MLTDWN
New member
Hi all,
After some 35 years of riding motorcycles, over 30 long distance, mostly solo trips (including one Iron Butt ride), and at age 68, I just returned from my first Spyder road trip. I had such a GREAT time, I want to share my impressions, get your thoughts, and for those folks thinking about making the switch, DO IT. I hope this helps. Please bear with me since it’s a long review.
I got my 2018 RT Limited this past July. Rode from Chicago to TN/NC/GA area to do the Cherohala Skyway and Tail of the Dragon, and then down to see the Chickamauga/Chattanooga Civil War battlefields. Spent less than 20% of the ride on interstates. The Spyder was FANTASTIC! With the exception of a trip I took with my son 10 years ago, this was the most fun I’ve ever had on a motorcycle. I couldn’t be happier I made the switch! It’s put the joy back in riding for me.
PROS:
1. This may sound stupid. I didn’t know what to expect, but to me it WAS a motorcycle trip. No other way to explain it. No different, other than much less stress about slow speed maneuvering, weather, road construction and road conditions (not insignificant items). You still sit in a saddle for long hours enjoying the feeling of freedom, exposed to the elements and cagers, holding on to a set of handlebars, and being aware of every potential trap I looked out for on my motorcycles. I do miss having two fingers covering a hand brake though.
2. The feeling of stability, not lifting a heavy machine off a kickstand multiple times throughout a day when you’re tired, and not worrying about dropping a bike was wonderful. I’d done the Dragon 15 years ago on a BMW RT, and I know I did it faster on the Spyder on each of my three runs. The stability control was great comfort knowing if I pushed a little too hard, it could save me. I may have come close, but I didn’t activate it. Still it was a very nice security blanket.
3. I was less tired during and at the end of the day even though I’m older. On my return, riding 10 hours one day on country and mountain roads through TN, KY, IN and IL in over 100° heat, I wasn’t totally beat.
4. Got just as many waves from other riders as I did on my motorcycles. The camaraderie is still there. Got thumbs up from cars and pedestrians too. People like Spyders!
5. Got lots of compliments and questions which started those short fun encounters on bike trips with strangers. Even had a Harley Ultra Classic rider tell me he was jealous when he saw me backing up on loose gravel.
6. Didn’t care about those signs ordinarily causing me concern: Loose Gravel, Fresh Oil, Grooved Payment, Uneven Lanes, etc. Still careful, but no trepidation.
7. It’s not my age because I don’t drive much calmer in cars than I used to, but I was more patient, less in a hurry, did less speeding, and rode less aggressively. It’s plenty fast and leaves cars and trucks in the dust, but my guess is since it’s less maneuverable and not as fast as a motorcycle, it all combined to make me calmer. Less chance for speeding tickets or accidents. All good things which contributed to a better, safer time.
8. Riding by something you want to look at more closely or is photo worthy, and deciding to turn around on a small road, gravel shoulder, and so on to see it, was no big deal. Stopping on a hill, no problem! Trying to put a kickstand down on an incline, no problem!
9. Even with 3 wheels, you can find the “sweet spot” between one of the front tires and the rear tire to miss a small object or pothole.
CONS (none of which make me less thrilled about my Spyder):
1. Harder to handle on interstates than my Harleys or BMWs. I know motorcycles have less wind resistance, different physics and gyroscopic affects and accelerate faster which makes maneuvering and passing cars and trucks easier. On the flipside of course is passing a big semi and getting blasted with the wind is less daunting on three wheels. And avoiding interstates makes for more fun too if you have the time.
2. At 80+ mph on my latest BMW was smooth as silk (if it wasn’t a very windy day). On my Spyder I was really being tossed around at 80 mph even on non-windy days (part of the reason I rode slower, less aggressively, and smarter - all good things). And no one NEEDS to go 80 unless passing.
3. It was still very comfortable, but it was a less comfortable seating position to me than my BMW RT. I sit more forward and from YouTube videos installing pegs, I don’t think highway pegs would let me stretch out my legs all that much more to make a material difference (I’m 6’ tall). I have (and need) a driver’s backrest, but I had one on my BMW so that isn’t the reason.
4. With a pack on the back seat, putting in gas was a pain. I didn’t want to have to take my pack off every time, so I had to prop up the seat by putting my water bottle underneath while I took off the cap and pulled out the gas nozzle. I still had to hold the seat up higher with one hand while pumping with the other. Tough on the old back. Lifting up a tank bag over the gas tank was much simpler.
5. Even with nothing on the back seat, I find filling the tank harder. My motorcycles generally were on top of the tank which was easier to see when you were getting to the top. On the Spyder, the gas pump automatic shut off prevented me from getting close to full and I had to keep topping it off by pulling the pump out ever so much and putting a bit more gas several times. I had to be very careful not to have some gas spill out.
6. I had a mechanical issue my second day out on a rural southern Indiana road. I set the speed control at the 60 mph speed limit, and when I turned the throttle to accelerate, nothing happened. You could turn the throttle to full and the bike would not accelerate at all. I tried turning the speed control off and also pulling off the road to turn the bike off and “reboot”, but it made no difference. The bike would accelerate like a bicycle and creep up to around 60 mph where it capped out (deadly pulling onto a crowded road which fortunately I wasn’t). I thought the limited number of dealers, and especially where I was, could be a problem getting it fixed (not that much different with my BMW - nothing like a Harley for availability of dealers). Fortunately after creeping along for about 40 minutes I stopped to look at a map to find the nearest town of any size (Owensboro IN) where I might have to call it a day. This time, the bike did reboot and was fine for the rest of my trip, although I didn’t use the speed control again (mechanical things “fixing themselves” is never encouraging). The good news is a few days later I called my service manager in Chicago (iMotorsports) to explain what happened (he’d heard of it before), told him I was in Chattanooga where there had to be a dealer, and he immediately spoke with one of their technicians who thought it was a computer glitch and would be ok. They recommended I stop in for a diagnostic test run just to be sure. I called White’s Cycle & Marine in a late afternoon and they saw me first thing the next morning. Their technician took it out, ran the tests, all of which showed nothing wrong, and agreed that it was some possible computer glitch that shouldn’t affect the rest of my trip (they did suggest I bring in it here to have it checked again). The prompt attention of both dealers and service guys was gratifying. I’ll post reviews for both.
7. On small 2 lane mountain roads with blind corners and hills and hardly any traffic, I’m very cautious to stay to the right side of the lane on my motorcycles since people often cross the double yellow lines never expecting to see anyone. On a Spyder obviously, you can only move over so much.
8. I didn’t get great gas mileage (around 32 mpg). I know the Spyder is much heavier so it didn’t comes as a shock. But what do you get??
OVERALL, it’s a TERRIFIC vehicle and makes riding a complete joy. I’M SOLD!!
After some 35 years of riding motorcycles, over 30 long distance, mostly solo trips (including one Iron Butt ride), and at age 68, I just returned from my first Spyder road trip. I had such a GREAT time, I want to share my impressions, get your thoughts, and for those folks thinking about making the switch, DO IT. I hope this helps. Please bear with me since it’s a long review.
I got my 2018 RT Limited this past July. Rode from Chicago to TN/NC/GA area to do the Cherohala Skyway and Tail of the Dragon, and then down to see the Chickamauga/Chattanooga Civil War battlefields. Spent less than 20% of the ride on interstates. The Spyder was FANTASTIC! With the exception of a trip I took with my son 10 years ago, this was the most fun I’ve ever had on a motorcycle. I couldn’t be happier I made the switch! It’s put the joy back in riding for me.
PROS:
1. This may sound stupid. I didn’t know what to expect, but to me it WAS a motorcycle trip. No other way to explain it. No different, other than much less stress about slow speed maneuvering, weather, road construction and road conditions (not insignificant items). You still sit in a saddle for long hours enjoying the feeling of freedom, exposed to the elements and cagers, holding on to a set of handlebars, and being aware of every potential trap I looked out for on my motorcycles. I do miss having two fingers covering a hand brake though.
2. The feeling of stability, not lifting a heavy machine off a kickstand multiple times throughout a day when you’re tired, and not worrying about dropping a bike was wonderful. I’d done the Dragon 15 years ago on a BMW RT, and I know I did it faster on the Spyder on each of my three runs. The stability control was great comfort knowing if I pushed a little too hard, it could save me. I may have come close, but I didn’t activate it. Still it was a very nice security blanket.
3. I was less tired during and at the end of the day even though I’m older. On my return, riding 10 hours one day on country and mountain roads through TN, KY, IN and IL in over 100° heat, I wasn’t totally beat.
4. Got just as many waves from other riders as I did on my motorcycles. The camaraderie is still there. Got thumbs up from cars and pedestrians too. People like Spyders!
5. Got lots of compliments and questions which started those short fun encounters on bike trips with strangers. Even had a Harley Ultra Classic rider tell me he was jealous when he saw me backing up on loose gravel.
6. Didn’t care about those signs ordinarily causing me concern: Loose Gravel, Fresh Oil, Grooved Payment, Uneven Lanes, etc. Still careful, but no trepidation.
7. It’s not my age because I don’t drive much calmer in cars than I used to, but I was more patient, less in a hurry, did less speeding, and rode less aggressively. It’s plenty fast and leaves cars and trucks in the dust, but my guess is since it’s less maneuverable and not as fast as a motorcycle, it all combined to make me calmer. Less chance for speeding tickets or accidents. All good things which contributed to a better, safer time.
8. Riding by something you want to look at more closely or is photo worthy, and deciding to turn around on a small road, gravel shoulder, and so on to see it, was no big deal. Stopping on a hill, no problem! Trying to put a kickstand down on an incline, no problem!
9. Even with 3 wheels, you can find the “sweet spot” between one of the front tires and the rear tire to miss a small object or pothole.
CONS (none of which make me less thrilled about my Spyder):
1. Harder to handle on interstates than my Harleys or BMWs. I know motorcycles have less wind resistance, different physics and gyroscopic affects and accelerate faster which makes maneuvering and passing cars and trucks easier. On the flipside of course is passing a big semi and getting blasted with the wind is less daunting on three wheels. And avoiding interstates makes for more fun too if you have the time.
2. At 80+ mph on my latest BMW was smooth as silk (if it wasn’t a very windy day). On my Spyder I was really being tossed around at 80 mph even on non-windy days (part of the reason I rode slower, less aggressively, and smarter - all good things). And no one NEEDS to go 80 unless passing.
3. It was still very comfortable, but it was a less comfortable seating position to me than my BMW RT. I sit more forward and from YouTube videos installing pegs, I don’t think highway pegs would let me stretch out my legs all that much more to make a material difference (I’m 6’ tall). I have (and need) a driver’s backrest, but I had one on my BMW so that isn’t the reason.
4. With a pack on the back seat, putting in gas was a pain. I didn’t want to have to take my pack off every time, so I had to prop up the seat by putting my water bottle underneath while I took off the cap and pulled out the gas nozzle. I still had to hold the seat up higher with one hand while pumping with the other. Tough on the old back. Lifting up a tank bag over the gas tank was much simpler.
5. Even with nothing on the back seat, I find filling the tank harder. My motorcycles generally were on top of the tank which was easier to see when you were getting to the top. On the Spyder, the gas pump automatic shut off prevented me from getting close to full and I had to keep topping it off by pulling the pump out ever so much and putting a bit more gas several times. I had to be very careful not to have some gas spill out.
6. I had a mechanical issue my second day out on a rural southern Indiana road. I set the speed control at the 60 mph speed limit, and when I turned the throttle to accelerate, nothing happened. You could turn the throttle to full and the bike would not accelerate at all. I tried turning the speed control off and also pulling off the road to turn the bike off and “reboot”, but it made no difference. The bike would accelerate like a bicycle and creep up to around 60 mph where it capped out (deadly pulling onto a crowded road which fortunately I wasn’t). I thought the limited number of dealers, and especially where I was, could be a problem getting it fixed (not that much different with my BMW - nothing like a Harley for availability of dealers). Fortunately after creeping along for about 40 minutes I stopped to look at a map to find the nearest town of any size (Owensboro IN) where I might have to call it a day. This time, the bike did reboot and was fine for the rest of my trip, although I didn’t use the speed control again (mechanical things “fixing themselves” is never encouraging). The good news is a few days later I called my service manager in Chicago (iMotorsports) to explain what happened (he’d heard of it before), told him I was in Chattanooga where there had to be a dealer, and he immediately spoke with one of their technicians who thought it was a computer glitch and would be ok. They recommended I stop in for a diagnostic test run just to be sure. I called White’s Cycle & Marine in a late afternoon and they saw me first thing the next morning. Their technician took it out, ran the tests, all of which showed nothing wrong, and agreed that it was some possible computer glitch that shouldn’t affect the rest of my trip (they did suggest I bring in it here to have it checked again). The prompt attention of both dealers and service guys was gratifying. I’ll post reviews for both.
7. On small 2 lane mountain roads with blind corners and hills and hardly any traffic, I’m very cautious to stay to the right side of the lane on my motorcycles since people often cross the double yellow lines never expecting to see anyone. On a Spyder obviously, you can only move over so much.
8. I didn’t get great gas mileage (around 32 mpg). I know the Spyder is much heavier so it didn’t comes as a shock. But what do you get??
OVERALL, it’s a TERRIFIC vehicle and makes riding a complete joy. I’M SOLD!!
