20/9/2013 : Jam-Packed City Roads and Crunching Miles on the Highway

I had been caught in the traffic jam that was more severe on 18^th and 19^th September 2013, and the news on 18^th published the following :

“KUALA LUMPUR: Several main roads in the city will be closed in stages from today for the rehearsal and actual celebration of the 80th Armed Forces Day on Saturday.

City police traffic operations officer Mohd Irwan Abdul Rahim said the roads will be closed from 6am to noon from today until Saturday.

The roads involved are Jalan Mahameru/Jalan Damansara (from Istana Lama), Jalan Travers, Jalan Mahameru/Jalan Damansara (from Parliament), Jalan Lembah/Jalan Perdana (Masjid Negara), Bulatan Hishamuddin, Jalan Tembusu, Jalan Cenderasari and Jalan Perdana.

Jalan Kinabalu, Jalan Raja, Jalan Leboh Pasar Besar, Jalan Hishamuddin, Jalan Leboh Ampang, Jalan Tun Perak, Bulatan Dato' Onn, Jalan Parlimen, Jalan Raja Laut, Jalan Sultan Ismail, Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, Jalan Munshi Abdullah, Jalan Dang Wangi, Jalan Mahkamah Persekutuan and Jalan Raja will also be closed," he said in a statement here today.     

Meanwhile, Jalan Hishamuddin/Jalan Raja, Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman/Jalan Raja, Jalan Mahkamah Persekutuan will be closed from 9pm on Friday till 4pm on Sunday. – BERNAMA”

Today being the 20^th and a Friday further, only meant that the Parade rehearsal jam plus the Friday clubbing crowd would ensure that both peak hours would be quite a nightmare. I glanced at the Weather App and it forecasted that today would be a sunny day throughout. And an immediate change of plans had me going for my leather jacket and fullface helmet, instead of the office jacket and tie.

I haven’t had a long ride on Banksy for a while, but she fired up easily nonetheless.

I had barely gone a short distance from Sri Hartamas when the traffic jam build-up was not a pretty scene. Banksy was able to go between the cars easily and I managed to maintain a constant speed of approximately 40-60 kmph passing through the stationary cars. There were of course some cars that would cut out from their positions without any indicator lights; and that’s when a loud horn on the bike would really help.

Note to self : Let’s have the horn changed to the dual horns over the weekend.

The bike was light and agile, similar to my previous Tuono; and it moved easily and changed directions at a flick of the wrist. This was a bike that you won’t go wrong for tackling the city roads.

I soon hit the highway and noted some minus points start.

Lack of Top-Speed

We all know that the single-cylinder ain’t gonna win a drag race anytime soon as there was simply low top-end speed. Banksy was no different. While she performed beautifully on jam-packed city roads; once on the highway, I would twist full throttle and the speed took time to build up; and it seemed to be limited to 110 kmph throughout. Perhaps the engine was still tight being fairly new and clocking only 2,000 plus km thus far, so one could only hope that more speed would be released with given time for the engine to settle down comfortably. The LeoVince full system exhaust that I got may assist in this capacity.

Wind Factor

The wind factor was simply defeating at full blast. Well, it was a naked motard with no windscreen after all, so it was only to be expected somewhat. With my Ninja 650R and Tuono, I was able to climb to triple-digit speeds easily and in short bursts of time; and even then, the wind factor was very bearable. Banksy was only doing 110 kmph and I was already being pushed backward strongly.

Note to self : If I was going to do more highway patrols, I would need to invest in a good set of aftermarket touring screen to combat the wind onslaught.

Brake Dance

Banksy may be equipped with front and rear calliper disc brakes, but the feel of them were heck of different compared to the Tokino and Aprilia Racing calipers that I were used too. If those were like slicing butter with a hot knife, then the Banksy’s equivalent felt more like slicing butter with a blunt knife. For someone whom just upgraded from a moped, Banksy’s brakes would likely felt like a massive improvement. I’m just setting the standards a tad too high given that I had been using better parts.

Neutral Gear

The neutral gear was quite elusive. I read online that it would get easier as the mileage piles up and with an added tune-up at Benelli Keeway service centre at Jalan Ipoh. I would make a visit to the centre and see if it indeed helps.

Screw-em Up

One of the screws from the exhaust pipe protector had fallen off, presumably due to the vibration of the single-cylinder. Search online revealed similar experiences from other bikers. This would be an easy rectification; but it also meant that the local assembly guys should take note and improve their works.

Irregardless of the aforementioned points, Banksy was riding beautifully thanks to some saving grace.

Seating Position

I like the seating position which was perched up high ala Kawasaki Versys, and there was hardly any strain on the riders’ wrists. You could ride like this the whole day long (with an aftermarket windscreen, of course) while touring. Try that on a real sports bike and you would limp achingly to the chiropractor to exit with a sizeable bill.

Get Some Grip

The Pirelli tires supplied stock standard really made riding the bike a better experience. The grip was good and the rider would inevitably felt more confident during the rides. KTM Duke 200 especially, had pretty crappy tires spoiling an otherwise well-made single-cylinder bike. Bike manufacturers should take a feather out of Benelli Keeway’s cap in providing good tires for added safety and riding experiences.

I would be stopping by a bike shop on the way home this evening, to install the Givi storage bracket at RM55. It should be a walk in the park riding Banksy later the evening whilst with the jammed-pack clubbing crowd in their honking cars later.

Ride safe, mates.