Very proud owner of a new 2013 S10, checking in!
I just got onto my new 2013 thanks to the current incentives Mother Yamaha is offering.
Couldn't be happier! Read on if you'd like to chuckle at my follies (I'm sure I'm not the only one who's taken a few bikes to get to the Tenere!)
I've been trying to find "my" bike since I picked up motorcycle riding in 2010, and have owned most types of motorcycles in that time. I was always a little upset that I couldn't just be like my old man and buy one bike, keep it for your whole life, and not second-guess your decision. Granted, his BMW 75/7 is timeless, but you know what I mean right? I think we have TOO many choices today, not just with motorcycles, and being a bit indecisive doesn't help! Not to mention when you only have the garage space for one bike, it always seems like you're making a compromise to make that one bike "do it all", which of course no bike can do. Heck, most recently I traded in the new Honda Valkyrie for my S10 (expensive lesson!) just to give you an idea on the range of bikes I've been through! The S10 definitely comes closest to being great at everything I like in a bike, though! ::001::
The first time I saw (and sat on) an S10 was in 2011 when at my local Yamaha dealer wth a couple friends looking at riding gear. My buddies didn't "get it", thinking it was too tall, and making fun of the "pizza box" on the back. I loved it. Sat on it, drooled over it. It reminded me of all the cool motorcycles I'd seen riding around European roads a couple years earlier. But at the time it was a little out of my budget (no deals to be had since they had JUST come out). And I was on a Harley (ironic, I know, given the budget argument!) riding with my friends who mostly had Harleys, too.
So I largely forgot about the S10 for a couple years, and then when I came out of my cruiser-bike spell tried to wade into the Adventure/dual sport world with the KLR 650. Loved that bike except it didn't really enjoy higher-speed highway travel. I know, I ask a lot from a bike!
A few weeks ago, I saw the 2013 S10 steeply discounted at the same local dealer where years ago I sat on that new 2011 model. I had just gotten into a bad relationship with a new 2014 Valkyrie and decided if I could roll the balance of that bike into the new S10, I'd do it and never look back.
Being a taller fella at 6'4", the S10 fits like a glove. No, really it does! Plus, it's got enough giddy-up to take me to triple digits and pass most other vehicles on the road when I want to. There's enough stability and poise at cruising speeds to not shake into a death wobble on the highway (see: KLR). It's comfy enough for day-trips, and has a large enough fuel tank to keep me going. While there aren't any real legal public trails around me, it's nice to know that if the pavement ends, the bike is comfortable on less-smooth road surfaces. On that point though, it absorbs the pothole-ridden city streets like a champ! Plus, the transmission shifts smoothly and that twin just hums right along like a sewing machine.
From pretty much every angle I can confidently say that this is the bike I've always wanted. Now that I'm on one I plan to stay for a while! Funny, since it's so different than what I started out with and was convinced would be "my" bike. Thanks to this forum, you guys have helped identify any issues there are and how to fix them (CCT) and countless farkles and accompanying reviews. Thank you for that!
Basically, what I'm saying is... ::021::
I just got onto my new 2013 thanks to the current incentives Mother Yamaha is offering.
Couldn't be happier! Read on if you'd like to chuckle at my follies (I'm sure I'm not the only one who's taken a few bikes to get to the Tenere!)
I've been trying to find "my" bike since I picked up motorcycle riding in 2010, and have owned most types of motorcycles in that time. I was always a little upset that I couldn't just be like my old man and buy one bike, keep it for your whole life, and not second-guess your decision. Granted, his BMW 75/7 is timeless, but you know what I mean right? I think we have TOO many choices today, not just with motorcycles, and being a bit indecisive doesn't help! Not to mention when you only have the garage space for one bike, it always seems like you're making a compromise to make that one bike "do it all", which of course no bike can do. Heck, most recently I traded in the new Honda Valkyrie for my S10 (expensive lesson!) just to give you an idea on the range of bikes I've been through! The S10 definitely comes closest to being great at everything I like in a bike, though! ::001::
The first time I saw (and sat on) an S10 was in 2011 when at my local Yamaha dealer wth a couple friends looking at riding gear. My buddies didn't "get it", thinking it was too tall, and making fun of the "pizza box" on the back. I loved it. Sat on it, drooled over it. It reminded me of all the cool motorcycles I'd seen riding around European roads a couple years earlier. But at the time it was a little out of my budget (no deals to be had since they had JUST come out). And I was on a Harley (ironic, I know, given the budget argument!) riding with my friends who mostly had Harleys, too.
So I largely forgot about the S10 for a couple years, and then when I came out of my cruiser-bike spell tried to wade into the Adventure/dual sport world with the KLR 650. Loved that bike except it didn't really enjoy higher-speed highway travel. I know, I ask a lot from a bike!
A few weeks ago, I saw the 2013 S10 steeply discounted at the same local dealer where years ago I sat on that new 2011 model. I had just gotten into a bad relationship with a new 2014 Valkyrie and decided if I could roll the balance of that bike into the new S10, I'd do it and never look back.
Being a taller fella at 6'4", the S10 fits like a glove. No, really it does! Plus, it's got enough giddy-up to take me to triple digits and pass most other vehicles on the road when I want to. There's enough stability and poise at cruising speeds to not shake into a death wobble on the highway (see: KLR). It's comfy enough for day-trips, and has a large enough fuel tank to keep me going. While there aren't any real legal public trails around me, it's nice to know that if the pavement ends, the bike is comfortable on less-smooth road surfaces. On that point though, it absorbs the pothole-ridden city streets like a champ! Plus, the transmission shifts smoothly and that twin just hums right along like a sewing machine.
From pretty much every angle I can confidently say that this is the bike I've always wanted. Now that I'm on one I plan to stay for a while! Funny, since it's so different than what I started out with and was convinced would be "my" bike. Thanks to this forum, you guys have helped identify any issues there are and how to fix them (CCT) and countless farkles and accompanying reviews. Thank you for that!
Basically, what I'm saying is... ::021::
