Performance Bikes — March 2018

26 PERFORMANCEBIKES.CO.UK|MARCH 2018

Truthfully,Ididn’tfeeltheneedto

try it after five body-shredding sessions.

BythetimeI’dpushedmyselftothe

level where I might benefit from less

intervention,Iwasexhaustedand

wasn’t happy I had the concentration

and strength left to pit myself against a

setting described as ‘for professional

use’.Anexperienceforanotherday.

As I ran it, it was more than effective

anyway. One change I did make was

turningUPthewheeliecontrol.Sounds

like a fanny-boy measure, but the rate

of acceleration (and deceleration) is

working you hard enough without

leaping out of corners on one wheel. Its

mechanical wheelie control is much

better than the 1299’s, but a claimed

powerfigureover200bhpisgoingto

overcomegravitysoonerorlater...

It also caused it to weave on the

start/finish straight from the second-

gearfinalturn,anddidn’tstopuntil

hitting fifth when the torque reaching

the back wheel finally abated and

stopped holding the forks at full

extension.Turningituptolevelfive

sawtheorangewarninglightonalot,

butultimatelyitdeliveredbetterdrive,

and tamed the wandering nose. It just

tooktheedgeofftheforcestryingtorip

thebarsfrommyhands,andallowed

me to bring my A-game for longer.

Much of my fatigue is owed to the

newBrembocalipers.TheStylemas,

withtheir70glightercastingsand

reduced fluid capacity for more direct

response (not that less fluid should

make a difference – see p79 for

hydraulicsystemtech),offeredinitial

bite,progressionandultimatepower

better than anything offered on a

production bike. But the geometry and

packaging made possible by the motor

switch allows you to use them harder

thanever.Ittakesalottounloadand

lifttherear–itburiesthenose,

transmitting all the feedback you need

to ask the Supercorsa for everything on

corner entry. The slipper clutch does a

great job, aided by an auto-blipper

knocking down the ratios smoothly.

The confidence continues when you

chuckitatacorner:abackwards

rotating crank in a light bike makes for

an agile machine, yet the relaxed front

geometry also means it’s not twitchy, so

youknowwhatyou’regoingtogetfora

giveninput.Andithasagreatbalance

‘The semi-active

Öhlins responds

with subtlety and

accuracy–itcan’t

be faulted’