Author Topic: MY Continenta GT Test Ride .... Photos  (Read 13218 times)

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ROVERMAN

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Reply #45 on: March 22, 2014, 02:22:20 pm
By the name you must be in the U.S. But everything is green and it's warm enough to ride! What trickery is this.
Roverman in S.E. Michigan. A.K.A. the new Artic.
 


ROVERMAN

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Reply #46 on: March 22, 2014, 02:23:23 pm
Scratch that, just saw your other post, duh!


DanB

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Reply #47 on: March 22, 2014, 03:12:37 pm
@DavetheYank.  Nice video and nice stretch of road there!  Thanks for sharing.
Suppose I were an idiot, and suppose I were a member of Congress; but I repeat myself. ... Mark Twain
2006 AVL Electra


wildbill

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Reply #48 on: March 22, 2014, 11:20:18 pm
Well its true i did throw it up on eBay but not for the reason of the slow start up. when i bought the bike i always wondered could if i handle that thin solo seat which appeared to have not much padding.
fortunately it turned out that the seat and the padding were fine and the overall opinion on the bike is still very positive.what has stopped me totally - has been the riding position and the pain i have experienced in the neck/shoulder/muscle areas. it has totally stopped me in my tracks. i have experienced severe pain and been on strong pain killers from the docotor for several days now. now 5 days after my last ride i have not got the guts to get on it.
this was not a one off incident. i've had this drama 3 times on the bike. last run in only 20 miles.
probably not the bikes fault. a few years ago i did chain saw work for 10 years and that i feel caused the heck/shoulder injuries.
so although i thought this bike is good it may not be for me.
meanwhile not to write it off totally i fired ducatty scotty an email outlining my predicament and asked if there any way i could improve the riding position.
as usual and as helpful as he always is - he responded with this bit of great info -
 
Clip -On High Rise handlebars 70mm @ $129 US and will raise riding position by 3"

so i might just buy a pair and do just that - about $200 landed here in Oz and see how i go. its a cheap gamble and might just pay off and do the trick - or the other option - it's another C5 for me  :D yep! gotta love those C5's ;)
anyway only time will decide the outcome of this saga. bike owes me $9800 so if someone parts with $9000 it will probably go.
plus I'm waiting delivery on the sports exhaust. ...see drama in all directions  ::)
whatever you read or decide...don't get me wrong. this is the best enfield i have ridden - slow starter or not.
this bike handles bumps far better than the standard C5 or the B5 as i've fired it along the same back roads. the very same bumps where previously i was lifted off the seat on both of my old C5's - this cafe job ran  straight over them and drama free.
its now Sunday in Oz so i have a couple of days to decide if i will order these 3" riser bars and will it save my sorry AS......
pity really to get rid of such a good looking motorbike. other choice just buy another C5 - tan/cherry. Will be hard to get this one past the wife LOL
looking back to my constant car buying days ....now it happening all over again with motorbikes.
wife even said to me yesterday. why not just buy a harley. trouble is i don't want one - i like these enfields because they have 'soul' and i have had more fun in the past 2 years scooting about the back roads of inland nsw aust than all my years driving the sports cars.
anyway we will see how this pans out

 




dginfw

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Reply #49 on: March 23, 2014, 03:47:57 am
Good luck with the clip-on risers; let us know how they do for you. Hopefully the cables won't need to be swapped. I thought about switching out the bars on mine but I'm starting to get used to the forward lean and will leave it be for now.
Dave in TX:   '01  W650- keeper
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                    '14 Continental GT-  sold
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wildbill

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Reply #50 on: March 23, 2014, 11:06:13 am
yeah the cables could also be a problem. just waiting to hear back from the usa supplier if they are in stock


High On Octane

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Reply #51 on: March 23, 2014, 01:04:19 pm
Bummer.  Sorry to hear the bike is causing you so much pain.    :(

FWIW  This is the reason I don't own a sport bike.  They are fun to ride, but after about an hour my back hurts so bad I don't even want to ride anymore.  I'll still ride a friends' from time to time just to get on a new model, but I don't think I'll ever buy one.  Unless I become wealthy and can afford to own a half dozen bikes or so.  ;)

Scottie J
2001 Harley Davidson Road King


ace.cafe

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Reply #52 on: March 23, 2014, 01:42:13 pm
There's a few things involved with adjusting to lower bars.
First, you need to be in good physical shape, in terms of muscle strength and tone.
Second, you need to have the bars and pegs adjusted to where you fit them best.
Third, don't try to remain in an upright position with your elbows locked. Your elbows need to be slightly bent. And embrace the lower riding position down on the tank.

It takes some getting used to, especially if you have always ridden in the "sit up and beg" position. However, your control over the bike is much better with lower bars, and everything works better.

This is assuming that you don't have some physical disability that precludes normal range of motion.

I have ridden low bars all my life, mostly clip-on bars that were WAY lower than the Continental GT bars. The bars on the GT are really high up. They aren't low bars at all. The clip-ons that I use are attached BELOW the headlight mounting ears, almost down to the lower triple clamp. You can lay your belly on the tank.
I rode 13 hours straight with bars that low on my 1974 Ducati 750 Sport, from Tampa to New Orleans for Mardi Gras. Yes, I was tired and sore, but I would have been tired and sore on any motorcycle after 13 hours riding.

You can get used to it. These GT bars aren't even low.
Home of the Fireball 535 !


High On Octane

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Reply #53 on: March 23, 2014, 01:49:42 pm

.........Third, don't try to remain in an upright position with your elbows locked. Your elbows need to be slightly bent. And embrace the lower riding position down on the tank..........


Now that you mention it, it does seem like the times my back was really hurting were times that I was just "cruising the bike".  The times I went out in the country and was "racing around" in a full tuck, my body didn't seem to be as angry at me.  I never put the 2 together, interesting.    ::)

Scottie J
2001 Harley Davidson Road King


Craig McClure

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Reply #54 on: March 23, 2014, 04:37:09 pm
On Riding Position; I also have ridden with low bars for most of my years. I was always more comfy with flat, to no rise bars. DRAG BARS were always very good for me. My G5 Deluxe has bars with about a 2" rise (but I'm 67).
  I have noticed in the photos, that the GT Gas Tank seems longer than the other Enfield tanks, It may be that Tank length, & distance from the seat to the Steering Head, that causes a smaller rider some problems. Even for an old guy, I don't have bar height problems, until I'm stretched out to far. My 58 Goldstar Clubman had very low clip-ons & rear sets, but the Lyta Tank wasn't any longer than a stock tank, so it was pretty comfortable. Although I would have chosen flat bars for long rides.
Best Wishes, Craig McClure


wildbill

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Reply #55 on: March 24, 2014, 09:53:49 am
today i ordered from the usa the hi-rise clip-on handle bars for my continental gt. hopefully this will sort out my shoulder neck pain issues and i can continue on with my journey on this great bike 8)


wildbill

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Reply #56 on: April 04, 2014, 01:09:25 am
well the usps isn't blessed with speed. the hi rise clip-ons package was freighted on the 24th and as of today - only in miami fl LOL


ace.cafe

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Reply #57 on: April 04, 2014, 01:13:00 am
well the usps isn't blessed with speed. the hi rise clip-ons package was freighted on the 24th and as of today - only in miami fl LOL

I do a lot of overseas shippping with USPS.
If it was sent Priority Mail, it will be there in 6-10 days. Typically 6-7 days.
If it was sent First Class mail, it will take 10-14 days, typically more like 14.
I always use Priority Mail, and it is worth the extra money to use it, IMO.
Home of the Fireball 535 !


olhogrider

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Reply #58 on: April 05, 2014, 01:55:26 am
WildBill, thanks for the reports. I hope you get it worked out. Damned nice bike. I went through two Ducatis before I figured out I just can't take the riding position. That said, last week I rode a CBR250r from San Francisco to Austin TX, about 1900 miles in 48 hours. Nothing that a couple of Tylenol couldn't fix. I couldn't have done it without that big tank bag on it! Made all the difference. After the MotoGP race I'll be riding it back. I loved my 2010 C5 and I'm really thinking of jumping back onto a Royal Enfield. Since you have owned so many, I'd like your thoughts on the Classics. Thanks.


abstruse1

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Reply #59 on: April 06, 2014, 02:42:13 am
Regarding a previous post, I always set my bike bar controls up so that there's a straight line from my shoulders to the levers.  Sometimes that can't be done due to interference, but on my GT it works fine.

Keep the speed up -- the air floats your body, taking the load off the hands and shoulders.
Abstruse1
Dallas, TX USA
    Burnin' gas on two wheels for 50 years and still lookin' for a better way!