BIKES: On Tour With Hoobastank

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BIKES: On Tour With Hoobastank

SPEED's Neale goes on another adventure, riding the Alps with the Hoobastank front man Doug Robb, drummer Chris Hesse, and BMW’s recently departed motorcycle designer David Robb.

Neale Bayly | Posted October 08, 2012 Charlotte, NC

It’s been the opportunity of a lifetime to get to know Dave, hang out with Chris and Doug, and ride BMWs around the Alps and Dolomites. (Photo: Neale Bayly)

Upside down at five thousand feet above planet earth, the corners of my world bend and distort as they come into focus through the camera’s fish eye lens. Aware of the blood thumping through my brain above the roar of the six-cylinder engine, BMW’s recently departed motorcycle designer David Robb’s calm voice comes across the intercom, “Wanna head over the lake?” Stammering back an affirmative, the horizon rolls lazily through ninety degrees accompanied by a slight rise of pitch from the engine. Swinging the opposite way again, the engine settles back to 2,500rpm as we fly inverted again over the shining water. Snapping furiously and remembering to breathe at last, the experience is so surreal I let out an insane scream, as the bright red Pitts S2 B rolls upright and we aim the nose for the airstrip a couple of miles away. Bringing my heartbeat back to sub cardiac arrest zone, I gaze out at the German countryside below and cast my mind back over the last few days. Traveling with Dave’s brother, Hoobastank front man Doug Robb and drummer Chris Hesse, after one of the wildest weeks of my life, I was desperately trying to remember how in the world it all began.

Sipping a coke while fending questions from Chris and Doug about how close I’d come to tossing my cookies, I remembered. A regular assignment to test sport bikes at Willow Springs and interview the Hoobastank drummer introduced me to a passionate motorcycle enthusiast and fanatical sport bike rider. Chris and I started a friendship that has involved us in numerous track days and other motorcycle adventures, leading to a discussion with Doug about visiting his brother Dave in Munich for a ride. A whole lot of e-mails and phone calls later found us pouring over European maps in the beer garden of a small hotel in Munich last summer.

Before hitting the road, Dave suggested we visit him at the design studio located in a wing of the world famous FIZ (German for Center for Research & Development). As a once in a lifetime experience for a motorcycle journalist I immediately jump at the opportunity. Having been with BMW since 1984, it wasn’t until 1993 that Dave moved over to motorcycle design. At that time the two departments were kept very separate until the intervention of a gentleman by the name of Chris Bangle. The Chief of Design at BMW, Chris wanted someone who was the “real deal.” With blood, oxygen and motorcycles running through Dave’s veins, it was a logical decision. The motorcycle division was moved into the main building, and Dave inherited the 1100GS. At the time BMW was producing 30,000 units per year. Compare that to a figure of over 102,000 units in 2007 and a much wider model range, the success of this marriage is clear.

Much has been written on Dave’s designs, his innovations, and contribution to the world of motorcycling, so it’s humbling to be listening to his living history with BMW. And it doesn’t take long until his sketchpad is out, and we are inside his head as he talks about his concept for the S 1000 RR Superbike. “It needed to be very slippery, not like a snow plow shoving this thing in front of you,” he tells us, his hands dancing and swirling, with the twinkle in his eyes growing brighter. At this point Doug tells us how “Dad’s place used to be filled with your old models.” And Dave moves his thoughts into a musical realm, talking about finding the soundtrack and the right beat, where each motorcycle design has a song that he must find the words for. As Dave talks about the process, his memories of riding on a K1200LT prototype with his son Tim, and his wife Bibs raving about the heated seats in his Five series inspiring him to put them on the K series, my connection to his designs become infinitely more intimate.

The studio itself is nicknamed “The Greenhouse” and is open, modern and airy. The upper level where Dave’s open office holds center court is suspended over the production area, and the whole facility is a lot smaller and simpler than I imagined. Between sculptors, modelers, artists, and engineers there are twenty-five people comprising many nationalities in the studio, and they all have a long history with the company.

Moving on through lunch with Chris Bangle, we take off to BMW World en-route to the museum. Dave has to work so Doug, Chris and I marvel at the BMW’s unique way of delivering new cars to customers. Located inside the building BMW refers to as “a temple without the boredom of a conventional hall,” we watch new cars being driven down the twisting ramp from a large platform in the middle of the building. From our vantage point they look like toy cars on their own personal track, and the current range of BMW products is displayed around the walls.

Walking outside the futuristic building, we wander off to the museum and spend a couple of hours learning the history of the brand on two and four wheels. Doug is recognized by a bunch of German school kids and does the autograph thing as Chris and I watch from a distance. “They never notice the drummer,” says Chris in a thankful tone. The lower level comprises seven independent exhibition houses with their own separate themes. The motorcycle room is small, but packed with significant models, and there is also a huge glass wall with more machines on display in another area.

This is all great stuff, but we have come to Europe to ride. Leaving the museum, we find Dave and our loaner bikes. With three K1200GTs and one BMW R1200RT, we head to our next activity. Dave’s eldest son, Dan, is a well-known, free style Rapp artist in Munich and has an event in town, so our evening is planned. As fiercely passionate as Dave is about motorcycles, amazingly this intensity level rises as he talks about Dan’s free style Rapping, and his body gets even more animated than usual as he describes it. Hitting the club, Dan takes the stage and proceeds to Rapp in German and English, as Chris and Doug get to be spectators for a change.

Bringing my heartbeat back to sub cardiac arrest zone, I gaze out at the German countryside below and cast my mind back over the last few days. (Photo: Neale Bayly)

City riding doesn’t usually excite me, but the following morning ducking, weaving and diving through the Munich traffic, trying to keep Dave’s taillight in sight, changes my mind. The German drivers are respectful of motorcycles and we make good progress in the early morning congestion. Doug and Chris are fired up, and we make a colorful procession as we hit the Autobahn, our first experience running triple digit speeds for an extended amount of time. Heading into Austria at speed, we move off the Autobahn and onto smaller secondary roads as we climb up in to the Alps. The weather is kind, and bright sunshine, warm temperatures, and enough white clouds to make perfect pictures stay with us for the day. At times traffic holds us back, but mostly we are able to fly. Chris has been riding since he began his music career, working his way from a Yamaha SR500 to a V Max and later an R1, before settling with a race prepped Yamaha R6 and a Suzuki SV 650. Doug started on a Harley Softail, before settling on a V Rod and a 2005 Gixxer 1000, with the occasional BMW loaner thrown in. Dave’s career on two wheels could take it’s own separate article, but watching the speed and agility he displays on the technically challenging Austrian roads tells me he is one seriously accomplished road rider. Doug and Chris are equally adept at speed, and we all settle into a natural pace that everyone is comfortable with.

As fast as we ride, Dave is mindful of the 60kmph speed limits in town, and we soon arrive at the entrance to the Grossglockner Pass. Here we break to marvel at the huge waterfalls, and a helicopter flying supplies up through the mountain passes as Dave gives us the Reader’s Digest tourist speech. For Doug and Chris it’s their first experience riding in Europe and it’s hard for them to conceal their excitement. With views of the Pasterze glacier, the technically challenging road crosses the Alps at 2505 m, and the panorama that greets makes our eyes water. Wanting to absorb it, we take a break to enjoy the moment and eat lunch at the busy restaurant at the top. Whether it’s the lack of oxygen, or the adrenaline glands still pumping from blitzing so many switchback turns, you couldn’t knock the smiles of our faces with a shovel, we are feeling that good.

Click on each Photo below to see Photo Albums from the trip!