Comfort on a Sportsbike

http://news.motorbiker.org/

Heh

Now that i have no bike....

....I keep bloody looking at them.

Attributes my next bike has to have:

1. Comfortable riding position - i'm thinking a streetfighter, naked bike of some sort
2. Comfortable for pillion on commuting distances. Gotta start pillioning one day!
3. Cost under 10K

The Street Triple of my dreams would fit points 1 and 2, but not 3 at this point (not enough second hand ones around).

I saw this GSR600 on Bikepoint. Fits all my criteria!



More about the GSR600 here

The whole problem is, i'm not in a position to buy a bike at this point in time. But it looks like these kind of bikes always come and go, so i'll have options when i'm ready to buy again.

Bata Motor Sandal

When i was young, you said "Bata" and people thought "school shoes."

It looks like they've evolved into other sorts of footwear, including the Motor Sandal.

The perfect compromise between exposure and protection for summer?

Celebrity Motorcycling

Australian Road Rider posted a story about Executive Motorcycling some time ago:

There are more and more motorcyclists genuinely not short of a quid and who appreciate value for money before cheapness. Unfortunately, like many minorities, they find that few magazine articles or product reviews cater to them. Well, we’re going to change that!

Once a year, from now on, we’re going to bring you a feature about the Big End of Bike Town, the things you would buy or do if only you had the money (or could get your loving partner to untie the purse strings). Not that we’re looking at this stuff just because it’s expensive; you don’t get to be well off in the first place by spending more than necessary to get what you want!

Right! So let’s look at executive motorcycling, the feature designed to inform you when commuting is a choice between taking the bike or the Benz. Read it, all ye other scrooges (yes, me, too) and weep…

The image accompanying their maiden article was of course, the F4 CC MV Agusta. At about AUD$180,000 it's presently the world's most expensive (road going) motorcycle.

Puts into perspective, Tom Cruise is plonking down some pocket change for the Ducati Desmosedici RR this week - and is the first in the world to get it too:

"Top Gun" Tom Cruise is the first on the list to get Ducati's newest motorcycle - a $72,500 motorcycle bristling with titanium, magnesium and carbon fiber technology that can scoot up to 200mph.
Cruise is scheduled to take delivery of the Desmosedici RR at Beverly Hills Ducati this week.
Although Cruise rode a Kawasaki Ninja 900 in his iconic scene in "Top Gun," he'll get the first of only 1,500 of the red-and-white Moto GP racing replica motorcycles being made.
Cruise, whose net worth is upwards of $250 million, is known to have an affinity for fast vehicles, including motorcycles, Porsches and planes. Some estimate the actor spent $1 million in 2006 on fuel alone.

Full Article here

A million buckaroonies on fuel! He could buy me a Street Triple without realising he'd just put a $13K dent in his emergency coffee tin stash...

Quote

"You're always learning to ride, whatever age you are."

- Casey Stoner, in this article

128 ways to dump your bike

67 Pulling into Dairy Queen and slipping on a spilt chocolate malt.

Oh this is really good!

Go here

Japanese biker loses leg and doesn't notice.

No, really.

Thanks Gary!

Speeding essential, say bikers

RIDING at double the speed limit, "bending" road rules and "pushing the limits" are just part of riding safely, according to many motorcyclists.

An investigation into the behaviour of riders has revealed a belief among many motorcyclists that breaking the law was actually safer than abiding by road rules. Article here.

With the recent blitz of stories about reckless motorcyclists, this strikes me as yet another sensationalisation attempt. The article itself doesn't say a whole lot, save affirming the general public opinion that motorcycles are dangerous because it turns people into irrational speedfreaks.

The strange effects of a gap

It's a little strange, but my first ride, after an extended period of not touching the bike, are always exceptionally good ones. I'm told that beginners should ride regularly to keep their skills and head sharp.

Personally, when i'm rusty at stuff i tend to get stressed out coming back into it- too much going on to grapple with successfully. With the bike though, i've been finding that my first ride after a week of leaving it alone always sees me exceptionally relaxed. I don't stress out over the stuff i usually do. I look ahead without consciously reminding myself to do so, i keep my road position without having to work too hard at it, i'm extra-extra-extra aware of stuff going on around me while muscles remain untensed and head remains clear.

My daily commute is a 15 minute affair either way, most of it in heavy traffic. This tends to wear on me after a while, the constant gear switching and car avoidance - and of course, the constant idea of being rear-ended because i still don't lane split (i do it to myself, i know)... i lose that lovin' feeling after a while. The unique pleasure of being on a motorcycle and having it respond to the swing of my body, tends to get lost in the concerns of commuting itself.

More regular group riding aside, i definitely need to adjust my working hours to miss the worst of the traffic!

*

In more news, there's some ruckus going on about 2 riders who were doing silly things in front of a traffic camera. And then one of them got caught.

Freebie

After being a cheap-ass and griping about it, 30 days free membership to Motorcycle Mentor.

Thanks David!

New speed cameras twice as effective

New high-tech speed cameras which could see the number of speeding tickets double are being tested on Perth’s streets as police consider several new models that will also allow speeding motorcyclists to be caught for the first time. [+]

I have a feeling that with all the negative motorcycle publicity of late, they're going down the 4WD route of media demonisation.

Motorcycle learner dies in Guilderton crash

A woman who had her motorcycle learner's permit for just one day has died when she crashed her modified motorcycle into a tree yesterday afternoon near Guilderton. [+]

Key operator in this article being the word "modified," though no details of modifications were listed offered.

New rider clocks 181km/h in Perth

A 19-year-old man has been clocked riding a motorcycle 120km above the speed limit of a Perth street just a week after getting his licence.

Police said they charged the man with reckless driving after allegedly catching him riding his bike at 181km/h in a 60km/h zone, in Baldivis at 9.15am WST Tuesday.

It is understood he got his motorcycle licence about a week ago. [+]

Buh bye licence!

Women Riders Now

For a woman, motorcycling is an expression of herself. Many say riding is very empowering, that the confidence she gets from riding her own motorcycle spills over into other areas of her life. It's that "you don't know what you're missing until you do it" kind of thinking.

If you've ever thought of donning a leather jacket, some hot black boots, and a pair of stylish shades and cruising down the open road in search of adventure, now is the time to do it. Motorcycle riding is the stuff dreams are made of. So many women are living their dream right now. Isn't it time you did, too? [+]

http://www.womenridersnow.com/

This site has excellent resources for women who ride. Go the ladies!

What a great call to action

The home page of Motorcycle Getaways.

Maybe some day.

I was going to get my learner's permit for my R (big bike licence) sometime in the last 2 days. I've held my restricted 250cc licence for a year, so i can officially test for my R now. And be that much closer to a VFR, which i've decided, academically, is the best candidate for my next bike.

But you know what? I'm not ready for a big bike. Having only been on a 250cc for 3 months, i've got a long way to go with regard to bike handling and road negotiation (in other words, everything) before being worthy of one. When i get my R, i want to be in a position to bring a big bike home pretty damn quick - not another 9 month lag i had before getting my current little beast, in which almost everything i'd been taught had disappeared.

Every motorcyclist i know has told me that once you sit on a big bike, going home on a a 250 is difficult. And i don't doubt for a moment that they're right.

My ultimate resource

Or what looks to be it: Motorcycle Mentor.com. It's a resource for new motorcycle riders (me! me!).

Unfortunately it would seem they actually charge for their information, so i guess i'm sticking with Sport Rider.com's Riding Skills Series. It isn't particularly sympathetic to newbies, but it's free, comprehensive, and best of all, in English!

Crazy Turbo R1 video

This video's been making its rounds on the internet. Some crazy person installed a turbo in an R1 and takes it for a mad ride.

Video here

Thanks Jon for the link!

Honourable mention

Learning to ride gets pimped by Jon!

Article: Motorcycle firm targets female riders

By JENNI MINTZ, Scripps Howard News Service
Published 11:59 am PST Friday, January 12, 2007
http://dwb.sacbee.com/content/business/24hr_business/story/3471101p-1269738

VENTURA, Calif. (SH) - Hard-core. Gritty. Dangerous. Male.

This is what some might see when they look at a motorcycle.

But to David Scoggins, the fast-paced ride can just as easily be paired with luxury and glamour, often associated with a woman’s world.

Women are the fastest growing segment of the motorcycle market today, said Scoggins, owner of Thunder Customs, a new Ventura, Calif. motorcycle repair business that caters to women.

New motorcycle retail sales racked up an estimated $8.8 billion in 2004, according to the Motorcycle Industry Council.

Almost 10 percent of the 6.6 million estimated motorcycle owners in the United States are women, according to a 2003 report by the Motorcycle Industry Council in Irvine. The most recent available data from the national trade association further showed that there were 635,000 female motorcycle owners in 2003, compared with 467,400 in 1998, a 35.9 percent increase.

Several factors have led to this increase. After riding on motorcycles behind men, many women were encouraged to enroll in motorcycle safety courses and then went on to buy their own, said Mike Mount, spokesman for the Motorcycle Industry Council.

“In recent years, women have felt more empowered to do a lot of different things that they might not have thought of doing in the past - motorcycling fits into that category,” Mount said.

Since there are more female motorcycle owners than ever, there are more on the road, “so we think that helps, just because women see other women riding,” he added.

As a whole, the industry is adapting to meet the changing market. Motorcycles don’t have to be masculine and bulky. There are more than 450 new motorcycles available this year in the U.S., and sizes, shapes and colors to fit any motorcyclist’s taste, Mount said.

Still, Scoggins recognizes there are challenges that women face in the male-dominated industry.

“They have all kinds of issues, from right height of motorcycles, to clothes that actually fit them and are functional and comfortable,” said Scoggins, an Oxnard, Calif. resident. “And a lot of times, they find themselves having to buy men’s clothing or go through all kinds of extraneous steps to feel like they’re part of this world and fit in.”

Many women reject riding because of safety concerns, or they feel intimidated by the size of a motorcycle in relation to their own size.

Small stature was not a problem for Jayme Rainwater, a 40-year-old Navy senior chief petty officer who stands 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighs almost 200 pounds.

The problem was she was scared to death. When she was about 24, she acquired a bike from a friend. It sat parked for a few years, until a group of guys pressured her to start riding.

“I didn’t have a lot of confidence back then, and that was an instrument to raise my confidence,” she said. Rainwater also likes that riding is an individualized sport.

“Every turn you make is your turn,” she said. “You’re in control.”

She now has two motorcycles. Most of all, Rainwater enjoys the independence that comes with riding.

“You’re not boxed in,” she said. “If you can’t afford a horse, I think a motorcycle is the closest thing to that.”

Scoggins is intent on fulfilling the needs of women, even though 90 percent of his customers - like the market - are male.

“While many men change their own oil, few women do,” Scoggins said.

Thunder Customs offers basic services, such as changing oil and tires, providing regular maintenance, and making modifications.

Right now, the typical-looking shop only hints at Scoggins’ long-term dreams. The 2,100-square-foot building is filled with tools and equipment, amid lingering scents of oil and cigar smoke. But glass cases in the 800-square-foot showroom display women’s makeup, hair products, motor clothes, T-shirts and jewelry.

A wireless connection is available to customers, so they can browse the Internet or check e-mail while waiting. By mid-2007, Scoggins said he hopes to offer Thunder Customs’ own line of private label MotorClothes and leather apparel, specifically designed for women who ride and “who are not a size two.”

Someday, Scoggins envisions being able to fully pamper his clients with a day spa on site. It would allow women to drop off their motorcycles for whatever work needs to be done while they get a facial, massage or their hair done. He also wants to offer a monthly program that provides advanced riding tips or a motorcycle safety inspection for women.

Scoggins shares his vision with fellow owners Tron Elliott and Chrisa Angell. They project the shop will generate $1.9 million in revenue in the first year.

Congested freeways and high gas prices have driven the market’s tremendous growth, Scoggins said.

“With the market the way it is,” he said, “I don’t see how we can miss.”

The interview: Robert Pirsig

The Seventies bestseller Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance was the biggest-selling philosophy book ever. But for the reclusive author life was bitter-sweet. Here, he talks frankly about anxiety, depression, the death of his son and the road trip that inspired a classic.

More under the jump