I’d say that eight thousand test miles on a Victory Vision, across some 15 states and through all sorts of terrain, and in all imaginable weather conditions except hurricanes and tornados – though one of the latter came close – somewhat qualifies me to have an opinion on the big tourer.
To say that the Victory Vision ain’t your grandpa’s bagger is somewhat a statement of the obvious but it isn’t until you put some serious miles under you that the full truth of that statement comes home. All motorcycles, in essence, are a motor, tranny and two wheels, but how those components are arranged and how they function varies wildly.
About 12 years ago I read an article that explained how Polaris, the parent company of Victory, purchased a number of cruiser motorcycles and had experienced riders evaluating these machines' various strengths and weaknesses in order to be able to come to market with a well sorted out product.
Now, whether they took the same approach with the Vision, or just started with a squeaky clean slate I do not know. But however the Victory designers and engineers went about creating the Vision, I’d have to give them full marks for the end result. It’s not a perfect motorcycle, there’s no such thing. But damn, it comes very close in terms of both looks and function.
To be sure, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but one has to admire the sheer exuberance of the stylists, the bold and sweeping curves and angles which make this motorcycle different to all that have come before. And to me, the Vision rekindles memories of the (arguably) glory days of American auto manufacturing when hoods curved on forever and tail fins reached for the sky.
There were several decades when an overseas visitor knew he or she had arrived in the United States the moment they laid eyes on sprawling traffic, because the autos were big, bold and stylists had free reign, unconstrained by drag co-efficient formulas and the need for miserly fuel economy. Days when big V-8s ruled the roost, when power wasn’t a dirty word and when everybody jammed down to the local car dealership each model year to eyeball the latest and greatest.
America, big, bold and beautiful, once strutted its stuff in acres of tin, cubic yards of chrome and rivers of bright paint with cars such as the ’53 Oldsmobile Rocket 88 convertible, the 1957 Chevrolet BelAir, Convertible Mustang and the 1957 Studebaker Golden Hawk. And in autos like the Thunderbirds, Chevrolet Cameros, Cadillac Eldorados, Pontiac GTOs, Oldsmobile 88s, Buick Skylarks, Chrysler 300s and the Dodge Chargers – the list goes on.
Nowadays, for the most part, a view of the traffic is dead-dog boring, with a yawn inducing stream of bland compact cars whizzing by and hardly a styling difference between Japanese, European and American marques and models. No longer does a visitor know they’re in America by the passing parade of cars. A person could be in the UK, Europe or even Australia for that matter, given the almost total lack of distinctive styling and the follow the leader, wind-tunnel worshiping that so strongly influences car design these days.
Not so with the Vision, with it’s bold styling which consciously or unconsciously pays homage to the stylists of yesteryear, and launches it right into the space age.
As my mind whirled of past Detroit engineers and Cadillac fins, I straddled a 2008 Vision for a cross country tour. Now I’ve never liked cats much; I’m definitely a dog person. Yet I will admit that there is something particularly satisfying about having a contented feline curled up in your lap and purring contentedly. That thought was sparked as I tore up I80 West at 90mph, with the big 106 cube Victory power plant purring under me in a relaxed fashion at a lazy 3300rpm. And feeling like it wanted to go faster.
In fact a slight twist of the wrist saw the needle jump past the 100mph mark, the old ‘ton up’ of Brit bike days, and it was only the fact that I’d seen a few state troopers patrolling this section that held me back from winding it up further.
At 90-100mph the big bike was as steady as a rock, running straight and true and even the turbulence created behind 18-wheelers sitting on 80mph didn’t affect it to any degree. Not once – whether battling severe thunderstorms across Nebraska with gusting, gale-force cross winds during a severe weather warning – or while hooting down wind-blown canyons in the mountains of Colorado did the bike give me a second’s nervousness. Nope, zero puckering detected.
What looks like a massive – and possibly cumbersome – motorcycle is transformed once it is rolling – light, nimble and very manoeuvrable for its size. In fact the ease in which one pilots this two-wheeled space ship has to be experienced to be believed, compared to just viewing it statically or looking at pictures of it.
Coming from a somewhat hard-core biking background I’ve tended to think of luxuries such as electrically adjustable wind screens as something for Nancy-boys and guys that tuck their jeans into their boots. Whoa! Consider me wrong. Riding this behemoth some 8000 miles across the country and back again, has shown me the real utility of this device.
If you want to carve some canyons, riding near your ragged edge, you just thumb the button that makes the screen go down and it slides out of your line of sight so you can pick your cornering line just right, all the while monitoring the road surface closely. Come rain, or debris being thrown up by 18-wheelers hooting along at sub warp speeds, and it’s just a matter of thumbing the screen up and taking shelter behind it.
Great shelter in fact, with my average-height, slightly-porky body tucking down so well that I stayed pretty dry as I cruised through several vicious downpours. The airflow dynamics would need an aerodynamics engineer to properly explain I guess, or else Victory’s design team, which probably includes several of them. But the opening forward of the dash creates an updraft which, somehow, combines with the airflow over the screen to lift everything behind the screen up and over – way over – the rider’s head.
This cross country adventure began when Victory delivered the bike, a 2008 Vision with but a few thousand miles on the clock to Bikernet HQ. Quickly loading it with my gear, I jumped aboard and three days later, almost to the minute, I rolled into La Crosse, Wisconsin, having ridden some 2000 plus miles (3218km) through countryside of all types from stinking hot deserts to snow covered mountain passes and along long straight, boring interstates with the Vision literally eating the miles in big gulps.
The Vision is an 849 lbs motorcycle, in the touring version which I rode, and powered by an air and oil-cooled 106 cube (1,731cc) 50-degree V-Twin which Victory says produces 92bhp at 5000rpm and 109ft-lbs torque at 3.500rpm. The motor features single overhead cams, four-valves per cylinder and a closed loop fuel injection system. The gear box is a 6-speed and keeps the revs comfortably low at high speeds.
Both the frame and swing arm are cast-aluminium while the frame itself doubles as the air box and acts as a taut platform to complement both the 45mm telescopic forks and single rear shock to work together very effectively. A pump is provided with the Vision so that the shocker can be adjusted for pre-load by varying the air pressure.
If I were searching for one word to sum up the handling of this space-age tourer, I would select “stability” as the single most overwhelming sensory input. It’s just that: stability at any speed. This stability is particularly noticeable and much appreciated when negotiating the turbulence created by the countless big trucks which ply the interstates. Approaching them from the rear and then making an overtaking maneuver can be an unnerving experience on a motorcycle at times, but the Vision simply shines due to the rock solid feeling of stability it provides.
After a few days in La Crosse I headed back west, stopping in Mitchell, South Dakota to visit with Brian and Laura Klock from Klock Werks for a couple of days. Then it was across to Rapid City and a great ride through the Black Hills including a close up look at the under-construction Crazy Horse monument. Without the Sturgis crowds, riding through the area is even more pleasurable and I was able to enjoy the curves and canyons of this region and get a real feel for the Vision.
My route now took me across Wyoming, and after an overnight spell in Rock Springs, Wyoming, I left around mid-morning and rode some 700 plus miles to Reno, Nevada, which happens to be a personal mileage record for a one day ride, especially one that started so late. Do understand that I didn’t leave with intentions of riding so far, as I was in no hurry; it was just that the Vision was so comfortable that I just wanted to keep on going. If ever I was to attempt an Iron Butt ride, I reckon this would be the bike on which I would choose to do it.
From Reno I then rode down to Dublin, California to spend a couple of days at the Arlen Ness headquarters where both Arlen and Cory were very hospitable hosts indeed. I also had the bike serviced there (thanks John) and had a good long chat with third generation custom bike builder, Zac Ness, an interesting young man and already a veteran of custom bike construction. Arlen and Cory are both much taken by the Vision, owning and riding customised versions themselves.
Then Reg Kenny a buddy of mine flew in from Australia and bought a second-hand touring BMW to accompany me for three weeks further riding. We headed from San Francisco down the coast to Monterey and then on to the Hearst Castle at San Simeon, which is well worth a look if you’ve never been there.
Then it was inland to Hollister where we were the guests of Mike and Bev Corbin and attended the rally in the town-where-it-all-began, Hollister, the “Birth Place of the American Biker” – and which is, very sadly, looking to be the last rally ever held there.
In a town packed full of bikers, the Vision drew an admiring crowd wherever I parked it, and I was inundated with questions, as many people had never seen one, not even in photos. By the way, if you are either chronically shy or seriously anti-social, I wouldn’t advise buying one.
Following the Rally the Californian brush fires were still blazing fiercely which limited our choice of roads, so we headed inland and rode up through the centre of California into Oregon taking in the must see Crater Lake and the great scenic ride through the park.
We then crossed to the coast where we continued up into Washington State.
This trip took us over a variety of roads; big sweeping corners on well maintained secondary roads, tight, mountain-grade switchbacks with no guard rail and a serious drop into eternity only a yard or so away. We also struck roads best described as ‘poorly maintained goat tracks’. At one stage, due to a major truck smash we even had to detour for forty miles along a gravel road covered with stones the size of marbles and along which 18-wheelers still insisted on passing us, throwing up dust and debris to an alarming degree.
But in nearly all road conditions the Vision rode impeccably although in very tight mountain grade roads with advisory signs suggesting a maximum of 15 mph, I found it a bit of a heavy handful at times. However, considering that it is a fair lump of motorcycle and I had it loaded with a helluva lot of gear, heavy handling was to be expected.
Speaking of gears, shifting the Vision generates more of a clunk than would be expected of such a high tech machine, something which it has in common with the first Victory that I rode back in 1999, when the first Victory motorcycles became available. It’s not severe, but mildly annoying in an otherwise virtually impeccable bike.
Braking is a different story indeed, and on the Vision it's taken well care of by twin six-piston calipers up front, ever-ready to grip twin 300mm floating rotors and with a two-piston caliper down the rear with an identical rotor. But here’s the twist; Victory have cleverly linked the middle piston of the front calipers to the rear brake, a system that is actuated under hard braking and doesn’t compromise riding on gravel or during low speed U-turns. When the front lever is squeezed, the other two pistons in each calliper are also actuated. Verdict? Excellent braking under all conditions; which inspires great confidence indeed, when the need for some serious braking suddenly arises.
After traversing some fantastic miles along the Washington coastline we turned south again and began riding down the staggeringly scenic Oregon coast, a delight of great roads and views to die for and I can’t recommend this ride highly enough.
There are also wonderfully variable beaches where absolutely amazing amounts of driftwood collects. I’m not talking small branches here, but entire trees, and thousands of them. Predictably, carved driftwood is a booming local industry.
After crossing back into California to complete the coast road we swung inland and back up into Oregon through Grant’s Pass (a great ride) and then on to Klamath Falls where Reg fell truly in love with gorgeous proprietor of a Mexican restaurant but that’s another story for another day.
Now for some years I have wanted to ride the full length of the Extraterrestrial Highway, so despite the extreme heat and a weather forecast promising more, we swung down into Reno and then down and across to Tonopah.
Reg was leading the ride at this stage and, being the leader, took the prize of an encounter with a Nevada State Trooper and an associated speeding fine! Ah well, as they say, sh*t happens.
At first glance the Vision looks like it would have scads of luggage capacity but when the side covers to the apparently voluminous panniers are opened, the actual luggage area appears disappointingly small. However, this is somewhat of an illusion, as the total capacity measured in terms of volume is 6750 cubic inches, making it comparable, according to Victory, with other makes of tourers.
I’m somewhat of a pack rat, as those who know me will attest, with a great deal of gear always being carried, and while I needed to strap a bag on the pillion seat (which I always do whatever bike I’m on), I found the Vision’s total storage to be more than adequate for my needs with lots of nooks and crannies in which to put various bits and pieces.
The Extraterrestrial Highway is worth the ride with much scenic country along its route; scenic in the wild -desert, rugged-mountain sense, and is quite a long ride with very few fuel stops. This is where the Vision was right at home, with its 6-gallon gas tank capacity and its distance-to-empty display. A handy touch is a place to put the gas cap when filling up.
Now I made sure to fill up before I hit the 200 mile mark on most occasions, though I once miscalculated and only found gas just before the 230th mile registered on the trip meter. But that capacity is very reassuring when you travel through country where road signs that warn, “No services for 110 miles” is not uncommon. Overall, I averaged about 40 miles per gallon which is pretty damn good.
From the ET Highway we swung south into the pizza oven that is Los Vegas in the middle of summer, with temperatures, according to the Vision thermometer of around 112F, making for unpleasant riding. Here again is where an optional feature of the Vision, the side mounted wind deflectors, came into their own.
By adjusting each to the appropriate angle, air can be directed toward the rider’s legs, thus avoiding the cross wind, roasting effect so common to big touring bikes.
The staff at Arlen Ness Motorcycles of Las Vegas again took great care of me performing a service at very short notice and also washed and detailed the bike, as had their Dublin crew. Next stop, via Kingman, some of the old Route 66 and Flagstaff was Sedona, Arizona, a sensationally scenic town reached via a wonderful canyon ride and well worth a stop over.
After Sedona, the old mining town of Jerome is reached by a bit of a hairy-scary ride up a steep, winding and very narrow mountain road, but is well worth visiting, clinging as it does to the steep side of a mountain and has a very interesting history of outlaw shootouts and busy bordellos.
Here’s a strange one for ya. On a back road near the California border I had an amazing demonstration of the air flow properties of the Vision when we hit a stretch of road between market gardens that was totally covered with butterflies, millions and millions of them. As we rode along they would take to the air in clouds that you could hardly see through, yet very few made contact with the bike, instead being channelled either over it or alongside it.
The Joshua Tree National Park is so named for the prevalence of Yucca brevifolia, a giant member of the lily family and these plants provided a strange alien-like ambience as we rode through the park on our way to Palm Springs, our last stop before returning to Los Angeles.
So, after four weeks on the road, almost crossing the country from west to east and back again; then virtually south to north and return, and with over 8000 miles racked up in all sorts of weather, I can say with more than a little confidence that the Victory Vision is a tourer par excellence.
