I hope not! I'll be on a gasser for the next one though. It's a KTM-orange 2016 Kawasaki Versys 650. If you ride yours we'll be twins!
I adore the SS9 and wish I didn't have to sell it, but now that the novelty of owning an Energica has worn off, I had to look at the fact that everywhere I ride is farther than the ~60-mile highway range. Since I can't afford an Experia or 21.5 kWh SS9, I decided to go back to gas for 2-3 years and then jump back in.
To get as close to the hassle-free and clutch-free electric experience as possible, I chose a bike that can take a Rekluse auto clutch and a Healtech Quickshifter Easy. It won't quite be the same, certainly not in terms of power and torque, but the Versys is a great bike too. Flickable yet stable, reliable, plenty of storage, surprisingly peppy for a 650, inexpensive, good MPG, comfortable seat, etc.
I find my Versys 650 rather gutless compared to my 1971 BMW R75/5. Extremely gutless compared to any of my electrics. But it's a fun light bike and will still get me anywhere.
I don't see why a SS9- would be an issue in most of CA where there are countless places to charge up. Even here in NV, most of my trips on my SS9- are around 100 miles or so at mostly freeway speeds that require a charge. In fact, just yesterday I went on a small group ride that knew I would have to recharge up for 20 minutes at
Silver Springs. The other two were ICE bikes (BMWs). Wasn't an issue at all. Just a nice BS break at the halfway point. Went to Fernly to Hwy 50 to Dayton for lunch and then over to Virgina City on Hwy 341. And then back here, which is around 100 miles total trip.
Every time I take out my SS9- out I need a charge stop. I cannot think of a ride yet where I have not needed a charge stop as most of my SS9- rides are around 100 miles, a few close to 300 miles. I usually take my SS9- between here and Auburn, which is 99 miles. A free DC CCS fast charge at the
Donner Summit Rest Area, the perfect place for a stop on that trip, right at the summit and halfway. Charge station almost every exit from Truckee to Auburn, but I rarely use those, except when east bound where I use the CCS at Cisco Grove. That is because the east bound free CCS charger at the Summit has been broken for around a year. It's a Cal-Trans charger.
I normally keep my Kaw Verseys in Auburn this time of year, so yeah, a ride on that will work too. It's getting cold here in Reno, so I want to get my Triumph Trophy SE back here to Reno after my next trip to Auburn, CA. That is my best bike for cold weather.
-Don- Reno, NV