| Author | Message | ||
     Froggy |
http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/8438 04?UserKey= | ||
| Rwven |
It wasn't all that bad... Seems like the more she rode it the more she liked it, she should have kept it for a week or two! | ||
| Pirnie |
I'm not sure I see what's so horrible about the review. She simple called the bike what it was - a Buell. | ||
| Cityxslicker |
riding the bike above 6k RPM through the corners ?!? somebody tell her its NOT an FJR | ||
| Chadhargis |
Nothing wrong with spinning the Buell engine up. In fact, if you're not spinning it at or near redline, you aren't getting peak power. | ||
| Edgydrifter |
Ugh. I hate to borrow a line from the Grey Ponytailed Brethren, but it's apropos here: if you have to ask, you won't understand... | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
I have to agree that Buell should have given the XT the same extra turning radius that the 08' and 09' X enjoys. Apparently they still had an inventory of old forks and triple clamps to use up. (Message edited by electraglider_1997 on September 24, 2008) | ||
| Werewulf |
some of it might reflect on her riding ability...its all in what you are used to.. | ||
| Edgydrifter |
In Cycle World Calvin Kim (whose opinions I've generally agreed with in the past) said of the original Uly "This thing is is the best, the very best, American motorcycle ever." That alone pretty much sold me on the bike, and my personal seat-time on the XT has reinforced the wisdom of my decision. I suspect this gal has spent a fair amount of time on the GS (undoubtedly a fine bike, especially if someone else is picking up the tab for maintenance) and felt unsettled on the Uly because it didn't feel like what she's used to. Fair enough, happens to everyone. To blame the bike for the rider's deficiencies, though, is just arrogant and silly. | ||
| Etennuly |
In reading that article it is apparent that someone needs to ride a Buell with this person to show her how they work. It sounds to me like she was handed an electric carving knife and was discouraged that it had to be plugged in, and then she butchered the main course instead of carving it and blamed the knife. All the while she was comparing it to her knives that she was used to. Makes for a lame article. If you have to spool an XB up to 6000 to make it go through a corner you just don't know what you are doing with it. Oh, and she mentions the poor handling of the '06 Uly. Where did she get information like that? | ||
| Osup |
I had a similar experience as she did after I first purchased my 07 Uly. I couldn't get used to the motor characteristics and overall height of the bike. I was about to trade it in until my girlfriend convinced me to hang on to it for a while longer. It took me about 5 months to get used to the riding style (I had owned nothing but SS prior). Boy am I glad I kept it. It took time, but I can now say that this is by far the best motorcycle I have ever owned. And as far as handling? I continually embarrass people on their big bad 1000cc ss on the street. But I can see how her experience may not have been the most positive after what seems like just a weekend of riding. | ||
| Red_chili |
My sister-in-law used to be a technical writer for a radio magazine. She was reasonably successful at it, enjoyed it, did it for a while... and knew absolutely nothing about radios. She parroted other sources. I think that is what is going on here with her reference to the '06 'bad handling' and 'Buellisms'. "Pushing the bike into faster corners had the bike bucking and weaving on the standard settings that Buell had recommended for my weight. It soaked up the road’s imperfections, but also bounced if I adopted a more extreme attitude. The front has a tendency to feel vague and unsure despite having the shorter suspension travel over the base model Ulysses. However, rather than being a warning sign that things are about to unravel in a very untidy fashion, these characteristics appear to be precisely that – Buell-isms." Do you think... could it be?... SURELY not... that she has a somewhat optimistic view of her suited up weight and that explains "the bike bucking and weaving on the standard settings that Buell had recommended for my weight"? No, couldn't be...  | ||
| Longdog_cymru |
The girl can ride a bike............. http://www.rio-gladiator.co.uk/gallery.html | ||
| Longdog_cymru |
FWIW..... The recommended Buell settings for my Uly, (I weight 90kgs), means that for me and the type of riding I enjoy, the bike see-saws under braking and power in and out of corners. So she makes a fair comment as far as I am concerned within the parameters of personal preference. I run mine with extra front and rear preload and much more compression and rebound damping than recommended in the manual and it's fine now. For me. I think the standard settings are no more than a base line for the multi purpose use that the, (in my case), Uly is aimed at. Suspension settings are a very individual thing, and, as I ride mine only on the road, I choose to set mine harder than the handbook suggests. Let's not forget that above all, we ride Buells and Buells are not everyone's cup of tea. They are a unique and individual motorcycle and it is difficult to compare them with anything else. It can take time and effort to gel with a Buell and most road testers have a couple of hours or days at best during which time they are often riding other bikes. Of course, lots of road testers/journalists are just a**holes!!!!!!!! | ||
| Reepicheep |
A buddy of mine at Mid Ohio was on a demo XT in intermediate, and quickly closed in on a Honda guy demo'ing the CR. The guy on the CR had been talking all day about how he and the instructor left everyone in the dust, but when he looked behind him and saw Bob had closed the gap, on an XT no less, he wicked it up a notch to pull away. It's a darn shame about that CR. The rider was OK, but the last I saw of the CR was the Buell Demo guy planting his foot on the front tire, grabbing the fairing assembly that was half dangling, and giving it a disgusted yank to rip it off and throw it in the back of the Buell truck. Bob finished the session on the XT, came in smiling from ear to ear, and said words I *never* thought I would hear come out of his died in the wool Honda loving mouth... "Now thats a Buell I could own, that was awsome!". (The CR guy was a good rider, just a little hung up on saying he was a good rider, and he just outrode the bike. So a good rider (Bob) on an XT could outrun a good rider (CR guy) on a CR. I understand its more about rider then bike, but this suggests pretty clearly that the XT is a pretty nice handling motorcycle). | ||
| Osup |
"The girl can ride a bike............. http://www.rio-gladiator.co.uk/gallery.html " She looks happiest on the Uly. And quite sexy I might add.  | ||
| Charlie_zulu |
To blame the bike for the rider's deficiencies, though, is just arrogant and silly. Amen brother !  | ||
| Ulyranger |
The girl can ride a bike............. http://www.rio-gladiator.co.uk/gallery.html Looks to me like she takes a good picture... but she sure can't write for "S". | ||
| Oddball |
Give her a break, she was bisected in Gladiator.   | ||
| Etennuly |
Give her a break, she was bisected in Gladiator. It is happening to her again on BadWeB!!  | ||
| Red_chili |
Jeez, after having fun at her expense now I feel like a real cad... OK, back to the grindstone... Still wondering where she got those comments about the '06 Buell not handling. Sheesh. OK, it is softly sprung and dives - like any bike with anything 'dualsport' in its heritage - so I suppose if you are used to GP bikes it would feel weird. But that is not what she said at all. | ||
| Etennuly |
Jeez, after having fun at her expense now I feel like a real cad... OK, back to the grindstone... What is up with that? Do ya feel guilty because she is beautiful, or because she has ridden so many different racing bikes. Maybe they didn't tell her the Uly isn't a race bike in stock form?  I don't think hacking her up here is a bad thing. Her article for the public seems poorly informed, or biased, or just not showing effort on her part in one form or another. Oh, I was wondering if perhaps she had a bike with a fouled plug. That is just silly that it had to be spooled up to 6000 to make it go through a corner. Perhaps a flat tire? (Message edited by etennuly on September 26, 2008) | ||
| Johnboy777 |
Wasn't there an old, and really crude, gladiator joke ... let's see now, what was it? . | ||
| Neurorider |
Someone needs to invite her to an Inside Pass event or a club ride or something, so she can see what Buells can really do... | ||
| M_singer |
I stopped reading at the "poor handling comment" as the author is obviously clueless. There is a lot of legitimate gripes about Uly's but poor handling? You have got to be kidding me! | ||
| Red_chili |
What is up with that? Do ya feel guilty because she is beautiful, or because she has ridden so many different racing bikes. Probably.  | ||
| Wbrisett |
I reread the review (it had been a week or so), and the only thing that stuck out to me was her comment "Frankly, outside the US, it doesn’t stand a chance, but it will steal sales from the really niche adventure bikes like the Bennelli Amazonas or Moto Guzzi Stelvio." Like here in the US we have some lower standards or something. Otherwise, I thought most of the article wasn't horrible. It is after all a review, and reviews are people's opinions. I think most of us (all of us?) love our Ulysses, so if we wrote a review it would be pretty biased. Nearly every motorcycle review I read is biased. That's just the way it is. Wayne | ||
| Longdog_cymru |
FWIW, I believe that the Uly was the UKs biggest selling Buell in the past year, outselling all of the other Buell models put together  | ||
| Thunderbox |
Yes there is no doubt the lady can ride a bike. What she can't do apparently is read the owners manual and adjust the suspension to her riding type. Expecting the average setting to come up to the task of spirited riding is nothing short of foolish on her part. She needs to do a better job of this and all ride reports. For that reason I will never respect anything she says about any bike she rides. Be it good or bad. Just another rag that doesn't do a proper job of reporting. Kinda like the Washington post or Fox news lol. | ||
| Xbimmer |
Kinda like the Washington post or Fox news lol. Oh please... | ||
| Galloper |
Some women are hard to please. |
