franklyfresh

If you come up I75 North for about 10 minutes to the tricounty/springdale area, there are 2 very good shops/stores.

Springdale has Cycle Specialties

And tricounty has Sport Tour, both about 10 minutes from each other and both very nice stores with a great selection.

Thanks! Looks like those two will do it, they didn't show up on my Google searching. 

I will put Iron Pony on my list for when I head up towards Columbus. Thanks Pokey.

I was lucky enough to have a Cycle Gear supercenter 10 minutes from my house in the past. Now I have no clue where to go for motorcycle gear, stands, covers, etc. I live in downtown Cincinnati, are there any stores around here?

That is actually what happened in California with lane splitting.  It isn't specifically 'legal'. What happened is years ago the chief for the highway patrol whet very public saying it was not 'illegal' and his officers would no longer write tickets.  That then caught on with the rest of the leo's.

 

And gradually cagers got used to it, bikers learned how to do it and it was all smooth. Your concern for disaster if we go all in at once is well founded.

I'm pretty sure lane splitting is explicitly legal in California. It's even in the DMV handbook for motorcycles. They have some rules regarding how many mph above the flow of traffic you can split lanes at and what speeds are considered eligible for lane splitting.

I've been splitting lanes on the highway and occasionally on the local streets for the past couple weeks and no negative incidents yet!

What's good everyone!

My name is Frank and I just moved to Ohio in early January and am finally back on two wheels. I have been itching to ride ever since the sun came back out. I left my 1991 Kawasaki ZX6R and 2003 Suzuki VS800 Intruder back in sunny Southern California but picked up a used 2007 Ducati 800 Supersport a couple weeks ago. I should have shopped around more but I just couldn't stand seeing and hearing all the bikes come out and not being able to ride myself! Some issues to work out with the bike but I'm creeping on 200 miles since I got it and man does it feel good. I work in Downtown Cincinnati as a business analyst and am also into firearms. I casually shoot bullseye pistol and IDPA. 

I've already gotten some great advice from this community and am glad to see an active group of riders in Ohio! I will miss year-round riding but that just means I have to ride harder during the summer!

No helmets and no fatalities. Wow

Co-sign. I wouldn't say that you can control your safety no matter what the cars do. But there are precautions you can take that would mitigate many hazards.

To all the guys who are hesitant to split lanes, if you don't ride a huge touring cruiser, it is only uncomfortable at first. I commuted for work on my VS800 Intruder back in LA and would split lanes for 10-15 miles each way everyday. So I have ridden at least ~5000 miles while splitting lanes on the freeway in 2014 alone. I also did this at every red light, which is a lot easier because the cars aren't moving and you dont have to worry about unsignaled lane changes. After you do it for a while you become very comfortable with it and can always tell if you have enough space to get through. The traffic here is not nearly as bad so it may not warrant the practice but its really only scary at first. The ability to get through traffic was the main reason I picked up riding bikes.

Okay so splitting lanes in front of LEO is a no go. Does anyone know how insurance companies would handle a collision in these circumstances? i.e., if I were riding through at a safe speed through traffic and a vehicle purposely veers right to block me, causing a collision, would I be at fault? If I'm covered from some jackass in a car causing an accident I think i'll keep splitting lanes and feel it out for a while. 

I do it. Fuck 'em if they don't like it.

I constantly late split in Columbus, but have never seen any other bikes do it.

Posters are correct about the road raging. I have more data points than most to support this. E.g. my daily commute is about 15 miles on 315 into downtown. A good chunk of this is stop-and-go car traffic, where I split between the left and middle lanes. I average about 10 cages honking at me per day, and have literally never made this trip without at least 1 fool honking in anger. About once per month someone intentionally tries to block me. Have never seen a door open though. So yeah, people hate it, but very few will even notice you until you're well past.

For my commute, I consider splitting safer than taking my chances getting rear ended, which happens to some car almost daily on my route.

Cool, I'll join you guys in helping normalize lane splitting. I just like keeping the cars behind me. Makes me feel more safe.

Nothing at Home Depot or Lowes would clear the pipes. This was the closest I got: 

Vise grips are up next...

Some of the 10mm hex sockets will let the 10mm hex bar slip out. Held in by a set screw. It's short and should fit. Then turn it with a box end 6 point wrench. Just a possibility...

I'm going to try to pull out the 10mm hex. But I think the drain plug is stripped too much already.

that would generally been helpful information that being said it might be more work but I would remove the exhaust system.. (you have to drop the mufflers on the panigale as well ) then change the oil correctly before breaking out the vice grips..   then replace the plug with the plug pauly suggested  to make it easier next time

That head pipe is OEM. Your mufflers may not be, but that doesn't affect the plug clearance.

Alright, I'll head over to the hardware store and see if they have anything that will let me get the 10mm socket in and clear the pipes. Hopefully it is as simple as that but it is a tight fit.

I also just placed an order for the replacement plug thanks Isaac's Papa.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

I failed to mention that the pipes are not stock. I tried using a hex/allen key and it won't clear either. I think I am going to have to get a pair of vice grips and a new drain plug. 

I ride a Ducati 800 Supersport that uses a 10mm hex bit to loosen the oil drain plug. I just bought this bike and need to change the oil, however the pipes are right under the drain plug and there is only a ~1-inch clearance between the drain plug and the exhaust. None of my socket wrenches will fit, let alone with a 10mm hex bit attached. I tried using a 10mm allen wrench but that didn't clear the pipes either.

Anybody have any ideas on how I can get this dammed drain plug out? 

Good luck with Ohio drivers. They are morons. I wouldn't put it past some to open their door if they see you coming. Also, I wouldn't put it past LEO's to pull you for it since it's not the "norm" here like it is in Cali.

Wouldn't recommend it!

 

I have thought about it many times, but have never decided to take the risk of some cage idiot throwing open a door, cigarette out the window, or steering closer. There are a lot of Richards here and I just cant trust them to not do something stupid during such a vulnerable maneuver... just me tho!

It's too intelligent for Ohioans. Do so at your own risk.

Welcome to Fuckville. It sucks here.

Thanks for the responses everyone. I didn't think it was that bad here since there isn't a penal code violation for splitting lanes like some other states. There are idiots no matter what state you are in and I always look as far ahead as possible to see if any cars suddenly decide to switch lanes without looking in their mirror. But to deliberately open your door or impede an oncoming motorcycle? Is that really a thing that happens around here?  

If I knew I wasn't going to be able to lane split locally, I would've bought a big cruiser instead of a sportbike! 

I just moved to Ohio from California and am wondering if/how often you all lane split. Back in California, I would lane split at every red light to be in front of traffic. During highway congestion I would lane split to bypass gridlock or vehicles moving slower than the speed limit. I understand that lane splitting is neither explicitly legal in Ohio, as it is in California, nor is it explicitly illegal. Observing bikes day-to-day, I do not see many lane splitting so I thought I’d ask here.

I will most likely lane split to get out of traffic on the highways because I’m too impatient for traffic. However, I am hesitant to lane split at red lights while riding in the city for a couple reasons. First, if this is not a common practice I don’t want to come off as an asshole and enrage any car drivers. Second, I don’t want to get any tickets from LEO.

In San Diego through Los Angeles, nobody would bat an eye at me for lane splitting on the highway or at red lights locally. Some cars/trucks would even steer to the side to allow a wider opening for me to pass. I also never had problems with cops and have even lane split with biker cops on the freeway every now and then during traffic. What is the situation like in Ohio? I live in Cincinnati and work in Downtown.