I've sat on a F650 before: my coworker Justin's '97 F650 "funduro". Justin always keeps his bike on its centerstand, and I practically need a grappling hook to climb up or down, so I was expecting a similar effort on the '02 GS. Not so! It was a total surprise to me that the GS was just as short and manageable as the CS. It's a bit larger of a bike (physically; displacement is the same), and is theoretically intended to be a dual-sport. I have to admit, it's a pretty attractive bike; it's the first yellow bike that I've actually liked the looks of. The hard bags look a little strange to me -- I think they'd look nicer if they were more rounded than square, but that's me being nitpicky.

My thoughts from the saddle: Again, the ergonomics are wonderful. The GS is short, light, and comfortable. The bars are wide enough that handling should be excellent, and tall enough such that my wrists were straight. Those people with longer arms than me (i.e. everyone) should be even more comfortable on the GS, since I was pretty smooshed up into the tank. All around, the F650s just look like fun bikes.

BMW's spec sheet.

[Incidentally, and this has nothing to do with the GS in particular, BMW's new motorcycle web site is amazing. Their image galleries feature some truly artistic photographs, and include many women riders. BMW has really done a great job with this new site.]