AJ, thanks for the message.
I normally agree totally with Covert but on this occasion I'm afraid I can't. It's terribly macho and technical to talk about braking prowess, but that means nothing when you've lost free movement in your knee after a collosion with another vehicle - or worse still, your passenger has a serious injury.
As Micheal suggets, the one time that you do lose the front, perhaps:
1. on a rainy day when panic braking over white lines or manhole cover
2. to avoid a u-turner that hasn't looked
3. to avoid a taxi driver emergency braking to win his next fare
4. To avoid a pedestrian that is wearing all black at night and is running across an unlit road in the rain
...you will wish that you had spent the extra cash. Make this incident in the final portion of the return leg of a touring weekend, and you have to add fatigue into the picture. A locked rear means you can't turn to avoid an obstacle so it's not only about front end lock-ups - although they can be terminal.
I'm not talking about planned routine braking on dry roads.
Besides, as the ABS model comes complete with the passenger backrest and electric mirrors as standard, both 150 USD and 400USD as options on the non-ABS respectively, you are only paying 450USD to have the benefit of knowing that if you have lucked out, you'll be ok.
This thing weighs the best part of 240kgs so the additional 6kgs that the ABS model records on the scales - including the electric mirrors and passenger backrest - may not pose the issue that you may at first have thought.
I'm quite partial to visiting circuits on the RC45, and have covered 100,000kms on road bikes without ABS in all conditions, so I'm reasonably confident that I know how to brake a motorcycle and love braking hard into 2nd/3rd gear bends. However, I'm still able to appreciate the value of braking support devices on road bikes for use in all weather conditions.
I can't recollect the last time that the ABS system engaged on my Forza (Reflex) but over the last 19,000kms of largely all weather city riding, it certainly has engaged in the rain at night on white lines and manhole covers avoiding taxis on occasion. ABS has value.
Perhaps one of the most interesting things about riding bikes with ABS is that you find yourself braking so much harder in the rain without the ABS engaging, simply because you are more confident that you won't lose the front end. If you think about it in this way, having ABS it may actually improve your braking technique and confidence in the rain, as oppose to decrease your skill.
Enjoy
great to hear that it's reasonable, and I'll probably be getting one soon. THanks Eddie!
