The American Honda VFR1200F DCT Consumer Event in Santa Barbara, CA on June 5th, 2010
The day of the demo ride finally arrived! Honda split us up into three separate groups to ride: morning, mid-afternoon and late afternoon. I ended up being in the middle group, which gave me some time to kill. I missed watching the morning group leave because I was having breakfast, but I did get out there earlier in the morning to photograph the motorcycles before there were lots of people around.
When my group gathered with all our gear in tow, they almost didn’t let me ride. Something about not having a DOT approved helmet, blah blah (they never said I had to have one, but I suppose I should have known better. Please no lectures about riding safety, I’m well aware). One of the ride leaders let me borrow a helmet: a full-faced one, to my chagrin. Talk about sensory deprivation…
photo by Kevin Wing
Anyway it was suggested I take the standard model out first and when we got to the canyon we’d all switch bikes and I’d get to ride the DCT back. Sounded good to me.
And here begins the convergence of a perfect storm of comedy (and a whole lotta stress and frustration) for me: wearing a full-face helmet that I’m not used to, riding a motorcycle that I’m not familiar with (and uncomfortable on because I’m leaning forward and my feet are behind me), in a group of people I’ve never ridden with before on roads that I’ve never driven on…ever.
photo by Kevin Wing
I felt like I was back in my first day of the MSF course, I kept stalling out the damn bike. I ended up lagging way behind the rest of the group at the beginning of the ride. I had a really difficult time with the clutch because the friction point was a lot further out from where I’m used to (and although it’s adjustable we didn’t have enough time ahead to do anything about it).
The entire ride up to the canyon was a struggle for me and I’m sure it made some of the Honda guys doubt my riding abilities. I kind of wished that they had let us take a quick spin around the parking lot before we headed out for the ride so that we could set our expectations. [After all was said and done I was happy to learn that I wasn't the only one that had a bit of difficulty with the manual bike.]
After lots of swearing and finally catching up to the group I tried to focus on the gorgeous scenery and the bike itself. The ride was very smooth and first and second gears last a lot longer than I expected. Honestly, we never ended up going very fast for long enough to really get the bike going. I guess when the group of journalists went out a few days before us, one of the groups was pulled over for speeding. So Honda was very conservative while bringing the consumer groups out.
When we got to the canyon, I jumped on the DCT. Immediately it felt foreign not to be holding in the clutch while waiting for the rest of the group. I think the Honda guys were a little concerned about me because I did struggle initially. But you know how it goes, after a half hour on an unfamiliar bike you finally used to it and become a lot less nervous. And plus, hello automatic motorcycle!
photo by Kevin Wing
Off I went, this time second in line. That’s the silly thing about being on an automatic: you just go. I always thought riding an automatic felt a little like cheating because you’re not doing any work. But in this instance I quite enjoyed it in contrast to my frazzling time on the manual model. I got to enjoy the scenery, I kept up with the front of the group just fine. I didn’t fiddle too much with the controllers. I did toggle it into “S-mode” over “D-mode.” Most everyone who rode the DCT agreed they would almost never ride in D-mode, maybe the only reason to would be if you’re in heavy traffic.
It was interesting for me to see where the motorcycle’s computer decided to change gears versus where I normally would have. And I did notice if I seemed to be traveling in between gears I heard “click-clack click-clack” while it tried to decide what gear to be in. There were a few spots where the road declined that I would have downshifted sooner than the computer did. And stopping was a little strange. Again, no clutch means no downshifting. You just use the brake to stop. Weird!
photo by Kevin Wing
If the ride had been longer I would have loved to have tested out the paddle switch in manual mode. The ride was only about an hour total, a half hour on each bike. Not nearly enough time to play around with all the features like we would have wanted to. But since this was Honda’s first time doing a consumer demo ride I can understand them being cautious.
I don’t know that I’d give up my street cruiser anytime soon for this one, but I really liked the DCT’s ability to toggle between manual and automatic and am intrigued by the paddle switch. I personally didn’t find the sporty style of it particularly comfy, based on my posture while riding, but the other folks who like this style found it very comfortable.
Everyone had lots of opinions, good and bad, about the VFR after the ride and didn’t hesitate sharing their thoughts. I hope American Honda finds that holding that kind of an event is successful and decide to do it again. If they do then they’ll be more aware of what worked and what didn’t. Oh, and I hope they invite me again, too! It was a great experience.
photo by Kevin Wing
Check out all of my photos from the Honda Consumer Event on my Facebook page!
Go to Honda Powersports for more information on the Honda VFR1200F DCT.
And if you really want to nerd out with other VFR fans, join them at VFRworld.
Related post: Anatomy of the Honda VFR1200F DCT