Triumphrat

ChuckofTahoe · 08-29-2006

Put my Bonnie in the shop for a Dynamometer tune and got the use of their 2006 Demonstrator Tiger for the day. Very nice ride and my congratulations to those who own this beast.

Took the big moose down highway 395 to Carson City from Reno, Up 50 to the Lake and into Incline Village via 28. I returned the Tiger to Reno via Interstate 80.

I really enjoyed the ride. To me it was like a 100+ MPH magic carpet ride. Extremely smooth and capable in the very high speed bends.

I love the quirkiness of the bike, the looks and the unique floating feeling at low speeds. Like any bike there are pros and cons and your forum knows them better than I:

Yes, the big tank is top heavy but I prefer to think of it as the bottomless tank and delighted in doing 40 miles with the needle touching on the red zone and having it not tick downward at all. The instruments are dated as far as finishes but hey, look at what you do get for $5K less than the big beemer.

I had an issue with splaying my legs around the tank as far as discomfort. But I am sure this is something I would adapt to with time and the aches would cease with more frequent usage.

Thanks to all the tales of people dropping these machines, I was extremely careful, particularly around the grades and sandy spots of Incline and was able to avoid damaging the loaner.

It was a little tall for me. Particularly where I live and the amount of gravel and sand on the roads in combination with extreme hill grades. But I managed OK. I think with time, it would become second nature.

When I picked up the Bonnie, I felt like I was riding a bicycle. :-D

But soon the good Bonnie feeling returned as I cut up the Mt. Rose highway to Incline. I felt the Bonnie could hang with the Tiger up to about 85-90 miles per hour. But north of 100 MPH, the Tiger enters a whole new universe that does not exist for the Bonneville rider.

I put a short write up on my web site if anyone is interested.

A few pics of this particular specimen:

[ This message was edited by: ChuckofTahoe on 2006-08-28 23:22 ]

adrianmol · 08-29-2006

Chuck,

That was a good read. Glad you liked the Tiger. I'll try and get a Bonneville courtesy bike next time.

Cos · 08-29-2006

Glad ya liked it...once mine is all fixed up i'll come up there so you can see that orange is better

. Altough,i think i'll be avoiding Mount Rose Highway. That place is jinxed for me now...jinxed i tell you.

thx1158 · 08-29-2006

I had a bonnie loaner for my Tiger. It did feel like a bicycle...but I'm a big guy. Nice little bike. I'm dropping the tiger off this evening for warped rotors..hope I get to try something else..lol!

Silverstripes · 08-29-2006

Hi

Glad you like the guest ride on our normal kit. Now you know why we all ride with big grins.

And the icing on the cake==== They gave you the best colour

:razz: :razz: :razz:

ChuckofTahoe · 08-29-2006

Hey Cos, hope you are recovering from the crazy crash you had.

I think my favorite Tiger colors are in order: Orange, BRG, Black. My Bonnie has orange in it.

I enjoyed the Silver Tiger a lot. I had a couple of nitpick issues with it: Mainly fit and finish quality. Particularly the instrument console and the panniers. This relatively new Tiger I had was really showing wear on certain cheaper parts. Other minor issues:the hot area below the tank where your thighs fit, vibration in the hand grips at highway speed and of course my discomfort with splaying my legs around the huge gas tank.

But most of this could be addressed by a few simple modifications and getting familiar with the ergonomics.

For me at a 33-34" inseam though (in boots), it would not be a practical ride for my daily commuting. Especially around Incline with the steep grades and sand on the roads. I come from the school where dropping a bike is an unacceptable occurence. And that means I would have to grow another three inches to handle the Tiger in it's stock form on a daily basis. At least where I live anyway. I did love having my head higher than most SUV drivers though. :-D

I will be interested to see the 2007 edition of the Tiger and the apparent re-working of the bike. From what I have heard, I will miss the 19" wheel, the bottomless gas tank and the cushy wide saddle. But will welcome finer detailing on the instrument package and panniers hopefully. Maybe more flexible height adjustment will offer some of us shorties the option of considering the Tiger as a daily working ride.

I agree with you about Mt. Rose. That highway is haunted. It seems there are at least 3-4 deaths on that road every year. I avoided it on my Tiger jaunt yesterday.

Quote:

On 2006-08-29 06:57, Cos wrote:
Glad ya liked it...once mine is all fixed up i'll come up there so you can see that orange is better

. Altough,i think i'll be avoiding Mount Rose Highway. That place is jinxed for me now...jinxed i tell you.

[ This message was edited by: ChuckofTahoe on 2006-09-01 18:27 ]

Jonny955 · 08-29-2006

Chuck, did you happen to notice which height setting the riders seat was on? I would expect that with the lowest setting, someone with your inseam would soon get used to the height of the Tiger.

I must admit that it takes some getting used to after a Bonnie though, more to do with the weight distribution than anything else.

Jon

Cos · 08-29-2006

You're right about the height of the bike and fear of dropping.I think that's the main reason most of us fit crash bars on ours,not the actual crashing.In any event,it saved mine from being totalled.I'm 5"11 with about a 32 inch inseam and i'm always very careful when it comes to putting my foot down. Other than that,i'm really happy with the bike...you know,minus the freak occurence last weekend. It's a "me" kinda bike.I waited for 6 months to get my Tiger and i talked Mark into holding that specific orange one off the floor because it was the last 05 around and i wanted an orange.What can i say? Me loves me Tiger,and i think most of us do,despite and because of its (limited) flaws. Hmm...can you tell i miss my Tiger?

ChuckofTahoe · 08-29-2006

I actually took a tape measure and measured the heights. On it's sidestand one side was higher than the other obviously. The high side was well over 34". The low side was under 33". So I think this was smack dab in the middle of the adjustment range. Freedom Cycle lowers a lot of Tigers for people but I don't think this was one of them.

With boots on and the bike settling under my weight, I was just about able to flat foot it. On level ground. And that is the key. We have so many hills around here. My driveway opens onto a sidehill road that is pitched about 15 degrees. So coming out of my driveway I lose about 2" on the downhill side of the bike. Throw in gravel, sand and pine tree needles and you have a recipe for disaster. Put your boot down and the bike rises up another inch. This scenario repeats itself all througout the town.

Like Dirty Harry once said: "A man has to know his limitations."

I know mine. My bonnie is a skinny bike and I look like a gorilla riding it but I can put it through hoops if needed. And sometimes that is what is needed. Of course you can get the Tiger lowered but to me that would be like neutering Seattle Slew or something.

The Tiger is a thrill to ride on the high speed turns. I did not want to find the limit, but I got it turned over pretty far at over 90 MPH. This is it's strength.

Quote:

On 2006-08-29 09:40, Jonny955 wrote:
Chuck, did you happen to notice which height setting the riders seat was on? I would expect that with the lowest setting, someone with your inseam would soon get used to the height of the Tiger.

I must admit that it takes some getting used to after a Bonnie though, more to do with the weight distribution than anything else.

Jon

[ This message was edited by: ChuckofTahoe on 2006-08-29 10:03 ]

Cos · 08-29-2006

The demo is lowered.Forks have been raised.