And first impressions are "this is NOT a Harley, and I love it for that".
My local HD dealer got a PanAm Special in, and I popped up to check it out. Couldn't demo it, due to an event they were having, which blocked the door they get the bikes out of. Mostly my fault, I got there late, knowing that event was happening. BUT, they're awesome guys, and have me coming back next Saturday early for an extended ride. Basically, they want me to get it out and really get a feel for it. They're wanting direct feedback on the bike from ADV and Sport Touring guys. This dealer is also tightly involved with corporate, being in Wisconsin and a big volume dealer. There was actually a guy there from the PanAm team yesterday too.
I did get to mess with it a ton. They handed me the key and had me check the thing out up and down, play with all the features, etc.
Some things I love: The seat and riding position is excellent. I sat on it messing with everything for an hour easily, and any other bike I would have been wanting a new seat. I felt very comfortable on this bike. The TFT display is very fluid, and menus are easy to navigate. This one also has the dynamic ride height, which I wrote off initially as a gimmick. I ride tall bikes all the time, and its about as tall as my FJ-09. When he flipped the switch on, and the height lowered with me on it, I had an immediate sense of "wait, how have I lived without this for so long!" The wire wheels with the easy repair spokes is quite possibly one of the neatest things I've seen too.
Some things I don't like: The switch gear is a bit tricky. There are a lot of buttons on the bars, and they can be a bit akward using a few of them. The headlight control is really the worst one. It's an odd switch in a weird place, with little to no feedback in gloves. It's also tiny. The lock for the handlebars is even more of a pain to get to than the ignition on my FJ09. Not a huge issue, since it's a keyless system otherwise, but I do use my bar lock daily when I park at work. And the 1 hand adjust windshield seems ok, but I really wish they would have just gone the extra and made it electronic. Then again, that may or may not be a good idea on a bike getting thrown down dirt tracks and through water crossings... But man, the one I had on my FJR was baller.
So, there may be a PanAm sitting next to the FJ soon. I need to go ride the Triumph again, and try out the new GS 1250 A, and see what the Shift Cam engine is all about. But who knows, HD may have me!
My local HD dealer got a PanAm Special in, and I popped up to check it out. Couldn't demo it, due to an event they were having, which blocked the door they get the bikes out of. Mostly my fault, I got there late, knowing that event was happening. BUT, they're awesome guys, and have me coming back next Saturday early for an extended ride. Basically, they want me to get it out and really get a feel for it. They're wanting direct feedback on the bike from ADV and Sport Touring guys. This dealer is also tightly involved with corporate, being in Wisconsin and a big volume dealer. There was actually a guy there from the PanAm team yesterday too.
I did get to mess with it a ton. They handed me the key and had me check the thing out up and down, play with all the features, etc.
Some things I love: The seat and riding position is excellent. I sat on it messing with everything for an hour easily, and any other bike I would have been wanting a new seat. I felt very comfortable on this bike. The TFT display is very fluid, and menus are easy to navigate. This one also has the dynamic ride height, which I wrote off initially as a gimmick. I ride tall bikes all the time, and its about as tall as my FJ-09. When he flipped the switch on, and the height lowered with me on it, I had an immediate sense of "wait, how have I lived without this for so long!" The wire wheels with the easy repair spokes is quite possibly one of the neatest things I've seen too.
Some things I don't like: The switch gear is a bit tricky. There are a lot of buttons on the bars, and they can be a bit akward using a few of them. The headlight control is really the worst one. It's an odd switch in a weird place, with little to no feedback in gloves. It's also tiny. The lock for the handlebars is even more of a pain to get to than the ignition on my FJ09. Not a huge issue, since it's a keyless system otherwise, but I do use my bar lock daily when I park at work. And the 1 hand adjust windshield seems ok, but I really wish they would have just gone the extra and made it electronic. Then again, that may or may not be a good idea on a bike getting thrown down dirt tracks and through water crossings... But man, the one I had on my FJR was baller.
So, there may be a PanAm sitting next to the FJ soon. I need to go ride the Triumph again, and try out the new GS 1250 A, and see what the Shift Cam engine is all about. But who knows, HD may have me!