VincentHill
Needs a life
Posts: 6520
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posted February 03, 2007 05:26 AM
 Edited By: VincentHill on 3 Feb 2007 05:34
WHY do we Ride
To a lot of People it is all about Feel, Sound and a Certain LOOK and has Nothing to do with SPEED, Handling or Performance! A Lot of those people ride a Harley and could not be talked into ANYTHING Else! Of course there are a lot of People that Like the Look and SOund of a Harley but would not be caught Dead on a Harley and to them Performance means the Bike can actually get out of it's own way!! So now many Bike Manufactures make all sorts of what I call Harley Clones and People buy them. I actually saw a test where Kawasaki had Out "Harley" Harley Davidson with the Vulcan. Kawasaki had made the Bike to have less HP and Torque, Slower and even stop worse than the Harley!
Then there are the People that never plan to leave town with their Bikes Or if they do really want to be "Out there" in the Wind and they usually ride a Version of what we call a "Naked Bike"! This is a Serious Market because every Bike Manufacture has several Bikes in this class. For Kawasaki the Bike that did it for me was the ZRX 1100 which looks like the Old S-1 that I used to race against when Eddie Lawson rode one. OF course Ducati, BMW, Moto Guzzi, Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki and Triumph and others all make them.
Then we have the "Repli-Racer" group which originally started out being the Cafe Racers built by the Owners of what every Motorcycle was "Back in the Day" (A Standard Naked Bike). Eventually, the Bike Manufacture's saw this as a new Market and started building their own Repli-Racers which in the Mid 80's became known as a "Sport Bike". For Kawasaki, it was Called the NINJA Series. I owned and still Own the Original 1984 900 Ninja. The Original concept was to make a Street Bike as close as Possible to a Race Bike but Competition slowly Changed things. Kawasaki always made the Fastest Street Bike from the days of the A-1 & A-7 (I loved my A-7 with Cut Rotary Valves and Expansion Chambers) to the H-1 to H-2 to the Z-1 to the GPZ900R to the 1000R to the ZX10 then ZX11. WHere Finally Honda made the Super Black Bird and Upped the ante by 2 MPH then Suzuki made another Bird the Hayabusa and Upped the deal by 15 MPH 1 year ahead of Kawasaki who then made the ZX12R then the ZX14.
Then there are a Lot of people that are into Long Distance Comfort! This is where the Lines Start to Blur. To the Harley People it would be a Tour Glide. To the Naked Bike People it may be a BMW to the "CAR" People it may be a Honda Gold WIng. and to the Sport Bike Crowd it may be a Concourse or similar Bike.
The reason for writting this is that the Reason they ride a "MOTORCYCLE" and Own the "Motorcycle" they own is not governed by the exact same thing. The thing we all have in COmmon is we are Ridding a "Motorcycle"! Most of the people reading this like one Brand which is a Kawasaki. I have ridden, Loved and Owned Kawasaki's since the Late 60's (A-7, H-1, H-1R, H-2, F-9R, Z-1R, GPZ900R, ZX11, ZX12R & ZRX1100). Up until the ZX14, they all had a Certain anount of "Raw" edges that the Magazines all railed against. You could hear the Straight Cut Gears in the Primary Drive, the Back Lash in the transmission to make sure you could always shift easy, even the way they accelerated and stopped. As DM WOuld say, They all would "Float My Boat" AT the time I bought the 2000 ZX12R I really wanted the ZRX1100 and it was really a toss up between Speed, Handling, Looks and Feel. I bought the ZX12R and reciently I bought the ZRX1100 and actually get a Feeling on that bike like I have not had in a LONG Long Time. I can even loosen up the bike ny reducing the Rebound in the rear Shocks to "Wollow" in the Turns like the Old Z-1 I used to Race with Mulholland SHocks that had Orange Springs and could be spotted a Mile away. Other than the Mechanical reasons I stated the reason I do not like the ZX14 is Simple, It does not Float My Boat! It feels Like a Honda when I ride it and it looks like a Suzuki "to me".
Last, the Biker People are becomming like the Horse People! The People that like Quarter Horses and ride "Western" (Shall we call them the Cruiser Bike Riders?) vs the People that Like Thoroughbreds (Shall we call them the Sport Bike "Repli-Racer" Riders?) vs the Abrian Horses that ride "English"! (Maybe we call them the (Naked Bike Riders and include the Touring since they ride 100 Mile days) These People all Love and Live with their Horses but they hardly speak to each other. To the outsider it looks strange because they all love and ride Horses. can you imagine how Car People look at the Motorcycle Riders?? As Funny as it sounds, when I ride on the street, it is not all about TOP Speed. It is a consideration but it is everything that makes the Motorcycle. This is why I ride a ZXR1100 that makes 140 HP and ride it with a "Loose" set up on the suspension! SHould anyone speak against "ANYONE" because they do not like their Motorcycle?? I think not because it is still a Motorcycle. In my case everyone wanted me to say that I liked a certain Bike when I really did not and then had to "Defend" the reasons I did not like it!. It is as Simple as that! Karl had it right when he said I have a Strong Passion about anything I deal with and as one not so great American said "Can we all just get along"??
  
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stevewfl
Moderator
Posts: 27920
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posted February 03, 2007 06:10 AM
I just ride because CHICKS DIG IT!
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2010 Concours14
'08 R1 YAMAHA
ZX14 gone!
CBR600RR track bike
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stevewfl
Moderator
Posts: 27920
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posted February 03, 2007 06:11 AM
And because:
____________
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'08 R1 YAMAHA
ZX14 gone!
CBR600RR track bike
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H2 to ZX12
Needs a job
two stroke power
Posts: 3674
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posted February 03, 2007 06:31 AM
Edited By: H2 to ZX12 on 3 Feb 2007 06:34
Good points. I've been riding on the street since '75 ('68 in the dirt). Only a very small percent of the time did I ride along with others or a group. Why? Well for many years, as a teenager and in my 20's, I used a motorcycle for my primary or only means of transportation and rode for a living for 2.5 years (year round) in DC as a courier including the blizzard swept day (January 13th, 1982) that Florida flight #90 crashed into the northbound span of the 14th st. bridge. In fact I had just crossed the bridge returning from National Airport, with a same day delivery, when it hit.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_Florida_Flight_90
With that said, it never crossed my mind who cared about how I looked and what I drove. It was all about the sensation of performance, accelaration, and speed that made me love my life as a motorcycle rider. We used to wave at each other going down the street and remember the harley riders that were too cool to wave back. Sounds petty but this is right down the alley of Vince's point that in order for some riders to feel "right" others must be "wrong". And in this way our, what should be tight, community is divided now, not just in two groups but maybe a half a dozen or more.
We are experiencing another golden age of motorcyling with record numbers of bikes on the road now. It's a very exciting time for me, and older guy that remembers being the only one on the road on thousands of days. Now, living in Florida instead of DC, I can't go a mile without seeing a few bikes on the road, in fact all three of the houses across the street from mine (left, right, and center) have motorcycles under their carports (2 harleys and a honda if anyone's counting).
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VincentHill
Needs a life
Posts: 6520
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posted February 03, 2007 07:10 AM
Edited By: VincentHill on 3 Feb 2007 07:13
That Black 10 does look inviting! H-2 You really did live here! I remember that day and did you know that Old #43 had a ticket on that plane but they refused to let Mike Baldwin (WHo still has the ticket stub) on the plane on his way to test at Daytona??
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H2 to ZX12
Needs a job
two stroke power
Posts: 3674
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posted February 03, 2007 07:16 AM
not kidding. So you were doubting that I lived there :-)
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VincentHill
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posted February 03, 2007 01:34 PM
quote:
not kidding. So you were doubting that I lived there :-)
Never doubted you "Lived" here but the SHock was "WHEN" you lived here! You were here during the time of METRO Delivery who rode the BMW's all over the place on Champlain street in Adams Morgan!~
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H2 to ZX12
Needs a job
two stroke power
Posts: 3674
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posted February 03, 2007 03:11 PM
yea, I interviewed with Metro but those old yellow beemers didn't apeal to me (most had no brakes) and I got 60% commision riding for this father and son outfit (C&C Courier) at 9th and K st. They got a little slow after the rest of the Alaskan pipeline got approved, so for about 6 months I was secretly working for 2 companies at the same time, the one knew, C&C didn't. I was double agent in the nation's capital.
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VincentHill
Needs a life
Posts: 6520
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posted February 03, 2007 04:22 PM
I also was interviewed and could have rode for Metro. BMW's Just did not do it for me. Even the SMell of the Dry Clutch was like a Car I preferred to ride my Gold H-2 750.
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H2 to ZX12
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two stroke power
Posts: 3674
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posted February 03, 2007 05:09 PM
That's exactly what I rode down there, two '72 H2s. One had denco triple chambers and the other had a 3 into 1 expansion chamber made by "strader"? I would ride one and fix the other. Imagine this, your clutch cable breaks at 10 am and you ride the rest of the day without a clutch! It happened 3 times.
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Tool man
Needs a job
Posts: 4493
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posted February 03, 2007 05:21 PM
I ride because... When done right it is poetry in motion.
Hitting an apex with a knee skimming the ground.
Blending a downshift at the end of a hard braking high speed straight just right.
Accelerating out of a turn with the back tire just starting to break loose.
Sitting in the garage after a ride, with a calm understanding of what is like to live,
REALLY live life, with a toe on the edge.
In the end no one cares about what you said you would do... It was what you did do 
____________
The banks are failing..
The banks are failing...
Invest in Ammo
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VincentHill
Needs a life
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posted February 03, 2007 05:42 PM
As Pierre (Owner of Bear ENgineering ) says "If you are not living on the Edge, you are wasting Space! Tool Man, It does not seem like you are wasting very much space!
H-2, I made my own 3 into 1 and it was Torque City! With a Broken Cable you did a Lot of Running and Jumping on the Bike! The Neutral at the Bottom was sure easy to find!
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aliveagain
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posted February 04, 2007 07:58 AM
I ride just to get from place to place and enjoy the scenery.Couldn't care less about riding on the edge.Truth of the matter is my brain doesn't work that fast anymore and I'ld be the one to get hurt.Now put me on the strip and old Mr. Hyde comes out and I dig the adrenaline rush.
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I wondered why the baseball kept getting bigger. Then it hit me.
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blitzkrieg
Needs a job
Road kill = Free lunch.
Posts: 2044
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posted February 04, 2007 03:11 PM
I ride sportbikes because all the people on the moped websites annoy me. 
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"BTW....You need to get a girlfriend who's last name isn't .jpg"
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NinjaNick
Needs a job
'08 ZX14 (Blue)
Posts: 4558
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posted February 04, 2007 10:27 PM
I ride because it's the best damn thrill there is! Plain and simple! 
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VincentHill
Needs a life
Posts: 6520
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posted February 05, 2007 08:44 AM
quote:
I ride sportbikes because all the people on the moped websites annoy me.
Well it is the Hardley Ableson People that Annoy me!  (Specially at Daytona) so I always try to stay past the 30 Mile Limit! (What is that you ask? It is about the Limit most Hardleys can travel before Breaking down on the side of the road so I can have peace and Quiet! )
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H2 to ZX12
Needs a job
two stroke power
Posts: 3674
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posted February 05, 2007 09:29 AM
quote:
quote:
I ride sportbikes because all the people on the moped websites annoy me.
Well it is the Hardley Ableson People that Annoy me! (Specially at Daytona) so I always try to stay past the 30 Mile Limit! (What is that you ask? It is about the Limit most Hardleys can travel before Breaking down on the side of the road so I can have peace and Quiet! )
or about as far as they can ride their bikes with the crappy suspension. I laugh at how many HD ownere that live in FL trailer thier bikes to Daytona. It's all about the see and be seen instead of the ride
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VincentHill
Needs a life
Posts: 6520
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posted February 05, 2007 10:58 AM
No Longer "Bike" Week! Now it is Trailer Week!
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stevewfl
Moderator
Posts: 27920
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posted February 05, 2007 11:48 PM
I trailer my bikes too.... one of them will be on the track at Homestead this weekend (and get there from Tampa on a trailer). But Wow you hardcore guys that ride your bikes to events and races impress me!
____________
2010 Concours14
'08 R1 YAMAHA
ZX14 gone!
CBR600RR track bike
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stevewfl
Moderator
Posts: 27920
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posted February 05, 2007 11:50 PM
Although I'm not there yet like this dude, there are much better alternatives to trailering your superbike. (I'm not implying that you guys would EVER trailer any of your bikes)
____________
2010 Concours14
'08 R1 YAMAHA
ZX14 gone!
CBR600RR track bike
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H2 to ZX12
Needs a job
two stroke power
Posts: 3674
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posted February 06, 2007 12:01 AM
quote:
Although I'm not there yet like this dude, there are much better alternatives to trailering your superbike. (I'm not implying that you guys would EVER trailer any of your bikes)
ouch! btw aren't those girls on your myspace? LOL
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stevewfl
Moderator
Posts: 27920
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posted February 06, 2007 12:04 AM
quote:
ouch! btw aren't those girls on your myspace? LOL
LMAO!
____________
2010 Concours14
'08 R1 YAMAHA
ZX14 gone!
CBR600RR track bike
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H2 to ZX12
Needs a job
two stroke power
Posts: 3674
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posted February 06, 2007 12:09 AM
I just realized that your in tampa, pm sent
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stevewfl
Moderator
Posts: 27920
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posted February 06, 2007 10:39 PM
pm sent back
____________
2010 Concours14
'08 R1 YAMAHA
ZX14 gone!
CBR600RR track bike
|
stevewfl
Moderator
Posts: 27920
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posted February 06, 2007 10:40 PM
quote:
No Longer "Bike" Week! Now it is Trailer Week!
uhm....I have to ask, has any of your bikes been trailered to events?
____________
2010 Concours14
'08 R1 YAMAHA
ZX14 gone!
CBR600RR track bike
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