Motorcycle advice...

[Fire Me Boy!]

Thinking about getting my first bike... looking fairly cheap, not into speed-demon type stuff.



Just some advice about a 1993 Kawasaki Vulcan (left) or a '78 Goldwing (right).

[pr_capone]

Originally Posted by seclark

i remember when i took the class there was this kid(18-19) in there that wouldn't shut his yap...always trying to be funny, or show how much he knew about bikes/riding.
the 2nd day we were all out on the course doing figure 8s, and he laid the 250 over on it's side and shit his pants. he duck-walked around all afternoon w/a big old wet splotch on the back of his pants.
sec

I am used to hearing "shit his pants" as a saying... He actually shit himself???

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

[1ChiefsDan]

Originally Posted by Radar Chief

You can change your gearing by shuffling sprockets around.
Try getting a front sprocket with 1 more tooth on it, yours probably has a 13 or 14 tooth sprocket. To compensate you would have to get a slightly longer chain or you could also get a rear sprocket with 1 or 2 fewer teeth than your rear one currently has.
You will loose acceleration but swapping gears around can get your engine speed, RPM’s, where you want it at a given vehicle speed, MPH.

It's a shaft drive. On one of the Honda forums they said one of the Mid 80's transmisisons went to 6 speed and fits - I am just not much of a mechanic.

[seclark]

Originally Posted by pr_capone

I am used to hearing "shit his pants" as a saying... He actually shit himself???

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

he actually did. there were two women taking the class that bagged on him so much i almost felt sorry for him. the instuctors got kind of pissed and called for a 10 minute smoke break to give him time to go wipe, i guess.
sec

[rockymtnchief]

Originally Posted by seclark

he actually did. there were two women taking the class that bagged on him so much i almost felt sorry for him. the instuctors got kind of pissed and called for a 10 minute smoke break to give him time to go wipe, i guess.
sec

I think I would've just gone home for the day.

[wild1]

Originally Posted by seclark

i remember when i took the class there was this kid(18-19) in there that wouldn't shut his yap...always trying to be funny, or show how much he knew about bikes/riding.
the 2nd day we were all out on the course doing figure 8s, and he laid the 250 over on it's side and shit his pants. he duck-walked around all afternoon w/a big old wet splotch on the back of his pants.
sec

I took a class with a friend year before last. I did it years ago for myself but it's cheap here so, why not. There was a guy there who said he had bought some super ultra HD a month or two ago, and he thought he would get his license. He was all over the course, couldn't turn, couldn't go straight, braking was crazy... He must have had the bike down 3 times the first day. He dropped doing the figure 8 on the test day too. I felt sorry for that expensive bike he allegedly had in his garage, the way he was dribbling this virago

[seclark]

Originally Posted by rockymtnchief

I think I would've just gone home for the day.

me too...at the end of the 3rd day everyone was calling him "easy rider poopypants".
sec

[Radar Chief]

Originally Posted by seclark

i remember when i took the class there was this kid(18-19) in there that wouldn't shut his yap...always trying to be funny, or show how much he knew about bikes/riding.
the 2nd day we were all out on the course doing figure 8s, and he laid the 250 over on it's side and shit his pants. he duck-walked around all afternoon w/a big old wet splotch on the back of his pants.
sec

Nasty!

[Radar Chief]

Originally Posted by denverdanchiefsfan

It's a shaft drive. On one of the Honda forums they said one of the Mid 80's transmisisons went to 6 speed and fits - I am just not much of a mechanic.

Ah, sorry. With a two speed transaxle I should’ve guessed it was shaft drive.

[googlegoogle]

[googlegoogle]

[Lzen]

Originally Posted by Fire Me Boy!

That actually is a bit of my concern, getting a bigger bike. I know I'll get used to it, but all I've ridden is the 250cc Nighthawk. Little bit of nerves until I at least ride something bigger, you know?

I had practiced riding it around town for about a month before I actually went in to take the test. Riding around town is no problem. That test is made for smaller bikes, I tell ya. I would recommend taking it with a small bike if you can.

[Lzen]

Originally Posted by Brock

They make those tests ridiculously hard. It's why half the people you see riding motorcycles don't actually have a license.

True that. When I started asking around all the people I knew that have had motorcycles, I discovered that just about every single one of them drove around with no license.
I had a hard time trying to figure out when the heck I am ever gonna need the kind of skill it takes to go around those cones. When will I ever need that in the real world?

[Lzen]

Originally Posted by wild1

I don't understand why the license test should be this low speed maneuvering stuff. Licensing riders is supposed to be to ensure competence on the roadways and safety to others who are out there, not some kind of test of whether you will drop your bike in a parking lot.

Agreed.

Originally Posted by wild1

if you took out all the unlicensed/untrained riders, and all those riders who had more than 0 drinks before they headed out, and all those with no helmet i bet you'd have half the number of injuries that you do

Very good post. Last month there was a story in the paper about motorcycle accidents. I believe that most of them were operator error (one drove into a wall, another off the road with no other traffic around).

Originally Posted by Radar Chief

I agree, I just don’t think the test should be dumbed down for the guys that have to take it on a bigger bike either.
I also agree that many guys don’t bother getting a license but I think that’s as much because of enforcement as the difficulty of the test. Most cops don’t even know to look for the motorcycle license when they pull a motorcycle over.

My buddy told me that he drove his bike around Kansas for 10 years and never once got pulled over. Said the cops pretty much ignore bikes.

Originally Posted by seclark

i remember when i took the class there was this kid(18-19) in there that wouldn't shut his yap...always trying to be funny, or show how much he knew about bikes/riding.
the 2nd day we were all out on the course doing figure 8s, and he laid the 250 over on it's side and shit his pants. he duck-walked around all afternoon w/a big old wet splotch on the back of his pants.
sec

Ewww. That is hilarious and gross at the same time.

Originally Posted by seclark

he actually did. there were two women taking the class that bagged on him so much i almost felt sorry for him. the instuctors got kind of pissed and called for a 10 minute smoke break to give him time to go wipe, i guess.
sec

Yeah, the instructors should be pissed. Who do you think had to clean that bike afterwards?

[wild1]

Originally Posted by Lzen

Very good post. Last month there was a story in the paper about motorcycle accidents. I believe that most of them were operator error (one drove into a wall, another off the road with no other traffic around).

if you read those studies the most common is the motorcycle runs off the road due to rider error. next most common, a left turning car pulls out in front of the bike.

i saw another with some expert and average riders where they gradually got them drunk and ran them around a test course. they found that their performance decreased measurably after even one or two beers. a lot of people think that they ride better after a low to moderate amount of drinking

My buddy told me that he drove his bike around Kansas for 10 years and never once got pulled over. Said the cops pretty much ignore bikes.

some bikes when they see you they are just looking for a reason. I think they are likely ignore cruisers for normal traffic stuff, but more likely to scrutinize cruisers other times. (bar closing time)

[ziggysocki]

Originally Posted by wild1

some bikes when they see you they are just looking for a reason. I think they are likely ignore cruisers for normal traffic stuff, but more likely to scrutinize cruisers other times. (bar closing time)

When I see a motorcycle at closing time I think... That poor bastard's family