| Author | Message | ||
     Bigbird |
The following story was originally posted on www.Advrider.com. They aren't as familiar with Buells as you folks are, so forgive my tendency to ramble in a couple of spots about things you probably already know. Last April I got a new 2003 Buell XB9S Lightning. I figured it was a good addition to the garage in an attempt to replace the piece of shit Moto-Guzzi Lemon I am STILL fighting about in the court system. True, the Buell wasn't a sport tourer like the Guzzi, but I decided all I really wanted in my next bike was a naked, fun, great handling motorcycle. Getting the Buell was easy. I'm employed at a Harley-Davidson/Buell dealership so I knew was getting a good deal, and it wouldn't hurt to start riding something to work that we sell instead of the R1100 RT I owned at the time.  I figured I would commute to work on it, run through the local twisties, and maybe take it to Deal's Gap. Well it wound up being such a fantastic bike I put 10,000 miles on it in a few months. I rode it to Deal's Gap twice and just had a great time with it. In fact, even after I traded my RT in on a '04 GS in late June I continued to ride the Buell on a daily basis and primarily used the GS for longer trips or it's intended off pavement role. Maintenance on the Buell was extremely cheap and I averaged over 50 mpg even when I was running the living shit out of it. I was a happy camper. Then Buell released the 1200 CC version (bastards). I got a VERY brief test ride on one, and then had to sit all winter and think about it. But today the gods smiled upon me. I had the day off, the temp was in the mid 50's, the sun was shining, and we had a Buell XB12R Firebolt demo sitting at the dealership doing nothing.  The Firebolt and the Lightning are almost the same bike. They only have something like 42 non-shared parts. They now come with either a 984 cc v-twin or the bigger 1203 cc v-twin. You can get either engine in either bike. The main difference between the Firebolt and the Lightning is the Lightning uses a tubular handlebar and is positioned so the rider sits more upright, whereas the Firebolt has clip-ons and a small front fairing. There are some other differences, but that is the most major one. Anyway I went up to the shop today and found the guys hard at work. Here Steve is putting on a nice loud exhaust on a brand new bike.   And here is another technician/head of "security", Brian, working on his own bike.  Working in a motorcycle shop is a blast, and definitely has it's fringe benefits. Tire changes have become really easy and cheap, and I no longer have to yell at some moron for scratching my wheels. Instead I get to yell at myself.   Anyway it was time to go. I set up the Firebolt's suspension for my weight and took off for Hocking Hills, in Southeast Ohio. I had about 50 miles of highway to get there, which would be a good test to see if I could tolerate the more aggressive seating position of the Firebolt. I found that the wind blast coming off of the fairing hit me right in the upper chest, which was great for support. It actually wasn't bad. The faster I went the more comfortable it got! I took interstate 270 around the east side of Columbus to Route 33 southeast, towards Lancaster. No ride is complete without food. As I was passing through Lancaster I heard Arthur Treachers calling me.  Mmm, Mmm, good. Nothing beats a plate of carbs & fat, fried in 100% peanut oil. After lunch I continued on Route 33 Southeast to Horns Mill road. This road actually leads to my house, but I wasn't headed home. Horns Mill road has some GREAT curves, even if it is only 8 miles long. I know this road well, and I've run it on my Lightning more times than I can count. It was a good place to compare the two bikes. In riding the Firebolt I found that the Lightning was easier to change my line on and I just seem to get more leverage with those tubular bars. Turn in is faster as well. But the Firebolt rewards the rider who plans for the turn. I could hang off of the Firebolt much easier, and as long as I set myself up properly before the turn I was able to corner just as fast as I can on the Lightning, but on the Firebolt nothing touches down. The balls of my feet found the right spot on the pegs every time, and unlike the Lightning which has allowed me to grind my riding boots into dust on the pavement I didn't scrape anything even once. However, I can't abruptly change my line on the Firebolt, and later in the day on another road a right hand curve snuck up on me, and I wound up crossing the yellow line. Obviously as similar as the two bikes are they definitely demand different riding styles.  Once I arrived at the end of Horns Mill road I took Rt 664 into the heart of the Hocking Hills. I stopped at the state park area to shoot a few photos of the bike. The pix don't do it justice. The red against the translucent amber wheels is stunning.        I continued down 664 putting the bike through it's paces. The 1203 cc engine is definitely an improvement to an already incredible bike. It makes enough torque to consistently spin the rear tire out from under the bike at speed, when rolling on the throttle after passing the apex in a curve. So much so that I really had to concentrate on my throttle hand after I'd slid the back end too far for the 3rd time. The rest of the bike has had some improvements over the 2003 model year, including an updated drive belt system and a couple of other minor changes. The bike itself was a revolution when it was released anyway. It carries the fuel in the frame and the oil in the swingarm. The belt drive has no free play, so there is almost no lag between throttle movement and acceleration. It still weighs under 400 Lbs. dry, and the engine makes a little over a hundred horsepower and 84 Ft. Lbs. of torque in completely stock form (imagine the new R1200 GS with ANOTHER hundred pounds removed). It also has the shortest wheelbase in the business and a 21 degree rake, which accounts for the fact that it corners like it's on rails. I took Rt 664 to its end, then I turned left on Rt 56, which goes to Athens. I didn't go to Athens. Instead I just rode a few miles on Rt 56 because it has a couple of the best 20 mph curves in Hocking Hills. Unfortunately there was still so much sand and other garbage all over the road that I felt more like I was on a dirt track than pavement. I turned around and took Rt 56 back, past 664, and all the way to Laurelville. Candi and I ride to Laurelville every fall when the leaves are changing, and we stop at the Laurelville fruit company for some fresh home made apple cider slushies. Unfortunately they didn't have any of that today. I turned right on Thompson Ridge Rd, got to the top of the ridge and took some pictures. Off to the North and West the land starts to flatten out into what becomes the great cornfields of the midwest.   Off to the South and East the hills continue, growing in size and intensity until you get to the mountains.  Supposedly this is the approximate area that the glaciers stopped advancing as the last ice age came to a close. Prior to those glaciers I'm told most of Ohio was hilly.  I took one more picture of the bike. When I got home and looked at it I found it funny that the lines of the bike match the lines of the hills. If only I'd thought of that while I was up on that hill I could have taken a pretty cool picture.  From there I continued along Thompson Ridge Road until it dead ended into Rt 374. This too is normally a great road, but right now it has more sand than Daytona Beach! I took 374 back to 664, then back to Horns Mill Road, and finally home. I only rode about 130 miles on the Firebolt, but it was a great ride. I'm probably going to get one just like this one that I demoe'd, but I don't want the demo. It only had 124 miles on it when I left the shop, and I just wasn't real clear on the break in procedure.   edited by blake on March 08, 2004 | ||
| Agave_juice |
Bigbird, Cool Story. I'm a new rider from central Ohio and I'm looking forward to my first Hocking Hills ride, later this season. It's good to know what roads to take. Thanks for sharing. | ||
| Honu |
Great story. How did you take that speedo shot?  | ||
| Xb9er |
Craig Here's a hint: Turn the key on your bolt and watch the gauges. | ||
| Bigbird |
Here's a hint: Turn the key on your bolt and watch the gauges. You would probably destroy many XB engines trying to find one that would stay together at 9000 rpm, assuming you could disable the rev limiter to get there. Besides that the bike won't do 150 mph in stock form. But since that story was originally written for a largely BMW site I figured it would make a funny picture. Several people responded before anyone figured it out. | ||
| Reepicheep |
Great story Bigbird.. thanks! | ||
| Jim_m |
"Several people responded before anyone figured it out." that was only cause I wasn't really paying attention at the time ;^D (I'm jmoore813 over there) | ||
| Fireboltgeo |
Bigbird, Great story and I love the bike pics! Where could I get a neat looking seat like that? Didn't come with the bike did it?  | ||
| Bigbird |
When I purchase the bike I can guarantee it will come with a nice seat like that. However when you get your Firebolt back from the shop it will probably have a brand new STOCK seat, courtesy of the dealership  | ||
| Reepicheep |
Hey.. just noticed the wire hanging out under the seat in the pictures above. Heated gear? GPS? | ||
| Bigbird |
The wire was for heated gear. I do have a GPS mount on my lightning (visible in the first picture next to the left mirror), but I don't have it hard wired. When I get the Firebolt I'm going to have to buy a new GPS mount because there in no handlebar room to bolt my existing mount to. | ||
| Fdl3 |
I agree about your comments regarding turn-in: you do have more leverage with the Lightning over the Firebolt due to the more upright riding position and the handlebars. The Firebolt demands more planning ahead of time when entering curves. If you do it right, the result is truly rewarding! |
