The regional rep from Kentucky brought one in last night.  He arrived at Bike Night with a black Street, basic edition.  (It was still over 100 degrees on the parking lot, pretty miserable.)  It was for show only, no rides.  I spent about two hours around the bike and came back with these impressions:

It is almost like three bikes in one.  The first bike is the front end.  It is so big.  When you stand back from it and look at it head on, all lit up, it is truly amazing.  You get the feeling that no one can miss this thing coming at them.  (But you know they will, somehow.)  It is all about function.  You see the braided stainless brake lines.  The front end's purpose is to light your path, channel air to the engine and protect you from the elements.  The fairing is four feet across, tip to tip.  This is the bike that will alert you to other traffic and shield you from the weather.

The second bike is the view from the saddle.  It is all about comfort and ergonomics.  Everything is where it should be.  You will catch yourself thinking about what you don't have to think about.  Where should my feet go?  Don't think about it.  I won't need highway pegs.  Will the seat be comfortable?  Don't think about it.  Will the displays be clear enough?  Don't think about it.  The blue dash lighting is truly gorgeous.  I could see how guys with small hands would have to reach to turn on the cruise control with gloves on. I would just turn the cruise on as soon as I start the bike and have it available from then on.  The mirrors were not an issue with me.  Yes, you can see your hands, but they take up about 1/4th of the bottom of the view.  The mirrors are totally adjustable and I see no problem there.  The seats are really wide.  Like so many have said before, taking it off the kickstand is truly amazing.  It is unbelievably light.  I haven't ridden the bike yet but I get the impression that the input from the saddle is going to make you reprogram your senses to get them in alignment.  Your eyes see one thing (huge) but every other sensory input is telling you something much smaller and lighter.  It is really quiet.  I was about 30 feet away and saw the rear tail light come on and thought they had just turned the key to show off the lighting.  Then I heard him gun it a couple of times and realized it was running.  It was Goldwing quiet.  Judging from the guys who have ridden it, another sensory aligment session will be telling yourself you are on a v-twin.  The smoothness will have you convinced otherwise.  Of course, tapping into the torque available will help remind your brain what you are on.  (Another reason I am going with the Stage 1 kit is because it is a v-twin.  It somehow doesn't seem right for it to be that quiet.)  This is the bike you will bond with.

The third bike is the show and tell bike.  This is the one parked at the gas pump or in a parking lot.  This is where you really notice how well the engine is framed.  I love having the big 106 c.i. spelled out on the side along with 6 speed down on the tranny.  It answered so many questions without anyone having to ask.  Guys would look at the bike, then at me and all I would say is "109 foot pounds of torque." and they would look back at the bike and say "Niiice."  You notice how big those Victory medallions on the side are.  (Think champion rodeo belt buckle.)  This is where you really notice the curves of the bike.  You open the saddlebags just to watch the hydraulics kick in and gently lower the side of the case, like an air lock.  You have the crowd stand behind the bike and you turn the key, just to watch the rear tail light come on.  This will get a "wow" every single time.  Then, while it's still lit up, you show them the dash lighting.  Another "wow".  Then you turn the key all the way to the left and open the fuel door.  (Probably not a "wow" but definitley a "cool".)  This is the bike that will force you to change your schedule.  You will always be late if you need to get gas or stop somewhere to eat.  This bike is the supermodel you came to the party with.  No one will remember what you looked like.

Even though I haven't ridden it yet, seeing it in person solidified everything I thought it would be.  The guys at my dealership who have ridden it and guys on this forum, like badnvegas, have all said "You are going to love it.  It will be better than you imagine."  They are right.  It is so well thought out and so well engineered that the designers have answered questions that I didn't even know to ask.  The rep dropped it on it's right side, away from the kickstand and just let it drop.  Then he picked it up...easily.  This bike will fit anybody.  Think about that.  How can they get so many things right, first time out? 

I subscribe to five different motorcycle magazines and this bike has been on the cover of every one this month.  My favorite quote so far is out of RoadRunner - "...anyone normally afflicted with first-model-year jitters can stop worrying.  Vision prototypes were subjected to 2,322,000 miles of combined on-road and lab environment testing.  Coupling that with fact that Victory scored top-dog honors in the J.D. Power and Associates 2006 Motorcycle Competetive Information Study, it's a safe wager we're looking at another winner."  Another writer, from Motorcycle Consumer News, said that he could not get the bike to scrape in a turn, even though he tried.  In fact, none of the 40 guys he rode with heard it scrape once in a two-day, 500 mile ride.  Unbelievable.

No ABS?  No big deal, it's coming.  No heel-toe shifter?  No big deal, easy aftermarket fix.  I personally like the extra footroom.  Saddlebags are too small? I think it's an optical illusion.  I'll bet they hold more than you think.  Wait and judge for yourself. 

The bike I saw was a bare-bones Street edition.  Absolutely bottom of the line, entry level.  If you stand back and honestly look at what these guys have done, you just have to way "wow".

Thanks Jeff,

Additional observation:  My dealer laid it down in the showroom (on it's right side, away from the kickstand) a couple of days after Bike Night and I got to pick it up (after taking a bunch of pictures.)  I would say it is about like dead lifting 120 lbs. I have really long legs and getting my butt down to the center of seat and using my legs was the hardest part.  Shorter guys (and girls with the right technique) will be able to get it upright with no help if need be.  Just don't go too far.  It seemed to get vertical rather quickly.  I picked it up from the right side, facing away from the bike with my left hand on the throttle grip, clutching the brake, and my right hand gripping the grab rail.  Feet shoulder width apart, back straight, butt in the middle of the saddle.  Lift with legs and it was back on the kickstand before I knew it.  If you have help around, always use it.  If you get stuck alone and drop it, any Vision driver should be able to pick it up and get back down the road, no harm, no foul.

Had the opportunity to ride a Vision again yesterday near Boston as one of the scheduled demo rides. The whole thing is run by The Skip Barber Racing school from CA. They have you watch a quick Victory marketing video and give you a chance to get your photo in a Vision in front of a Victory backdrop. Victory engineers are there to answer any questions and give good insight into how they put things together. If you get the chance to go to one of these demo rides, find the engineer and ask lots of questions. You'll get info straight from the people who designed the bike.

For instance, some here at Vision-Riders (including myself) have questioned the design of the mirrors. In my first ride, I said I couldn't see directly behind me (my 6 o'clock view). I question the engineer about this. he said that they spent time on that very issue and that you can in fact see behind you, it's just that with your hands in the mirrors it give the impression of blocking reward view. They designed the faring so that the left & right mirror views actually intersect approx 15ft directly behind the bike. In my 2nd demo ride, I confirmed this. I think because the mirrors use convex glass and show things farther away, this adds to the illusion that your 6 O'clock view is blocked. With the mirrors properly adjusted, I could see the bike behind me. However, in that position, the 4 & 8 o'clock views were limited.

One other issue I asked him about was the engine heat. He said they did spend time on this and thought they had resolved it. I purposefully rode a Vision that had the lower air deflectors. Again, the heat was very noticeable, even at highway speeds. I moved the deflectors everywhich way to see their effectiveness. The do cool the legs to some degree. The best position I found was to turn the leading edge out all the way which forced more air between my legs and the engine. This had the reactive effect of cooking the outside of my legs and blowing hot air up to my torso. Weird. I'll leave it to the fluid dynamics / wind tunnel guys to explain it.

So to summarize a long-winded post. The mirrors can see behind you but it may cut down on your rear-side visibility. The engine heat issue still exists for this rider. The deflectors only allow you to decide what part of your leg cooks first. Lastly, I was impressed with the engineer's interest in my feedback and his desire to "get it right". Let's see what the future brings!

On the side, cooling off,
JAM