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Do you have or ride motorcycles

  • Yes, I have or ride motorcycles regularly

    Votes: 331 58.2%
  • No, but I am interested.

    Votes: 148 26.0%
  • No, I could care less.

    Votes: 90 15.8%

Do you have or ride motorcycles?

315K views 3K replies 382 participants last post by  Avus 
#1 ·
Until about a month ago I could really care less about motorcycles. I respected that they're a cheap way to go fast and are fun for a lot of people but never really had a desire to ride. I had some spare time and money this summer and signed up for a motorcycle safety course for kicks to get my endorsement and learn how to ride (having never operated one before). What a blast! Definitely going to buy one now. How many of you TCLers consider yourselves motorcyclists? Anybody with cool unique bikes? I know there's a subforum for motorcycles in community/lifestyle but it's not very active.

Pics for clicks. . .
What I'm looking at buying. I previously wanted a GSX-R600 but it's $3300/yr to carry full coverage on. Being my first bike, I plan to insure myself well even though you're not required to have any insurance for them in WA.


 
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#1,117 ·
*Crossposted with Off-Topic*

I just picked up this leftover 2013 CB1100. Full factory warranty with a couple hundred miles on the clock. It just sat in the back of a local dealership for the past two years. I first spotted it in 2015 and knew I wanted it. Finally the stars (price) aligned. The deal they gave me was too good to pass up.


 
#1,122 ·
I rode my friends 2016 BMW R1200GS Adventure last weekend for about two hours and was really impressed with the improvements that they made during the transition between the older aircooled bikes like my old one and the new one. The suspension is amazing, the air management was fantastic and despite the fuel tank being full, it didn't feel top-heavy like the old bike. I may have to sell off at least one of my VW projects to make room in the garage for one.

On a related topic, my buddy referenced above is the sales and F&I manager at a local Harley dealership. I haven't ridden a Harley in about 20 years and was interested in at least riding a new Rushmore-powered Street Glide. He let me out on a 2017 demo with about 300 miles on it, a really pretty and understated bike. Compared to the BMW it was really not to my suiting; very top-heavy, very stiff transmission and the short wheelbase and lack of suspension travel got old quickly. The refinement of the motor was a big plus, and the clutch was much better than the old Evolution powered bike I last rode. I guess I still just don't get it. :)
 
#1,125 ·
Slightly off topic yet not.... the number of motorcycles around Lake Como, Italy last week was staggering. A very popular place to ride and it is obvious why... great roads and scenery. And Italy. The Swiss and Italian Alps should be on everyone's bike-ride bucket list. But more like July ;-)





 
#1,130 ·
Since we are posting CB1100 pictures. :wave:


I had a sissy bar built for my wife. Here is the bar mounted with the new sissy bar bag that arrived today.

Still waiting on the back pad to arrive from the builder that claimed he shipped it a week ago. (uh-huh)...

If I don't have it by Friday I am just going to order a new back pad and eat the cost.

Bike is filthy- and needs some detail touch ups on some of my 'work'... also still needs the brushed valve cover I did swapped out... but it is 98% done.. I hope I am not the only one that likes it... also need to mount the Samurider pannier hard cases.





 
#1,144 ·
Took a few pics in not ideal lighting.
:eek: man i love these Honda CB bikes...

I've got a (dumb) question. My current bike, 1982 CB750K, sounds bloody good. Maybe I'm biased, but I can't for the life of me think of any newer bike that I appreciate more (purely in terms of engine sound) then my 35-year old carbureted 4-cylinder sixty-something horsepower Honda. Why do fuel injected bikes lose that sonority? The same bike as mine, but newer, the 1100A with the same bloody engine (just larger and more powerful) doesn't sound nearly (not even close!) as good as the old carbureted 749cc engine? As far as I know, it's the same technology, same arrangement, both air-cooled...but one is fuel injected and the other is carbureted. What's going on in there that makes the noise difference??

Some day, I'll probably want to upgrade and get the newer model, but I don't want to lose that throaty raw burble the old one has.
 
#1,149 ·
Did a camping/riding trip to the Three Sisters and Two Brothers in Texas Hill Country. It was an intense ride down (we got lost, made it a 700mi ride) and a great ride/exploration around the three sisters on Friday. Sadly, it ended with my buddy crashing on literally the only turn on FM336 that the outside of the corner wasn't a cliff face. He's fine, just a broken clavicle and the bike just needs plastics. It could have been muuuuuch much worse.

Picture dump commence!




































All in all, even with the trip being cut short, we covered about 1400 miles in two days. We had planned on our third day of picking three sections of the sisters and setting up cameras along them, obviously we didn't get to that.

In a way, I was kind of glad that he wrecked because it saved us from the 8hr(with no stops) ride that we had planned on the way back -- it would have been brutal, but we would have got it done. :D
 
#1,151 ·
Just got back from Helen Georgia today, put a good 1800+ miles on the bike from the ride up from central Florida Thursday to getting home today. Did the Tail of the Dragon on Friday, and was pretty psyched to find this picture of me on Killboy afterwards....



not the best "action" shot of me that day, but, I love the composition!
 
#1,155 ·
Looks pretty good to me. You weren't hotdogging it, just out for a nice long ride.
 
#1,152 ·
Great looking Connie! I have always wondered about the seating position on them when you are two-up. Does it leave the passenger WAY up in the air?
 
#1,153 ·
there's a step up, but it's nowhere near as high as most sport bikes. Mind you, the picture is with my Sargent seat, but the stock seat step is pretty similar.



and thank you for the compliment!
 
#1,173 ·
If you're looking for a 300 beginner bike....check out the Kawasaki Ninja 300 too. Best part about it over the Honda is it's a twin over a single, and a MUCH smoother engine. There's a reason why they call singles "thumpers!"
 
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