Biker's roll call
 

I didn't really see any biker threads so sorry if I missed it!

So I ride a Silver 2006 Kawi 650R and haven't been riding too long. Making some fun mods on her but nothing performance driven...yet. Hubby has a 2003 Blue Yamaha FZ1 so leaves me in the dust from time to time lol.

So what is everyone else riding...well bikewise anyway ;)

2005 Silver Ninja 250- Fast enough to be fun but there may be a 600cc in the future.

Nice! I traded in my red 2005 Ninja 250 for this bike. Loved it but really wanted a bit more powerful bike. This one has a nice upright posture and I am not one to crouch down so it was perfect. Plus I love having a bike that not many have yet!

I have an '05 Suzuki C50, but I just got my new baby last month...an '06 Honda ST1300! Such an amazing bike!

I wish I rode myself, but I prefer pillion. There's a splendid '06 GSXR 1000 that lives in my carport. I ogle it every morning. And my sexy man that rides it. ;) Deep silver and black.

I loved his '00 silver and blue 'busa with the 1300cc engine and its really comfortable ride. The vibrations of the engine were spectacular at 140 mph. And you could hear it humming from 1/2 mile away. But he blew it up. Sheesh... boys. :lol:

Bikers...???
 

I have a '04 Softtail Springer, that is slightly modified: 98" CI, ported/polished heads, TW37g gear drive cams, Keith Black pistons, Crane lifters and BuB "Jug Hugger" exhaust to name a few...the tins are at the painter but I hope to have 'em back this week...bought in late April '04, (14th bike) I had 26k on it Jan.06 but I don't get to ride to work as I'm in construction so it's evenings and weekends/vacations...been riding 36 years now...yeah guess I might be a biker...:D here are a couple of pics before disassembly:

http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e6...hervr/eb97.jpg
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e6...hervr/8391.jpg

My Ride
 

I have an '84 Kawasaki 750Turbo GPz that I am riding/restoring. I've been doing alot of performance tricks to it ie: It has an adjustable fuel pressure reg, a bleed valve on the waistgate, race mode activated in the computer, K&N filter on turbo and single exhaust to name a few. This is the second one that I have owned. Crashed the first one 10 years ago and the wife got this one for my birthday 2 years ago.

'02 600ZX-R for me

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...f/IMG_0085.jpg

1985 GL1200 Aspencade with over 288,000 miles.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y24...1200Asmall.jpg

I have a 2000 Harley Fatboy and my wife has a 2000 Harley Deuce. We used to take a 3000+ mile trip every summer from Seattle to Sturgis. We have since moved to the country in Southern Ohio and now just ride around here. My bike is stock except for the "black ice" paint and her's is silver and we had it lowered to make it easier for her to handle.

www.ninja650r.com has a picture of mine (the silver). I'm too much a newbie to post pics here lol. We had a nice ride Saturday out through the hills to a local biker hangout called Cook's Corner. Then up through a park area with easy twisties and oak trees that bridge the road. Was so relaxing! The 25 mile ride back with the weather changing and wind picking up was harder, but well worth it! I'm looking forward to some longer rides as I get more experienced and my kids get older and are easier to dump...I mean have someone stay with over a weekend ;)

Newly painted Tins...WoooHooo!!!
 

the pics don't offer a good rendition of color or metal flake but imagine these on the black Harley above...


[IMG]http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e6...r/PICT0189.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e6...r/PICT0192.jpg[/IMG]

Very nice!!

WOW that is soooo punk rock!
=)

I sold my bike about 10 years ago, a Honda Shadow Spirit. With a new wife and a baby on the way, I gave it up. Now, I am thinking about a Harley, leaning towards a Dyna. Hopfully this summer or next year. It is going to take some time to get use to the idea of spending about $20K on a bike.

Wow! That about 13,700 miles per year. Have you had to do any major engine work? That's one thing I loved about the Honda I had, the thing never broke down, never had any problems.

Anyone got the kind of milage on a Harley?

Other than timing belts every 50K miles and a couple of water pumps the only engine work was head gaskets at about 211,000 miles. The previous owner was a real stickler for maintenence, I've had it about 40,000 of those miles since June '03 - so I'm keeping up with his averages per year quite well.

The very best part about this bike it that it was a gift from a man I first met on the internet in 1998, then in person the first time in 2001. He bought a new BMW 1150RT in 2003 and gave me his old bike, he had it since new and I got complete maintenence records with it also.

This guy lives in a motorhome full time and trailers his BMW around, finds a place to park and goes on day rides till he runs out of roads in a given area. I have managed to see him every year, sometimes a couple of times a year, since 2001.

I've ridden quite a few GL1200 Goldwings and this one runs as strong as any I've ridden, better than most. The only one close was an '86 SEi - the fuel injected one, and that bike had only about 100K on it when I rode it.

I HAVE A 6OOGSXR IT WILL RUN VERY WELL

dcope, the closest bike I've ridden to yours was a Katana 600.

Care to race coast to coast?

:confused:

Originally Posted by wisj2
1985 GL1200 Aspencade with over 288,000 miles.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y24...1200Asmall.jpg




Me on my Goldwing of course?

Actually, I have to be truthful here. I could not afford to take on the bet so I cancel my request.

But dcope I have to ask you.

Would you take on a ride of 3,000 miles in 3 days?

It's not my cup of tea but I do have friends who thrive on rides such as this.

I have a couple of buddies who are regular riders of the Iron Butt Ride, which consists of 11 straight days of 1000 miles or more per day.

A lot of those guys favor BMW Touring machines, and quite a few Goldwingers also.

My favorite though was a guy about 3 years ago who completed the ride on a Honda Helix Scooter!

Talk about balls!

I've got nearly 30k on mine with nothing other than maintenance, that's over 13k a year...have a friend that puts nearly 30k a year on his Harley with little or no trouble (he's at 68k right now) ...this ain't yer daddy's Harley...

Most consider 1k in 24 hrs an "Iron Butt Ride" there is in fact an Iron Butt Association that you can join if you provide documentation...just try 1000 miles in 24 hrs if ya don't think it sounds tough!

My personal longest ride is 710 miles in a day - Colorado Springs to Oklahoma City. That is my choice, I'm sure I could make 1000 but not real sure about day after day of it.

Iron Butt Association has several certificates they offer - at a price - on this site: http://www.ironbutt.com/ridecerts/

I have 3 friends who are about 10 days from embarking on a 100CCC ride, which is coast to coast and back in the USA in 100 hours or less.

I count among my friends about a dozen who have one or more of the various IBA certificates.

My thinking is even if I did accomplish any of the rides as described I'll be damned if I would pay IBA for bragging rights. The cost of a certificate would buy the gas for almost 1000 miles.

I'm still new enough that the 150 miles I plan to ride tomorrow will be plenty for an "iron butt" lol

I'm headed out in the morning to visit my Son and his family, about 250 miles.

I visited my local Harley dealer today. They had a few used bikes, but they were asking almost the same money as the new ones. They ain't making it easy to get into the game. I keep asking myself is a Harley worth the extra money.

Shop online, in magazines and among friends...you may even wanna buy with high miles, it's not too hard to do a topend and they're good for another 50k or start small and buy a Sporty but never, I mean NEVER buy at the dealer unless you are ready to buy new!!! Your investment won't lose much value over time either so you can always trade up...

I'm just in from a 500 mile weekend to visit my son and two grandsons. Nice ride except for the fact I had strong headwinds both going and coming!

Oh well, that is one thing about biking - you can usually find something to bitch about even though you are having fun! LOL

<------ look at my av.


I have a 98 fatboy w/ 84,691 miles on it. Strict oil changes, a belt, brakes, starter and tranny linkage, a few seals and still runs like theres no tomorrow.

I also have a 98 sportster custom bar hopper that has 56,901 miles on it. Just routine maintenance.

I bought a 05 shadow spirit off the showroom floor 10 months ago and am about to hit 15k on it. No problems except for a chain and set of tires.

I love that spirit its fun as hell to ride. I ride everyday year around to work.

Here is a post that has a link to a nice website for winter gear. I can personally vouch for this stuff, I have the vest, arm chaps and gloves. Keeps me toasty warm. 23 degrees this winter add 80mph down the interstae=about 4 degrees.

http://www.tfproject.org/tfp/showthr...00#post1952500

My wife and I have a 97 Virago 535 that we both used to learn to ride on. If all goes well, I'll have a 00 V-Star 650 in a week or so. :)

I've got an '05 V-Star 1100. Great bike, you'll love the 650!

I'm 6' 4" and about 260lbs so I was a little afraid that the 650 would be under powered, but from all of the reveiws I have seen online, it should be plenty, at least for now :) I'm sure I'll be looking fondly at the 1100s in a couple of years.

I figure by that time, my wife can use the 650 and we can trade in the Virago on a V-Star 1100.

Well, I'm more like 6' and 220lbs and the 1100 is perfect for me. I've been looking at doing some performance mods, but the bike has good power stock. California freeways are insane, so a bit of extra power comes in handy at times.

I just wish there were not so many cool accessories for the V-stars, I'm never going to quit buying stuff!

Ok, now I have a dilemma. I found a 96 Virago 750 here in town for about $3000. The V-Star 650 that I have been looking at is $3800.

I figure that I'm going to want a bigger bike than either of these in a couple of years, so I think I am leaning more toward the Virago now, although I like the looks of the V-Stars better. Then when I'm ready, go for the 1100 V-Star.

That's my tenative plan for now, it may change in a few minutes. :)

Be happy you don't have the Harley accessory addiction, (also known as HAA or Hundred Dollar Disease HDD) where parts are even more plentiful...

Ok, as predicted, my plans have changed. My wife went and looked to the Virago with me and said it didn't look like it fit me very well. That's fine by me, I really like the V-Star better anyway. Gonna pick it up in a couple of days!

i ride a '97 suzuki savage. haven't ridden much in the last year due to health issues, but this should be a mileage full season.

pixelbend, I don't think you will be sorry. I have heard of a lot of starter problems with various Virago's.

Here she is. Can't wait to get 'er licensed so I can take a longer ride. My only ride so far has been from the seller's house to my in-laws.

http://www.magna-tel.net/dg/vstar650.jpg

Nice bike, the addiction begins!...I'll post a couple of mine now that I'm finished...(for now)

Here are the pics:

http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e6...r/PICT0208.jpg http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e6...r/PICT0209.jpg

Friggin' awesome!

I have a riding question. Do any of you carry "audio equipment" with you while you ride? i.e. iPod, Zen, walkman, ghetto blaster...etc.

I would like to slap on my headphone and jam out to my iPod while I ride on long trips. Is this a good idea? Is it legal?

Thanks for the compliment...

On the headphones, if you really must listen to tunes while riding get small ear buds as it's illegal in some areas...I suggest not using them when in town or heavy traffic as any sound could be an indication of impending danger and ya wanna stay aware!!! I would use ear plugs of some kind when on the highway, it's the wind and not your exhaust that'll damage your hearing...

My 72 Norton Commando with the Combat engine. Totally restored, daily driver. Motorcycle of the year in 1972. The original Superbike. Fastest thing you could by off the show room floor in 72. Each one hand assembled and hand fitted. A high performance racing derived lady of yesteryear. The handling equivilent of a Jaguar or Ferrari of the same vintage.

http://www.mc2home.com/html/tfp/pgr_run_small.jpg

The Norton is nice. I have a friend here who has took some old Norton parts, engine and a frame, and created something that never existed before. Yet people tell him they used to have one just like it!

That is impossible, this is a commando engine in a wrecked featherbed frame.

My local shop can work wonders with not much to build on!

Another question: My front tire has some dry cracking. I would like to wait until this fall to replace the tires. Will it be ok to ride on this summer?

REPLACE TIRE NOW!

Do not risk your lfe over couple hundred bucks. Front tire blow out on the interstae or anywhere for that matter is not a pretty picture.

Summer temps are creeping up and your tires generate heat of their own could cause some of those smaller cracks to open up. BOOM. Don't risk it.

If you replace both right away, stick with the same brand front and rear.

Beautiful bike...I owned a Commando back in the 70's

Thanks swmnkdinthervr, I had my first one in 75, never got interested in anything else, well maybe a Harley, but they shift on the wrong side:)

And pixelbend, I agree with biljan, CHANGE THAT TIRE, and do it yesterday. Think about how much you like road rash, or worse.

Here's my baby.

1986 Yamaha XJ700-x, aka the Maxim-X. Round 15k on that there bike.
4cyl, water cooled, 5 valve DOHC, 4 carb, shaft driven, 5 speed. She scoots.

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/billege/79477322/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://static.flickr.com/39/79477322_a90fdcdbf4_o.jpg" width="1024" height="768" alt="1986 Yamaha XJ-700" /></a>

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/billege/79477300/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://static.flickr.com/39/79477300_02bc202c73_o.jpg" width="1024" height="768" alt="1986 Yamaha XJ-700" /></a>

My father-in-law has a Maxim, albeit not in such great condition. That thing will fly.

And rest assured, I am in the process of changing that front tire.

04 R1. Haven't been on here for awhile keep safe everyone.

Here is my SV1000S and my friend's ZX-14. I got mine just under a week ago and his is about 2 weeks. We have both always had cruisers before this so still kinda getting used to the sportbikes. I'm thinking about getting a set of convertibars for mine to move the posture to a more comfortable upright position. Im also gonna need a new undertail to get rid of that "snowshovel" in the back. Maybe some Yoshimura cans as well. I think the carbonfiber would look good with the black and blue color scheme.


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...teve/bikes.jpg

I just bought an '84 Yamaha FJ1100 in "like new" condition.
It has 51k km on it and runs like a dream.
I wish I knew how to post pictures so I could show you but alas I am not very technically minded.

Pretty bikes but for the life of me I don't get it...just went from a cruiser to a sport bike and now ya wanna turn it into a cruiser...still nice bikes though...:confused:

Glad I'm not the only one that was thinking that...Also the SV1000S looks naked without the fairing.

after getting a few hundred miles on it i've decided to leave the handlebars the way they are. The first few times riding it i wanted to die when i got off. Takes a little getting used to riding in that posture.

I love that bike Rockogre... isn't that the kind of bike Steve McQueen used to race?

Rockogre: is that the bike you had all stripped down and were rebuilding in a thread a while back?

Steve McQueen used to run a Triumph. Both are English. And thanks.



And yes, this is the bike I dismantled and restored. It was worth every dollar and every minute I spent on it.The thread is around here somewhere but all of my site is still available at http://www.mc2home.com/html/norton/

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...g?t=1174680542

2000 Harley Sportster. Got her when I was 17, I've had it for 3 years now. I love riding, and I'm out rain or shine so long as it's safe. Surprisingly I haven't gone on any long trips yet, hopefully this summer I'll be going out to Chicago and Souix Falls. Next summer, hopefully cross-country.

Ah, yes! It's late March and time to dust off the leathers!

Oh wow, a biker thread. How cool.

Anywho, I just bought my first street bike. I currently have three dirtbikes though (I've been ridin' and doin motocross for a while). I bought a Buell Blast for a small starter. When I get that paid off it will probably be time for me to move up. I plan to move up to a real sport bike that I can track. I'm thinkin about a Ducati Monster. (they make me drool hahaha). Here's my current ride. It's small, but hey I'm small too. :)
http://www.flipsidestudio.net/moo/blast.jpg

I started riding last year - '04 KLR650. LOVE it. Will ride it this year, and look to trade next year. Still debating whether to go with the 08 KLR650 or move WAY up to the Ducati HyperMotard 1100... I do like the ability to head "off the beaten trail" while I am out and about, and the KLR is very capable.

Unfortunately, I just had ankle surgery, and won't be able to even THINK about riding for another 4 weeks... <SIGH> And the weather is BEAUTIFUL here right now!!!

1985 V65 Magna 1100cc, it isn't in the best of shape but its a great bike to learn on.

I just got my '99 Suzuki GSXR-600 fired up the other day after laying in pieces in my garage all winter. Took it for a ride around the block but it's going to need new brakes and a new battery before I can put any real seat time into it.

I've been seriously thinking about getting an '07 Triumph Daytona 675... that's the sex right there...

Ah, I'd offer to buy that gixxer from ya but I'm not getting any gixxers since my boyfriend's friend died on one and it bothers him.

Triumph huh? Not one of my favorites but it seems like people who get them are always satisfied. :thumbsup:

Cadre, did your boyfriend's friend have any real rider training before he died?

My own son lost his best friend when they were 19. His friend went out and bought a 600cc Ninja, and within 2 months rode it up under the back of a semi trailer at something over 100 mph.

He had zero training and zero experience before the dealer sold him that bike.

My son, sadly on drugs at the time, decided that all motorcycles were "murder cycles" and that I was endangering the lives of his aunt and his cousins because I took them all for rides.

It took him a lot of years to A: Get off Drugs, and B: realize that while riding motorcycles is not totally without risks, but when the risks are managed it can be relatively safe to ride a motorcycle.

I ride a 1200cc Goldwing, it's not as fast as a sport bike, but has more than enough power to get a person in trouble if not handled and managed right.

I have more than 40 years experience riding on the streets, only a few very minor get-offs in that time, and no serious injuries. By that, I mean I've never been to the ER over anything that happened to me on a bike.

Do a Google search for Motorcycle Safety Foundation, find a course in your area and give you BF a link.

My boyfriend and his friend were in the process of teaching Seb to ride when he died. He just bought a bike one day so the most they could get him to do was let them teach him. He was wearing a helmet but twisted the throttle too much and ended up hitting one wall and being thrown head first into another as my boyfriend and another kid watched. He was dead before they got him on the helicopter.
The thing was, he had told me that his friend got the bike and we were saying how he was going to get hurt or killed. That added to his guilt a lot too.

He knows that motorcycles don't have to be dangerous and I took the MSF course a while ago so he's okay with me riding. Gixxers just bring back bad memories for him.

its amazing how many kids think they need a 600cc race bike when they've never been on two wheels before.... kind of sad really.

anyway, another rider here.

Yes it is, I call it Darwin's theory at work.

What do you ride?

Cadre: Sorry about the bad memories..I have great memories on my gixxer.
News since my last post:

I went out and bought that Triumph Daytona 675. I have no pics yet, but they're pretty easy to google if you don't know what they look like :)

The gixxer has (more or less) been passed to the g/f now.

I had the 675 broken in on a dyno..110hp at the wheel. The greatest thing about the bike isn't it's handling, or it's power though... it has a really nice, easy to read clock in the guage cluster..

Seems stupid, but I have a time problem :)

I have a ninja 650R now and Its definetely my favorite bike yet.

You bought a bike for it's clock, what's the world coming too...hope you (or anyone else) don't start buying helmets because of their reflection of you or gear based on how well it fits in a suitcase.

Cadre: You'd never think that someone would get injured or more so killed learning to ride a motorcycle until you see it happen or have the MSF instructors telling you all the horror stories that they witnessed. Surely before I became a rider by taking the MSF, I didn't think one did have the possibility of getting injured just learning so long as they didn't get stupid. The injury and death waiver as well as the lecture about past MSF beginner injuries definitely changed my mind as did seeing beginners having "get off's" on 125 and 250 cc bikes at slow speed. Sadly the non-motorcycling public doesn't realize that learning to ride has it's risks just as actual riding does.

Well, I can't say I felt the same way you did going into MSF but maybe that's because I grew up around motorcycles and my uncles and my father do a lot of stupid stuff. I've also been riding and racing dirtbikes for years, I know how it works and Joe has been around enough to know too. But what you know and what you feel are two different things and that's where the issue is with gixxers. It's all good though cause I'm actually leaning towards an r6 as my next bike since they stopped making the Ducati I wanted. There are plenty of alternatives to gixxers out there.

Nightshade: Congrats on the new bike, I'm sure you'll enjoy it. I think having a clock would be kind of nice actually because I lose track of time when I'm up on those back roads. :thumbsup:
Just remember that your old gixxer is not a beginner bike, I hope your girlfriend has some experience.

Walter: Oh..that's a nice bike too. I have to say that I hate the small Ninjas because of the styling but that one is sweet. :)

Well there you go, you have prior background but for beginners that are new to bikes most don't realize that you can get seriously hurt just learning in the parking lot, especially if it's a powerful or heavy bike. I've seen beginners have some pretty painful mess ups and I'm sure most of the people there didn't think what they saw would be seen there or could happen to them while learning there. Actually from my experience most beginners i've seen go into learning to ride with the assumption that they could drop the bike and at worse it could fall on them until they get on the street where they could have a collision with a car, none seem to expect that they roll a wheelie or a stoppie or that they crash into a wall 50' away. That's all I'm saying, beginners never really know the possible bad things that could happen while learning.

I think that what makes things harder is that alot of people are trying to learn how to operate a manual transmission, and learn to ride a bike at the same time.

when I first took the MSF, I had no previous motorcycle/moped experience, though I had always wanted to. and when I went to the class, everything came very naturally.

I had been driving a manual transmission car for a few years at that point, so I could concentrate on learning to ride, not how to shift, etc.

some people just get overwhelmed trying to learn it. I was watching a MSF class one saturday, and one of the ladies was having trouble. she kept getting worse and worse, and more panicked. one one of the stop and go excercises, she pegged the throttle, dumped the clutch, and the bike stood up. then she mashed the brake, the bike came down, and she fell over with the bike.

from the looks of it, she would have cracked her head pretty good on the lot if she hadnt had her helmet.

I didn't get to witness this one but my instructor told us of an incident where a lady brought her young son to the class with her and the kid was playing around on the outside of the practice area while she was learning/riding. She was doing one of the exercises where you have to do it some speed and the instructor tells her to do it again but faster because shes too slow. Well she does it faster the next time but too fast and she's heading straight towards her kid on the outside of the track, instead of stopping any number of ways she panicks. And you know when you panick your muscles tense up well she panicked and her grip on the throttle tightened and increased her speed a bit while she froze up. She ended up running over her son and later tried suing the school and instructors.

I find that hard to believe but maybe it's just becaus I don't remember ever being in that position.

You've been around bikes for too long, just today I was talking with a teen who doesn't have a drivers license and rode a bike just once before wants to buy a hayabusa for a first bike, little did he expect that I'd suggest against it....Those that don't know motorcycles just don't get it, they really don't know how wrong their "it's easy like a bicycle" preconception is.

It began life as a 1990 FXR. Changed a little since then.
I've put a different exhaust system and seat on (an original seat - much better on my nearly middle age arse) since the photo was taken.
I've been thinking about selling it and buying a new softail. I don't know. Maybe.
It's a good bike, doesn't give me any problems (mechanical or police). I just
like cruising around, up and down, nothing outrageous, but sometimes I wish
I could pull a Ducati out of my garage and blast away like a possessed boy racer.


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v209/ziske/harley.jpg

A few years back I was hanging out at the local bike shop on a Saturday afternoon when a young man fresh out of dental college came in and paid cash for a used Katana 600 they had for sale.

After the paperwork was done he started asking questions like "Is there any way to get a trailer to get it home for me, I've never ridden before...". I was not busy that day so I asked him where he lived. About an hour away. I told him I would ride it home for him if he would bring me back to the shop, the deal was made.

Traffic was pretty heavy for the most part so we just trundled along at 65-70 MPH with the flow of traffic on the Interstate. About two miles from his exit there came a lull in the traffic with zero cars within a mile and a half of me and no cops in sight so I decided to show him a little of what his bike was capable of. He was in his SUV behind me.

I rolled on throttle in 6th gear and took it up to about 135 MPH, rolled off throttle and got off at the exit directly behind the car that just a bit ago had been a mile and a half ahead.

I pulled into the gas station around the corner from the ramp (600cc sport bikes pass just about everything on the road except a gas station - LOL). They buyer pulled up next to me and swiped his card in the pump and said that thing moves out pretty good, how fast did you get - about 90? His eyes got big as saucers when I told him 135.

I used the hour long ride back to the shop trying to convince him that living on a gravel road and with no previous cycle experience other than a little dirbiking in his youth that he should not attempt to ride the Katana at all until after he had completed a MSF BRC. He said he would do that and thanked me for the information.

It wasn't till I got back to the shop that I learned the shop had bought it in an insurance company auction, repaired the damages, and sold it. I also found out then that the previous owner was killed on that machine. I can see how it would be easy to get in over one's head on that bike without a lot of experience.

I liked the young man, a couple of months later made arrangements to meet him for breakfast about mid-way between us. He walked in the cafe and said sheepishly "I should have taken your advice, but I couldn't wait. I took it out on the gravel road and dumped it. I was not hurt but my pride and a lot of plastic sure were."

I've lost contact with him, have stopped by his house a few times but never caught him at home. I often wonder how his riding has evolved.

Hah, not really, no. The clock was just icing the cake :) I bought the bike because it's an awesome bike. It's my third, I'm not a noob at riding.

And about the helmet ... I actually didn't buy one at all. Though, I got a really nice Arai for free from my work...apparently, they value my head :)

Nice perk!

I thought so.

I've had a few bikes in the days, but none currently...

I learned on a 1991(?) Seca II - great beginner bike! Easy to work on, comfy to ride, and had enough go to be fun but not enough to scare a newbie...

I "graduated" to a 2004 FZ1 that was sooo damn scary fast that I had to sell it to make sure I kept my license (and my life). That bike taught me I loved to ride way too fast and my right hand trumped my brain too often. :|

I went on to a VTX1800, and while it was a great bike, I am not a cruiser guy...

I sold it and decided to hang up the helmets... One day I'll try my hand at a big dual sport as a compromise... A big BMW could be fun!

Jason

Haha, I know the problem. :)

Anyone here track their bike on a regular basis?

I'm going to be moving back near a track so I am thinking about moving up to a bigger bike and making it into a track only bike. Thoughts?

As long as you're confident that the buell wont destroy itself, I'd probably track it a couple of times.

racing a slower bike teaches you to carry corner speed.

but if you decide to get another bike, go for something like an older 600, or a 650.

but all I've done so far is reading, my first track day is at the end of may.

Yeah, I'm thinking that I'll wait till the end of the summer and do a track day with the Buell and see from there. I wasn't sure if I should or not since I'm going to be trying to sell it right after and if I dump it on the track it will be quite damaged. There's basically no way for me to put frame sliders on it.

I may just do a track day on a rental bike though because the company that sponsors track days out here rents out a good amount of middleweight sport bikes. Particularly the ones I'd consider buying.

I know they say riding on the track is safer then the street, but it seems everyone I know that tracks has gone down hard enough to bust up legs and such. I guess it's safer from a fatality standpoint, but I think since you're pushing the bike harder then the street, your more likely to go down.

I have thought about getting a bike that's been downed a few times and taking it to the track - but keep struggling with the whole risk of it all...

Maybe after the kids are out of the house... :oogle:

Safety is not one of my issues with this. Besides busted legs is much better than being run over in my opinion.

Very very true! Far less chance of being run over by a 2 ton SUV with someone talking on the cell, eating their bran muffin while setting up the kids DVD player in the back!:mad: I used to ride to work daily and I saw it all. I stayed far away from people whenever I could... :no:

(Speaking of cell phones) On a funny note, one nice summer day I was riding home from work, stuck in stop and go traffic doing 3 mph when my cell phone rang. I was on the bike, but my phone had speaker phone, so while coasting/walking the bike, I answer the phone with my right hand while I steered the bike with the left. I have no idea what I was thinking... it rang, I answered... :orly:

The flaw in my plan there was... the front brake is controlled by my right hand.... the same one that had the flippin cell phone in it.... So when the car in front of me stopped his 3mph crawl... I couldn't. I couldn't use the rear brake (foot) as I was walking the bike. I couldn't use the front brake as I had my phone in it. So like an idiot, I could only steer around the car in between stopped traffic while fumbling my phone into a pocket to stop while everyone around me was like WTF is this idiot doing???. :shakehead:

Lets just say... not one of my finer moments... and the last time I even thought about my cell while riding. :thumbsup:

Haha, I did a similar thing once. Live and learn.