I pick up my Tiger 1200 GT Exp tomorrow!

[Kansas_Guy]

Cheers!

Greeting from flat, windy Kansas!   Tomorrow I am picking up my new Tiger 1200 GT Explorer in Lucerne blue.

This will be the second ADV bike I have owned, the first being a Royal Enfield Himalayan, which was also my first motorcycle.   It was a fun, lovely motorcycle, but just not powerful enough to ride in the U.S. where it is difficult to avoid the freeway system for daily commuting.  (I also rented a RE Himalayan to ride the Upper Mustang of Nepal last spring, but my 16 day trip was cut short when on day three when I was hit by a car and shattered my left leg...flown home....surgery....yada yada...but that is a story for another time.)



I also currently own a Honda Gold Wing Tour, which is just wonderful in every way.

My journey to owning a Tiger was somewhat unexpected and circuitous.  I admittedly impulse-bought a BMW R 18 B when I saw it for sale, used, at my dealership. If you see one in person, you may understand why. But it had aftermarket pipes that had a resonator, but no CAT and not one baffle.  I am pretty sure it set off Tsunami warnings in Japan when I rode it.  Deafeningly loud.  Nothing needs to be that loud.  Not my style. My local dealership agreed to get the original exhaust from the man who sold it to them, and install it.  Sadly, when he brought it in, it was essentially scrap metal -- welded and modified beyond use.  So, my dealership did the noble thing and offered to buy it back.  Well, they also had huge incentives to move the 2023 Tiger inventory, and I was able to negotiate a great price (incentives and great prices on accessories) on a 23 Tiger GT Explorer. 

The ADV decision was rather easy for me -- design, build quality, price and availability.  The Tiger is lovely!   Let's be honest -- all of  the premium ADV models are excellent.  Also, on my very long test ride, I did not find the engine vibrations of the Tiger 1200 (frequently mentioned) to be in any way offensive.  It is a motorcycle.  It has an intentionally edgy engine design. It vibrates. And that engine noise and power during acceleration....wow, just awesome!  As far as looks....perhaps Mad Max? But a Mad Max who attended Westminster School and then Oxford?  Love it.

The Tiger is a BEAST! A lovely motorcycle that I cannot wait to pick up and ride. Tomorrow is forecast to be cold and raining here.  A perfect day to test out the new motorcycle. Fingers crossed re: wind protection....

The dealership installed all of the accessories I purchased without additional charge -- which was a pleasant surprise since I did not ask them to.  And sadly, that cute little dog in the picture is not included in the deal. 

I am a little scared.  My wife does not yet know about this whole transaction and the Tiger is HUGE and admittedly hard to hide in the garage...so wish me luck.

[NorthumBryan]

  to the forum from the UK, good luck with the new bike 

[Jon]

  to the family, K_G and congrats on that beautiful new Tiger GTEX Be careful out there on those wet roads with new tires! Be even more careful when you bring the big girl home & try explaining to your wife!

[Mrzippy]

I just got my 1200 XRT last week.  Man this is a pig compared to the small bikes I rode before.  Its big and beautiful!  Enjoy the new ride.

[Locodude]

Hello and 

[NiK]

Welcome buddy!

Here some music from Wichita, just for you (and us all ;-)

eature=shared

[Kansas_Guy]

Thank you all!





Day one was rainy and cold.  At dusk an entire herd of deer ran in front of me, but I was prepared and had time to stop.  Today I rode my bike to work in 20-25 MPH winds with gusts to 40 -- challenging.  Once I got to work I was afraid the wind would blow the bike over.  I tried putting up the center stand, but then the bike started rotating around the center stand!  I finally found a cubby surrounded by 3 walls that worked.

Whe researching this bike, some reviewers referred to the quick shifter as a "slow shifter".  I wonder if they realized that the quick shifter actually rev-matches when shifting?  Very impressive!  I am loving this bike -- even while riding it on two days with miserable weather.

[NiK]

Originally Posted by Kansas_Guy

Once I got to work I was afraid the wind would blow the bike over.  I tried putting up the center stand, but then the bike started rotating around the center stand!  I finally found a cubby surrounded by 3 walls that worked.

To remove some worries from you new owner, I've had three Tigers 1200 over the past 10 years. All of them slept outside and I live in an area where the wind (famously called Mistral) is regularly above 90 km/h with gusts over 110 km/h. The bike almost always sleeps on her side stand and never even threatened to tip over (actually, I saw her move more when parked on the centerstand). I believe its sheer weight and the sidestand angle make for a very stable configuration.

Originally Posted by Kansas_Guy

Whe researching this bike, some reviewers referred to the quick shifter as a "slow shifter".  I wonder if they realized that the quick shifter actually rev-matches when shifting?  Very impressive!  I am loving this bike -- even while riding it on two days with miserable weather.

I've always found the Triumph QS almost flawless. After having tried the BMW implementation, I can't begin to understand how anyone could find ours 'slow'!
One of the great forces of the bike is indeed its resistance to bad weather! I've done it all (hailstorms, heavy rain and even unpredictable snowstorm) and though not enjoyable, I've never felt insecure because of the bike.