G-S

I used to have a Triumph Sprint ST 955 and a mate had a Triumph Tiger 955. Both bikes were generally reliable and spares were easily available (on a par with the local Jap bike spares parts backup) although somewhat more expensive. The cosmetic finish on both bikes was also fairly good (when new) but we both experienced some issues with early rusting of small parts. The Tiger was a very nice bike to ride and was quite quick on the tarmac in the right pair of hands although the dirt road ability was quite a bit short of say a BMW R1100GS. The motor characteristics aren't terribly well suited to off roading although it's fine for travelling along well made dirt roads. One of the panniers is oddly shaped inside and has substantially less space than the other one due to the exhaust system which makes the panniers less useful than they might be. Having said all of that... they _are_ fun

I really didn't like the front Bridgestone 020 on either my V11 or my Kawasaki in both cases it gave almost zero feedback. I replaced both (when worn) with Bridgestone 014 tyres and this was a huge improvement. The 020 on the rear wasn't anywhere near as much of an issue, but the 014 feels a little less prone to slide.

Something that might be a consideration in your purchase is the operating cost of the bikes. Ducati's need the shims done every 6,000 miles and the chain and sprockets will probably only be good for around 15.000 miles. If you aren't going to do your own servicing that will cost a bit. The guzzi otoh has a relativly low maintenance shaft drive and the valves are less of an issue

It should be possible to go down the 4 valve head with air/oil cooling path and get similar (or slightly higher) outputs than BMW have managed with thier boxer twins. There isn't a great deal of difference between the engine layouts at the end of the day (ducks away from lots of things being thrown at him) And at the end of the day the oil head Beemers aren't any less a beemer than the airheads are, they have just as much (or as little!) character as any other beemer twin. If Guzzi were to do that then it wouldn't require huge amounts of money and they could probably keep making 2 valve and 4 vavle motors (probably using the 2 valve version in the cruisers). An an oil cooler is lots less obvious than a water radiator and the general engine apperence wouldn't be _that_ different (which is important). YMMV

LOL @ Cute. Actually Brisbane weather and where I am is about the difference between Florida and Maine. I also live in the Hills so winter mornings get down to about -5 Celsius and I have to contend with frosts and occasional snow. Brisbane weather is much nicer in winter

I pinned the nearest town to where I live since I live in the country outside of town. 3 Aussies on the map now. I see lots more Californias over here than I do the sportier Guzzi models though, and even the local dealers seem to sell lots more of them. Not sure what the situation is over in the US or Europe

If anyone is ever visiting Australia (well the Victorian bit anyway), then this site includes some of the better riding roads in the state http://ariel.ucs.unimelb.edu.au/~ben/mtcv/mcroads/

A snap shot of my V11 LeMans. Basically stock but more character than any other bike I've owned in the past 25 years!

Hi All, Only just found your web site. Looks great! Currently I ride a 2002 V11 LeMans (my Sunday have fun bike) and a Yamaha Diversion 900S (my commuter). I'm actually thinking about replacing the Yamaha with another Guzzi, possibly a Jackal. I know this site is mainly V11 based, but I'd also welcome comments from any readers about the California or Jackal models Thanks Geoff - (G-S) Castlemaine, Victoria - Australia.