[Munch]

Sorry…. other then BBM…my virtual social life is limited to Warcraft… and thats even after work and any time I can ride. I don’t even do facebook, myspace or anything like that.

[Munch]

Not to mention saving the drivers behind you from seeing what “crack” your riding on….lol… since the on set of baggy, pocket at the knee, can’t run in them, pants came out…. yea alot of cracks on the road now days.

[Munch]

You just had to go and give a link didn’t you…. :sigh: guess I am screwed now. Will see what mine looks like soon. Thanks… I think , lol.

[Munch]

OUCH!!!…sorry to hear that bud. The great thing is that your alive and kicking.
Guess your gonna have to slowly work on the wife to get back up in the saddle huh? Hope to hear that you will.
Luckily it was only 40 and not 60+ and thankfully the lil one wasn’t on there too. Its things like this that is a constant reminder for me about 2 things… 1 I hate riding residential/business areas. 2 I always try to keep my head in the ride at all times.
I hate that this happened to you but am glad to hear you got away with no more damage then a broken wrist. Did the guy stop after the incident?

[Munch]

All I can say is…wow…. wonder if the all being actors and actresses will jump at this “charitable” opportunity for brownie points and start shipping their now out of fashion helmets there.

[Munch]

ok …thats just…. too cool!

[Munch]

Happy New Year back at ya!
And welcome! grats on passing MSF… unless your state allows graduationg the MSF as a condition to by pass the riding portion… might want to get the permit first….then ride your bike for a lil while and get used to it… other then that…..have fun!

[Munch]

Bah…. sounds like alot of wasted effort. Just get a friend to follow you to your new destination…. ride back with him. Then enjoy the Ninja back. Why waste a good riding opportunity.

[Munch]

Arizona you say… well …. as long as you find some good well ventilated gear, research for gear that has cooling methods… I would say sure… go for it. As far as the truck goes… hmm maybe use the new found money saved in gas to slowly repair piece by piece… heck keep it at the parents house to make them feel better that you have a back up… sorta.
Ofcourse…. remember the part about going other places and venues, if there are no plans of escaping.. then I would if it were me.

[Munch]

Hmm tough question… can it be done… absolutely! Should it be done… that’s for you to answer. The region you live in and/or will visit often will give you a good indicator. I live in NC, we get ice storms in the winter, a bike as only mode of transportation wold not be recommended. If you live in say Miami…. I cannot see any reason why you couldn’t.
You need to sit down and honestly figure out where you ride, and where you could end up riding for things like girlfriends house, family reunions and holidays, where your friend from high school ended up going to college so you can visit… etc.
Check out you weather locally and look at say a 5 yr trend to see what your up against. Or could be up against.
Sorry about the Ranger… what problems you having with it?

[Munch]

Sorry I asked my tech again… the recommended real life is 38/40 so your right there. The MoM settings as was explained to me os for the optimal comfort in ride but not mileage expectancy.
Knowing the automotive side of things- I know what hes talking about.
Normally I stay absolutely away from pushing a tires max capacity for air but due to the circumstances and documentation I have seen I will keep my tires at that pressure ( the 38/40).

Warning about “tires recommendations” On the sidewall of tires the max psi is to state that at cold temperatures the capacity is 40 psi max. Not the recommended to set. When your tires warm up depending on load, speed, and type of rubber compound the tire can and will gain an extra 3-4 psi. Tire manufacturers cannot control what “vehicle” their product is being implemented on so to avoid liability issues they can only provide max capacity pressures… with some lee way given for heated psi gains.

[Munch]

Well thank god I don’t mind getting proven wrong. LOL…I just found this post again….UPDATE:
I got the 900 classic LT ..yea the one in the pic…and no there is no lacking in power and yes it can grab the 3 digit mark rather easily.

[Munch]

Collision avoidance is learned by getting experience. A parking lot will give you minimal experience.
Gaming is a good example I use for my daughters. I used games and continue to to help me teach them simple things like economics, ambition and adventure. Not to mention problem solving skills and the like. They would come to me and tell me that they are really good at what they are doing, I would sit and watch and quickly notice they are doing the same things over and over again in the same area and level. Pushing them to get past that and they suddenly “freeze” or forget suddenly how “good” they are.
Riding is the same. If you do not push your skills and get complacent to rubbing an “8” in a parking lot…that’s as good as your gonna get. As I said in response to another of your posts. Parking lot speeds and predictability is good for base skills. 300 hours is near ridiculous and not remotely close to being a good judge of “survivability”.
You will not learn what to look for in behavior of other people so you can better your avoidance of insane actions. You will not have the mental acuity to stay a step ahead of those around you. All very much needed in real world riding where you will find that those are not cones your are swerving around.
You can not use the maneuverability of a car and a bike as a judgment on skill or preparedness. The physics…reaction and control is completely different not to mention the very mindset in each surrounding. The moving world around you changes in an instant, the cones don’t.
Will it shave a split second on “doing” possibly, will it give a better command of which skill to use…nope. Will it help in better predicting a situation that may arise outside of your PLP….. not remotely.

[Munch]

First…. I wish I knew what a pannier was…….
Buying from a dealer sounds like a good option for you. If you do not know what to look for or are uncomfortable in your judgment and do not have someone that you trust to walk you through a dealer would be a best option. Sometimes you will find bikes there that still have warranties, or even the dealer may offer one in house. It will also give you the chance to look it over and ask lots and lots and I say again as to drill it in…. ask lots of questions.
As far as cruisers being a first bike, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. I started on a Vulcan 500 and have since moved up to the 900 classic LT…quite a few of us on here started on cruisers. Actually in some instances cruisers are better as they are meant for cruising and not so much performance—in the way of speed and flash. Cruisers typically have a lower center of gravity then sport bikes but not always the case. Also the power distribution is alot different.
Oh just looked up pannier…..lol… I call it a saddle bag…as long as Google got it right. Those you can also find for almost any bike both in “soft” and “hard” versions. For sport or cruiser.
Go out to your dealer… ask to see the used bike…sit on some. Find whats comfortable to you. Me personally I sat on a few and even took the time to do a very slight lean from one side to the other, not so much in knowing you may drop it right there in house, but enough to allow yourself an idea of how heavy it will be and how balanced it is.
Browse through some of Ben’s reviews and see which ones sound great to you. It’s a good starting point. All in all the best bike is going to be the one YOU feel comfortable and safe on.

[Munch]

Hmmm…that really a question on judgment. Welcome by the way.
No one person can justify in an umbrella statement when a beginner is no longer a beginner. As you have stated, riding times are varied, climates ridden in varies, and even the mind set of the rider is varied.
There will always be a lesson some where to be learned even if its learning to not forget what you already knew.
I don’t think I would ever consider myself a non beginner..there’s so many places and climates I have never ridden or likely to never ride. I can “master” my area and maybe even pull off some things in the Bike Rodeos LEO’s compete in … then turn around and do something technical at speed like ride Deals Gap and be completely unprepared.
Its all in your self confidence of what you want to do, how much you ride it and if you push your skills. Just my thoughts on that.
Enjoy the ride….. let others be concerned about their pre conceived ideas… at speed you can’t hear them anyways!

[Author]

Posts