CO 141 Sport ride I wanted an upright sport bike. Modifications to make my DR650 dual-sport Suzuki a long-range, multi-purpose motorcycle with luggage and comfort were very successful. It is now my ride of choice for traveling questionable roads in remote areas of western Colorado and eastern Utah. Consequently, my use of the DL650 V-Strom shifted toward pavement sport. The DL650 is a great motorcycle but I wanted to refine my corner speed without decreasing my comfort level or safety margin. I believed this was possible with less weight, better weight distribution, wider 17 inch wheels and sportier tires. Wheels and tires can be changed but reducing weight and shifting the bias from rear to front would be a challenge. Better to trade for a standard, naked SV650.
That was the plan, January 2007. Surprisingly, there were no new 2006 or 2007 standard SV650's available in western Colorado and 2007 models were already back ordered with the distributor. At my age I have no time to waste. A new plan was needed, one drawn from my own experience and the opinion of sources I have learned to trust.
A few bitter cold, snowy days afforded me time to evolve a new plan. After a pondering attempt to be objective about a choice which is intrinsically subjective, one motorcycle headed my short list of sporty bikes with upright ergos: Honda CB600F, known as the Hornet in Europe, the 599 in the U.S. Built in Italy (you only have to pull the seat to find a part marked "Ducati," rumor has it there are more), the conservatively-styled Hornet has been the best selling full-sized motorcycle in Europe but wanted by few in the U.S. where image rules. Honda introduced this bike to the U. S. in 2004, dropped it for 2005, reintroduced it for 2006 and now it seems to be gone again from the U.S. for 2007 although restyled and upgraded for the European market. But I have my 599 and I like the conservative styling. I should keep it when I'm through with it since it's likely to become a cult bike in the U.S. like many other poor-sellers before it.
I've admired the quality of my Hondas. I thoroughly enjoyed a year-2000 VFR800 and agree with the many who believe it to be one of the best motorcycles in the world but the new ones have valve adjustment procedures that are beyond my abilities or budget. I owned and really liked a CBR600F2 but the latest CBR600's are too extreme for my aging body. The 599's high, rearset footpegs and low but still upright handlebars suit my posture, age and style. The high-performance inline four, derived from the CBR600F3 of only a few years back, is much faster than I need but I don't remember my F2 ever scaring me. By today's supersport standards, the 599 is a little heavy but lighter than the 650 V-Strom. Most important, the 50/50 weight distribution is more appropriate for fast pavement, the wheels are the correct size for a wide variety of sporty tires and mine came fitted with what Bridgestone calls "Ultra High Performance Sport" dual-compound tires. The suspension is non-adjustable except for preload in the rear but as long as the bike is faster than me, that may not matter. I will miss the viscerally exciting V-twin of the DL650 and SV650 but the 599 engine is a jewel. Unlike any 600 I've ridden before, the 599, although perhaps not making a lot of horsepower in the midrange, still pulls smoothly from anything above idle, even in 6th gear. No performance twin or single I know of can do that. On the highway, I can roll-on throttle and pass without downshifting unless I'm really in a hurry. I'm confident the 599 will be just the precision tool I wanted for our mountain and canyon roads.
January 2007: purchased new from Billy Aller at Davis Service Center, Montrose, Colorado.
• Chase Harper leather and nylon tailbag (now discontinued) for the pillion seat when traveling.
• Pyramid Plastic hugger. Within days after purchasing the 599 I had experienced snow, mud, wet roads and roads treated with mag chloride. Some bikes have protection for the rear damper, some don't. This 599 doesn't. The Pyramid hugger from England is a bit expensive over here but I was able to find a good used one on the Internet for half price. Fitting was easy. I hadn't asked what year the hugger was for and it must have been for a 2004 model as the right bracket mounting holes didn't match the 2006 swing arm. The bracket was easily modified and no one would ever know it wasn't original. I find the Pyramid hugger to be a well-made, functional item that looks like it belongs on the 599.
• Pyramid Plastic front fender extender. I ordered mine from Rev's Performance. Note: the 2004 and 2006 model 599's, the only two years imported as of this writing, have different forks and fenders requiring different fender extenders. Styling demands a severely abbreviated front fender on sporty bikes and most offer no protection from debris thrown to the rear. The Pyramid fender extender is much too short to offer the protection I desire but should at least protect the radiator. I wish they offered the extender in a longer length but I suppose there would be no market. Apparently most riders value style over function -- or perhaps they ride only in fair weather and never on gravel roads.
• Small windshield to keep some air off my body and some bugs off my helmet visor. As usual, finding an acceptable compromise between looks and function is not that easy. Comments and opinion
March 22, 2007, 3086 miles: Oil & filter change, new Bridgestone BT56 OEM tires.
March 18, 2007, 2813 miles: Met Billy (CBR929RR) and Gene (CBR1000RR) in Delta for our first serious sport bike ride of the season on CO 141 in the canyons of the Dolores and San Miguel Rivers. It's final now: the Honda 599 is every thing I wanted it to be. Great bike, great ride.
March 15, 2007, 2531 miles: Met Mike for brunch at 141 Diner. Dolores Canyon again. Practicing? Warm enough I wore my new leathers. Very comfortable, good fit.
March 13, 2007, 2241 miles: Rode Black Mesa today, first time since winter. No fun. The road was mostly dry but very dirty from winter sanding. Guess I stick to Dolores Canyon for a while.
March 12, 2007, 2087 miles: Started the loop of February 22 below: Ridgway, Dallas Divide, Norwood, Nucla, Gateway. Met Mike in Gateway, had a nice visit with Mike and other people at the Outpost (the 141 Diner is closed on Monday), rode back south through Dolores Canyon again with Mike, then retraced my path home. Warm pavement, fast ride both ways in Dolores Canyon. Very fast. Confident enough of my ability to have my own opinion, untainted by self-styled experts and Internet-spread miss-information, I can only shout, "THIS CB600F IS GREAT, THESE BRIDGESTONE BT56 TIRES ARE AWESOME! I consider myself fortunate to be riding this motorcycle while I can still appreciate it's capabilities. It's good enough and fast enough to take 40 years off my age in a few seconds. It's almost magic.
February 22, 2007, 1726 miles: Rode the loop: Ridgway, Dallas Divide, Norwood, Nucla, Gateway, Whitewater and home. Roads all clean and in good shape. The Slipstreamer windscreen obviously works better than the Givi as I wasn't tired after a longer ride than the day before. This was my first fast ride through Dolores Canyon since break-in on the 599. Very impressive. I'm generally cornering in Dolores Canyon about 10 MPH faster than I ever have before and it feels like I have a wide safety margin. I'm surprised, though, how rough the pavement is at high speed. The 599 handles the bumps without drama even when well leaned over at 100+ MPH. This bike does exactly what I bought it to do and does it better than I expected.
February 21, 2007, 1451 miles: Leo Vince muffler back in place. Unaweep and Dolores Canyons ride terminated in frustration because new Givi wind screen directed excessive wind to my helmet causing it to lift, something my HJC helmets had never done before. Back home, I reinstalled the Slipstreamer windscreen. The 599's mid-range power and the performance of the BT56's continue to be impressive.
February 8, 2007, 1202 miles: I've now had occasion to tentatively explore the top-speed potential of this 599. It's slower than I expected considering Motorcycle Consumer News measured a top speed of 136MPH. Mine seems to run out of power around 120 indicated, takes longer than I expected to get to 125 and may not have much left. That's speedometer speed, several MPH slower than true speed. It may be the altitude (around 6000 feet where I tested), the aftermarket muffler or both. In my experience it's not unusual for aftermarket mufflers without other modifications or tuning to increase midrange and decrease top end. I'm not concerned about the top speed. I rarely go over 120 anyway. The mid-range is really strong, as is acceleration in the upper RPM range up to near 120MPH. I'm happy with that. I checked my speedometer error using a "Your speed is" highway display sign. The 599 is not big enough to give a steady display but after two passes, I concluded my speedometer was probably around 4 or 5 MPH fast at 65 indicated. It seems like my Leo Vince muffler is getting louder. I'm on the verge of removing it, at least for a test. Before I mounted it I said, "If it messes up my terrific mid-range power it's coming off in a hurry." It may have improved the midrange. Now I'm afraid going back to the stock muffler will hurt mid-range.
January 29, 2007, 788 miles: Fast Canyon ride with Mike from Grand junction. Perhaps I previously gave too much credit to the BT56's for sticking on cold pavement as Mike was matching my corner speed on his DL650 with Metzeler Tourance tires. Good tire, the Tourance. I've used them in a performance track school but I never knew they would stick to cold pavement as fast as Mike was going. It's always good to have a reality check.
January 27, 2007, 564 miles: Oil and filter change, various 600 mile service checks according to manual. Checked static sag and found it to be correct, both ends.
January 25, 2007, 484 miles: I rode my first fast canyon ride on the 599 today. After meeting friend Billy from Montrose, we rode to Whitewater on US50 then headed southwest on CO141 through Unaweep Canyon to Gateway for a great lunch and delightful conversation with everyone at the 141 Diner. From Gateway, CO141 winds up the Dolores River through beautiful red rock canyons. We turned around at "The spring," a spot in Dolores Canyon I'm told was a stage stop in the late 1800's. Retracing our path made 140 miles of canyon total and 100 miles of less interesting road. Despite temperatures around 40 degrees and cold pavement, especially in the shadow of canyon walls, the Bridgestone BT56 "Ultra High Performance Sport" dual-compound tires stuck tenaciously at high lean angles, high speed. This was my first ride that seriously explored the possibilities of what this bike can do for me come spring. The results were so impressive I came home and opened a bottle of fine wine to celebrate. This bike is going to make me smoother and faster both.
January 23, 2007, 180 miles: I rode my first crooked mountain road on the 599 today. No wonder this bike has been a best seller in Europe. It's a very nice motorcycle. One thing I like about sport bikes is the uncanny way they track through sweepers almost as though they sense the corner and could do it without rider input. The 599 is that way. One can set up properly for a fast sweeper and never make a correction. It's a great feeling and I'm happy to have a bike that can do it. Today I rode to the top of Grand Mesa, at well over 10,000 feet altitude. The road, freshly re-paved last summer, today free of ice, slush, sand or wet pavement, was beautiful under a blue, clear sky and brilliant sun. The temperature was in the thirties but felt warmer and I didn't bother plugging in my Gerbing's heated gear. I intended to respect the cold pavement with a modest pace but the bike and tires inspired such confidence that I was soon doing 8/10 my summer speed.
January 19, 2007: purchased new.
Specs: Engine Type 599cc liquid-cooled inline four-cylinder engine features dual ignition maps for smooth, strong performance. Bore and Stroke 65.0mm x 45.2mm Compression Ratio 12.0:1 Valve Train DOHC; four valves per cylinder Carburetion Four 34.0mm slanted flat-slide CV Ignition Computer-controlled digital with electronic advance HP 88.0, torque 47.4 @ rear wheel (Motorcycle Online) Acceleration zero to 60 in 3.6 sec., zero to 100 in 8.6 sec., over 115 MPH in the quarter mile. (Motorcycle Online) Top speed, corrected 136mph (Motorcycle Consumer News) Transmission Six-speed Final Drive #525 O-ring-sealed chain Front Suspension 41mm inverted fork; 4.7-inch travel Rear Suspension Single shock with seven-position spring-preload adjustability; 5.0-inch travel Front Brakes Dual full-floating 296.0mm discs with twin-piston calipers Rear Brake Single 220.0mm disc with single-piston caliper Front Tire 120/70ZR-17 radial Rear Tire 180/55ZR-17 radial Rake 25.5 degrees Trail 96.0mm (3.8 inches) Wheelbase 56.1 inches Seat Height 31.1 inches Dry Weight 404.0 pounds Curb Weight 440lb (F: 220lb; R: 220lb) Fuel Capacity 4.5 gallons
