MOTO-CHARLIE.COM

<body><h2>MOTO-CHARLIE.COM</h2> <P>The motorcycle in the photo is a 2004 Aprilia Tuono R, which I rented for the first time on the September 2004 Intermot tour. I’ve enjoyed riding the BMW R1150R naked bike several times and thought I would try the Aprilia version. An additional 35 horsepower and Ohlins suspension made for a fun ride. I also thought I would go for the first time with soft luggage instead of hard bags. The photo shows a Wolfman Beta bag with the rain cover on. The bag worked beautifully with as much capacity as the BMW hard bags. It stayed in place and was a snap to take off and on. I plan to use it again when I rent the BMW. Riding the high end Tuono also showed me just how competent the BMW roadster is in the twisty mountains. Both are great bikes. <b>On tour we have available a nearly full line of BMW’s (approx. 14 models), Honda’s (approx. 17 models) and Aprilia’s (approx. 5 models) available. A full list of rental bikes can be found by clicking on the link at the bottom of this page.</b> The motorcycles are rented from a large, well-equipped dealership in Steffisburg. The wide variety of bikes available means that you are sure to find a motorcycle that you will enjoy. I like it because I get to try something new every tour. In addition to the three motorcycle brands offered the shop has a huge supply of all kinds of motorcycle apparel and riding gear, not to mention a neat café. The motorcycles are all current year model bikes. Full insurance is included in the price. Hard or soft luggage can be rented at a small additional charge for those bikes that do not come standard with hard bags. You have a choice of renting with 200 kilometers per day (which works fine if you plan to do some non-motorcycling events during the lay-over days) or unlimited kilometers. <a> <b> <font color=red>CONVENIENCE VERSUS COST?</b> </a> <a> <font color=black> </a> For me convenience is everything. I also want to be at a decent hotel close to the dealer so I can maximize my riding time as opposed to spending precious time commuting back and forth to pickup and drop-off the bike. This can be particularly important if there is an emergency that requires you to quickly return the bike, pickup your luggage, and hit the airport to head home. Trust me, I know this from actual experience. I choose the rental shops in large part based on their proximity to a comfortable hotel. In Steffisburg there is a comfortable, Swiss style (as opposed to modern or business style) hotel right across the street with very reasonable prices. I have chosen to operate out of Steffisburg for several reasons: <ul> <li> The dealer is right in the city, directly across from the hotel and easy to get to from the airport and the autobahn. <li> The dealer provides brand new bikes, with luggage and comprehensive insurance. He has an excellent reputation for service and reliability (plus the owner speaks fluent English). <li> There are bus and rail connections for easy access to the local sites such as Thun, Interlaken, Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald (assuming you don’t want to ride your motorcycle). <li> Steffisburg is in the heart of some of the best riding in the Alps. This means that whether we are heading out on tour or coming back, we will have great riding right up till the time we park the bikes at our hotel.</ul> <b><font color=red>RELATED LINKS</b></font> <b>For a more detailed description of the motorcycles available and the related rental rates click <a href=http://www.moto-charlie.com/WSFF/Applications/FAQ/subLayout01.asp?vCompID=9183&vFAQid=806><font color=blue>here</font></a></b> If you would like more information about each of the BMW, Honda, or Aprilia models click on the web address below. When you are finished at the site, click on the "back" button of your browser to return to MOTO-CHARLIE. <a href=http://www.bmwmotorcycles.com/home>www.bmwmotorcycles.com</a> <a href=http://www.hondamotorcycle.com/motorcycles/>www.hondamotorcycle.com</a> <a href=http://www.apriliausa.com/>www.apriliausa.com</a> For information about insurance click <a href="http://www.wsff.com/WSFF/Applications/FAQ/subLayout01.asp?vCompID=9183&vFAQid=603"><font color=blue>here</font></a> or check out the FAQ section.     <script language="javascript" src="http://www.addfreestats.com/cgi-bin/easycode.cgi?usr=00036016P007"> </script>  </P></BODY></HTML> <P><A href="Links.htm">Links</a></BODY></HTML>