The BMW R 1300 GSA (A for Adventure) sits at the top of the ADV touring pecking order in more ways than one. Even with stiff competition from the Triumph Tigers, Ducati Desert Xs, and KTM 1290 Super Adventures of the world, when asked to picture a big adventure bike in your mind, the GS inevitably materializes. Much of this rests on history—BMW having essentially invented the segment nearly 50 years ago—but it also has to do with the future. The Bavarian bike builder rarely rests on its laurels; BMW always seems to be pushing the envelope of what’s possible with the GS platform, consistently adding power, complexity, tech, and cost year over year. The R 1300’s capabilities as a long-distance tourer are never in question, but how does it perform when the going gets really rough? Aussie Adam Riemann intends to find out.
Adam Riemann demonstrates how rhinos can fly. [Screenshot: YouTube]
With 8 gallons of fuel capacity and a wet weight of 593 pounds, the BMW R 1300 GSA doesn’t quite weigh as much as a rhinoceros, but dump one on the ground when riding by yourself, and it might as well be one. Adam is, by his own admission, a big, strong guy (you can watch him single-handedly wrestle a Yamaha T7 out of some shockingly deep Outback mud bogs here) and a professional-level dirt rider, but even he had some reservations about striking out on his own on the big Bimmer.
Adam throws the wide and tall GS onto some seriously narrow and technical single track near his farm and comes away impressed:
“Is the Rhino still the Rhino? Absolutely. Would I purposely jump ship and treat it like an enduro bike? Of course not. But I’ve proven that when the adventure routes I seek inevitably turn to [expletive] and I’m in the middle of nowhere, I can trust the Rhino to handle big climbs, huck surprise washouts, or simply track through tough terrain without bucking me off. If an off-road motorcycle of any size, shape, or weight does not instill this level of confidence, then it’s not for me.”
In some ways, these conclusions are unsurprising; in the hands of an expert rider, any motorcycle can potentially go anywhere. But what Riemann discovers is that the R 1300 GSA is more forgiving and capable than we might imagine for an even wider range of riders than ever before.
Screenshots: YouTube
Images: BMW
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