NAME YOUR POISON
2005 BMW R 1200 RT & R 1200 ST
Story and photos by Tom Van Beveren

Last year, BMW introduced the US of A to the all-new R 1200 GS and, boy, was it ever new!
Ninety-eight percent new, in fact. Almost nothing from the previous generations of GS made it on to the new bike and those of us who had been riding a GS as our primary bike were shocked when we rode the new version. It was so much better than what we had that our only salvation lay in finding a quick buyer for our old machine. Dealers had lengthy waiting lists for the new monster dual sporter, and the sale papers were full of slightly used GS’s. And we all knew it was only a matter of time before the GS trickery filtered its way into the rest of the R bike line-up.
That time is now and BMW just introduced two new R’s this year--the R 1200 RT, and the new R 1200 ST. The letters “ST” stand for Sport Touring, and that bike replaces the old RS. We only spent half a day on each of the new models, dashing around Palm Springs and the mountains of north San Diego County, but that was enough to get a good idea of what both bikes are about and rest assured, they make a great first impression.
On paper, the two bikes look strikingly similar. Both are almost 100 percent new from the ground up, although the engine, transmission and drivetrain from the 1200 GS did make it through to the new sport tourers. The two new R’s are distinguished only by their final drives.
Both R’s were put on a strict diet that resulted in an amazing weight savings of 11 percent. The RT now boasts a dry weight of 505 pounds (70 pounds lighter than last year’s model) and the ST, without a comprehensive fairing and frills, hits the scales at a very light 452 pounds, which is 55 pounds lighter than last year’s RS. That’s a lot of weight saved.
Displacement-wise, the bikes are identical at 1,170 cc, and four-valves-per-cylinder is standard for the boxer-twin powerplants. Power output has been boosted in a big way, and both bikes now have a claimed 110 horsepower (15 more than last year and 10 more than the current R 1200 GS) on tap at 7,500 rpm, with 85 foot pounds of torque available at 6,000 rpm. That adds up to 14 percent more horses than last year and 17 percent more torque.

Ask the Sergeant:

Dear Sergeant:

I see motorcycle riders splitting traffic and crossing the double yellow line at the edge of the carpool lane (i.e., in the carpool lane but going around cars by weaving back and forth across the double yellow line). That has to be illegal, yes?

Peter Starr, via e-mail

I’m glad you asked about car-pool lanes. I have not discussed this topic in a while and information about carpool lanes is very important to So. Cal. riders.
The proper name for a carpool lane, by the way, is a “High Occupancy Vehicle” or OHV lane and these lanes are regulated by Section 21655.5 of the California Vehicle Code. The last sentence of subsection (b) states that, “A motorcycle or a mass transit vehicle may be operated upon those exclusive or preferential use lanes unless specifically prohibited by a traffic control device.”
I know this was not part of your question but you would be amazed how many motorcyclists are not aware that they can use the carpool lanes. It used to be that motorcycles could only use HOV lanes when it was posted “Motorcycles OK,” but that was changed in 1994. Now you can ride in all HOV lanes unless it is posted “No Motorcycles” or “Motorcycles Prohibited.”
Now for the answer to your question. Section 21655.8(a) of the California Vehicle Code regulates entering and exiting HOV lanes and it specifically prohibits driving over solid yellow double lines. It further states that the only place you can enter or exit an HOV lane is where there is a single white broken line. So your answer is…

Project bike story:

RIDICULOUS RIDES
Story and photos by Paul Garson

Just when you thought it was safe to leave your nice, normal garage on your nice, normal motorcycle for a nice, normal ride, you find yourself losing traction and sliding into the Vortex of Bikes Gone Bad (or Mad).
Yes, we’ve found even more “bikes from the freakin’ fringe” (see Bizarre Bikes, Part One, F2W December 2004) and we certainly hope there are a lot more out there. Otherwise it would be a dull world indeed.
This month we meet an electric Hawk, a mammoth bike powered by the engine out of a Corvette LT1, and just about everything in between. We are left with any number of questions, the most pressing of which is, simply: Why?

HONDA HYBRID: ELY SCHLESS' SHAWKING EXPERIMENT

Ely Schless moves in mysterious ways—silently and via electrons at the speed of light. He has been conjuring up electric vehicles, both cars and bikes, for some 25-odd years. Most recently he’s come up with the Blade, an electric-motored, thus silent running, motocross/supermoto bike, that has been a hit ever since it went into production.
Way back when, in the late 1980’s, Schless was making special effects gizmos for the television and film industry.
“I’ve motorized everything from the Snuggle Fabric-Softener bear to the Parkay butter tub for TV ads,” said Schless. He has also made a refrigerator the size of a mouse and a key the size of a mammoth. And you might remember the robot in the film “Short Circuit.” That was Schless’s work as well.
When the Honda Hawk GT 650 appeared in 1988, Schless came up with a revolting idea. The Hawk was a great bike in stock form. I can vouch for that. I own and ride a 1989 Hawk and pick it as one of my Top 10 motorcycles. The Hawk came with a liquid-cooled, 52-degree, SOHC V-twin engine with chain drive, but Schless saw it in a new form—a new form that was all electric, non-polluting and, above all, silent running.

Way2go

LIMEY LOCATIONS --
Story and photos by Mark Rustigian

Old British motorcycles, when running properly, are wonderful contraptions. They are quick and nimble. They look great and they make all the right noises. Brit bikes are to motorcycles what Bass Ale is to beer; a wonderful product made uniquely English.
The previous statements are opinion, of course, but dissenters should be viewed with suspicion. You might want to ask naysayers if they also find fault with high school football games and Mother’s Day.
Time for a quick history lesson. America fell in love with the British motorcycle after WWII. At that time, England had a few debts to pay off and America, flush with cash, was ready to celebrate. For the next 35 years, England sent the bulk of its motorcycle production to the USA in exchange for desperately needed dollars. The party came to an end in the late ‘70’s/early ‘80’s when the Japanese crushed the Brit Bike industry by manufacturing and selling better motorcycles, but what didn’t change was the fact that there were still more Brit Bikes in the U.S. than in all the rest of the world.