Kiwi Rider April Vol.2 2023 | Page 50

RAINBOW RETURN I love the road through the Rainbow Station , and I loved it even more on the GasGas , taking the opportunity to ride up most of the electricity pylon access tracks , something that can get a bit scary on the GS – especially if they ’ ve not been maintained in years . This weekend trip has whet my appetite for more exploring on the GasGas , some modifications for adventure riding and taking on some harder tracks and trails . Washing the bike at the end of the trip I noticed that the plastics have lost their bright red sheen where my legs and the luggage has rubbed them . It ’ s not a deal breaker , by any means , but it ’ s lost that showroom lustre it had at the start . I guess that means it ’ s actually being used , right ?

THOUGHTS ON THE ES700 SO FAR I ’ m liking the riding modes . Dirt mode cuts out the rear ABS and lowers the sensitivity of the front , which is great for the riding I ’ m doing – and it ’ s easy to engage with the buttons on the left bar . The TC doesn ’ t kick in too hard , but can certainly be felt when drifting out of gravel corners ( it ’ s quite a nice safety net but can be turned off easily ). The footpegs are a bit narrow and short for prolonged standing . The TKC80 tyres fitted as standard do a great job of road and dirt , although the rear is showing a fair bit of wear after 1500km . The ES700 seems to be shaping up to be a cracking adventure bike , but there are definitely some things I want to do to make it a better bike in that regard . First up , I want some bar risers as I ’ m stooping a bit when standing . Then I want a lowering link to drop the seat height – I managed to topple over while turning around in a stream bed and broke the ball off the front brake lever . And because of that … I want a set of Bark Busters to stop that happening again . Hopefully the GasGas ergo seat will be here in time for the next instalment too …

BITS FITTED THIS MONTH

Kriega OS-Base - $ 199 < buy here > Kriega heel plates - $ 69.50 < buy here > Giant Loop Armadillo - $ 209.90 < buy here >

SPECIFICATIONS GASGAS ES700 ENDURO

ENGINE

Type : 692.7cc , liquid-cooled , 4V ,

OHC , four-stroke single Bore x stroke : 105 x 80mm Compression : 12.8:1 Power : 55kW ( 75hp ) @ 8000rpm Torque : 73.5Nm @ 6500rpm Starting : Electric Fuel system : Keihin EFI , 50mm throttle body , twin plugs Clutch : Wet , multi-plate , antihopping slipper Transmission : Six-speed , manual , chain drive

CHASSIS

Type : Rake / trail : Suspension :

Brakes :

Steel trellis frame 27.7 °/ 120mm WP XPLOR 48mm inverted telescopic fork , adjustable rebound / compression damping front , 250mm travel front ; WP XPLOR fully adjustable rear , 250mm travel rear 300mm disc , two-piston Brembo caliper front ; single 240mm disc , onepiston Brembo caliper rear ; Bosch 9.1MP ABS ( cornering , disengageable )

Traction control : MTC ( two modes , disengageable )

Wheels : Aluminium D . I . D rims , tube-type ; 1.85x21 front ; 2.50x18 rear

Tyres : 90 / 90R-21 front ; 140 / 80R-18 rear

50 KIWI RIDER