Kaoko Cruise Control

Kaoko Cruise Control

Relax your wrist

IF YOU’VE EVER DONE MUCH LONGdistance riding, you know that your right wrist often tires before the rest of your body-especially on those deadstraight stretches of interstates and open highways. What’s sorely needed is some simple way to rack up miles while giving your throttle hand a welcome rest.

Kaoko, a South African company that designs and manufactures large-capacity gas tanks, engine guards, soft luggage and handlebar risers for BMW’s GS series, makes just such a device-a manual cruise control for latemodel European and Japanese bikes.

We admired the Kaoko’s simple twopiece design and its unobtrusive styling. It replaces the original-equipment barend weight, sliding inside the stock throttle housing and leaving only the hard plastic friction wheel visible. Installation on a BMW RI 150GS and a Suzuki VStrom took just minutes. The BMW unit was an early model, and its action was notchy; the V-Strom example was a newer version, and its function was smooth as silk.

We’ve since logged many miles with the Kaoko and found it substantially enhances on-bike comfort when riding long distances. It’s easy to actuate, too, even while wearing heavy winter gloves: Using your pinky finger and the palm of your hand, roll the left-hand-threaded friction wheel back to secure throttle tension or forward to release it. If you unexpectedly need to change speed, the tension is easily overridden. One hundred bucks may seem like a lot of dough for a throttle lock. Use it just once on a long trip, though, and the Kaoko will seem like a bargain for the relief it brings to your right wrist. □

DETAILS

Adventures Workshop/Kaoko USA 115 Salter St.

Springfield, NJ 07081 973/258-0034

www.adventurersworkshop.com Price...$100

Àjps

A No more throbbing throttle hand A ln-a-flash installation A Closely matches appearance and mass of stock bar-end weight

Downs

▼ How do you pronounce K-A-0-K-0?

▼ Not available for all bikes

▼ Friends accuse you of being limp-wristed