MotoMari Tested: “I Let BMW Surprise Me”
To be completely honest, I’ve always had some prejudices against BMW motorcycles. Seeing people at events with those big BMWs, they’ve sometimes seemed bulky, heavy, and difficult to handle. Or perhaps some people have simply bitten off more than they can chew, which has left that impression on me. Except for one Estonian moto-orienteering legend, Juho, with his GS, or well, I won’t even mention instructor Kimi, and certainly, there are many other skilled GS riders in Estonia. Not to mention the whole world. Some BMW riders handle their bikes so skillfully that it leaves you speechless.
Indeed, at the events I’ve attended, the more noticeable bikes have been those over a ton. I haven’t really noticed the smaller ones, except maybe with a couple of women riders. So when the opportunity arose to test ride some BMW bikes, I was honestly excited but not overly enthusiastic. I feared that my prejudice of BMWs being large, cumbersome, and complex might actually be true.
The BMW representative had selected the BMW F850 GS model for my test ride. Hearing that it was relatively tall, I initially thought it wouldn’t be a big deal, but when I actually arrived, I did have a moment of doubt about venturing into the city with this shiny showroom bike. A nice young man showed me all the bells and whistles on the handlebars outside. “Here, you can adjust the suspension. Here, you select your riding mode; just put the key in your pocket,” and that was it.
I then got on the bike, and to my surprise, even though it was said to be relatively tall, my 165 cm height allowed my toes to touch the ground comfortably, so there was no issue there. Sitting on the bike and placing my hands on the handlebars, I was quite surprised by the riding position. The riding stance was pleasantly upright, allowing for more active positions if riding off-road. My knees had a good grip against the tank, and oh my goodness – such a light clutch! It could easily be pulled with just one finger. I liked that even though the handlebars had quite a few convenience features like heated grips, cruise control, and various buttons for different settings, the whole handlebar area was actually quite clear and uncluttered. The additional features were compact. Personally, I just don’t like too many things.
I set off from the shop for my two-hour test ride. As soon as I plunged into city traffic, I was completely astonished by how incredibly easy and light it was to ride! Assumptions and prejudices are the death of all good things—don’t assume, just try it! Honestly, I was seriously surprised by how simple and comfortable it was to handle this 233-kilogram, relatively tall bike. There’s not too much plastic around, so you can even see the front wheel from behind the handlebars. Overall, everything was very compact, simple, and comfortable. When I rode into the city on my Yamaha TDM, the wind sometimes felt like it might blow me off the road, but I don’t know what kind of dynamics this BMW has, it felt like the wind just blew through it without unsettling me at all.
I searched and searched, but being unfamiliar with the outskirts of the city, from Tabasalu to Suurupi, I couldn’t find any gravel roads to truly test the bike’s potential. But even on the highway, I found myself thinking how easy and comfortable it would have been to travel through Romania on this bike. I also really liked the higher seating position in the city—it gives you a much better view of everything. When I got back on my TDM, it felt so small and low in comparison.
And well, with 850cc and 70 kilowatts on this GS, give it a twist of the throttle, and you hardly realize how quickly 30 on the speedometer turns into 80. This bike has some serious power. It was so fun to accelerate from the lights and let out a little laugh inside my helmet 😄 Above all; I’d like to say to the ladies out there, gather experience because sometimes riding with a slightly bigger and more powerful bike can be easier than it initially seems. The 850 GS was really a blast, but I can’t say much about bikes over a thousand cubic centimeters for touring. I was genuinely surprised by this bike and I can imagine how cool it would be to make friends with it off-road. Unfortunately, our date was a bit short-lived because, you know, organizing the Central Estonia Tour takes its time! And it’s super cool that BMW Motorrad Estonia offers awesome prizes for moto orienteers. One adventurer even gets a whole weekend with a BMW motorcycle.
Certainly, there will be questions now about what I didn’t like. As I mentioned, our date was brief, and there wasn’t quite enough time for a real introduction. But who decided to put that wasp’s stinger-like plastic under the headlight? Taste is probably not up for debate 😊 and surely it serves its practical purpose.
But the keywords that surprised me or were positive about this BMW F 850 GS: lightness (easy to lift and push aside), easy maneuverability, high seating position (gave a much better view of the surroundings), upright riding position (made it easier for me to control the bike), super light clutch, somehow compact feeling, and both standing and sitting, knees had good support and grip. I’d definitely tour around with this beauty!
More blog posts from MotoMari, you may find from here: https://motomari.com/
