Hey everybody – yes, yes, I am a coupla days later than expected…I got the flu from my lovely family and 1st grand-daughter right after I got my ride in between the raindrops last Friday -- so I was bed ridden for all of the weekend. But I’m back now and ready to give you what you SO DESIRE. A freekin’ Ride Report on the awesome Supa10.
Here Goes : Got down to Kansas City on Thursday night around 8:00. I stayed up for a good portion of the night talking and doing family stuff. Got “some rest” even though the household was coming off 2 of the 3 inhabitants with the intestinal flu. Got up the next morning while everyone went to work – I went “early” to the dealership to get my name 1st for the first ride of the day. I pull into Shawnee Cycle and there is the Yammy B I G – Mongo truck and around 12 scoots parked outside. While I’m there 8 of the bikes head out with fully ATGATT riders on board. The riders were mostly staff folks and “good customers of the cycle shop. They motor away with very VERY threatening clouds rolling in from the Southwest. This didn’t look good…gulp…
That group comes back – still no rain – so a 2nd ride commences and they tear off again for their 15 minute stint at the controls, this time on different machines. I wait patiently as they pull back into the lot. I have already filled out my paperwork and am ready for the 1st call of the day when the first rain drops hit the tent above me. O Crap – this isn’t going to be good. Sure as shootin’ – the rain comes , and boy does it come.! No rides are to go out – even if the pavement is wet, so I hear. There is some let off – then yet another wave of serious rain. I stay from 8:45 through 11:45. I go to Englemotors BMW where I’ve purchased several scoots and meet up with my son-in-law.
We peruse the goods and sit on this and that. We climb aboard the new Tiger XC and also the new RT & GTL. Nice stuff. Not what I came to KC for though. We leave to go eat @ Arthur Bryants KC BBQ..best in town. Filling us to the point of extinction, we leave and head back home in a driving rain…CRAPOLA.!!
Get back to their home, only 15 minutes from the doorstep of the Shawnee Cycle folks, BTW. We lay almost motionless watching mindless TV – Swamp People – etc…
I get a call from a very close friend of mine that I had invited to come with me to test ride this day Friday. He states he was bummed because he could of come with me he finds out. He asks what I thought of the Supa10, I tell him it’s a bin buster of water here. He said, check the forecast as he believed it was clearing off. I did…it was…We set off back to Shawnee Cycle at 2:30.
Got back there before the 1st set of riders were let go. I told the main sign-in guy that I’d like to go 2nd because I had a very pressing phone call long distance coming in at 3:30. He stated no worries and allowed for it. My call came in at 3:33 – and the 1st wave of new riders were off on the street at 3:30 on the dot.
I got done with my call 5 minutes before they got back and geared up and was ready for the Supa10 flight talk. Everything was in order. Bone stock blue USA model with 225 miles on the clock. Seat in the low position, Throttle control in Sport mode, Traction Control in TC1. Wicked that mill to life and lowered my visor for a rain-free romp. I was batting 5th out of 10 bikes. The guy in front of me was on an R6…he was waaay too big for this sled and the bike was waaay too small for him. He couldn’t shift it well – being stuck behind him was “not fun”. The guy in front of him was on a big cruiser. He motored away like he was in 5th gear. Oh boy, this may not be as spirited a ride like I thought it might be. CRAPOLA.!!
We head out west on a 35 mph roadway that cuts through housing developments and we all hit the lights on green so no one gets left behind. The motor is very VERY strong. Right off of idle and whacking the right wrist makes things happen RIGHT the FRICK NOW.!! Pulls like crazy, and sadly I had no room to do any kinda quick shifting to feel the gearbox. Pissah..! It did snick into gears though. I liked it. I felt – even with my SIDI boots on – that the shifter could have been lower by maybe ½ inch or more. We get past the housing area and get into some curvy winding roads at 45 mph. I’m leaning the bike over and seeing how composed it is, granted I’m not going very fast at all. It’s taking me all the self discipline I can muster for me to keep my hand from wringing the loud grip at this juncture. I’m in 2nd gear – listening for the engine and watching mirrors for vibes. They are most deff there, I expected that. Anytime I was in the 5K-5.5K range of rpm I got vibes…not crazy I hate this flippin’ machine vibes…just vibration, not a deal breaker. This scoot is a torque monstah.! It’s loves to be rev’ved but pulls so hard and so fast that you gotta be on your game. I did not try a wheelie, but believe I could easily hoist a front wheel in an instant if desired. Loads of torque, the kind that sits ya back in yo seat. Heaps of it…always on tap. This is when the smile started.
Handling and acceleration : We got out of the slow speed curvy stuff and did a very tight right hand entrance ramp onto 435. 1st gear to 2nd gear then …whack the throttle and bump it to 3rd… straitening out and standing the bike up and ready to really let the big dawg eat, but … remember those 2 cats in front of me – the guy on the cruiser and the dewd on the R6 that couldn’t ride..? They’re right in front of me now..I mean RIGHT NOW…B R A K E S…!!!...Hmm, what the -- no drama, a little front end dive that could be easily taken up by the Preload and Compression setting on the fully adjustable front end of this wondrous machine. Back to the acceleration : this scoot pulled hard in every gear, freight train hard. Smile plastered on your face hard. B A M M hard.! Holy Shitski hard.
Back to the brakes – the brakes flat worked, sans the dive in the front end, awesome stuff.
We exit the next ramp to head back. (*yeah, I know – short ride*). We exit off and catch the light to turn left and head east. Skies are clearing and it almost is getting warm out. Very VERY strong cross wind fro the south going straight northbound. I’m in 3rd and kicking it to 4th to catch up to make the next light and the wind is howling – the bike is completely stable, not even any leaning into the wind or anything. Rock steady. Somebody spoke a week or two ago about how the bike is “balanced”. That’s the word I wanna use…it is the best balanced bike I’ve ever been on. Incredible, and prolly due to the fact that the center of gravity is so low on it.
We hit a left hand turn light and we’re back to the shop. 16 minutes of romper room fun, locked up in the back of my mind.
Wind Management : you’re either gonna want a diff screen or at least a WASP adjuster. Granted, I was on the tail of a very stormy day with a ton of wind. It is what it is, but I would deff be changing the screen and getting the wings and the adjuster. That alone will make the ride more enjoyable.
Waay too short a time to really make an true evaluation of this scoot, but for first impressions…it is a KEEPER…it is a GS/GSA KILLER…and nothing will kick sand in its face.
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