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Finally got to ride my #Yamaha Tenere 700 on gravel roads on Friday! Took it on the Mountain Loop Highway to reprise a photo from when I first started doing raw photo editing. While it's not perfect, I've come so far since then! :) #photography #photog #photo #motorcycle
(By the way, there was wildfire smoke in the area at the time, so any photos will be a little off in the colors.)
Some thoughts on the Tenere 700:
- It feels like a sail in the wind, but it's not quite as tippy as a dual-sport. It's not as "flickable" as a dual-sport at any speed, but it does feel more stable at low speeds if I "point" my legs down.
- The motor feels a little "sleepy" to me. It has decent torque down low, but I can feel it petering out over, say, 8000 RPM. For context, my CBR650R pulls harder the higher in the revs I go, which has become my preference.
- The gearing is super low, such that first on it is like second on a "normal" street bike. It makes sense when you consider what the bike is for.
- Aside from the wind, it's definitely more stable at speed than any of my street bikes thanks to the big wheels, which is perfect for touring and uneven surfaces.
- Since I'm tall, the wind buffeting at speed is pretty bad. I'm used to some, but when the whistling starts becoming prominant, it's not my favorite. I do have a bolt-on visor extension for the windshield on the way.
The bike is pretty good at what it does, but I'd definitely choose one of my other bikes for street riding.
These are the bikes on my radar. (The CRF450RL is only on there for reference.) At the moment, the ranking is:
- Yamaha Tenere 700
- Honda XL750 Transalp
- Kawasaki KLR650
- Honda XR650L
- Kawasaki KLX300
- Honda CRF300L
I know the bikes aren't all in the same category, but I'm just looking for:
- 21" front wheel.
- Not horrible on the freeway.
- Reliable and reasonably easy to work with.
- Durable.
- Reasonable weight.
What do folks think? :3
