BMW M1000R ROAD

For all the spec and available performance of the M1000R, I want to start with its most innocuous and humble component a button on the left switchgear.

- WORDS: BIG MAC

If you hold that thing down long enough, it will switch off all the electronic rider aids except ABS and leave you absolutely free of any electronic backup. It's simple, brilliant, and of all the electronic functions on all the bikes on this test, is by a country mile the best for how easily it lifts the bike from being great on the road to extraordinary.

I'm not just talking about wheelies but, yes, being in control of whether the bike hovers, lifts, or does nothing is a big part in enjoying a good road ride on a 200bhp-plus motorbike. It's more than that, because the truth is if you need traction control and all the other functions on the road, then you really should be on track where the BMW's electronics are absolutely gold standard. I so wish more bikes had that button to press and be left with a rider aid-free bike on the road, and here is why...

The M1000R is an utterly stupendous motorcycle in any circumstance, not just because it's obscenely powerful, but because BMW has made all the power and performance accessible in a way it has no right to be. Now, at this point I should highlight the fact that the bike we had on test was fully loaded with the M-Sport Competition pack, which includes carbon fibre wheels that, due to the laws of physics, make everything better, and since the BMW is the only bike here with carbon wheels, it should be amazing, which it luckily is.