BIKETEST HIGH ROLLERS: Geoff Hill chooses his favourites in each category and talks of the thrills and spills he has had biking in 2009
HEAVENS, doesn’t time fly when you’re falling off motorcycles?
Not a child in the house washed or a Christmas present bought, but already it’s time to pick the best bikes of the year.
Now, if you’ll give me a moment, I’ll just light the fire, fill my pipe with Old Throgmorton’s Ready Rubbed, pour a glass of Old Sparrowfart, pull on my favourite slippers, get out the fountain pen and settle myself in my favourite armchair with the cat on my lap.
Let’s start with Sports Bike of the Year. I was hugely impressed by the much-improved suspension and handling on the Kawasaki ZX-10R Ninja, which still does 100mph in first gear, but which you can now ride just as fast as the incredibly twitchy previous versions without constantly thinking: “I’m just about to die, but what a way to go.”
But the laurels this year must go to the Yamaha R1, with its revolutionary Valentino Rossi-inspired crossplane crank and irregular firing system, which made it spin as freely as a two-stroke so The Doctor could get in and out of corners as quickly and smoothly as possible.
Add a clever mode control, a MotoGP-based chassis design, more sensitive brakes and suspension, and you have a machine that is not the most powerful on the planet, but is the easiest for even an idiot to ride quickly and smoothly.
I know, for I was that idiot, and after only 15 minutes on the R1, I was taking corners faster than ever before. On any bike.
Best Cruiser has to go to Triumph’s new Thunderbird, from a company that can’t put a foot wrong these days, selling more bikes than ever and seeing profits rise by 16 per cent in a year that saw global 500cc-plus bike sales fall by almost a third.
The 1,600cc Thunderbird fills the gaping hole in the Hinckley firm’s range between the 865cc Bonneville America and the 2.3-litre Rocket III.
And fill it they have: the brainchild of LA design specialist Tim Prentice looks stunningly low, sleek and muscular, with a sound to match from the brand new parallel twin, subtly mimicking a V-twin sound by tailoring the firing pulses and producing a visceral growl on acceleration and a delicious symphony of over-run pops when slowing.
Not to mention meaty performance, a slick gearbox and forks set steep enough to allow countersteering, which means precise cornering and flawless handling.
The only new tourer I rode was the smooth, relaxed and stable Harley Heritage Softail Classic, but all the tourer attention this year was focused on the Sports Tourer section, with three bikes vying for the top spot: the BMW K1300GT, the Honda VFR1200F and the Kawasaki ZZR1400.
The BMW was a revelation, with its feast of technology including an electronic suspension adjustment system which you can set for any load from anorexic jockey to two Sumo wrestlers with luggage plus kitchen sink.
Switch it from Comfort to Normal to Sport, and it feels like you’ve pressed a fast forward button as the bike hunkers down, tucks in and goes like a whole family of bats out of hell.
The long-awaited VFR1200F, meanwhile, proved not to be the world-beater Honda promised, but just a typical Honda: it did everything you wanted it to, but didn’t move your soul.
Unlike the Ducati Multistrada 1100S, the best Ducati I’ve ridden yet: as quick as the 1198S, as light and sensitive as the Streetfighter and the Monster, but with a seating position so comfortable that even BMW-riding bank managers will feel instantly at home on it.
I can’t wait to get my hands on the 2010 version, which has even better performance and will be a stunning revamp of the ugly duckling looks some riders felt were the only flaw in the current model.
Other bikes that made my heart sing were the three Moto Guzzis I rode – the Bellagio, the Griso and the Norge – now with the reliability and financial back-up to match the charisma of sensuous looks and the glorious sounds of that transverse V-twin.
Best experience of the year was the California Superbike School, where Andy Ibbott and his crew at Silverstone produced a day of laughter and learning that had me cornering a third faster by the end of it.
Second worst was sitting on a Honda in the MIRA wind tunnel at Nuneaton in ancient leather at -10 degrees in a 90mph wind to launch the Get On campaign by proving how much bike clothing had come on in recent years. It h-h-has, believe me.
And worst of all was flinging a Kawasaki Versys down the road after hitting some diesel, resulting in severe bruises to both me and my wallet.
And finally (drum roll, please, ed), my Bike of the Year is the Kawasaki ZZR1400, the most comfortable space rocket on the planet: a flying machine which blasts from 0-60mph in 2.5 seconds, but has a riding position as relaxed as those big old Dutch bicycles you see chained up outside Amsterdam coffee shops.
With 197bhp on tap, it’s as powerful as a ZX-10 Ninja, yet absurdly easy to ride, just as competent trickling through town at walking pace as it would be blasting down the autobahn all day at warp speed.
As close to the perfect all-round motorcycle as you’re going to get.
Well done, that bike. And if you want my predictions for next year, I have two.
You’ll see more and more machines with multimode engine and suspension adjustment settings, giving you several bikes for the price of one.
And, mildly disappointing though the Honda VFR1200F was, when its dual clutch transmission automatic/tipronic version is released in mid-2010 – as the latest evolution of the system introduced on the DN-01 – you’ll start to see a lot more bikes with tiptronic as an option.
AND THE WINNERS ARE
Bike of the year: Kawasaki ZZR1400
Sports Bike of the Year: Yamaha R1
Best Sports Tourer: Three bikes are vying for top position: Honda VFR1200F, BMW K1300GT and Kawasaki ZZR1400
Best experience of the year: California Superbike School
Best Cruiser of the Year: Triumph's new Thunderbird
Three bikes that made the heart sing: Moto Guzzi Bellagio, Griso and Norge