swingset

Yeah, but mine is in a motorcycle-related forum....so it's more better, or something.

http://columbus.craigslist.org/mcy/1895160573.html >> BIKE NITE GIVEAWAY FARCE << ?????????? AND THE YAMAHA R6 WINNER IS........! THE SAME EXCEPTIONALLY LUCKY INDIVIDUAL THAT WON A BIKE PREVIOUSLY AT THE QUAKER GIVE AWAY... -- Man Imagine That -- THE ODDS ARE MIND BOGGLING, DON'T YOU AGREE?????? ....NO EMAIL PLEASE.... Dunno what this is about, but it sounds like drama and I loves me some drama. Anyone know? True story? The effects of meth? Someone at the Pony leave their account logged in?

Mid 80's DT175 was my first...looked just like this. Lots of good times on that bike....took me everywhere, I took ZERO care of it and it never failed me, ever.

I say this with love and respect, but holy fuck some of you have shitty taste in music. But hey, it's in your helmet and not mine.

Looks like a crummy time. hehe. I might be doing the Vstrom gathering depends on work.

Leaving for New Mexico...anyone who feels like following me is welcome too. Just a short ride. hehe.

It's Rick Astley or nothing.

I work 37 miles, one way....but it wouldn't matter if I lived 1 mile away. Wrecks happen everywhere, deer, morons, diesel spills, etc. Short commutes don't eliminate these as possibilities, IMHO. I always wear full gear...jacket, overpants, boots, gloves, lid. I either wear work clothes underneath, or when it's uber hot take them along in the top box and change at work.

Sucks to hear, hope for a speedy recovery. Wear your gear...even when it sucks to wear it.

NO firearm is immune from failure. Wheelguns can malfunction, and do. That's an utter fallacy to claim that a wheelgun goes bang every time. And, it's also a fallacy that a gun fight will start and stop within the 6 rounds you have in that cylinder. Trained, disciplined shooters have emptied magazines and found themselves still in the fight. Moreover, multiple threats can create a moving firefight that will quickly deplete a small wheelgun. Few gun fight survivors have ever lived to say "Wow, I had too much ammunition". If you haven't done any motion drills with a running-man? I heartily encourage you to try it...because chances are extremely good both you and your adversary will be moving when a gun fight happens. You won't see your sights, your fine motor skills will turn to shit, and everything will blur. Can you hit your target like that? Everyone thinks they can, but even on a range it's fucking hard...and the cardboard guy isn't shooting back at you. There are benefits to a wheelgun, and drawbacks. There are times when it's not the best tool in the box too.

TKC80's are good offroad tires, but they burn up so damned fast on the big Vee I can't stand to throw that much money at them when 90% of my riding is on the pavement. The Shinko 705's are actually really good offroad in all but the really loose stuff. I'm still running the bias plys with no issues, but now the radials are out so I'll be trying them too. I've tried several different treads and they're about the best all around tire I've found, and cheap too. They worked really well on that ride.

I've taken mine in some questionable places, unincorporated roads and little shitty trails that were more than I was comfortable on, but it'll do it....especially if you have good tires. I have no illusions that it's a "dual sport", it ain't....but it's capable of getting you through some shitty roads or sections if you need it to. I've dumped it many times trying, but crash bars and pelican cases absorb a lot of stupid! My wife and I rode down around Tar Hollow state park on some of the little county roads that are nothing more than slimy creekbeds and steep descents...this is one we had a fun time getting up... And lots of these slimy mud puddles for miles and miles... We got through them all but it was hairy at times. Fun tho.

Honestly, any big-bore thumper is a handful offroad and kind of sucks compared to a lighter purpose built machine, it all comes down to your experience and expectations...and some people's "offroad" is another person's "sissy trails" so it's hard to give hard answers what would be best for you. In tight single track or technical terrain, a 300+lb bike is a lot of work, but on the groomed trails of WNF or fire trails? Great fun. All dual sports are compromises, some more so than others. The XRL, to me, is a very good "do all" bike in that it has probably the best offroad manners of the jap big-bores, and it's relatively simple and the lightest of the three. I'd take it over the DRZ simply for the fact that on the highway for extended periods, it's more pleasant and offroad with some set up can be just as capable. It's kind of a tractor offroad, but it'll go where you point it. It's a tall bike and should fit a big guy fairly well, so that's a plus for you too. I think most of us who do a lot of dual sporting got into it and tried to buy one bike that does everything we want, and found that we had a bike that doesn't do anything well....some of us live with the limitations, and some of us bought two bikes. Even issues like tires will confound you, the tires that hookup offroad and make a trail ride do-able will burn up on highway runs to and from the trails, likewise the tires that last will be miserable if you hit mud. Compromise, it's just the nature of the game when you're dual sporting. Ideally, for someone wanting a big bore that's really good all around I'd say the Husky 610 or a KTM 640 are both world's ahead of the Jap offerings, but they cost more and are spendier to maintain. But, if you want a bike that really can tear up the offroad and still cruise home in relative comfort, they're both superb machines.

I'd argue that the XRL is pretty close to the Dizzer (especially the S), much more so than the DR or KLR. The weight is only slightly more on the XRL, but the DRZ carries it's weight up front and high and feels every bit as heavy offroad. Suspension wise, about the same (both a tad plush but decent), and the XRL cruises better. The DRZ makes more useable power offroad, but gearing and jetting/pipe can swing those advantages back and forth. Yes, I've owned both bikes so I have some good experience on them.

Twisty is the opposite of fast. There are tons of great ways of getting there, with scenic and curvy roads, but not a one of them is faster than the interstate or straight state roads.

I seldom ride without seeing several. Country life, and all that jazz.

Very very cool, good to see you doing what you love!!

Literally. I love my Vee, really really wouldn't trade it for the world, but if I were buying a bike just for me I'd do the 650 without question. It's nimbler, has fewer things to sort out (not that the 1k has many), gets better mileage, and it's better at more things....plus cheaper (new). The Vee is a truly awesome adventure touring bike, 2-up you'd have to put 2 fat chicks on it to feel that you had a passenger, and in higher-revs that big 996 just really comes to life...that's a big grin-factor to me. I love what it does well, but I do find myself wishing it were 75 lbs. lighter when on the fire roads and light trails, and a little more flickable at low speeds, basically...that it's a 650.

Dragon you say?

lol. Are you kidding? If you make $45k a year and someone tells you you can afford a $300,000 house, are you stupid enough to believe that? Worse, are you stupid enough to take an ARM loan to get into it? It's not like this is secret information, it's common sense stuff that every consumer advocate and financial writer have been crowing about for the last 20 years. Only a dipshit signs a loan beyond his means. This is not anyone's fault but the consumer. Ignorant consumers allow for corruption, enable greed and predatory loans. Without them, the housing boom wouldn't have had fuel to inflate, or go boom.

Jesus, this post is like high school.

The DRZ is a good bike, but it has two big issues keeping it from comfortable distance, lack of 6th gear and a brick for a seat. Also, it carries its weight way up front and high, so it feels much heavier than it really is offroad, unless you're doing a lot more offroad than on, I'd opt for the DR650 in its place. Yes, it's simpler (is that a bad thing?), but it's a better road bike all the way around and can still do some light offroading. Carries more weight (luggage, etc.), smoother at highway speeds, and has less gremlins. If you're only going to hit fire trails and gravel roads, the DL650 stomps them all, and is a blast on the road.

If it were a car, you'd be paying $50k in engine work, or buying a supercar to get that kind of takeoff. I'm more happy with how fast a bike can get from 35 to 80, myself. That's where the good power is.

My sincere condolences on the loss of your friend. I didn't have the privilege of knowing him, but it sounds like he was loved.

I'd fucking love it if a truly competitive bike emerged in the US, that wasn't a fucking cruiser. Wish them well.