Moto-Brian

The thing about competition is true. However, realize that each dealer in the CBuc market has all but given up on accessories. Sure, they have some, but typically, it is only what the TR and PU rep pedal and not really what the riders as a whole want or need. I've been in quite a few of the area stores and they actually believe that Pony sells for WAY less and gives shit away. That's a scenario that plays favorably in Pony's hands. The second thing is that dealers won't carry what Pony does - which is pretty much every brand. That's a shame. They have the EXACT same opportunity to make GOOD money on accessories. How many times (if you have bought from a local dealer) have you purchased a bike only to want a certain accessory and have to order it because the dealer doesn't have it in stock. Or, they only carry a certain exhaust because it is what they get the cheapest from TR or PU. Two Bros., Yosh (entry level systems), Scorpion... It's a damn shame and until they get it, they will have a TON of money going over to Pony... The OEM bike deal is something that I think will cater well to Pony. Yamaha is one of the best OEMs to have right now. They limit production so stuff isn't given away for free as much as the other brands - meaning, it is harder to get units compared to say, Honda. The other thing is that while not pleasing to a lot of sportbike riders, STAR motorcycle accessories and related are a top seller in a LOT of Yamaha stores. Along with side by sides and ATV. That being said, having the OEM in house now helps them to carry accessories for that brand. So, another item that will put a large dent in the local dealers is OEM accessories... As far as other OEMs, I think it is only natural to expect they will someday. When is an answer only the owner knows. They have a lot of ideas on the table at any given time and look at them constantly. The cool thing is that they do not move into something w/o a lot of research and thus, one of the reasons they succeed a lot.

Take anyone that is knowledged on sportbikes. I'd have them allow you to pull the side fairings to check under the hood, so to speak. Pop the tank and look at the filter. Look at certain things like the pegs, ball ends of the levers, swingarm, base of the fork tubes, etc. These are areas that sometimes get forgotten when fixing crash damage. I could help you out depending on the day. But I think like Sinner stated. $7500 OTD is a pretty fair enough deal considering miles.

$7900 for an 08 isn't that great a deal. Especially from a place known to be shady. Who knows what they might have done to that bike... Basically, if you look hard enough, that's pretty typical in price. There are a LOT of owners who probably are upside down on their loans and are asking too much for their bikes. I've seen 07s being asked for $8500. That's retarded. I'd ask for a CarFax report on it at LEAST. I'd also look around. Remember one thing - the 2009s are here and have been out. That bike is essentially 2 years old now and the older body style. With a lot of dealers having lack luster years, deals are all over the place. Many shops still have 08s on their floors and are asking low prices. Watch the freight, prep and fees BS they try and pull you in with, but you could snag a new 08 for not much more... It isn't a BAD deal, but again, considering the source, I'd look around a bit more...

Yup. I might still buy a Powerstand table and then copy it for the garage and use the Powerstand one for the track so it can fold in the trailer...

Actually, not a repost as many thought it to all be rumors. I and a few others knew for sure, but until officially "official", there were doubters out there. All I know is that Columbus needs a dealer that actually is a good dealer AND has accessories. The way they will do things is going to be new and will also be really cool. Think about it... Buy a bike and walk over to the 100,000 square foot accessory showroom. You're sure to find what you need for your new Yamaha. Plus, it can be financed into the deal! Tell me a shop that can do that now...

Is it wrong that we've been doing that in Mason Ohio for a few years now? Buddy has an MX track (used to until he moved out) that we'd run cars on and in the field. Was right next to an upscale park where people would walk everyday. If you could have seen their faces with us field running S10s... The last one was we bought a Sable from some lady in downtown Cincy for $250. Drove it to Mike's house and proceeded to run it with a Ford Ranger we got from a guy in Hamilton (also drove home). Got over $350 at salvage for each vehicle. We actually made over $200... I know, hillbilly, but a shit load of fun...

Cool, man. Shoot me your email or I can get it from Rub. I was looking for angle iron for making a table for the bike instead of buying a Powerstands table...

Good info here, boys. Now, where can I buy angle iron and scrap metal to weld and create cool shit...?

Good luck with that. Doubt they lessen the charge...

You rolled a stop. Why is it a BS ticket? You were unfortunately the one pulled over if others were doing it, but the old saying "If they'd jump off a bridge, would you?" might apply here... Unlucky, but you're pretty much in the wrong and will be lucky to get out of it...

If they try and claim it is a cross between a cruiser and a sportbike, they are grasping at strings. Even off our board here, people are going to see more scooter than sportbike. I'd say a cross between cruiser and scooter. Sure, no cross over to classify it as a scooter, but the cruiser part takes that into account. It's a scooter more than sportbike... What because it has the VFR rear wheel makes it a sportbike??

By the way, why doesn't it tell you at least who is giving you positive rep? I understand the pussy, spineless people who leave negative rep w/o leaving their info in fear you retaliate and such, but why can't we see who leaves it?

On the topic, where locally can one get angle iron and such? I have yet to find a decent source around here...

I'm VERY happy with the power output and overall quality of my Graves unit. They are very well done in terms of welds and cannister quality. Plus, if you want to stand out a bit, they are not as popular out on the streets. Now at the track, they are much more visible... http://www.gravesport.com/cgi-bin/shopper?preadd=action&key=EXS_08G7_FTCH This is the high mount which nets a bit more power than the shorty system that is similar to the OEM style. But, to each their own. The cool thing about Graves is their customer service. Top notch and they are always available.

My opinion is that the 750 is the world's perfect bike. You'll love it. They have a HUGE soft spot reserved in my heart. Ditch the Hotbodies slip-on. Garbage. Just do me a favor - get something good. Don't go with a Two Bros or something...

If it had the #16 on it, that was Russ Wikle. That's the bike I bought from Mark. If you saw a #49 - that's Jacobi (John), #57 is Mark (Junge - owner of the team), #33 is Tray (Batey) and the #1 is the endurance machine they use. Needless to say, they get a LOT of exposure. I bought Russ's bike due to the fact there was the same amount of time on it vs. the 08s and was actually sorted and set-up more towards what I prefer. Plus, it was cheaper than the 08s!

What's your budget? I suggest the R6 over them all for 600s. Easily one of the sharpest handling 600s I have ridden. The new CBR is good too, but less likely to find good prices on spares and race parts than the R6. The GSXR 600 is a turd and the worst of the bunch. Maybe look at the 07/08 ZX6R, as well... Depends on budget of course...

Got a new one vs. the previous post... 2007 GSXR1000: -187-192 (depending on the dyno it was ran on) Rear wheel hp... -FULL Superstock build on motor -Chassis tuned by Tony at Vesrah -Vortex clip-ons, rearsets, sprockets and fairing stay -Traxxion Dynamics Gas Cartridge inserts in front forks -Penske 8987 Triple rear shock -Hot Bodies plastic -Yoshimura EM Pro Race only ECU with Traction control and engine management -Yoshimura EM Pro wire racing harness -Yoshimura EM Pro quick shifter -Graves full Ti system with Carbon cannister

No doubt. Just remember that you can buy another mounting base for whatever other brand or model bike you buy and save a ton vs. buying another damper kit... By the way, what were your thoughts concerning a new track bike? GSXR? R6? Spill it, junior!

If you are doing any track days, ditch the Bridgestones. The Michelins are WAY better and easier to dial in. Plus, more guys run them than Bridgestones and you'll be able to get better notes from others than if you run the Stones. Also realize that just because they are the sole provider of tires for MotoGP, they aren't going to neccessarily be the best track tire out there. Any of the top guys who have tried Bridgestones and have switched to Dunlop, Pirelli or Michelins have been more than happy they did. Now as for the other guy? Sorry to thread jack...

The cost will certainly be cheaper than Mid-Ohio. If you look, Mid-Ohio is more than any other venue. This is due to track rental. It is more expensive to rent than the others, but outside BlueGrass, there isn't any other track in remotely the same condition. Now, realize that other tracks like Barber are expensive as well, but are not within the regional area of us and Mid-Ohio so, I am not including that track in my comparison. BlueGrass can become more if it gets top shelf racing and such. Put it this way, STT is in early and locked dates. That helped a ton. Now, come this time next year and AMA, WERA, SCCA, etc start talking to him, rental may go up. Of course, Monte is so damn savvy a business man, he probably will have locked prices for a few years. He's too smart to get blind sided... Point is that the extra 1-1/2 hour drive and related fuel expenses will be offset with a cheaper entry fee. It all works out - two great tracks for the same money. It's a win-win.

I'd take the damper and levers off. As it sits as a street bike, I think with the spare plastic and such and good miles, you can still get that price. You can then take the damper and use it and either use the levers if you can or sell them as they are top levers... Just my $.02...

It's possible, but I cannot speak for everyone. I will certainly be down there the next time as I just couldn't swing it this time around and know Reuben is a great source for that type of feedback... John is too, but more of a car guy than bike... Anyways, the next time it comes up, we'll see... I believe we'll be there again shortly to overview what safety measures he has taken...

Must not have been too bad - heard you were a sleep almost immediately when I called...

I think it is best to agree to disagree. I totally agree that some things are very old in terms of technology. Hell, they still use some old school technology in F1. The point is that there are pluses to having NASCAR around. I understand that the solid rear axle is old technology. Sure compared to the independent rear wheel set-ups developed and used in a LOT of cars out there. However, the ability to change rear end gearing, to adjust and develop it for oval racing isn't really a cost effective thing to have done or developed. The solid rear end allows for better tuning and traction on oval surfaces than that of a road course where independent suspension can be better used like in the Vette or Audis, etc found in the Lemans series and others. Point to that is that we still use solid rear axles in many vehicles and it allows us to develop and learn. It's a very small point and maybe not a good one, but you get the idea. Braking rotors and technology found in these cars are also important, but get overlooked. Safety development is found in these cars that can relate to the typical driver we all use. The engine is also older technology to a degree, but again, the technology allows us to go into things that can be useful in developing better engine technologies and metals, etc. The deal is that yes, it isn't as amazing a technology as say F1, but it isn't old school and not used anywhere. Things do trickle down into everyday cars and things learned can be useful in everyday technology. It just typically comes down to things where people think it is all hillbilly and mullets about NASCAR. That's cool, but there is a deeper amount of things that are found within the confines of a team and how they develop technology. I think you could agree that point. I also have some very close personal friends associated with road race car series and have been professional drivers. Yes, the technology found in the Audi Diesel Le Mans car is more advanced than NASCAR, but they also have been using the same technology for years in many facets of their sport. It's just that cooler technology exists in those types of series, but could be argued that many things never see the light of day in our world. Every part of racing has benefits for everyday life in the automotive arena. Drag Racing is very old technology, as well, but many cool things exist within it that can be used and developed for application in today's machines. However, when's the last time you saw a dry sump system utilized in a car for everyday use? I think the bottom line to be looked at is fuel and alternate power supplies, safety and of course, advancement in composites and components that are easy to apply to everyday things. I think what Chevy and Audi are doing in the LeMans series is great for fuel alternatives. I think NASCAR helps a lot in terms of safety for everyday cars and trucks we use. I also think they both are legitimate series and connect close to the trickling down effect than other series do. The people associated with these teams and such are solid engineers and technicians that have some special skills that cannot be tagged as antiquated or old school. However, in terms of ranking them technologically, NASCAR is going to be closer to the bottom. My point was towards that of Chris and others who really don't know what really is going on and generalize their comments w/o real hand knowledge or understanding. It's like saying MX bikes are old technology and that we get more from Sportbikes. They are very different technologies and both require different forms of technology. However, MotoGP gets credited with the cooler technology factors rather than higher end MX racing does. But, in the end, each has brought us great technology that has been useful in our lives. They also have given each other technology to help in each other's series and technology...