If you remember this old motorcycling movie called Torque, you’ll remember there were a lot of crazy stunts, particularly of riders barrelling through fields and dirt roads on superbikes. The people behind the movie modified real dirtbikes to look like superbikes for those scenes. However, recently some videos have surfaced where some really brave people have been off-roading with Yamaha R6s and Suzuki Hayabusas, and that got me thinking.
The Hero Karizma XMR, despite being a supersport bike, has a really compliant suspension, something that comes in handy while traversing through the scarred landscape commonly referred to as Pune roads. I decided to take it one step further, and explore some unpaved roads around my place. Regular dirt roads were no match for the suspension, which soaked up the bumps with ease, so I upped the ante and went on a really rocky road I usually ride on my Impulse.
While it would have been easier on the dirtbike, it was not really difficult on the Karizma, which means Hero is acutely aware of the fact that the potential customer base of its current flagship may not necessarily be city-dwellers. I just wish Hero hadn’t made the turn indicator cancel button so ridiculously tiny that it takes multiple angry taps if you, like me always wear riding gloves. But that small niggle aside, the Karizma is one of the most comfortable sports bikes I have ridden in a long time.
The Karizma XMR’s suspension has already garnered widespread fame as a friend called me asking if he should plonk his money down for it as he has a bad back, a conversation I never expected to have with anyone regarding a sportbike!
