[XRayHound]

I WANT A VFR400 SOOOO MUCH.

Seriously I envy the HELL out you UK types, I’ve trolled eBay motors UK a number of times and the 400 sports that are like $8000 collectors gold here in the US are $12 and $1400. Anyway, I used to have a VFR700F2 and I love the character of the Honda V4, so that’s what I would recommend, not that I have any real experience to back it up being a small-displacement deprived American.

[XRayHound]

I’m not a big fan of Rossi’s but it does make my tuning forks vibrate to see the YZR-M1 on the podium. Here’s hoping the new R1 can take SBK back from those bloody Gixxers.

[XRayHound]

I never had the thought of running race tires on the street anyway, but my first track day convinced me utterly: I had -never- gotten any tire to truly ball up on the street no matter how aggressively I was riding, and one session on VIR Patriot, a track I had never been on before and that I did not feel like I was being particularly fast on, absolutely shredded the sides into that beautiful cheese-grater’d look, and that was on a 50 degree morning. So yeah, even getting triple compound street tires up to a -real- temp on the street is something I don’t want to try.

As for the videos, I can’t believe I missed this guy, who is he? These are fun to watch.

[XRayHound]

Another cool NC law: motorcyclists can legally run red lights if due to low traffic volume the light is refusing to change. Usually only relevant in small towns and/or after oh-dark thirty, but so wonderfully convenient. You have to sit at it for a “reasonable” amount of time, but it’s still one of the few bits of legislation I approve of. Now if we can just get lanesplitting passed we’ll be about the most motorcycle friendly state in the nation!

[XRayHound]

I’m in on this, sounds like fun. Soon as I get the forks sorted on my FZ-1 I know where’s there’s a covered bridge real close to here. And! I even already have a perfect idea for the next tag! Be back with ya when the freezing rain goes away and someone figures out why my right fork is frickin’ -bleeding- oil past the crush washer in the leg and down the axle.

[XRayHound]

You need to go try on EVERYTHING. I wear a different size in every brand of helmet that exists. I have an XL Arai Quantum, my track helmet is an L RF1100, Scorpions are made small, I wear a 2XL in that, and KBCs pinch my skull so hard I won’t even have the POS things. Go to a big store, I don’t know where you live but here on the central east coast Cycle Gear is good for the purpose, and try on every brand in every reasonable size you can lay your hands on until you find something right. If you’re really dedicated you might even consider changing your hairstyle, the volume of hair on your head has a small but noticeable effect on helmet fit.

[XRayHound]

Triad. Just point it down I40W for about an hour and you’ll be in the backyard The rain we’ve been having lately is driving me batty, I miss the drought from last year!

I’m just the opposite, ergonomically speaking. Even when I’m sitting on a chair or a stool, it’s more comfortable for me to have my legs tucked behind me. I often actually hook my toes/ankles around the front legs if it’s a free standing four poster chair. No idea why. Skeletal variations I guess Long rides on my Roadstar left me sore and miserable in ways even my R6 doesn’t duplicate, much less my rather comfy and spacious FZ-1.

Thanks for the welcome guys, I think I’m gonna like it here.

[XRayHound]

Actually, I’m casting about for startup capital for a line of leather motorcyclist pants with a zip-out crotch for precisely that purpose. Think there’s doubters about? PROVE YOUR MANLINESS!! *zzzzzzippp!* Excuse me, the men in white coats want a word with me again… ^__^

[XRayHound]

I raised an eyebrow when I noticed NAS was an acronym for New -American- Sport. I stopped reading when I saw the words “liter-class”. I like the styling, it looks like something from Bubblegum Crisis, but what good is yet another 1000?

[XRayHound]

I never understood that. Rights come far easier to me, partially because on the street (in countries where you drive on the right, anyway) running wide in a right means you MIGHT wreck, running wide in a left means you WILL wreck. Other than that, you’d think I’d be built for left handers… left handed, left eye dominant. But nope, outside of the track I run rights way more aggressively than lefts unless I just know the turn absolutely by heart.

[XRayHound]

For which there is no easy answer. Motorcycles are comparatively easy to maintain, but many otherwise competent mechanics regard them as black magic, so it may be done and it may not be done. Bikes also tend to age faster than they rack up miles, simply because of their nature. Cages get to the 100K mark pretty fast, bikes don’t often even live that long, for reasons entirely unrelated to the wear that mileage is meant to be indicative of, to the point where 30K sounds like a million when it’s tacked onto a bike ad.
But the fact of the matter is the bikes have the same… or better… engineering than the cars that last 300000 miles, and condition and existence of maintenance records is always but always > indicated mileage, regardless of age (the exception being bikes with a known notorious failure point, like the cam chain in pre-gear-driven-cam Honda V4s). Unfortunately the only way to tell a bike’s condition is with a competent inspection, which is something you can only do from experience, and since this a site geared toward beginners that’s not quite so practical.
So with that in mind I would recommend a cutoff point of 20K for a used bike purchase without the benefit of an experienced hand and eye.

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