Talk me out of a motorcycle.

[ERSS]

Looking to get a bike soon myself. Survived owning a few crotch rockets in my late teens and early 20's. Now that 40 is closing in fast, looking at more of a cruiser. The wife likes going for evening rides in the Summer. I see them as a toy, like snowmachines and 4 wheelers. Fun to play with but not a daily form of transportation for me.

Just got to drive like every other driver can't see you.....and hope for the best.

Had a good friend and co-worker get in a wreck last year. He had been a Harley rider for years, and real active in local bike groups. He was just driving through an intersection in Reno, when someone ran a red and T boned him. He will never be the same, and has sworn of bikes.

 

[snake river rufus]

and 4 wheelers. Fun to play with but not a daily form of transportation for me..

Might not want to mention 4 wheelers around here. Some hard feelings about the lawless way too many ride them.

 

[SPOTTED OWL]

Quote

T Bone,

There is an old saying that bikers know well:

There's only 2 kinds of bikers. Those who have been down, and those who are going down!


Something to think about.

 

[ERSS]

Might not want to mention 4 wheelers around here. Some hard feelings about the lawless way too many ride them.

Understood

 

[MarvB]

T- Gave it the same thought as I too grew up on dirt bikes and had a street bike for my short commute (3 miles each way...all surface streets) to work. Now the commute is about 25 miles a day and I thought something of the enduro type would be cool again (our weather is a tad better than yours year around) and economical.

That was two weeks ago and just about had the wife convinced...then I about a-holed three deer this week that jumped out in front of my truck plus (yesterday) one on the gravel trucks from next door (rock/cement quarry) to my work put a marble sized rock into my windshield and a grapefruit sized one from between his duals just past my bumper AND I WAS FOLLOWING AT LEAST A HALF MILE BACK! I'm retiring the idea for now and am looking small used car that I can also let the girls learn to drive in hump

 

[bdub]

I have had an 80cc scooter for 4 years and its great!! Now its not something I can take off road or on the interstate, but to drive to work and back everyday its perfect. I just have to assume that no one can see me and drive defensively. I wear a helmet and a florescent jacket. I get an average of 100 mph and to save $250 per month some might say its worth the risk. The scooter paid for itself in one summer. Its no motorcycle but it does make the wallet hurt alot less... if you want to save gas money its the way to go.

 

[T Bone]

Partook of the Kool Aid last night. Couldn't resist a used Kawasaki klx 400 with is a DRZ-S wrapped in green plastic.

One owner 2003 with 1800 miles on it for half the price of a new DRZ-S.

Wife feels better about it after I let her know that if I die on it, I'm ok with her dating again 60 days after the event.

 

[MarvB]

Wife feels better about it after I let her know that if I die on it, I'm ok with her dating again 60 days after the event.

...is that post insurance payout? If so they'll be standing in line....

Damn T-Bone we gave you all the reasons not to but you flinched anyway....a definite sign of too much time spent around Oscar!

 

[Westman]

I've ridden road bikes since the mid 70's and still do. Currently ride a '05 Harley Road King.

If you want one, get one. Take the MSF safety classes. Well worth the time and a lot more knowledge than a lot of people give it credit for.

 

[guppie9]

I laid off this subject because I wanted you to make that decision on your own. I've ridden a Harley since 1999 without any problems. The advice about taking a safety class is great advice and I highly recommend it. I had never really ridden before (besides dirt bikes) and the class was very good. Remember to ride as if no one can see you. Try to stay out of blind spots. Don't speed away from lights if you are at the front as people pushing the yellow/red probably won't see you. And last, but not least, it doesn't make you a pussy if you wear a helmet...besides, nothing hurts more than a bug across the face at 60 mph!!!

 

[DRAFTSTUD]

Gup, June Bugs will knock your but off! Thank goodness for Face Sheilds. I know this does'nt apply to you T Bone, but who remembers trying to smoke a cig...or whatever and having the ash hit their lip! Chit that burned! John

 

[snake river rufus]

Wife feels better about it after I let her know that if I die on it, I'm ok with her dating again 60 days after the event.

You might want to check the brakes a lot

 

[Dangerous Dave]

TBone, if it isn't raining, I'm jamming the Harley -to and from work; even shopping -it's got bags. 20 years ago you couldn't get me to even use a Harley for a boat anchor, but they make them damn good now -few glitches, good mileage (40-45), and best of all; they no longer leak oil like a stuck pig. The only downside is that whenever you buy one of those things, every Harley club in the book either calls you or buries you in literature begging you to join their Ma & Pa/ Mickey Mouse/ Joe Blow Riding Club. Not fer me.
I've banged my legs and knees up a bit nearly highsiding a couple of sleds, but I came close to biting the big one back in '71. I'm one of a couple of riders I've heard about who has flat-out hit and killed a deer and walked away from it without a scratch. Can't say the same for the bike. Thank God for good headlights and disk brakes.
It was the 3rd deer I've ever killed, and my first and only doe. 2:30am out in the middle of nowhere... pretty sure no one would have found me until the next morning. Won't bore you with the details -I'll just say that blacktail doe didn't go to waste.
Far as I'm concerned, it just wasn't my time to cash my chips in. Let's face it; any a-hole drunk driver can take any one of us out at any time, and sometimes it wouldn't matter if you were driving an Abrams tank or a Vespa. I NEVER drive scared and strive to constantly stay clear of everyone. I attempt to stay ahead of the game by thinking ahead and antisipating what's gonna happen next -so far I've been right.
Nah; I won't try to talk you out of getting a bike. But I will try to suggest being alert and predictable. It keeps the cages from darting over into your lane. DD

 

[Westman]

DD,

My brother in law and I were on a road trip coming home from the Indy 500. He hit a deer at 65 mph with his Yamaha bagger and never laid it down. Tore up his left knee pretty bad and grenaded the bike, but he lived to tell about it.
Deer scare me more than blue hairs at cross streets......

The only thing I've hit is a raccoon and and that made for an interesting ride. I don't recommend that either.

 

[Dangerous Dave]

Wow WM, your brother is a lucky man.
That doe bounced 6 feet deadcenter in front of me as I was accelerating in 3rd gear and shifting into 4th at about 40mph. I grabbed the front disk brake and pedaled the rear as hard as I could without locking anything up as the front fender and forks plowed into her... I could hear the air getting knocked out her -"Puuffff!!"
Then -in slow motion- the force of the impact picked her up off the road into the air and sent her flipping straight back at me over the handlebars. Oh, GREAT...
I instantly scooted back to the rear of the seat, locked my arms out straight and banged my head down against the gas tank.
With one eye I remember seeing a dark form barely sail over me (just like ducking a punch) exactly where I was not a quarter of a second ago, and I felt a spray of saliva hit my neck and the back of my hands. A half second later I heard a sickening "smack" as the deer hit the pavement behind me.
The Honda 500 was pretty crossed up, but all I had to do was not overcorrect (I was still on the brakes) and before I knew it, I was stopped and I hadn't fallen or laid it down. THEN I got scared and started shaking bad. I walked over to the deer and was trying to figure out how I was gonna kill it with my bare hands, because I wasn't carrying a knife. It was dead the second it had hit the pavement.
I grabbed her by the hind legs and stashed her in a roadway drainage pipe, came back the same morning with my buddy's station wagon, hung her up and processed her.
I could still drive the Honda 500, but the forks and front fender were bent, the frame was tweeked and there was a dent where I had smacked my head into it. Sometimes it pays to have a hard head. Guess I'm pretty lucky too.

 

[cjcj]

I recomend the Suzuki Hyabusa!