redkow97

based on their website, the lineup is currently 223cc and 149cc air-cooled singles. They claim to be the largest 2-wheeled vehicle manufacturer. Maybe that applies for companies that produce motorcycles exclusively?

perhaps this should be split into a separate thread, but which Hero models are going to be sold in the US? They look cheap and small, but Buell needs cheap(er) and small(er) bikes in their showrooms. You can't count on every Tom Dick and Harry to buy a $40k or even a $20k superbike.

pics?

I have not. I said "one could argue" that theory.

the rules are structured so differently in AMA superbike and World Superbike that they really have no relevance to each other. I'm not familiar enough with either series' rules to expound all that much further on the subject, but suffice to say that WSBK allows modifications that AMA doesn't. Those allowances could put the EBR on a more level playing field than the AMA rules allow. The BMW might be a good example. It kind of fell on its face when Pegram tried to race it at the AMA level, but it's done pretty well in WSBK. I can't definitively say that's due to the rules and not the rider, but I think it's a reasonable theory.

There is more to the problem than just baby-boomers collecting social security. I believe the government should follow-through on the promises it has made to citizen, but also stop making the same expensive promises to future generations. I'm not naïve enough to think that change happens over night, but we have to start weaning the nation off the government's teat at some point. It may as well be now. In conjunction with restructuring social security, we can absolutely eliminate a huge portion of military spending. I'm all for defense spending when it actually goes toward defense. I am not in support of the US playing "world cop" and propping up other volatile nations. "Foreign aid" causes domestic problems.

what a crock of shit. I can't believe this "compromise" was approved... And people just do not seem to understand at all what is really happening. The (fiscally liberal) Cleveland radio host on my drive in was talking about how this was a necessary thing, "so the government can pay its bills." That makes no sense. The government still can't pay its bills - they've just agreed to amend the law to allow the nation to go further into debt. If this were your household or mine, it would be like me talking to my wife and saying, "Honey, we're at the $12,000 limit on the Visa. We can't spend any more on that card, and we're only making $50 payments each month, so the balance isn't going down. But I've worked out a solution - I'm going to ask for Visa to raise our credit limit to $15,000! We still can only afford to pay $50/month, but we have a little bit of time before we hit our new increased limit." Literally the ONLY way to fix this problem is to decrease spending and/or increase the nation's income to the point that it is greater than what we spend. It's not a hard concept...

one could argue that a motorist with a CCW permit gives police LESS cause for caution than one who doesn't. The officer immediately knows that the CCW holder has not been convicted of any crime that would disqualify him from carrying. Unless you're legitimately leading cops on a high-speed chase, I think it would be rare to have a traffic stop where the officer has a legitimate reason to be confrontational and irritated...

Protected classes are required for discrimination, not profiling. Police absolutely profile, because it generally works. I seem to remember reading that literally HALF of Ohio motorcyclists only had a temporary permit, and not a full endorsement. That stat may have changed since I read it, but when accurate, that means that officers have a 50/50 chance of writing a valid ticket any time they pull over a motorcyclist on the highway. I think (as a population) riders are also more likely to be riding without insurance. It's a numbers game. It's just a matter of "who is likely to be committing a crime? Let's go hassle them." Black people get pulled over in wealthy neighborhoods, and white kids get pulled over in shitty neighborhoods. Why? Because police look for who is out of their element. White kids in East Cleveland are either lost, or they're buying drugs. Hell, anyone in a decent vehicle is either lost or buying drugs (or sex) in that neighborhood. That's profiling, but it's also pretty damn effective. There will always be a struggle for police to achieve a balance of efficiency and discretion. It sounds like this particular cop had a bad attitude, but if he had pulled over an uninsured rider with no M endorsement, who has 4 outstanding speeding tickets, we wouldn't be looking at 2mph over as some kind of injustice - it would be viewed as what it was: a fishing expedition. Rightly or wrongly.

so the lesson here is to only ride recklessly when you're alone?

how old are these twirlers?

I can't knock the Goldwing's engineering or abilities, but it's not a bike I could ever consider owning without feeling dirty and hypocritical. Again, I fully respect and even admire the obstacles overcome for it to be a very good motorcycle, but there are a bunch of things I hate about it... - price. For what it costs, I could buy a Miata, and put the top up when it rains. - fuel economy. Even liter+ sportbikes return mid 30's fuel numbers. The Goldwing struggles to get there, and offers less performance - it has a reverse gear... That's just the furthest thing from "motorcycle" in my mind. I am sure IF I owned one, I would love that feature, but it's just a major sticking point for me. I realize that some of the gripes above are totally irrational. I'm not accounting for the love of riding over driving, nor the practicality of the reverse gear, etc. it's just... too civilized to be a proper motorcycle. Part of the appeal of bikes is the rawness, and the knowledge that you're going to suffer in one way or another, but that suffering is totally worth it.

Profiling: it's not just for blacks and people who look like they might be Muslim!

well, I aborted my plan to buy Tuna's Kat, so I'm back to searching. It didn't have any major "oh shit" issues, but it was going to be more small-project intensive than I was hoping for. Plus the way the previous owner "modified" it had me concerned enough that I would have wanted to strip it down to the frame, just to inspect all the fasteners. Again, nothing "wrong" with the bike, just more work than I want to put in for the short-term. The idea is to find something that I can get rideable in a few weeks, then ride it for a bit and decide whether I want to fix it up and sell it, or cut it up and make it a sport-bobber sort of ride.

I can't seem to delete enough from my phone. Call me if you get this! 440

^ I may shorten up the cables that way to eliminate slack, but I think I will leave the cigarette adapter end so I can charge my phone on long rides. That was actually another idea I toyed with (using the GPS navigation and a speedometer app on my phone instead of a 'real' speedometer). The reality is that I don't want to constantly be using data to power a speedo though. I would never have considered this a few years ago, but eBay TomToms are just so ridiculously affordable... I could literally carry a spare unit for next to nothing...

I'm not opposed to the idea (or cost) of the vapor gauges, but as noted, I will be installing the GPS anyway, and space is somewhat at a premium. I have also heard that the Vapor tach function is slow to react. That's not a huge deal, but it's a consideration. I also don't like the idea of running a wire down the fork leg to operate the speedometer, but I could get over that as well, I guess. I haven't bought anything at this point, nor have I seen the factory gauges on the Kat, so that will be job 1. The 'modifications' probably shouldn't start until I get it running well anyway.

I'm planning to fabricate a small fairing that will reduce glare, hide some wiring behind the gauges, and hopefully also keep the GPS from getting hit with water (so long as the bike is moving) Something like the 2nd gen SV650 "N" has or had The major difference is that my idea is to make something less upright. I am toying with the idea of using an old (crashed) helmet visor, trimmed down and flexed more. If I can match the radius of the circular headlight I want to use, and then just scuff and paint the visor, I have a functional (and free) 'fairing.'

I plan to mount a GPS regardless, because I suck at directions, but I don't see any reason to have 2 speed readings... As far as the legalities go, it wouldn't surprise me if an officer didn't find GPS to be an acceptable speedometer. I'd fight that, if I had to.

Bought the wife a kindle fire for her birthday, and have been very happy with it. Especially for what it cost ($169) It does "feature" amazon content, but I like amazon's content, so that hasn't bothered me. We use ours with amazon prime videos and Hulu plus mostly. My wife has all the same apps on her kindle that he has on her phone. Only mildly annoying feature on the kindle is lack of exterior volume control. You have to touch the screen and move the slider.

I should probably buy a bike before I say I'm interested, but I'm intrigued.

I'm hoping to be in cinci between 11 and 12, so back on the north side of Columbus around 2 or 2:30. Pm me your contact info.

interested in the chock. I'll be through Columbus twice on Saturday (on my way to Cincinnati and back to buy a bike). I already have one of these on my trailer. A second would not hurt.

I'm picking up a crappy street bike on Saturday. I believe it has gauges, but even if it does, I am planning to remove the fairings and wind-screen, and go with a naked look. That said, I want to retain a tach if possible, but I'm considering replacing the speedometer with a cheap GPS unit. TomTom units sell for $30 on eBay, which is considerably less expensive (and more accurate) than other solutions like the Trail Tech Vapor gauges (which is my fall-back plan). I would power the GPS by either hard-wiring the power cable, or by simply running a battery tender cigarette adapter. The thought would be use the standard mounting brackets that are used in cars, so that I could bring the display with me, and have it not be stolen. Keeping rain off the GPS unit is a mild concern, but with the low cost of replacement, I would risk it on the first unit, and then try to find a better solution if one is necessary... Am I not thinking of something that makes this a horrible idea?

If you can latch onto a Progressive employee, they get in free, and can bring a guest for free as well. I went with my dad last year and our only expense was beer.