrada and 1299 Panigale. The rider review by Sean McDonald on Wired has glowing words on its performance.
They used outrigger wheels while testing on a Multistrada. I remember when BMW used outrigger wheels testing their new ABS.
The new 2015 Vespa 300s have ABS and Stability Control. My Vespa doesn’t have it though, it’s a 2014 model.