Hey y'all - just wanted to say thanks to the folks that have added their thoughts and advice on a 1200 vs a 1260. In the midst of doing the research you suggested I ran across an ad for a used 1260S in Las Vegas that was just too good to pass up. I gave the seller a call and did a video walkthrough of the bike, and got a really good vibe from him so I made arrangements to fly to his location and inspect the bike. I was fully planning to fly back if it wasn't as described. I got all my documents and a road toolkit together, and jumped on a plane.
View from the jet - still plenty of snow in the eastern Sierras!
I usually drive to Vegas from socal - I had no idea they had slot machines filling up all the empty space in baggage claim
I made it to the seller's house and I'm happy to say it was better than described - 5k miles, service history, tires/chain in good shape, perfect paintwork and both side boxes and a top box as well, plus a Puig screen and keyless gas cap added. Pretty much how I'd want to do it up, though I think I'll also look at crash bars.
We went to my bank to finish the transaction, signed over the title, and I was off! The seller was a super awesome dude. MT, if you're on here
thanks man.
Total time spent in Vegas: 2.5 hours.
As I was leaving the city I started to see signs for White Castle - I thought "there's no way I can't stop for White Castle!" so I did, which was tasty at the time, but as the temp climbed well into the 100s, I realized that riding in these temps with a belly full of sliders kinda sucked.
I stopped in Baker (yes, the home of the
world's largest thermometer) to regroup and soak my head, and I didn't realize how much heat exhaustion had been building up - almost lost my balance when I finally pulled into a parking spot! The rest stop in Baker was a life saver, I had a chance to refill my camelback with ice and a little water, and fully soak my 'cooling towel':
Speaking of gear: I had my Rev'it Tornado 3 suit with really good air flow, and whenever I had a chance I'd get the cooling towel dripping wet, wrap it around my neck like a scarf, and let the water soak into my mesh jacket and dri-fit shirt. Was supremely comfortable for the first 40 mins of riding through arid heat. Gloves are Rev'it Sand 4 (pretty decent flow) and boots are ÷Sidi Performer Air. Honestly I wish they flowed a little better, and I am still looking for the right socks for these. Also I highly recommend a camelbak full of ice for any ride through hot country, unless you're in your early 20s and full of vigor and grew up on the surface of the sun.
I made it from Vegas to Kramer Junction (in the middle of nowhere) with 2 mi remaining range on the display. I have no idea how conservative this is but that last stretch of desert road was pretty stressful.
The rest of the ride to a family member's place in the high desert was uneventful.
I decided my normal fun route to come back (the lost hills highway to points north) would be too hot, so I left early to head back via 395 and the eastern sierras. The first leg from the CA high desert to Lone PIne was pretty uneventful, but it gets really pretty from there. Temps were in the mid 70s with plenty of snow all around...
This pic below isn't mine - I was having fun and unwilling to stop, but it was a lot of stuff like this:
Another fun fact: if you have a 1260 and fill up in Lone Pine, you will have JUST enough gas to get to Walker, CA.
whew.
After that it was the normal ride from the Tahoe area to back to Sactown, which was a bit more exciting because I could barely see through my visor and the windscreen as both were covered with bugs.
Funny anecdotes:
- the previous owner said "make SURE you don't ride off with the keys still in the luggage." I did that once.
- I find myself double checking the kickstand every time - it's a lot easier to engage on the Hyper.
- I'm still merging onto every highway a good 10-15mph faster than on the Hyper - this thing gets to the triple digits way too fast!
- Total mileage on the trip including a few detours: over 800
- If you're registering an out of state bike in CA: Turns out they moved the VIN stamp from 2017 to 2018. I had looked online for "multi DVT vin location" before the appointment, and it was on the head stock until 2018. I was sweating profusely when the inspector said "well, worst case you'll need to take it to a CHP inspection station" . Turns out it's on the trellis frame now (but on the bottom of one of the tubes)... and when I told the inspector that I found the new location in the ahem USER MANUAL I received a well deserved epic EyeRoll.
Now it's time to prep the Hyper for sale - I'm going to miss the light weight and agility (and ease of parking!) but the big Multi just feels so darn smooth and effortless it'll make my occasional touring trips a lot more enjoyable than on the Hyper.
Thanks for reading!
