Charlie_K
06-28-2008, 02:29 PM
Yesterday while my R1200RT was getting its 24K service at MAX BMW in Troy, NY they loaned me an F800ST. I was delighted to get a chance to ride the ST. The RT is the only bike I’ve ridden in a couple of years. I’ve gotten used to its bulk but I’m always aware of it. While I like the features on bigger bikes like the K1200LT I’m not willing to take the additional 400 pounds of motorcycle that goes with them. I wondered how a bike a hundred or so pounds lighter but designed for a similar mission would compare to the RT.
I sat on the bike and familiarized myself with the controls before I hit the road. Nothing unusual there, at least to a BMW rider. The horn button is in the same oddball spot as my RT; I’d be hitting the left turn signal whenever I intend to sound the horn on this bike too.
As I rolled out of MAX’s driveway the differences between the bikes became apparent. Going from the RT to the ST is like taking off shoes and putting on sneakers. After a few miles on NY 7 I took NY 346 into Vermont. It’s a good highway to get to know a bike on. In 9 miles you encounter roller coaster road, blind curves, railroad crossings, cattle crossings, and small towns with speed restrictions and 90-degree corners. You don’t just sit on the bike; you’re always doing something. It was fun on the ST; there’s no steering effort. You just think where you’d like to be and the bike goes there.
I hit US 7 and went south into Williamstown, MA then east to North Adams for lunch. As I ate I thought “I’ve been riding for less than a hour and I’ve been in three states, I could ride south into Connecticut then west back into New York making this a four state test drive.”
After lunch I headed south on MA 8 intending to get back on US 7 in Pittsfield and ride into Connecticut. I’d only gone a few miles when I changed my plans. The riding position on the ST had me putting too much weight on my wrists and they were getting sore. I decided to head for home. I turned onto West Mountain Road which I knew would take me to US 7, there I could take Massachusetts route 43 to New York route 43 and be home in an hour.
http://www.cacography.us/BMW/ST46.jpg
I’d been on the other end of West Mountain Road but never all the way through. The road quickly went from two lanes to a narrow road with broken pavement then to single lane dirt. The ST handled fine on the dirt, tracking well on the loose rutted surface. I would have continued but after a short while I encountered a “Road Closed” sign. I reversed course back to route 8 and went to Pittsfield.
Leaving Pittsfield on US 20 I found another annoyance with the bike. As I sat in traffic backed up by road construction the bike became uncomfortably warm on my legs, then it got worse, the fan came on blowing hot air in my face. I was real happy to get rolling again.
I’m used to people coming over to look at the RT and it was no different with the ST. When I stopped for fuel I got complimented on the bike’s looks.
As I rolled west on route 20 I noticed I had a tendency to ride too slow. Accustomed as I am to sitting behind the RT’s windshield I must have felt like I was going faster with the wind in my face. When people started passing me I picked up the pace.
When I got on Interstate 90 I again found myself riding too slow. I missed the RT’s cruise control, although I usually rely on that to keep me from accidentally going too fast.
After a stop to show the bike to my brother it was back to MAX BMW and back on my R1200RT. I was happy to be riding it again. I’ve put over 4000 miles on it in the last couple of weeks and I feel at home on it.
I’m glad I had the ST for a few hours. If I’d only ridden it around the block my opinion would be different than it is. It’s a real nice motorcycle but after an hour in the saddle some warts become apparent. The seating position could be fixed by raising the bars a couple of inches. I don’t know about the engine heat, hopefully it cools down as the bike breaks in. The bike I rode had only 36 miles on it when I got it.
So would I rather have an R1200RT or an F800ST? No question about it I like the RT better. The ST is fun and flickable, with good looks and a pleasant sound. It’s probably quite spirited too. I didn’t test that; since I had a brand new bike I rode it gently.
The RT isn’t flickable but it’s everything else the ST is and more. Since the more is all stuff I want I’ll take the size and weight that goes with it.
I sat on the bike and familiarized myself with the controls before I hit the road. Nothing unusual there, at least to a BMW rider. The horn button is in the same oddball spot as my RT; I’d be hitting the left turn signal whenever I intend to sound the horn on this bike too.
As I rolled out of MAX’s driveway the differences between the bikes became apparent. Going from the RT to the ST is like taking off shoes and putting on sneakers. After a few miles on NY 7 I took NY 346 into Vermont. It’s a good highway to get to know a bike on. In 9 miles you encounter roller coaster road, blind curves, railroad crossings, cattle crossings, and small towns with speed restrictions and 90-degree corners. You don’t just sit on the bike; you’re always doing something. It was fun on the ST; there’s no steering effort. You just think where you’d like to be and the bike goes there.
I hit US 7 and went south into Williamstown, MA then east to North Adams for lunch. As I ate I thought “I’ve been riding for less than a hour and I’ve been in three states, I could ride south into Connecticut then west back into New York making this a four state test drive.”
After lunch I headed south on MA 8 intending to get back on US 7 in Pittsfield and ride into Connecticut. I’d only gone a few miles when I changed my plans. The riding position on the ST had me putting too much weight on my wrists and they were getting sore. I decided to head for home. I turned onto West Mountain Road which I knew would take me to US 7, there I could take Massachusetts route 43 to New York route 43 and be home in an hour.
http://www.cacography.us/BMW/ST46.jpg
I’d been on the other end of West Mountain Road but never all the way through. The road quickly went from two lanes to a narrow road with broken pavement then to single lane dirt. The ST handled fine on the dirt, tracking well on the loose rutted surface. I would have continued but after a short while I encountered a “Road Closed” sign. I reversed course back to route 8 and went to Pittsfield.
Leaving Pittsfield on US 20 I found another annoyance with the bike. As I sat in traffic backed up by road construction the bike became uncomfortably warm on my legs, then it got worse, the fan came on blowing hot air in my face. I was real happy to get rolling again.
I’m used to people coming over to look at the RT and it was no different with the ST. When I stopped for fuel I got complimented on the bike’s looks.
As I rolled west on route 20 I noticed I had a tendency to ride too slow. Accustomed as I am to sitting behind the RT’s windshield I must have felt like I was going faster with the wind in my face. When people started passing me I picked up the pace.
When I got on Interstate 90 I again found myself riding too slow. I missed the RT’s cruise control, although I usually rely on that to keep me from accidentally going too fast.
After a stop to show the bike to my brother it was back to MAX BMW and back on my R1200RT. I was happy to be riding it again. I’ve put over 4000 miles on it in the last couple of weeks and I feel at home on it.
I’m glad I had the ST for a few hours. If I’d only ridden it around the block my opinion would be different than it is. It’s a real nice motorcycle but after an hour in the saddle some warts become apparent. The seating position could be fixed by raising the bars a couple of inches. I don’t know about the engine heat, hopefully it cools down as the bike breaks in. The bike I rode had only 36 miles on it when I got it.
So would I rather have an R1200RT or an F800ST? No question about it I like the RT better. The ST is fun and flickable, with good looks and a pleasant sound. It’s probably quite spirited too. I didn’t test that; since I had a brand new bike I rode it gently.
The RT isn’t flickable but it’s everything else the ST is and more. Since the more is all stuff I want I’ll take the size and weight that goes with it.