I just read an amazing recount of a motorcycle accident by Sylvia Stuurman and her subsequent path to recovery. The reconstruction of the accident and thoughts about managing risk are interesting.
She also has some great insights on motorcycle touring and engineering. She makes a good case for the Derbi Mulhacen. Would she have migrated from a giant “adventure” 1200 BMW to this smaller, more nimble, bike if not for the accident?
For what it is worth, the Mulhacen is said to be the largest bike ever made in Spain, but it’s incredibly small compared to the latest American and German designs.
Does anyone really think 1600cc is a safe or reasonable platform for two wheels? Even 1200 seems out of proportion to me. I couldn’t help but notice the Mulhacen was designed by a German engineer, Klaus Nennewitz, who also helped Aprilia make the Tuono, and the engine is a Yamaha design. Derbi is a subsidiary of Piaggio, the famous scooter company. This new take on the 1970s scrambler concept is probably far too sensible (it’s a long long way from the current fad of chrome-covered American garage queens and show boats) to be shipped to the US market for some time.
The only thing I’d change is to make it a diesel-hybrid instead of yet another gasoline bike. But I guess that would be changing a lot, eh?
Thanks for the compliments :-)
As longtime XT500 rider i always said all those big bikes are costly overkill (especially the speeding tickets get costly :-)
But she got me hooked on the telelever drug of BMW, you’ll have to ride it to understand a GS
but a big bike is just to flatter your riding skillsuntil the eventual spills…
In Europe there’s a steady turnover away of the big bikes towards “xt powered” funbikes, aprillia pegaso Yamaha XTX DRZ400 etc.etc.
So there’s hope the Armsraces is coming to an end, who in his sensible mind could say he needs 170+ HP :-)
Well, a 1200cc or even 1600cc bikes has its uses;
most bikes of this size are _cruisers_, as
opposed to race replica models, which, while they may generally have smaller engines, actually have
much more horse power and are much lighter…
There are smaller bikes available in the U.S.,
but not many.
I currently ride 1000cc, 650cc, and 400c, with the
smallest one being a dual-sport, meaning that it can be ridden on and off road.
Japan, and most of the European nations, offer on
average, much smaller bikes, partly because of the higher gas prices, but also because they have a
tiered licensing system, with beginning riders
required to own bikes under a specified engine size. As a result, one can find a huge choice
of new and used smaller bikes for sale…
bruce.