A few weeks back Eddie finally took delivery of his Can Am Spyder he had on order since late last year. I was fortunate enough to ride it for a short period over the last weekend I was back home and I've gotta say that for what they are, they are impressive.
The first thing you gotta get used to is the fact that you don't need to put your feet down - it almost feels like a quad when your sitting on it, but that is about the only similarity. Cornering is completely different - usually on a bike you lean in to the corners and the force travels down through your body and bike to the road. With the Spyder, you need to use your stomach to almost force your body into the lean due to the momentum from the turn wanting to slide you off the opposite side. It really did take a few decent corners to get used to this, but once I found out how, I really loved the way this thing just stuck to the road like the proverbial to a blanket! I took the turn off from the M1 onto the Gateway where the road loops under the other whilst in a tight turn - that is one point where I really wanted to give it a bit of jooce to see how it would react. I came out of that corner at abbout 90kmh hanging on for dear life with all three wheels on the road, to further prove my point. One other point - it is VERY good at changing direction in a hurry, but make sure you are ready for it!! Even the slightest bump from a free arm on one occassion was cause for alarm.
I was very impressed with the performance from the 990cc Rotax V-twin that powers the Spyder as well - on a couple of occassions I opened it up from a dead stop and it didn't take long to pull the 316kg machine plus my 'healthy' weight up to a decent cruising speed. The rear wheel is shod in a flat profile 225 tyre and does all the grunt work, with almost all of that rubber flat on the road surface to provide you with great traction.
My opinion of them - if you like a conversation with others about them then get one. Everywhere we stopped, waited and even whilst riding on the road, people where commenting, staring and pointing. It does stand out and I believe that BRP have matched these stand out looks with some healthy performance figures, thanks to the Rotax motor and the belt driven rear wheel. A couple of other stand out features - the large storage area under the front panel for those times when you need more than just the seat behind you and the reverse gear, although I didn't need to give it a go.
I personally would not buy one - I much prefer the two wheeled type, but if you get a chance to ride one, do it - I reckon you will like it!
The first thing you gotta get used to is the fact that you don't need to put your feet down - it almost feels like a quad when your sitting on it, but that is about the only similarity. Cornering is completely different - usually on a bike you lean in to the corners and the force travels down through your body and bike to the road. With the Spyder, you need to use your stomach to almost force your body into the lean due to the momentum from the turn wanting to slide you off the opposite side. It really did take a few decent corners to get used to this, but once I found out how, I really loved the way this thing just stuck to the road like the proverbial to a blanket! I took the turn off from the M1 onto the Gateway where the road loops under the other whilst in a tight turn - that is one point where I really wanted to give it a bit of jooce to see how it would react. I came out of that corner at abbout 90kmh hanging on for dear life with all three wheels on the road, to further prove my point. One other point - it is VERY good at changing direction in a hurry, but make sure you are ready for it!! Even the slightest bump from a free arm on one occassion was cause for alarm.
I was very impressed with the performance from the 990cc Rotax V-twin that powers the Spyder as well - on a couple of occassions I opened it up from a dead stop and it didn't take long to pull the 316kg machine plus my 'healthy' weight up to a decent cruising speed. The rear wheel is shod in a flat profile 225 tyre and does all the grunt work, with almost all of that rubber flat on the road surface to provide you with great traction.
My opinion of them - if you like a conversation with others about them then get one. Everywhere we stopped, waited and even whilst riding on the road, people where commenting, staring and pointing. It does stand out and I believe that BRP have matched these stand out looks with some healthy performance figures, thanks to the Rotax motor and the belt driven rear wheel. A couple of other stand out features - the large storage area under the front panel for those times when you need more than just the seat behind you and the reverse gear, although I didn't need to give it a go.
I personally would not buy one - I much prefer the two wheeled type, but if you get a chance to ride one, do it - I reckon you will like it!
Labels: Motorcycle News
posted by Beaker at 9:16 PM
Return To Top
2 Comments:
I had so much fun on my demo ride at the Phoenix bike show. They are surprisingly quick. I was lucky, cause I usually have to wait the demos out because of my short size. This one, I didn't. No feet down and no front brake only took a couple of minutes to get used to. Like a toy... a lot of fun.
I work with a guy who is mad keen to get one of these. He has a medical condition that leaves him with little strength in his legs and so he has never been able to ride a normal bike as his knees give way when supporting the bike at stop if it leans much. His hurdle now is how to get his bike license given these still need him to have that despite not really being a motorbike.
Post a Comment
<< Home