After my ride cross country and back last year on the VFR, the 4 of us were itching for another bike adventure so this time we tackled the Alps this June. I really wanted to do it on my VFR but shipping really didnt seem logical for a 2 week trip.
So we ended up renting two R1200GS' and set off from Heidelberg Germany on a 2198 mile tour over 14 days of the Alps and Dolomites through Switzerland, Austria, Italy and France. We hit tons of passes, hail, and an amazing adventure overall! Gotta say though, definitely not a huge fan of the R1200GS and missed my VFR every day of the trip! Got back home and the next morning at 6am jumped on the VFR and took was amazed at how great it felt, sounded, rode, everything.
Anyway, enjoy the vid, I suggest watching in 1080p full screen with sound :)
Awesome video! Now as far as missing your VFR, were you still missing it on those roads less traveled? I.e. Unpaved stuff or did the GS seem better suited for those? That definitely look like a great trip! Thanks for sharing.
Awesome video! Now as far as missing your VFR, were you still missing it on those roads less traveled? I.e. Unpaved stuff or did the GS seem better suited for those? That definitely look like a great trip! Thanks for sharing.
Not at all, and exploring off road was an amazing part of the trip, and something I've never done before. Truth be told, my disdain for the GS is half-hearted, and I completely see why so many people ride them and choose them for round-the world trips. Hell, if I were doing a round-the-world trip I'd be hard pressed not to ride a GS. It does everything competently, it's comfortable, has great power/torque, low CG, shockingly good handling, ground clearance for miles, and though its a pig off-road, it does things a VFR wouldn't dream of.
With all that said, it felt like a nerd-bike. I had an epiphany when we were on the trip; the R1200GS is the scooter of motorcycles. No one can argue the practicality of a scooter, but they're nerdy as hell! The GS sounds farty, gearbox is clunky, nothing is silky, motor vibes like some sort of lawn equipment/tractor, no sex appeal, you don't feel cool riding one, and I never once looked back at it longingly when I got off of it.
Thats the exact opposite of my 6th gen. My gutted exhaust scares small children and animals of all species. No animals even flinched when I rev'd the GS, not even those miniature horses. I made Bison scramble in Yellowstone when I blipped my VFR throttle barely past 4k. And when I get off the VFR I don't think there's been a single time when I haven't looked back to check out dat ass, and that sexy single sided swing arm. And I feel cool riding it, and I realized on this trip that thats about 50% of my enjoyment of riding a motorcycle. Its definitely not the same for everyone, and I think I'm spoiled. 10 years ago I toured the entire island of Cyprus on a 50cc yellow scooter, and I felt like got damn James Dean the entire time...but I didn't have a VFR to compare it to...