General topics » RIDE magazine (UK) Next month

Bizarrely, RIDE (UK magazine) has an advert for its NEXT issue due on March 8th, as follows:

Ridden & Rated 2023. The No-Bull verdict on this year’s most important bikes:

Honda CB750 Hornet
Suzuki GSX-8S
KTM 890 Adventure
****BMW R1250 RS*****
Triumph Street Triple

How bizarre ! Having pretty much ignored the RS all its life. In its final year, it’s suddenly “most important” - I can’t wait !!

LJJ

Probably a typo and they meant GS.
After all, in the same issue they had an article advertised "Best Used Sports Tourers" and it didn't come up in the cursory look at sports tourers they had. I think they looked at the Honda VFR, a Kawasaki ZZR1400 and a BMW F800GT!

The Ride article is written by Simon Hargreaves who also does a podcast. The latest episode (#174) of Front End Chatter includes some musing based on his experience. From 26:20.

www.frontendchatter.com

In short, loves the bike, not so convinced by BMWs marketing and pricing.

Cheers for the link.
At 35m the RS reviewer poses the rhetorical question he asked when riding the RS ' What's this doing that thre GS isn't?' The obvs answer is 'not looking like I'm exploring the world when going down the shops'

While I was waiting for my bike to be serviced recently I think at least 70% of the customers were astride a monster GS. Almost exclusively they were vertically challenged and horizontally ‘capable’. Watching the acrobatics required to get on and off these leviathans helped pass the time. 😁
The GS is a great bike, I ridden loads and I’m always impressed, but I don’t want to be one of those guys!
Thank you BMW for giving me the choice.

Well for one thing the RS is faster. Once upon a time, being faster used to matter to bike journos.

Zitat von Oscarguitar im Beitrag #6

---

While I was waiting for my bike to be serviced recently I think at least 70% of the customers were astride a monster GS. Almost exclusively they were vertically challenged and horizontally ‘capable’. Watching the acrobatics required to get on and off these leviathans helped pass the time. 😁
The GS is a great bike, I ridden loads and I’m always impressed, but I don’t want to be one of those guys!
Thank you BMW for giving me the choice.

---

Zitat von andygriff im Beitrag #5

---

The obvs answer is 'not looking like I'm exploring the world when going down the shops'

---

Nothing like a sight of a fully kittet-out GSA with all the Wunderlich bits and bobs on

Many of those type of riders are probably not aware that all that 'bling jewelry' not only adds weight but actually reduces the load you can safely carry.

Then adding engine bars, bashplate with mainstand cover, aluminium panniers top box with a bottle of extra fuel before checking carrying capacities, with pillion or tent/bags behind rider

I wonder how we would aproach ownership 'if' part of the license/purchase included the ability to pick up a bike on it's side, even with those assisted cylinders saving 20% of lean.

I do know the panniers/topbox from 2005 ST still fitted my 2013 R1200R, as well as the R1200RT range and one magazine around that time listed bike weights plus accessories which showed a fully kitted GS/Adventure could not carry as much as a smaller R1200 variants. The R1200R was best, R1200ST, then GS/RT models (My R1200S did not have topbox or panniers capacity)

Although identical engine, gearbox, drivetrains across R1200's it was the added weight at production that made our 'road bikes' the better option to carry tents, passenger and camping gear.

Out for 2 hours yesterday across dartmoor and of all the bikes I would put the R1200R and R1200RS in joint first. Having tested a GS it feels like the RS 'on stilts' which is probably what it is.

The R1200R is often overlooked but I would not mind either the RS or R on my next update, lets see what RIDE make of their comparison.

Bike magazine states out of 202,895 BMW's sold in 2022 almost 60,000 were GS variants, with 3200 sold in the UK. Their best year yet, globally.
Ducati also had good sales with 61k units
Small potatoes though when Royal Enfield shifted 82,000 bikes in September alone....

Alan

Zitat von Dave H im Beitrag #10

---

Nothing like a sight of a fully kittet-out GSA with all the Wunderlich bits and bobs on

Many of those type of riders are probably not aware that all that 'bling jewelry' not only adds weight but actually reduces the load you can safely carry.

Then adding engine bars, bashplate with mainstand cover, aluminium panniers top box with a bottle of extra fuel before checking carrying capacities, with pillion or tent/bags behind rider

I wonder how we would aproach ownership 'if' part of the license/purchase included the ability to pick up a bike on it's side, even with those assisted cylinders saving 20% of lean.

---

Ouch! I’m riding both an RS and a GS so it hurts just a little to have it described as a Chelsea tractor ……..but admittedly it’s quite true. I haven’t succumbed to the khaki riding gear ( I’m still clad in black) but I have bought an adventure helmet to “ look the part”.
I love my RS but with a 34” inseam and an arthritic hip it just causes me a bit too much pain for all day touring. The GS will hopefully be better but until I make a Spanish tour at the end of April I won’t know for sure. Even on the GS I have lowered the footpegs and crafted my own fixture to raise the seat above the factory tallest position.
Seriously I quite enjoy the dig at the GS brigade, I just have to be prepared to laugh at myself along the way., no bad thing. By the way, those Vario panniers weigh a tonne compared to the OEM boxes on the RS.

Zitat von Boxerboy im Beitrag #13

---

I love my RS but with a 34” inseam and an arthritic hip it just causes me a bit too much pain for all day touring. The GS will hopefully be better but until I make a Spanish tour at the end of April I won’t know for sure. Even on the GS I have lowered the footpegs and crafted my own fixture to raise the seat above the factory tallest position.

---