motociclista

It seems to me that a modern, fuel-injected, liquid-cooled 750cc inline four making 90+ horsepower and tuned for a broad torque curve would make a good Goldilocks bike: Not too much, not too little, just right. I'm not talking about sportbikes for the track right now, but a bike for the street, for both urban use and rapid inter-city transit. I can remember when nearly all manufacturers built a 750, and now almost nobody does. The post below from my blog explains my thinking. Yesterday, as the overly moneyed and under IQed owner of a Range Rover futilely tried to out-accelerate my 650cc Kawasaki Versys from a stoplight, no doubt so he could jump in front of me before the road dropped from four lanes to two a quarter of a mile ahead, and then hold me up for the next ten miles of curves, a question occurred to me: Whatever happened to 750cc streetbikes? Of course it was purely a theoretical mental exercise. Even without using the upper half of the rev range, my Versys easily stayed ahead of the Range Rover, which costs about 15 times as much, so it’s not like I needed a 750cc four-cylinder engine under me to keep from staring at the ass end of an overpriced SUV for ten miles. (And I was right: at the first curve, the wallowing behemoth slipped to a dot in my mirrors, proving that he would have held me up if I’d let him pass me.) Apart from that old truism (How much power do you need? Just a little more than you have.), no, I don’t need an extra 100cc and two cylinders beyond what my Versys, my everyday ride, offers. But if you asked me to describe the perfect motorcycle to meet my ordinary transportation and travel needs, I’d probably describe a thoroughly street-oriented 750cc four-cylinder motorcycle. Read the rest of Whatever happened to 750s?

"With God as my witness, I'll never own points again!" (That is how that old quote goes, right?)

I agree that a dual-sport makes an ideal foul-weather, don't worry about it falling over commuter bike. I had one for just that purpose for years, rode it to work all winter. But, as already mentioned, old dual-sports tend to be pricey compared to old streetbikes. Also, I wouldn't want to ride a TW200 on the interstate for long. Or at all. So that said, unless you find a great deal on an old DR350 or the like, then I'd look at something like the GS500s or EX500s already mentioned. Cheap to buy, operate, insure and keep in tires, and more than capable of any highway speeds needed.

Thank you for injecting that. I enjoy quick riding as much as anyone, but I have a hard time even imagining the street curve where going fast enough to drag a knee is not like playing Russian roulette. Sight distance alone won't allow it. On 99.9% of the curves in this state, if you're going fast enough to drag a knee and you come up on an Amish buggy, an SUV crossing the center line, a tree limb across your lane, etc., you're SOL.

I made a quick trip down to West Virginia to help my folks with some chores, so about 220 miles round trip. (No time for photos.) I saw a lot of bikes on the road, especially on the way back. It was a little chilly at 8 a.m. when I left home, but not bad. Can't let a 60-degree day on Dec. 1 go unappreciated.

Well it's possible he put 999 fairings on a 749 to replace the rashed original fairings, but I'd want to see lots of documentation, and confirmation of the story about the original owner, before I'd go too far. Also, no mention of whether the title is salvage.

If I were in your shoes, I'd go to COTA. The track got rave reviews in its debut with a F1 race. Laguna is classic, but getting in and out of the track can be a hassle and staying in the area can be expensive. Also, and this is just personal preference, I prefer to see the regular MotoGP, Moto2, Moto3 card instead of MotoGP and AMA. I'll go to a standalone AMA race later. The only way I'd choose Laguna over COTA is if you're really into the stuff beyond the track. In that case, hanging out in Monterrey and riding the coast would probably be better than whatever's going on in Austin, since it will be the first year. Really all just a matter of personal opinion, though.

Around 87 or 88 hp if you can believe the first reports. So Greg, once you figure out the argument that convinces your wife that everyone needs 12 motorcycles (because 11 just isn't enough), you're required to post it here for all of us to read, if only for purposes of historical documentation.

I said it on another thread today and I'll say it again (since I don't mind being repetitive and boring): you could offer to swap any other engine into my bike and I'd say "no thanks." Sure, others are more powerful, but I love this engine. The rest of the bike too. I wouldn't want to live with it as an only bike, due to ergonomics and inability to travel with luggage, but as a second bike and track day bike it's perfect.

This is what we get:

Well, I've ridden somewhere north of 100 different motorcycles over the years. Singles, V-twins, boxer twins, parallel twins, triples, inline fours, a V4, and a flat-six. (Still looking for a five-cylinder to try... ). I have found no sweeter engine than the 675cc triple in my Triumph Daytona (also available in the Street Triple, which matches your preference for upright ergonomics). But that's the same power level as the 600cc four-cylinder sportbikes, which seems to be more than you want.

Hey everyone, it's that time of year again when some of you may need a gift for someone who loves to ride. It's also the time of year when I need to move some books. (OK, so that's all year around. ) Anyway, I'm offering fellow forum members my lowest price yet for a personally signed copy of my book, The Ride So Far: Tales from a Motorcycling Life, published by Whitehorse Press. List price: $24.95 Usual price for a signed copy on my website: $22.50 with free shipping. My price now for anyone reading this: $18 with free shipping in the U.S. or Canada. In the interest of full disclosure, I'll also let you know that Whitehorse Press has the book on sale too, for $16.22, but you'll have to pay shipping and it won't be signed. If you're interested in buying a copy at this special price, just PM me. You can pay with Paypal or use your credit card through Paypal. You can even mail me a personal check if you prefer. Several of you have already bought the book, so thanks and sorry for the repetition. Just trying to reach anyone else who might want one to give as a gift.

The short answer is no, no 600-800 V4s available in the U.S. currently manufactured. Longer answer. Why not? A V4 is a little more expensive to build than an in-line four, and price point is typically a concern with mid-size motorcycles. Not enough buyers are willing to pay more for a V4 over an inline 4 in that category. The VFR750 and VFR800 were the last ones, but they were expensive compared to other bikes of the same size. Honda eventually relented and repositioned that model as a larger bike. Given your criteria, Jack, I'm not sure you want a V4 anyway.

Sometimes you have to wrap an opinion in humor to make the pill go down. Let's face it, nobody wants to read a rant from me about how spectacle and entertainment have displaced honest competition. But when I saw Rusty Wallace say that the Gordon-Bowyer thing was "good for the sport," my immediate reaction was "Sport!? That's not sport. That's a demolition derby."

Others have already mentioned the Versys, but if you want a longer opinion on life with this bike (outfitted the way you have described your next bike) then you can read my take here. The seat height might be the deal-breaker for you.

DMG plans to bring more NASCAR style to AMA Superbike with radical rule changes. Are you ready for the Grab Ass to Pass Button? Read it here first.

I thought that was part of #2.

When discussing story ideas with the editor of Accelerate recently, we decided to do an article about the best motorcycling advice. I put some thought into it and came up with a list of my top five, but I'm sure other experienced riders have other opinions. And some new riders may be even more in tune with what advice really helped them the most. So here's my take. In the interests of constant improvement, I'd like to hear other opinions, whether you think my choices are good or lousy. What's the best motorcycling advice you've ever gotten (or given)?

Here's a photo from my last motorcycle camping trip of the season. I went down to Eastern Kentucky a couple of weeks ago. You can see more photos here, if you're interested.

I'll add yet another vote for Spearmans in Millwood. As for littlecarbs Gambier tips, let me fill in the blanks. The place with the outdoor tables and the fence is the Village Inn and the Gambier Deli a few doors down has a great variety of sandwiches. The place on the corner is Wiggin Street Coffee, mainly just coffee. If out riding, I'd opt for Spearmans. Try the pies for dessert.

If you can get littlecarbsbigsmiles to send you a copy of the route he put together for Leaf Tour 2012, your work would be done. Edit: Oops, never mind, he already did that and it's right here, see message #35. And just above that you can see a few photos I shot.

Well now we know how you keep all those bikes from getting gummed up sitting in the garage, but how do you keep them all insured? Do you get a discount for fleet insurance?

So I was right the first time... it's an old joke and I'm the last to catch on.

So I post a perfectly innocuous photo of the 2012 Leaf Tour. The forum "resizes" the photo for me. Thanks, I guess. So I click on it to see it full size. It tells me "1 of 2," so naturally I wonder what the other photo is, since I only put one in that post. It turns out that photo 2 is a picture of Dick Cheney reminiscing about the time he shot someone in the face. Questions: Is this an old joke that everyone else but me knows about? (I mean the photo, not Dick Cheney shooting someone; I did know about Dick's questionable marksmanship.) Is this a free forum service? A political statement? A random server glitch caused by sunspots? Just wondering.

The view from Walnut Creek. There would normally be an end-of-the-ride photo at the Iron Pony Saloon showing the happy group beaming in camaraderie, but at that point it was spitting rain and felt colder than ever, so everyone just wanted to get inside, huddle around the space heater in the men's room (the ladies controlled this impulse, admirably) and order pot after pot of coffee. But really, it wasn't bad at all (so says the guy with heated grips and handguards; Greg may have felt differently on the unfaired SV650). Excellent route.