New Beginning July 1st 2010

Hi All

Within a few days life begins with our new 2010 Honda ST1300 Pan European. This is the bike in the showroom.




This is a bit of a strange situation; I can’t say I ever considered getting a Pan. The first time I looked at one In Two Wheels in Edinburgh, Eileen commented on how she liked them. Although I thought they looked ok, the bike just seemed to close to a Goldwing, Which was enough for me to turn the other way.

To explain; as a young boy I was smitten with motorcycles and the first time I saw a GL1000, it just seemed like the best and biggest bike in the world and from that day onwards I swore one day I would have a Goldwing.

That day came about 26 years later and I became the owner of a very low mileage GL1500SE, I kept it for two years and by the end of my ownership I hated it. Someone commented that it was a car on two wheels and as time went by I was convinced it was. Too big, too much effort, and too car like.

So that was that, my conclusion was at the end of it I could have owned a Sports Bike with bags and had a much better biking experience for a lot less money.

Some say you should never meet you heroes and the Goldwing would have been better left parked in my boyhood dreams.

So hence my initial disinterest in the Honda ST1300, which begs the question why am I buying it, a fair and awkward question for me to answer, but I will be honest from day one.

I have subjected my partner to some pillion eating killers, Eileen loves bikes, and funnily enough she hated the wing, which always confused me to why she liked the Pan. Her answer was the Pan looked a very stately motorcycle and the Wing was a car.

Now I have to be honest and agree that the wing does hit the car category feel, maybe this is more so in the GL1500 case and a bit unfair for the GL1800.

Even if it is possible to use that expression about a bike, underneath I know that it is a motorcycle and a real feat of engineering, which has a huge following and is a much loved bike by many, just not loved by me. I did not get this feeling from the Pan, although the dash on any tourer infringes car console territory, the ST still felt very much a bike.

What about the Pan then, how has this materialised. Well after the disappointment of Eileen’s experience on the back of the VFR1200, her comfort was at the front of my mind. I had forgotten how hard it can be holding onto the back of modern fast motorcycle.

We had been invited to the Honda open day at Two Wheels, I had to choose bikes from the list to test drive and yes the Pan was available.

We went out on the bike for an hour's ride and I was quite surprised how light it felt on the move, certainly not cumbersome like the GL1500. The ride was very smooth, the whole hour's experience was enjoyable.

My pillion was very happy, the bike did not really blow me away, I liked it but I was not in love with it. Eileen commented on how she felt no vibration through the seat or the pegs. The penny dropped and my guilt hung heavy. No matter what seat gripper I fitted or top box I added to the VFR1200, she was never going to find this level of comfort.

I had only thought about my own enjoyment on the VFR, I did not even test drive it with Eileen.

I should have looked at the Pan was my thought. It was not setting my heart on fire but I could see that it was very functional, practical and still had that addictive V4 feeling and most of all would take both of us anywhere together.

The together bit had always been very important but yet I had not fully catered for it.

Whatever my thoughts were, it was not feasible to change at this point and I decided that it was something I might consider further down the line if the opportunity arose.

I looked over the Candy Glory Red ST1300 on the showroom floor but at £13,500 it was out of my reach, a pity it was the same colour as the VFR I traded in for the 1200, which I loved. I also thought that the pan fitted between the VFR800 and the Goldwing, which gave it the nod of maybe being just right.

I went home just thinking that maybe next time, further down the road I would keep my eyes open for a nearly new one and trade in one of the bikes.

Two weeks later I was doing my usual trolling through the Two Wheels used list when my eyes popped out my head, the new Pan they had on the showroom floor was now showing pre-registered and had £2500 of the list price.

I could smell the scent of purchase fever and to cut a long story short by the end of the week the bike was mine.

I have spilled out all this information and reading it must be confusing about the purchase of this bike. How will life be on the ST1300, to be honest I don’t know, I have made this decision with both of us in mind, I have promised Eileen that if she tells me that she has never been happier on a bike then I will never sell it.

There is a lot I like about this bike as follows;

1) It’s a Honda and looks beautifully put together.
2) It’s Candy Glory Red.
3) It’s a v4, now this is a big like; in fact it’s a love like.
4) 29 Litre tank – wow that’s a fantastic range, a feasible range to reserve of 200 to 250 miles.
5) Twin Exhausts, another love.
6) Centre Stand, a must
7) MPG Computer
8) Ergonomics
9) Wind and Rain Protection
10) Electrical Adjustable Windscreen, not even the G-Wing has that.
11) Shaft Drive
12) Reasonable Tyre life
13) Adjustable Seat
14) My Partner Loves it

Now that’s quite a lot of likes and even a few loves but it does not equate to a bike that I love and adore at this time. This makes the future ownership interesting and an unbiased opinion for any other soul who might be interested in this bike.

The test drive told me one thing, I did not dislike the bike, and we will both be very content and happy on it through our new adventures together. It is a bike built for the purpose and probably one of the best around.

Now the problem part, having both the Pan and the VFR1200 seems a bit extravagant. I originally bought the VFR because I love the V4, I loved the 800, I really thought with the extra Cubes and Luggage capability it would be the perfect mixture of sports and touring.

It is without doubt the greatest sports bike I have ever ridden and in no way do I expect the Pan to match the sports side of the VFR. But and this is a big but, I have a small hope that the ST will creep under my skin and that I will not only find it a great tourer but a great commuter and enough sports element to keep me happy and If so then I may say goodbye to the VFR. Of course if I win the lottery then the VFR would never leave my side.

So let the show begin, it all starts on the 3rd of July, hopefully it will be a long road and I will have just the right bike at the end of it.