Executive Motorcycling

Welcome to the Big End of Bike Town, by bike of course...

In general, motorcyclists are regarded as being pretty familiar with the value of a dollar, to not put too fine a point on it. Some, it’s said, even know the value of five dollars. No, seriously, we are pretty much universally regarded as tight-fisted and (let’s be honest) with some cause.

That’s only until we realise that we do actually really truly need that Harley-Davidson Electraglide, BMW R1200GS or Honda GoldWing, dear…

But even then we’re likely to buy the cheapest pair of gloves or helmet to go with the bike. And why not! After all, while money isn’t everything it’s certainly bloody handy and a penny saved is a penny earned (except we don’t have pennies any more) and many a mickle makes a muckle. And yet that may not be the best way to go and anyway not everyone feels like that to begin with.

There are more and more motorcyclists genuinely not short of a quid and who appreciate value for money before cheapness. Unfortunately, like many minorities, they find that few magazine articles or product reviews cater to them. Well, we’re going to change that!

Once a year, from now on, we’re going to bring you a feature about the Big End of Bike Town, the things you would buy or do if only you had the money (or could get your loving partner to untie the purse strings). Not that we’re looking at this stuff just because it’s expensive; you don’t get to be well off in the first place by spending more than necessary to get what you want!

Right! So let’s look at executive motorcycling, the feature designed to inform you when commuting is a choice between taking the bike or the Benz. Read it, all ye other scrooges (yes, me, too) and weep…

The CC version of the MV Agusta F4

Executive Motorcycles
There is little doubt about the identity of the (currently) ultimate upmarket motorcycle. The F4 CC MV Agusta is the creation of Claudio Castiglioni, managing director of MV Agusta, which is why it bears his initials.  Castiglioni is well known for his self-promotional abilities and with the CC he’s gone the extra yards.

The CC is available by order only and only 100 have been built. The five bikes that will be available in Australia will cost $185,000 (yes, each). Keep in mind that this is still $48,000 less than a 3.6 Carrera 4 Cabriolet Porsche 911 and guess which one will get the looks when you stop somewhere for a burger with the lot? Yep, the MV.

The F4 CC features an engine step-up to 1078cc and an abundance of other technical upgrades, puts out 200 horses and is rated to 315km/h. So much for the voluntary 300km/h limit in Europe. That must just be for poor people.

It comes with an exclusive limited edition Girard-Perregaux watch, of which only 100 have been produced and numbered to match the numbers on the bikes. A Turussadi (sic, according to the press release; I think this may be Trussardi, but what would I know?) Italian leather jacket will also be included for each buyer.

I would presume that all the bikes will have been sold by the time you read this, but take courage. There is a potential problem that may see one or two of them turn up on the second-hand market. Not a problem with the bikes, mind you, a problem with the riders. If you buy a bike like this you really need to be good enough to match the machine’s abilities, otherwise you’ll look a bit silly – and the kinds of people who can afford a CC can’t necessarily ride that well. Oh, how embarrassment. So keep your eyes on the Trading Post (joke).

This limitation is also one of the main reasons the premium executive motorcycle brand rather than individual model has been and remains Harley-Davidson. Every relative tyro will look good on a Harley even when it’s moving and nobody expects them to be out at the front of the pack. H-D riders can relax on their Heritage or Springer, but especially on their Road King.

Those riders with the bucks and a bit of a hankering to go for it, but not necessarily the time or devotion to spend time learning race track techniques, often opt for the likes of a BMW R 1200 GS, or even the Adventure version. All the looks of an around-the-world machine coupled with good manners and more than adequate performance. There’s a rumor that spray-on mud is available with a BMW part number, but we don’t believe that for a moment.

Ducati offers a bit of both worlds, with its sports bikes like the 1098 providing for the capable and well-off rider who wants something special (and with a prestige badge) while the Monsters offer some of the image of the H-D badge with more substantial performance and handling benefits. We mustn’t forget Harley’s own entries into these markets either, with the V-Rods providing supercruiser-style go and Buells servicing the sporty riders who just want that ol’ American spirit.

Don’t get us wrong here, we know that many Japanese bikes are better than almost anything that comes out of European or American factories… but they fall down on design. The design of the badge, that is. There’s still nothing like a European or American brand for prestige. Or is there? Let’s see what we say in next year’s executive motorcycling report.

As for scooter riders, there is simply no choice at the top end of the market. There might be more technically advanced sophisticated scooters on the market, but you buy … a Vespa.

Kindly modeled by The Bear

Executive motorcycle clothing
This is an interesting category. For once, money can’t buy you happiness. Not beyond a certain point, anyway.

The trouble is that motorcycle clothing is quite specialised and even the most technically sophisticated gear (which is probably BMW’s) is still quite reasonably priced compared with fashion clothing. And you can’t wear fashion clothing to ride a bike – not if you’re smart – because it lacks such basics as Kevlar inserts and CE protectors. So while most of us can’t raise the readies for an F4 CC MV, many of us can in fact afford to buy the very best of motorcycle clothing.

A basic rule for motorcycle clothing is to buy the best you can afford. For technical sophistication, as we mentioned above, this is BMW; in racing-style leathers we’d probably go for Dainese. For outstanding styling, look at Triumph or Ducati clothing. But don’t ignore other bands such as DriRider, Rivet, Sportex and so on; any one of them might well have something that really suits (sorry) you. As we said above, this is one time that money can’t buy you happiness: but careful selection can!

Nolan's N42 open-face helmet

Executive motorcycle accessories
It definitely costs a little more, but for upmarket motorcycle luggage you can’t go past PacSafe. Its Exomesh bags are extremely well made and look good but above all they’re as secure as any motorcycle luggage is ever going to be. And rich folks are pretty likely to carry stuff worth stealing, aren’t they (but then again, ordinary folks’ stuff is likely to be more valuable to them because they can’t afford to replace it)! Rich or poor, see www.pac-safe.com for more details.

On the other hand, brands such as BMW, Ducati and Triumph also have terrific luggage choices. The problem is that they usually are (but fortunately not always) designed to go with that brand’s bikes.

Accessories we’d probably all have if we could afford them include GPS navigators and Bluetooth communication systems. They’re not going to be the sole province of the well-off for much longer, though; prices are coming down quite quickly. We’ve had a play with Honda’s sound system for the Deauville and while that’s pretty dear, it’s also a lot of fun. We’d have one of those if we could afford it.

There are of course many other “accessories” that are everyday items, such as watches, branded with a motorcycle logo. These can be a lot of fun, especially if you’re sure you’re going to stick with the same brand of bike and won’t end up with a Ducati watch while riding a Harley-Davidson. Great gift ideas, they can also establish a bit of credibility while you’re off the bike and in business meetings or expensive karaoke bars. If you’ve got it, as the saying goes, flaunt it.

Ducati's Monsters handle as well as any sports bike

Executive holidays
Skiers with bountiful bank balances might go to Vail or Davos (is that right? We don’t know anything about skiing – or bountiful bank balances, for that matter), but where do the same people go if they’re motorcyclists?

If they have a Harley, they might well decide to go for a ride in China. The simplest way to do that is to ship their bikes to Hong Kong and join one of Ray Ma’s trips. Ray is chapter director and HOG co-ordinator in Hong Kong, based at Techno H-D. His e-mail address is docray@gmail.com, or check www.harley-davidson.com.cn. We’re talking mega bucks here, but also a unique experience.

HOG of course also offers bikes and tours in many other parts of the world, and there are Harley-Davidson dealers in many countries that have rental bikes available. See www.harley-davidson.com for leads all over the world.

Or how about riding the very best motorcycle roads in the world? I’m partial to New Zealand, but I wouldn’t deny that the crème de la crème of bike roads is in the European Alps; and the most stylish way to tackle the high passes is probably on a Moto Guzzi from Agostini’s in Mandello del Lario, where they even talk Oztralian. Take a look at www.guzzirent.it for details.

Finally, if you can find the time there are always organised tours. There is a good selection of these among the advertisements in the back of this magazine. Motorcycle companies with a wide range of tours include BMW and KTM. Just take a look at www.bmw-motorrad.com or www.ktm.com under “travel”.

But you don’t have to be rich to do some of these tours, anybody can play this game, really, and if you look at this as the trip of a lifetime, which it would be for many of us, prices tend to be quite affordable. Even for the “ordinary” people among us, such as yours truly! 

So that’s it for this year’s executive motorcycling. We’re going to make this a regular annual offering but next year we’re going to open it up for more suppliers of bikes, clothing, tours and everything else under the sun, to promote their products to the rich folks and provide something for the rest of us to aspire to.

And hey, let’s face it; we’re motorcyclists. That means we’re all rich already – in our own way.