By Admin
This week Pete is back and fan of the show Ethan Saeta joins us as well to talk about their adventures for the 2017 Smackdab ride. We talk not only about the ride, but getting to the starting point, the where they headed out after the ride was over, and Ethan talks about the BMW R1200RT he rented from Eagle Riders.
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False Neutral – The False Neutral Episode #64: Smackdab!
Jeff Glucker
Good podcast! I am sad I missed this years smack dab, I would be one of the crazy Kansans turning around and riding a 1000 miles the next day. A future podcast topic would be which non touring motorcycles are comfortable at covering distance (Maybe a weight limit of under 500 lbs). I am test riding a coworkers Gen 1 KLR here in Kansas City and am amazed by the comfort under 70 mph. Keep up the good podcasting!
For Comfortable non-touring bikes, I can recommend an ’06-’09 Aprilia Tuono (the 2nd gen v-twin) and a 1290 Super Duke. Seriously, they’re both good for 500 mile days, no problem. I’m 6’3 and needed to lower the Tuono’s pegs an inch or so, but it was golden after that. if you’re over 5’10 or so you’ll find the KTM tailor made. Both bikes are also completely mental.
If you’re under 5’10, look for a BMW R1200R from the generation covering the ’07 model. Maybe not the most dynamic performer, but amazingly comfortable suspension. The pegs are just a little too close to the saddle for my 36 inch inseam.
As a ND native, and regular visitor, I’ve covered some of those Smackdab roads a bunch of times.
For future Smackdab runs, I recommend riders consider running US183 up through Nebraska & into SD. Then run US83 up through SD, from there you have your choice of roads to Rugby. ND14 and ND3 as mentioned in the podcast are empty, scenic and fast. 183 across Nebraska is a treat too–last July I ran it on my FJR and thoroughly enjoyed it.
This route is only a few more miles than US281, probably no slower, and more scenic.