What Chris Pfeiffer does with his F 800 R rarely has anything to do with what ’normal’ people do with their motorcycle. Gravity doesn’t seem to play a role for him. During his shows, he is hardly on the saddle. Most of the time he stands with his feet on the bars, the pegs or fully in the air.
For this reason he makes very special demands on his bike. When he tested the BMW F 800 R, he knew from the beginning that even in standard trim it was a fairly good fit. The right recipe starts with the engine: a completely standard 800cc 2-cylinder which demonstrates its pulling power even in the lower engine speed range with easily controllable delivery – with an audience-appropriate sound too, of course, and enough smoke for good burn-outs. “The F 800 R has a very consistent power curve throughout the rev range. So I can use all the power that’s available to me.”
What many people don’t know: the BMW F 800 R that Chris Pfeiffer uses to perform wheelies, stoppies and donuts complies to the greatest possible extent with the series production bike. “Engine, frame, wheels, rocker and springs are production-run.” Of course, he added a few extras to be able to throw it into world-champion-like action at the top international contests. A shorter gear transmission ratio supports the easy-looking wheelies from standstill. An additional handbrake for the rear wheel - activated with the left middle finger – offers finely tuned control for the bike when it is standing or tilted at an angle of over 80 degrees.
A fixable throttle switch is also necessary if you need to take your hands off the handlebars when standing on one wheel, as he does. And since the incredible action performed by Chris in his shows requires endless hours of practice during which time he sometimes has to get off the bike in a way which he didn’t actually plan, he has also mounted some crash bars. Despite all this, he confirms that “Many people are astonished that I don’t need to make many changes to the BMW F 800 R for my sport.”
For maximum ergonomics, Chris mounted his own ’axle footrests’, the ’wheelie bar’ and the laid-back cockpit without lights that are mandatory in stunt riding. Finally, he wouldn’t get far without the right chassis, either: on the one hand stable, on the other hand agile, a balanced weight distribution supporting wheelies and stoppies.
The fact that his audience looks at his bike with envious eyes suggests that the paint finish in BMW Motorrad Motorsport colours, in the ’Chris Pfeiffer edition’ including his signature, was a good decision. Such a master of his trade certainly deserves this much recognition!
