cg2112

I was being sarcastic. Maybe it's south west Ohio, but every experienced biker I know rides a cruiser

Ugh. People who ride cruisers are total dicks.

I don't know where you're located - I'm in Hamilton, and have RoadRunner, and it's incredibly fast. Today is actually the slowest I've ever seen it:

If I remember, the statue itself didn't actually cost that much. When the thing first burned, I remember reading that most of the materials and labor had been donated. I don't really have an issue with the statue so much, except that it kind of looked like a caricature to me, which really only invited mockery.

Just found this thread, thought I'd chime in. First bike, 1972 Yamaha DS 7. Never got it running quite right, but running well enough to ride around town and get arrested on. I swear I didn't know my license was suspended. 2nd bike, 1982 Maxim XJ550. Current bike, 2004 Yamaha Vstar 650. (The bike on the left is my fiance's GZ250)

Not only do you not need to bring a bike to class, they won't let you use your own. You just need to bring shoes that cover your ankles (high top leather sneakers are good, All Stars are not), long sleeve shirt and pants, helmet (they have them if you don't), gloves and eye protection. The class is a great place to learn if you haven't really ridden much. Those bikes are pretty beat up, and they don't care if you drop one. Let them teach you and bang up one of their bikes instead of your own. You learn a ton, too. I took it this year after a few years of riding, and found it really valuable, and have talked to a lot of experienced riders who say that it was definitely worth it to take the class. You can still get in. The classes are full, but they always have people who don't show up. I walked in, along with six other people, and nine people who had signed up didn't show, so we all got in.

Feel free to consider my use of the word "God" to be the same metaphor (the Declaration of Independence refers to both "Creator" and "God" - different words for the same idea, be it God, nature, Allah, beech nuts, whatever). My point is that the founders believed that our rights have been bestowed upon by virtue of our birth, and that all men have these rights. The Constitution doesn't give them to us.

I'm not following you. This is exactly what the founders believed. "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

Being a citizen here and contributing taxes has nothing to do with it. You have your rights by virtue of being born. The founders believed this very strongly, and this is the basis for our Bill of Rights. They believed very strongly in natural rights, that our rights don't come from the Constitution, they come from God. The Constitution merely protects those rights, it does not grant them.

No kidding. I don't know why I never bothered. Makes a lot more sense than getting a permit every year. And if I'd gotten it done earlier, I would have this goofy looking pink license now.

You get to say that precisely because of the Constitution. Protecting rights only when it is not distasteful renders the Constitution useless.

Unfortunately, in cases like this, a lot of people don't care what the Constitution says.

Finally went to court today over the issue that had me asking the question in the first place. Because I got my endorsement before the court date, he reduced the charge to operating without a license, which is just a fine and 2 points, which will bump my insurance a little bit, but otherwise not bad. It could have been worse, violating a license restriction is a first degree misdemeanor, 6 points on your license, and at minimum a 30 day impound.

I agree. I'm all for making sure that people are here legally, but those who are here illegally are entitled to the same Constitutional protections as the rest of us. Furthermore, being here illegally shouldn't result in being beaten into retardation.

Hey now! That's the Three Wolf Moon shirt - made by The Mountain in New Hampshire. I used to work there when I was in my early 20's, dyeing the shirts. rr04, don't let them give you crap, I ride the same bike, a few years older. I like it, even if it is maybe a little underpowered, but then it's a 650. Comfy and smooth, though.

Turning my head through curves, while I do somewhat naturally SOME of the time, was a big thing to learn in the class, and I felt improved in that regard by the time it was over. In fact, when I dropped the bike in the figure-eight, I both wasn't looking through the turn, AND grabbed the front brake. At least, the instructor said I did - I didn't think I had, but I'm going to take her word for it. It was pretty embarrassing, but worse than that is that it happened about 10 minutes before we were to take the evaluation. Nothing like a confidence crusher moments before taking a test! All in all, I recommend it, I learned a lot of little things that I didn't pick up myself after a few years of riding.

I finished up the course this afternoon. There actually wasn't a cone weave in the evaluation portion at all. It was definitely worth taking, I learned a lot of little things that I hadn't previously given much thought to. The evaluation wasn't too bad, though I did bomb the figure-eight u-turn (went outside the box on the second turn, put a foot down, to boot), but aced the rest of it. I was rather surprised, every one in the class passed, even those with no riding experienced. Only one person dropped a bike during the entire class, and it was one of the two more experienced riders in the class (namely, me! - the same figure-eight).

I got into the class, and it's going to be pretty easy. When I run through the cones, I actually don't use the clutch at all (which is contrary to how everyone else says they do it, it seems), unless I feel the engine slowing too much. I generally let 1st just pull me through, and apply throttle and rear break as necessary. I also found that it's easier to do on my bike, a 650, than it is to do on my girlfriend's bike, GZ250. Her throttle is way more responsive. I have to go through the cones in 2nd on her bike (but with the narrower handlebars, it still seems easier on my bike).

That's my plan. I still don't know if the cones will be offset for sure, I got two answers in here. Hehehe. I may call them tomorrow and just ask. My only issue if they're offset is that it takes me a few tries before I nail it, then I can do it pretty consistently. That will probably be taken care of with more practice. If they aren't offset, I have no problems, and I'm able to do a u-turn in the 20 foot space (I've got a 650, I'll have 24 feet to u-turn). The test doesn't seem that hard, my biggest fear is putting my foot down, or stalling. I can't remember the last time I've stalled - except practicing this stuff at 4 miles an hour.