2016 Honda VFR1200X

Now that the news of the still-vaporware 2016 Honda Africa Twin has become old news, it is interesting to note that, even though the 1000cc Africa Twin is not available yet, Honda has published the fact that the USA will be receiving the 1200cc V-4 powered Adventure Touring "Crosstourer" model that the rest of the world has been enjoying for years. And even though it's a road bike that weights 600lbs, I can't get out of my head how cool it would be to take a big road ride on a comfy long-travel suspensioned V-4 Honda.

It even looks cool.

2016 Honda VFR1200X

2016 Honda VFR1200X Instruments

2016 Honda Africa Twin Releaved, Mostly

After months of checking the motorcycle blogs every day for real info on the upcoming Africa Twin, finally Honda spilled the beans and the blogs caught on fast.

The verdict is US prices have not been revealed yet. The bike is coming in grossly overweight from expectations, but that does not want to stop me from grabbing one. The wet specs are 511 lbs for the ABS model and 534 lbs for the ABS/DCT version. This starts at around 60 lbs heavier than hoped for, but isn't the end of the world. Future iterations will hopefully get the weight down to near liter sportbike standards. If anything, a fancy aftermarket exhaust will heal part of that woe. And if weight really is a True Issue, just wait for the smaller Honda ADV bikes to emerge in the years to come (think new Transalp and perhaps an Elsinore).

The all-new 998cc parallel twin engine with a fortunate 270 degree crank sounds about right. Judging by the relatively low peak horsepower and high peak torque specs given, this thing is going to be a nice smooth stump-puller like the ol' 1998 - 2005 Honda VTR1000F Super Hawk was. The only semi-surprise here is the use of a single camshaft -- but then again the little CRFs have that too for simplicity's sake. Sure they sign-off early, and so will the Africa Twin, but this new one is, after all, a CRF! Feeding this thing is fuel injection and a 5-gallon gas tank. Sounds good... but isn't touring overkill like we all think we want.

America gets the "Rally" red/white/black and the silver color schemes. Elsewhere get the boring kill-me-dead black and the desirable white/red/blue "Tricolor" with gold wheels and handlebar that everyone is going to want. When the time comes, I'll just have to settle for the sedate "Rally" colored bike.

2016 Honda CRF1000L Africa Twin

It's official. It's coming. This is the moto I've been waiting for my whole life. It's almost a year off yet in the US, but it's definitely coming. It's not a question of if I'll be riding one, just a matter of when.

First CRF1000L Video:

Honda CB500X

While still waiting for my beloved Honda CRF 1000 Africa Twin vaporware, I recognize I need in my life another good, fun, street/touring bike... something that doesn't cost a lot... something with a good brand name history... something to make great memories with.

A smaller, thrashable, trashable, certain run-of-the-mill, not too small, not too big, steed is now in order.

It's the Honda CB500X.

Perfect!

What does it need? For fun? Nothing. But gearing it down, putting some robust dirt bike handlebars on it, and perhaps some sticky sport rubber and a pipe and Power Commander would spice things up!

Just say yes, MotoBum. Just say yes.

A white Honda CB500X; I'll take it

The Honda CB500X cockpit; a nice looking place to the spend the day

2015 Honda CRF 1000 Africa Twin

My absolute dream bike is in development -- the replacement to the Honda XRV 750 Africa Twin (RD07), which ceased production in 2003 and was never, ever, available in the USA.

Not a lot is known about the new bike yet other than that it is definitely coming. Leaked by the CEO of Honda Italy early in August, 2013, it was announced that a proper Honda dirt-worthy ADV bike was coming for 2015 and that it would be a twin. Simultaneous Honda Uh'merica filing of the "Africa Twin" name with the United States Patent and Trademark Office sealed the leak to be truth -- a new Honda Africa Twin is definitely being made *and* it will be available for me and all of my closest friends to purchase and ride.

Life just keeps getting better.

A week ago, German publication Motorrad published an artist's conception of what this machine could very well look like. It looks oh-so-tasty. Combined with an article Moto.it published around the same time, the purported spec sheet is worth salivating over, especially as we can predict this motorcycle won't be too expensive.

Rumored Specs:

• 900-1000cc parallel twin engine (let's hope for a 270 degree crank)
• 100 bhp
• 397 lbs dry weight / 440 lbs wet weight
• 5.2 gallons of fuel
• 21" front wheel (spokes front and rear)
• Visually similar to CRF 450 Rally bike

Reference posts:

Asphalt & Rubber: Rumor: New Honda Africa Twin Coming? To the USA Even?!

Asphalt & Rubber: More Honda Africa Twin Rumors from Europe

http://www.moto.it/news/nuova-honda-africa-twin-crf-1000.html

Honda NM4

March 20, 2014 -- Honda displays an amazing "Neo-futuristic" concept bike at the Osaka Motorcycle Show. The thing looked like a production Akira feet-forward motorcycle. I thought they'd never make it. They called it the NM4

April 1, 2014 -- Honda announces the NM4 will be available mid-2014 as a 2015 model. The USA market gets the NC700X/CTX700 670cc DCT platform while the rest of world gets the revised NC750X/NC750S/Integra 745cc DCT version. US EPA bureaucracy is probably responsible for the discrepancy. Oh, well. Time will tell.

I've waited my whole life for a bike like this. It's only a matter of when, not if, I will be getting one.

Asphalt & Rubber blog concept announcement

Honda Worldwide site concept announcement

Asphalt & Rubber blog production announcement

American Honda production News Release

Honda USA site -- NM4

2014 Honda Valkrie

Big cruisers are good for one thing and only one thing -- burnouts. And this big new Honda is no exception. I'll take it!

Yamaha Cross-plane Twin

While the Yamaha news release of the 850cc triple turns out to be slightly less crazy than anticipated (with a conventional triple's 120-degree firing order), the newer news of an actual cross-plane twin with a 270-degree crank is obsession worthy. Displacement is unknown at the moment and is estimated to be somewhere between 550-900cc. Any way we cut it, there are sure to be some fun two-wheeled sleds harnessing the magic of that twin engine. I can't wait.

Yamaha Cross-plane Triple

Yamaha is about to release info about their concept engine and "new sports" machine featuring a mid-capacity four-stroke triple with an uneven firing order. Ohhhhhh yeahhhhhhh. And I can't get my mind off it.

Yamaha XT1200Z Super Tenere (again)

This bike still has my mind. This week the passion for it remains. I do plan to add one to the stable for long two-up journeys.

As with most motorbikes, it's the accessories list that really makes them special. And the XT1200 is no exception. Here's what this one will get:

• California Scientific windshield
• Touratech adjustable windshield mount with GPS bar
• Touratech headlight bezel
• Touratech LED daytime running lights with headlight bezel
• Touratech anodized Zega Pro 38/45 liter hard bags + mount
• Touratech handguards, red, with white handguard extensions
• Pro Taper Raptor handle bars
• Twisted Throttle handlebar risers for 1 1/8" bars
• Alt Rider crash bars
• Alt Rider skid plate
• heated handgrips
• heated passenger seat

Yamaha WR250R In Sight

As one of the earlier posts on MotoBum's Obsession This Week, the Yamaha WR250R has been high on the list of needed machines. Now it is time to pull the trigger. With a deposit down on a 2012 last-year's-model, it's time to get the machine that will take my development to the next level.

Why the WR250R? Since 2008, it continually defines what the most badass dual-sport motorcycle is. What else on the road weighs 300 lbs wet and can run on a trail at speed or on an Interstate? There aren't many motos that delve well in this arena -- certainly not many, if any, as good as the fuel-injected WR250R. 

The real driver for this need is the relationship to the WR250X supermoto and its rich aftermarket for stunt parts. The X model has different wheels, front brakes, and front fork -- beyond that, the machine is the same as the R model. That means that the parts designed for the X fit the R. And that means that a handbrake and dual-caliper rear brake bracket are only a "phone call" away. Same for stunt pegs, 12-bar, and axle sliders. 

I may have the first actual stunt dual-sport motorcycle. And I like it that way. The trick will actually be riding it well. And that is exactly why the hammer will strike the primer on this bike -- I need it for my development. With a wedding to wheelie this summer and a memorable ORBDR trek planned, I need the absolute best machinery that money can buy. The WR250R is it.

HRC 600RR + Easy Rider

The fall motorcycle shows always get my romantic motorcycle vision in 20/20. Ignoring the local darkness and rain, I go back mentally to my teenage years and simultaneously to next summer -- a fantasy land where I'm super excited to be outside in the sunshine riding fast things from Japan. This year is no exception.

This week, give me a:

2013 Honda CBR600RR in HRC red/white/blue

And an Easy Rider replica leather jacket

Biker Jackets

It's been a running theme for the past 20 years of my life -- this love for leather biker jackets. It doesn't matter if they're black, white, or any color in between.

Biker jackets have several defining features.

Biker jackets have ridiculously huge collars. The collars are so big they require snaps to keep them from flapping in the wind. Cool.

They have lots of zippers. There's a big not-quite-vertical one for getting in the jacket and shorter ones for lots of pockets set at all different angles. And, of course, there are zippers for making the sleeve ends become fitted at the wrists.

Lots of these jackets have a tiny exterior pocket with a single snap. These little pockets are perfect for carrying a Zippo lighter or something else small in size and of social value.

Leather is probably the best feature about these jackets as it is a natural sustainable substance that conforms to the owner and looks and feels better over time. I've no objection to pleather biker jackets. There are some great ones out there.

Really, this week's obsession is about really nice biker jackets. Not $100 jackets. $1000 jackets. Oh, please, universe, get me one. Get me three!

Lewis Leathers Twin Track Bronx No. 440

Lewis Leathers
Twin Track Bronx No. 440

Aero Leathers Type J106

Aero Leathers Type J106

Future bike: 2014 Husqvarna TR 900 ADV

What adventure motorcycle has a 105hp 900cc parallel-twin engine with a 315-405 degree firing order (just like a Harley Davidson; already in production on the 2013 Husqvarna Nuda 900) and does not exist yet? It's the Husqvarna TR 900. While I've made-up the name, the bike is coming -- probably in the U.S. as a 2014 model. It's yet to be officially announced, but I know I'll just have to have one. Hopefully, it'll look like its little brother but with a bit more weather protection, the just released 2013 TR 650 Terra. I'll have to have one of those too.

2013 Husqvarna TR 650 Terra - foreshadowing the 2014 TR 900 ADV!

Just listen to the Nuda 900's engine!

KTM 690 Enduro R with Rally Raid EVO2 Adventure Kit

Oh, I cannot stop thinking about this obsession - this one is starting to take over. It's a modified KTM 690 Enduro R with a Rally Raid EVO2 Adventure Kit.

The bike itself has been in production for years. It weighs 313 pounds and has a fuel-injected stroked KTM LC4 engine with around-the-world credentials to its name. Basically, it's a huge dirt bike with lights but with a rational engine tune (6,200 mile valve check intervals)... and 66hp with 50lbs of torque. Yes, I'll take it.

But dirt bikes are for the trails. I want something to take on highways and forest roads, as well as my local unpaved alleys. What the standard machine needs is weather protection, more fuel capacity, and uber cool looks. That's where Rally Raid comes in. They're making a rally-style kit with an additional 11 liters of fuel capacity and a tall rally-spec windscreen/shield that's good for mounting GPS units, rolls charts, and ride computers. Perfect.

I'd put it all together, paint it Ferrari red, and ride everywhere with it.

2012 KTM 690 Enduro R | Quick Look

Almost-KTM 690 Adventure R - OneWheelDrive

 

(Stock) 2012 KTM 690 Enduro R

 

Rally Raid EVO2 Adventure Kit installed

Yamaha XT1200Z Super Tenere

It's big. It has no beak. But it is a proper adventure motorbike. The best part about this bike is the engine. It's a parallel twin with a 270-degree crank that mimics the sound and feel of a 90-degree v-twin -- 1200ccs worth. And I love the snarly sound of a good v-twin.

I've been dreaming of it. And this machine is clearly my obsession this week. It's amazing. I just might have to have one -- seriously.

Adventure Stunt with a Super Tenere video:



AltRider's Jeremy LeBreton on the Super Tenere video:

Triumph Daytona 675

Gimme the bike in red -- a 2009 to 2012 model.

Give me a Zero Gravity Racing clear Corsa screen.

Give me the HeliBars.

Give me the Wild Hair Accessories Foot Peg Lower Kit in the 50mm variety.

I will shred with it.

Personal Power

Regarding my obesssion with freedom...

We live outside of the mainstream and want to buck the system. Skateboard, Punk Rock and Motorcycles have always been about freedom and getting away from the media produced lifestyles that have been jammed down our throats since birth. We all have the ability to live by our own policies and have some fun while doing it. I try and remember that every day.

Fight the Power....

 A quote from Glory.

2012 Honda VFR1200X

It's a land yacht that weights 606 lbs wet with a detuned VFR1200F motor in it. It has an ADV-fashionable beak that looks funny, a heavy and power-robbing shaft drive, GS-style spoked wheels running tubeless tires, and linked-brakes. Oh dear. It's not made to go off-road (obviously), but sort of looks the part if you didn't know it was 200 lbs overweight. The thing is silly. And I think I'll just have to have one.

Sport Bikes with Dirt Bars

This week I can't stop dreaming about a good sport bike fitted with nice, wide, comfortable dirt bike bars. These set-ups can be pieced together or purchased as a kit. Here's one from LSL via Hai. Just look at it. And now imagine a short Righteous Stunt Clutch and handbrake on that left bar. Oh what fun!