Joan will be quick to tell you: "It's his blog - I don't want the limelight." With all the things we've done, the key word is "WE"... we are a partnership and we do most things together. So, today, this post is all about Joan and her Xmax.
The Xmax is Yamaha's 300cc sport scooter. It is fast, handles great, good native (under-seat) storage, and gets impressive gas mileage - when we filled up today, she got 101 mpg; that is better than many scoots with half the horsepower. Yamaha engineers did a great job in the design of this bike. And most importantly for Joan: it is a good fit for her. And she handles it in a confident, fluid manner. She says she had a good teacher, but she has been riding almost as long as I have; she developed her own style based on the bikes she's had over the years. We know each other's riding style and work together using the helmet communicators as we ride.
Today, we left Hart Ranch, heading north. Up Highway 16, west on Rimrock Highway, a right onto Norris Peak Road, a left onto Nemo Highway, through the small community of Nemo, then a right onto today's favorite: Vanocker Canyon Road.
A few images taken from the "camera platform" (aka my bike), capturing the Xmax from the front as it ran through the fun, sweeping turns on that road...
These were snapshots taken from video... so, there will be a video happening.
Vanocker Canyon opens up to Sturgis on the north end. We rode into town and had lunch at the Loud American Roadhouse. Town is pretty much back to how it looks the rest of the year...
And proof that I was along today...
With full bellies and gas tanks, it was decision time: take the Interstate back or retrace our fun, curvy route that got us here. Yep, it's the twisties.
A fun day on the bikes, and Mother Nature blessed us with some reasonably cool weather - it got down to 67º at the higher elevations on the ride. Nice!
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The completed Xmax Video...
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And, a "YouTube Shorts" clip with the Xmax...
2 comments:
Your riding adventures continue to inspire me. I lost out on the "used" 2022 NC750X DCT that had low miles, but my dealer called and had ONE only new bike coming in that is in-transit from the Honda distribution center. Once they receive they will uncrate and build it up and get rider ready. Since I have purchased from them in the past, they are giving me first opportunity to secure. I gave them a $500.00 deposit that is totally refundable and once they have it primed to go, I will take it for a more extensive test ride. Really my only concern at 6' tall is leg room compared to the foot forward Burgman scooter stance. I doubt with a longer test ride I will be able to get a good feel for the bike, but hopefully my body will say yes or no. On the Burgman, my legs always feel good because I can stretch them out, but my back at times aches because I feel "arched". Feet down on traditional pegs may help my back, but my knees and legs may shout back at me a little.
From reading some NC750 blogs, many have lowered the pegs and some even installed a pair of foot forward pegs for when cruising. Don't really know how lowering the pegs would work with the foot brake on the right side. Will let you know what I decide. These bikes are VERY hard to come by these days. Months long wait for people with no promised delivery dates. I don't have any other real concerns - I can always add the rear carrier, center stand and grip shields.
Happy riding!!
Greg
Hi Greg. New Hondas seem to be slow getting back to normal supply.
I didn't feel cramped when I did a test sit on the NC750x, but you have several inches on me. It seemed like the seating position on the NC was similar to the V-Strom I had (and enjoyed) before the scoots. Comfort matters. I added floorboards to the CTX to bring that feet-forward riding position back a couple inches; made that already comfortable bike even better for me.
Good luck with the search. Nice that your dealer will set you up with a test ride - that is getting rarer these days.
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