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On tour with super athletes

Do the bend

Anyone who claims that super athletes are only good for a quickie on the home track or for race training is wrong. MOTORRAD turned towards Italy. With sack, pack? and six hot racers from all classes.

Motorway N 13, just before the San Bernardino. It’s raining. Something else in early summer 2006. But the gray in gray also has something contemplative about it. When the spray clouds the motorbikes, you are alone with yourself. Leaves the line
120 and the effortless hum of the engine, the thoughts are circling. Was it really a good idea to pound the Alps with the super athletes?
If it had been the usual 200-kilometer ride
not done as well on Sunday morning this weekend?
Too late, Karsten pushes himself on the same level as the 750 Suzuki and grins over there. He has to play an optimist. After all, he had infected everyone. We had been listening to Italy for so long, fed up with the sun, that we became completely mad
with anticipation. We, that’s Stefan with
the Aprilia RSV 1000 R Factory, Rainer
with the Honda CBR 1000 RR Fireblade, Sven with the 749 Ducati, Markus with the Triumph Daytona 675 and I with the Yamaha YZF-R6.
So now we’re rolling towards Italy on motorcycles that were conceived in the sports departments and born on the racetrack. Every line, every screw, every cover on these bikes exudes the pursuit of perfection. Machines whose exterior is impressive. With all due respect, sports tourers or tourers simply cannot keep up. Such a trip would be? said Karsten ?? finally decide which drive concept is best for you. For the Autobahn, for
the country road, for passes. For everything. The small, lively 600s, the Vierzy-
linder-R6 and the three-cylinder Triumph, the large one-liter steam hammers of the Mille-V2 and the Fireblade quad, or the 750 mid-range with the 90-degree V-engine from the Ducati and the in-line four -cylinder from the Suzuki.
The spot of light at the end of the San
Bernardino tunnel is getting bigger ?? and brighter. Snap, as if at the push of a button, the sun makes great cleansers in the sky. It
gets warm in the rain suit. Fortunately, Sven is waving around on the Ducati, which has the least amount of fuel to store with 15.5 liters. Refueling stop. Set indicators, huuup. Everyone is grinning? except Stefan. The Mille’s turn signal switch is really too clumsy right under the horn button.
Get out of the soaking wet plastic skin. Athletes aren’t
Tourers use their narrow, crouched fairings solely to efficiently dig their way through the wind. They like to leave the topic of cozy places to others. By the way, who was joking about the Speedpack? The part is a space saver. Spare gloves, dry jackets, and now six wet rain suits disappear into him. Only the luggage roll lashed to the Aprilia can almost keep up in terms of storage space. The minimalist troop with tank rucksacks, rear bags or rucksacks is happy about the clothing asylum.
Honda driver Rainer laughs. 400 kilometers of motorway ?? so what? The Fireblade
confirms the trend in the current superbikes. Board-hard suspension, ultra-low handlebar stubs, that was once upon a time. The sitting position is leaned forward in a sporty manner, without the wrists having to support the weight of the upper body too much. The suspension of the Honda gallantly soaks up disgusting transverse joints on motorway bridges. The GSX-R does this just as well. It positions its pilot in a relaxed, sporty stance, the strut and fork simply swallow the stumbling block. Also the
Ducati suspension elements are convincing. Both the fork and the shock absorber respond cleanly and are comfortable
Voted. The upper body is, however, noticeably more stretched forward than on the Honda and Suzuki.
The rest of the team, however, is still inspired by the true spirit of sport. Butt up, helmet back, view through the upper edge of the visor. Comfort?
Well At least the front wheel guides do not let anything come off the bench. With advantage for Aprilia’s Ohlins front. So sensitive in response, so smooth in cushioning, perfect. In the rear, the three of them are sporty toughness. The most comfortable is the Triumph, followed by the already noticeably tighter Aprilia and the hard-core set-up of the Yamaha. In any case, there’s nothing like sagging on the highway. It takes body tension to absorb hard hits.
Shortly after Bellinzona. Locarno ?? the first cappuccino beckons. The machines are in the limelight between the cafe tables and Lake Maggiore. Each
a work of art in itself, a composition in steel, aluminum, titanium and carbon. Even the Lago can do that
difficult to counter. But raved enough. The quayside promises curves, curves, curves ?? and lasts little. The tourist traffic moves at a snail‘s pace between the rock face and the lake. Jump in columns instead of frenzy of curves. The big four-cylinders of the Honda and the Suzuki sniff the buses the easiest. Fireblade and GSX-R dutifully mimic the tourer, playfully put things away in a single gear. The Aprilia has to be very defined
gear to be shifted. Their V2 chops too much below 3000 rpm. With the Duc needs ?? s ?? just because of the long translation ?? usually also a gear change. After all, their gear shifts as smooth as butter, albeit with long distances.
The intermediate sprints are easier to triumph. The lively three-cylinder engine allows, instead of downshifting, to start outside the
Start comfort range around 5000 revs without it collapsing. And if a gear change is necessary: ​​short distances, defined commitment? how it should be. Yamaha doesn’t even know the term sovereignty from hearsay. Below 7000 rpm blows single-
Lich a mild breeze from the exhaust stub. Overtaking is only possible in the Prolo-
Style. Downshift, cheer up the four-cylinder for at least 9000 tours and with the noise of a fighter jet the gentlemen in the fully air-conditioned liner from
Beckers Reisen let the pacemaker rattle into reset mode.
We’re turning west. And it doesn’t get any better. One village follows the other, with trucks, tractors, vehicle turning, turning ?? Karsten! Roadside crisis meeting. Okay, to Turin, and then off to the mountains. Finally the longed-for sign, Col de Lyss. The road winds up quickly, bend follows bend, good asphalt ?? grace! Albergo, made it. The basis for the next two days. Rainer is still laughing, Karsten too. The others have enough for today. hand–
joints and neck pain. They are now allergic to the terms Fireblade and GSX-R. Before checking in, the star parade in front of the cartridge. Belle moto, let it be beautiful motorcycles. Who is he telling this to? And he knows his way around. Ten minutes later we wrote down tours for two weeks.
The night brings everything back on track. The next day: no luggage, no rain gear, just looking forward to a sports festival
in the serpentines. A quick check before departure. Only on the Triumph and the Yamaha the oil dipstick has to be laboriously pulled, with the rest a look in the sight glass is enough. We curl up. Direct hit, this area. Small streets, hardly any traffic, curves as far as the eye can see. Now it’s time for others. The fat ones stay behind. Sorry, what does fat mean here? Behind the two featherweights R6 and Daytona 675, which are exactly 190 kilograms with a full tank, the Fireblade with 205 kilograms and the GSX-R with 200 mark the middle class, while the Aprilia with 211 and
the Ducati with a whopping 216 kilos push the most pounds around the corners. So be it. What counts here is the overall package. Is the draft from the tight turns, the translation, the handling, the load change behavior, the brakes. The motorcycle as a whole.
The R6 is pushing forward. Understandable, with so much racing in your blood. But do such manners have to be just as the best-in-class 600? Do you have to trample into first gear before every bend in order to find the connection to second gear at full speed at the end of the bend, with infernal background noise and raised front wheel? It must. Because ?? as I said ?? Hardly anything happens on the R6 below 7000 revs. Sure, that
easy to dose brakes and superb handling inspires. In tight corners, however, the extreme motor chaos makes it difficult-
characteristic and the one leaning forward
Sitting position does the work for the busy Yamaha rider. In the swift curves of racetracks when the speed is easy
can be kept in the five-digit range, the R6 may shine, in the tight maze of curves it is simply difficult.
Sven on the Ducati has it easier. 5000 revolutions are enough to bring the Italian to a lively rhythm
hold. And she does it calmly and calmly. Maybe too calm. Because the
112 hp help the 749 only cautiously on the jumps due to the long gear ratio. If things are very tight, first gear has to serve her as well. In addition, maneuverability is not exactly one of the Duc’s strengths. The stretched sitting position does the rest. If the straights get longer, the L-motor pushes hard, but shows between 8000 and 10000 tours with clear vibrations its discomfort. In return, the 749 is on bumpy slopes like the proverbial board, brakes
excellent and can be turned into alternating curves
forcefully tossing back and forth at her slim waist.
Stefan would also prefer to travel on fast terrain with the Aprilia. Of the racetrack qualities ?? straight from the factory version ?? experts have raved for a long time. Works in the mountains
the mille, on the other hand, strained Similar
the Ducati forces her boss into a sporty seating position, the already rough engine jerks roughly below 3000 rpm and therefore even occasionally requires switching to first gear in order to make everything forgotten a fraction of a second later. Then the mighty V2 pushes hard and lets the strong hand of torque do everything else. If things get even faster, no problem. With four individual pads each, the front double disc system brakes in a record-breaking manner.
The order has now changed. The very different trio of Aprilia, Ducati and Yamaha has found the same pace, the Honda, Suzuki and Triumph are still at odds. Of these three in particular, everyone expected that they would have to surrender to the extremes of the R6 or the Mille on the winding streets. Are you kidding me? Are you serious when you say that. Tea strenght is to be found in serenity ?? at least
in the two four-cylinders. The second gear on the Fireblade or the third on the relatively short Suzuki is enough in the jungle of bends. Wonderfully elastic? from 2000 / min the Honda, from 5000 / min the 250 cm3 smaller Suzuki ?? turn up the engines, give the pilot a sovereign relaxation. Accelerate, brake, bend? you have to get more
don’t bother on board the two. This creates reserves to approach the limits of humans and machines. And you can see: Fireblade and GSX-R 750 hardly take anything on such terrain. Whether the low load change reactions, the easy-to-dose brakes or the minimal weight difference, ultimately only the huge punch of 163 hp speaks? almost 30 more than the Suzuki ?? for the Honda.
Unless you’re on intensive-
Adventures. Then the Triumph comes into play. What the British with the 675
who have provided the wheels can hardly be surpassed in terms of emotionality. Just the hotter sound from the three exhausts-
End pieces ?? eerily beautiful. This
robust pressure from 5000 / min ?? subjectively much stronger than tea measured 114 hp. The razor-sharp steering precision that the Englishwoman achieves to the millimeter
hit the targeted line? brilliant.
The first-class to dose brakes ?? tip Top. Objectively can certainly
not even measure a lot, subjectively
Triumph immediately captures anyone who is even partially willing with skin and hair. A bike to keep tires on these serpentines until the end of the day
rub off. And the pinch in the neck from the journey? Oh, long gone. It wasn’t that bad after all.

On tour with super athletes

Do the bend

Motor technology IG Druck

A piston is worth a thousand words? gold must
a low-displacement four-cylinder like the Yamaha R6
become a barrel organ and the fat Aprilia-V2 his salvation
looking in the draft from the speed cellar? You need to. If there is one class that reflects diversity in motorcycle construction, it is that of the super sports car. Displacement between 600 and 1000 cm3, distributed over two, three and four cylinders, top performance between real 112 and 163 hp ?? the world
des sport offers something for everyone.
Why is best explained using the example of the two conceptual extremes of the test field, the Yamaha R6 and the Aprilia Mille. Basically, the following applies: Should the same peak output be achieved from less displacement (R6:
121 PS, Mille: 130 PS) as if extracted from a larger-displacement unit, the smaller engine has to turn higher. Yamaha went to great lengths with the R6 in this regard. The maximum value of real 16100 spins ?? the tachometer then signals an incredible 17500 /
min ?? represents the current record in series motorcycle production in this displacement class. However, high speeds require the lowest possible reciprocating masses.
This can only be achieved with smaller individual cubic capacities. 150 cm3 per cylinder for the Yamaha is compared to 499 cm3 for the Mille. The piston weight, one of the decisive factors, is drastically reduced: the R6 piston weighs 132 grams, the Mille counterpart 384 grams.
The same picture in the cylinder head: The smaller combustion chambers require smaller and therefore lighter valves. In which
Yamaha saved another 40 percent in weight by using titanium. An R6 inlet valve weighs 16 grams, the steel counterpart of the Mille with it
46 grams. Ultimately, the smaller individual cubic capacity ensures
at faster combustion because the flame front all
Fresh gases in the small R6 combustion chambers faster than
in the big pots the mille can ignite.
The ostensibly technically superior design of the Yamaha engine has disadvantages in practice. In order to pass on proper torque to the rear wheel, it has to be translated briefly. Not everyone likes the resulting high speed level. While the Aprilia-V2 shines with good filling even at low speeds, the Yamaha quad rattles asthmatically to itself in the low-rev range. A comparison: At 6000 rpm, the Aprilia propellant with 70 hp pushes a whopping 30 hp more
than the Yamaha. For the 121 hp peak performance, which
the R6 manages 14100 rpm, the Mille 9000 revs. Nevertheless, the small 600 does hardly worse than the 1000 V2. Reason: that of noise-
final gear ratio determined by exhaust gas limits. At 100 km / h the Mille turns 3700 rpm and delivers 35.6 hp from Hinter-
rad, the R6 is already turning 5900 tours and delivering 1.2 hp more.
The real winner in the competition of concepts: the Honda Fireblade. Similar to the R6 engine, it combines smaller individual cubic capacities (250 cm3) with the power of cubic capacity. And easily overshadows the rest of the league in every respect. At 100 km / h in
sixth gear it delivers 50.5 hp. Any questions?

Conclusion

Karsten Schwers, motorcycle test driver (above),
and Peter Mayer, motorcycle-
editor
Common sense and sport bikes ?? it doesn’t go together. Anyone who is enthusiastic about these machines does not count peas, they accept the courage to leave the gap with which the manufacturers implement these concepts. He is fascinated by the uncompromising end-
direction, technology and even more so from the extremes.
And yet: at some point, reality will shake these dreams. You catch yourself weighing yourself up. Less lawn at the destination for better travel there? Or the other way around?
And then, damn it, you can do either.
The Fireblade and the GSX-R show how it is done. Kommod on tour and at the same time fast in the corners. So again a victory of reason? Yes, and that’s it. Because we don’t want to be sensible. Admitted it, still
to rave about extremes like the Mille or the R6 ?? and choose for
the next exit the Triumph.

Luggage transport – hot goods

The tour doesn’t have to end like this.
MOTORRAD took some luggage systems for sports machines
with on the journey.

On the Turin motorway ??
Milan. What was really the reason remains
always in the dark. There was only so much that could be reconstructed: The rear pocket on the Ducati 749 S loosened, slipped into the hot exhaust stream of the underseat exhaust and caught fire. Only one of the rear lights remained
charred lump, of
a little heap of ash left for the Calvin Klein. Luggage transport on sports machines can be a hot topic. Because conventional luggage systems with permanently installed carriers are stylistically taboo for Fireblade and Co. and are therefore rarely available. Only temporary solutions remain. Like the good old backpack. But: on tours over 200 kilometers, the part leads to tension in the shoulder and neck muscles, even with a narrow load. Just-
if not convincing: the luggage roll (from 20 euros). The advantages of the low price and the large storage volume have to be bought with cumbersome fixation. Tea
bad feeling that the load behind your back goes unnoticed
briefs, drives permanently.
Better: the tank bag. The choice is huge, one
Any misalignment of the luggage is noticed immediately, and the compulsory map pocket simplifies orientation. Disadvantage: The volume is limited, the trend towards plastic tanks ver-
hinders the practical magnet versions more and more and
requires the somewhat more cumbersome fixation with straps. The tail bag for the Suzuki makes a visually successful impression. The original accessories (www.suzuki.de, 140.87 euros) hold 28 liters, can be clicked on in a flash after the fastening straps have been installed, and are securely in place.
The Speedpack from SW-Motech (www.mo-tech.de, 269 euros) is good for the really big tour. Holds a proud 100 liters
the mammoth part and is fixed in one minute with a simple belt system. The support surface must however ?? as with the luggage roll? be protected from chafing with a film. The Speedpack was unimpressed by the heat of the underseat exhaust of the Honda Fireblade. In addition, the system can be used universally for all types of motorcycles. The only drawback: Without the widening of the rearview mirror, the smart part robs you of the rear view. Apart from the rucksack on the tank or back, however, all the solutions have one thing in common: Passengers have to look around for their own sports bike.

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