Motorcycles

[Anja]

Good points, Gray

Just hadda come back for another peek. And you brought up something I thought of mentioning. That you can just jump on and ride. Some people do, but I don't think it's a good idea. It's pretty time-consuming to get ready to ride, probably more so for women than for men. And traveling time sometimes takes longer.

And yeah, you get to where you're going and then you may want to keep an eye on your leather coat, your helmet, whatever. I've learned to make my jacket my purse. But if it's hot out it gets to be a pain hauling it around with you. For that matter, keep an eye on your bike! Mine locks. But people think it's cute sometimes to hop on for a joke, or hang on it and get fingerprints all over the wax job. Two no-nos.

I do think most bikers are fatalists about the sport. I remember asking my husband for a refresher about what to do if a deer jumps out and he reminded me like this: "Hang on and enjoy the ride."

You don't see a whole lot of old motorcyclists who like to have a few beers before they ride. At least walking ones. . .

No attempt to disuade anyone from riding cuz it's great. Just those are things I learned through trial and error.

We love our bikes, yeah? Here's a story about that. My neighbor was coming home on the freeway and she came across an accident. Being in the medical business, she stopped to sit with the young man who was sitting on the median.

She said that there was a crack in his head and she could see his brain tissue. His first words to her, "Is my bike okay?"

[Metamorphosis]

Originally Posted by Beat

I'm kind of considering getting one sometime. Who rides here? What do you have?

Don't have one yet, but I get blue balls thinking about it and it's pretty much my only motivation for working. Plan on getting something like a v-star 650 or Honda shadow 750 by the summer. Suzuki m/c/s 50's look nice but more expensive.

You should take a look, here:

TMW Motorcycle Forums and Bike Pic Photo Gallery

[Anja]

Originally Posted by Jack Flak

Add: I read about an old friend I hadn't talked to in years dying in a motorcycle wreck on the local newspaper's website. No helmet=fatal head injury.

And sometimes helmet = lying in bed on a machine for the rest of your life so a lot of bikers prefer bad accident = a nice headstone.

Helmets rarely are effective for speeds over thirty mi. per hour and if you've ever dropped your helmet you've already damaged it's effectiveness. At any speed helmets often break your neck.

So you've just gotta make an informed choice on this one.

[millerm277]

Originally Posted by Usehername

I admit I'm very attracted to the idea, but living where I do there's not enough months of the year where one can ride it to make it a practical investment. It's purely an expensive toy for the summer months up around here.

Expensive? I think not. Maybe if you want a new one, but you can find 80s bikes in very good shape for under $1500, possibly under $1000 if you get lucky. Insurance is pretty cheap too.

[Anja]

I only pay forty a month on insurance but as someone else mentioned there are many hidden expenses.

[Usehername]

Originally Posted by millerm277

Expensive? I think not. Maybe if you want a new one, but you can find 80s bikes in very good shape for under $1500, possibly under $1000 if you get lucky. Insurance is pretty cheap too.

I'm not really talking about the bike itself so much as the way insurance works here. My ESTP boss just got licensed and has said it'd be cheaper for him to continue to drive his Suburban everywhere than to get a bike insured.

[Metamorphosis]

Originally Posted by Usehername

I'm not really talking about the bike itself so much as the way insurance works here. My ESTP boss just got licensed and has said it'd be cheaper for him to continue to drive his Suburban everywhere than to get a bike insured.

I don't know how it works in Canada, but here it depends entirely on the kind of bike you get + age. A smaller cruiser is going to be a hell of a lot cheaper than a supersport.

[Oberon]

I want one of these, please:

[6sticks]

I want one of these:


Wearable Motorcycle

[Jack Flak]

Originally Posted by Anja

And sometimes helmet = lying in bed on a machine for the rest of your life so a lot of bikers prefer bad accident = a nice headstone.

Helmets rarely are effective for speeds over thirty mi. per hour and if you've ever dropped your helmet you've already damaged it's effectiveness. At any speed helmets often break your neck.

So you've just gotta make an informed choice on this one.

Hmm. I take issue with some of that, but I'm not quite in the mood for extensive research. Are you sure you're not talking about CPSC rated foam bicycle helmets instead of DOT approved motorcycle helmets?