iBarclay

I have been riding motorcycles on the road since 1996 and off road since I was 8 or so. Last fall I sold my Suzuki SV650 that I have owned since May 2001. It was one of the first bikes without a pepcock and had a hybrid fuel injector / carb. This was very easily clogged by the 10% ethanol in gas now days. When I sold it, it was not running and I had not ridden it for a year.

Spring is almost here and I have been studying hard to figure out what bike I will purchase next. One thing is for sure it will be an Adventure class. I thought, I had it narrowed down to the BMW F800 GS. After going to the motorcycle show last weekend I am stuck between the BMW and the Triumph Tiger 800xc. All the stats and pros say the BMW is better on the dirt and worse on the road than the Triumph. The tiger is 3 cylinders which is a balanced motor so vibrations are slim to none. The GS is a twin and apparently vibrates quite a bit at high speeds. The seat on the Tiger is also adjustable and more comfortable, which is a real plus.

As for off road the Beemer rides an inch higher which is a real advantage. After watching many videos the Tiger is no slouch and will certainly do the job off road as wall. I have heard several reports that the rims on the GS bend easily and actually saw it on one video, I have not seen the same with the Tiger.

All in all at this moment I am leaning towards the Tiger. I am waiting a few more weeks for the whether to warm up a bit and will schedule a test ride of both. More to come after the test ride.