Motorcycle Rant

[weilke]

FU
Florida has the Tail of the Gator - 11 curves in 318 miles.

Beats North Dakota 46.

116 miles, not a single curve ;-)

 

[Half Fast]

Beats North Dakota 46.

116 miles, not a single curve ;-)

I drove a road in South Dakota like that. On and on and on and...... I zoomed way out on the GPS until I could see a bend in the road. It was something like 70 miles away.

 

[Ted]

Since this seems to be the POA motorcycle thread du jour...

Rode a 100 mile loop on my Buell today, taking in the Foothills Parkway near Knoxville:

Exactly one month after my meniscus surgery, knee did fine - the Buell has high pegs, but that’s never bothered me.

And, damn I love that little bike. Bought new in 2003. Hard to believe 17 years have slipped by somehow! Not the fastest not most powerful nor lightest nor most technologically advanced, but it has that “essence” of what a motorcycle should feel and sound like.

For me, anyway.

As an aside, the main impetus of posting the above is to make Half Fast jealous.

I remember riding a brand new Buell... the 1200 sport bike I think... back around 2008 or so. At the time I felt that it was too slow, but I was used to Japanese liter class bikes. I think I’d feel different these days, it reminds me a lot of how the Guzzi feels and rides. Not the fastest, not the best at, well, anything, but captures the essence of how a motorcycle should feel.

 

[smv]

Beats North Dakota 46.

116 miles, not a single curve ;-)

Couple of our recent day trips. 550 & 600 miles. Getting back into riding shape for a couple upcoming rallies.

 

[FastEddieB]

I remember riding a brand new Buell... the 1200 sport bike I think... back around 2008 or so.

The original XB9R Firebolt - which is what I have - had a Sportster-based 984cc powerplant with 92hp*. Lots of folks bemoaned the “small” size. Then the XB12R came out and there was much rejoicing in Buell land.

And then people rode the bigger one, and many ended up preferring the smaller. Sure, the 1200cc engine was torquey as hell, but did not feel as “sporty” since it was slower to rev.

As an aside, riding 101 miles today my bike took 1.65 gals - working out to about 61 mpg! Not bad considering the fun factor.


*I put the Buell race kit on mine. Less restrictive muffler and air filter and differently mapped ECU. Pretty sure that added a few ponies.

 

[imQ]

Me and my friends talked to some 5 to 6k driving age kids about motorcycle awareness last year, plus several trucking companies, civic groups, etc. We had another 8k scheduled this spring, pre covid crap, about that many this fall. I figure talking to others about awareness beats the crap outta complaining about it. (Plus it's kind of fun) Lane splitting and loud pipes are a common topic. Oklahoma is kind of a gray area, not really legal, but not specifically forbidden. Also, I had a talk with a motor officer when I got to riding full time again after a 5 year layoff. His advice was to practice constantly, and use the bad habits of others as a challenge instead of a reason to be ****ed off. Works too. (Thanks Cleo)
I love riding almost as much as flying, and I'm convinced flying is probably cheaper if you count the accessories that get added to each bike. (My wife jokes about the 100k driveway.)
Everyone whines about what the other group does wrong, but probably doesn't look at the reflection in the mirror when they do.

 

[weilke]

Couple of our recent day trips. 550 & 600 miles. Getting back into riding shape for a couple upcoming rallies.

View attachment 87212 View attachment 87213

'Tour de Oil-Patch'.

 

[smv]

'Tour de Oil-Patch'.

Haha... Indeed. We were doing a couple "Grand Tour" type rallies. Right now our schedules do not allow for much more than day trips so we make the most of them when we can.

 

[red4golf]

Alright I know there's a lot of motorcyclists on here and I know I'm going to catch a lot of flak... but here it goes. Y'all rant about 4-wheel caged drivers all the time... but now it our (my) turn to rant back about motorcyclists.

1. Go within a standard deviation of the speed limit. Do you have the open road infront of you? well look behind you, it's probably because you're going 15mph under the speed limit ****ing off everyone behind you. It seems that motorcyclists will go 15mph under the limit or 30mph over the limit. I'm not advocating that everyone has to go the exact speed limit, but keep it reasonable, speed responsibly, or certainly don't go below the speed limit. I go the speed limit even though my bike can go much faster but am usually tailgated by cage drivers that want more.
2. Just because your tires are in your lane does NOT mean the rest of your body and bike are in the lane. I promise when you're in a turn hanging over the double yellow I'm going to win the confrontation, but riders never seem to notice or understand that most of them is in the oncoming lane. Agreed. Had a fried in my unit that was a new rider hit a semi trailer with his face in a turn. Not pretty...
3. Why do you have the right to block two lanes of traffic when there's 3 or more of you in a group? You're not a biker gang, and even if you are see previous discussion about winning the confrontation. I've ridden in packs of 200+ and haven't seen anything like this happen. We are all staggered in a single lane with road guards that help change lanes when necessary.
4. Just because everyone can see your body language does NOT mean you get to direct traffic like a cop. Twice I've had motorcyclists try to un**** a cluster of a traffic situation and they only made it worse, who the hell gave you the authority to start pointing and giving directions to people? You have no more situational awareness than anyone else. Again, not sure what you are talking about. Pointing and making hand gestures while riding is our way of communicating so cage drivers don't kill us. If you are talking about road guards trying to keep a pack together by blocking, they need training if they are messing it up. There are groups that provide road guards for large events like charity runs and those guys are great.
5. Helmets. yeah yeah yeah personal freedom blah blah blah. But you know what? when you get into an accident I don't want to go to prison for vehicular manslaughter because you neglected your own personal safety. Personal choice in many states. Studies show that having a helmet on can cause people to feel secure so they take more risks. Also, hitting the ground without a helmet at about 20 mph will cause brain damage while hitting at the same speed with a helmet can cause a broken neck and spinal damage. Faster than that and you are dead either way so pick your poison. You don't smoke or eat processed sugar do you?
6. Uppity attitude. Motorcyclists always sit around and ***** about other drivers and how they're so far superior and are always on the lookout, well the majority of riders I see are just as ****ty drivers as everyone else, if not worse and they **** me off. It makes me want to give no extra credence or awareness to motorcyclists and they can just deal with the road like everyone else does. You always say that car drivers need to look out more... well you know what? so do motorcycle drivers, constantly cutting people off and just making an ass of yourselves. It goes both ways. Yes, it goes both ways but I have been attacked, yes, attacked while on a motorcycle far more often than I was ever attacked by a motorcyclist. Once I had a car roll his window down, yell "I'm going to kill you" and swerve into my lane. What was my infraction? No idea. I was following traffic, hadn't changed lanes and was locked in by a rush hour commute. This guy literally chased me down the shoulder and into the median. It was only on an exit ramp where he opened his door that I could defend myself.

I ride a couple different Harley models. Those sport bike guys are different and don't fit with my crowd either.... I've also experienced these things in Canada and Germany (lived and rode for 2 years) so it isn't an isolated set of experiences. Motorcyclists have a target on their backs because cars don't see them, period.
\rant

 

[FastEddieB]

Also, hitting the ground without a helmet at about 20 mph will cause brain damage while hitting at the same speed with a helmet can cause a broken neck and spinal damage. Faster than that and you are dead either way so pick your poison.

I won’t engage in a back-and-forth with you on that, but there’s a boatload of bad information and questionable logic right there.

 

[Bob Noel]

Count me as someone who was glad I had a full-face helmet on when I screwed up a panic stop avoiding a <deleted> moron on a bicycle in the left lane of a 50mph zone.

 

[red4golf]

I won’t engage in a back-and-forth with you on that, but there’s a boatload of bad information and questionable logic right there.

Here you go.

https://www.msf-usa.org/downloads/i...njuries_in_Fatal_Motorcycle_Crashes_PAPER.pdf

 

[Morgan3820]

Ya know, every time I start getting excited about getting into motorcycling, someone starts bringing up crashes. Head, neck and body trauma. The back and forth, It is a real buzz kill

 

[red4golf]

Count me as someone who was glad I had a full-face helmet on when I screwed up a panic stop avoiding a <deleted> moron on a bicycle in the left lane of a 50mph zone.

I was forced off the road at 45 by an oncoming car that crossed the line. Jumped a ditch and slid across a farmer’s field. The full face sure saved my bacon.

 

[weilke]

Here you go.

https://www.msf-usa.org/downloads/i...njuries_in_Fatal_Motorcycle_Crashes_PAPER.pdf

Oh my. Where to start.

This is an autopsy study, all the study subjects are dead. While interesting, you can't go back from highly selected subset to draw conclusions about a separate population.

Motorcycle racers tumble off their bikes at 100+ mph, get up from the ground and swear that they can't complete the race.

 

[weilke]

This afternoons past-time is to bill corneal transplant surgeries. So let me change that to:

By all means. Dont wear a helmet. We need you, transplant surgery can't sustain itself on drug overdoses and pool drownings.

 

[red4golf]

Oh my. Where to start.

This is an autopsy study, all the study subjects are dead. While interesting, you can't go back from highly selected subset to draw conclusions about a separate population.



Motorcycle racers tumble off their bikes at 100+ mph, get up from the ground and swear that they can't complete the race.

so what is your experience level? My current bike has just shy of 500K miles and it is my 3rd street bike. I’ve also spent many years on dirt and have raced.

yes, racers can and do pop up after 100mph accidents but NASCAR racers also survive 200 mph flips while people die everyday from hitting each other at 30mph.

what is your point?

You don’t like motorcycle riders. Got it.

 

[red4golf]

This afternoons past-time is to bill corneal transplant surgeries. So let me change that to:

By all means. Dont wear a helmet. We need you, transplant surgery can't sustain itself on drug overdoses and pool drownings.

This afternoons past-time is to bill corneal transplant surgeries. So let me change that to:

By all means. Dont wear a helmet. We need you, transplant surgery can't sustain itself on drug overdoses and pool drownings.

I do wear a helmet every time I ride if your comment was pointed at me.

 

[red4golf]

Oh my. Where to start.

This is an autopsy study, all the study subjects are dead. While interesting, you can't go back from highly selected subset to draw conclusions about a separate population.

Motorcycle racers tumble off their bikes at 100+ mph, get up from the ground and swear that they can't complete the race.

Also...

yes it was an autopsy report but it was defined by certain periods. In this case it was injuries seen before helmets were required and after. Do you expect the results to differ in living subjects?

 

[weilke]

I do wear a helmet every time I ride if your comment was pointed at me.

I responded to this statement that someone posted as a response to the OP:

Personal choice in many states. Studies show that having a helmet on can cause people to feel secure so they take more risks. Also, hitting the ground without a helmet at about 20 mph will cause brain damage while hitting at the same speed with a helmet can cause a broken neck and spinal damage. Faster than that and you are dead either way so pick your poison. You don't smoke or eat processed sugar do you?

If I mis-attributed this nonsense to you, I am sorry.

 

[weilke]

so what is your experience level? My current bike has just shy of 500K miles and it is my 3rd street bike. I’ve also spent many years on dirt and have raced.

10 years at a level I/II trauma center.

You don’t like motorcycle riders. Got it.

I love motorcycles. Dont have one right now, but I'll probably get one after 2-3 other items are taken care of.

 

[red4golf]

I responded to this statement that someone posted as a response to the OP:

Personal choice in many states. Studies show that having a helmet on can cause people to feel secure so they take more risks. Also, hitting the ground without a helmet at about 20 mph will cause brain damage while hitting at the same speed with a helmet can cause a broken neck and spinal damage. Faster than that and you are dead either way so pick your poison. You don't smoke or eat processed sugar do you?

If I mis-attributed this nonsense to you, I am sorry.

That was me. Never said I didn’t wear one but also asked if the OP ate sugar, drank sodas, spirits or smoked. I don’t see much of a difference.

 

[FastEddieB]

Can we just mutually agree to nip this helmet derail in the bud?

Please?

 

[red4golf]

10 years at a level I/II trauma center.

Ok, now take that experience and apply it to the data in what I posted. What was the rider doing when the injury was sustained? How fast were they going? Sober or drunk? Was the accident their fault? Lots of data points that may be blank..

I love motorcycles. Dont have one right now, but I'll probably get one after 2-3 other items are taken care of.

Cool. Now you know how you don’t want to act. I always tell my Soldiers that nobody is worthless. Some can act as a great bad example.

 

[red4golf]

Can we just mutually agree to nip this helmet derail in the bud?

Please?

sure but that was the path you chose when you responded to all of the other things I mentioned in response to your initial rant.

 

[Mtns2Skies]

That was me. Never said I didn’t wear one but also asked if the OP ate sugar, drank sodas, spirits or smoked. I don’t see much of a difference.

I think you missed my point. I don't (really) care if the rider dies... I care about going to prison because of an accident where you neglected your safety.

That's where your lack of safety starts to infringe on my freedom.

 

[red4golf]

I think you missed my point. I don't (really) care if the rider dies... I care about going to prison because of an accident where you neglected your safety.

That's where your lack of safety starts to infringe on my freedom.

Why would I go to prison if a helmet was optional? Why would you go to prison if I wasn’t wearing a helmet and was injured unless you were acting in a reckless manner?

How does a lack of safety on my part infringe on your freedom unless we are talking about laws to mandate helmets?

Never said I don’t wear one so I’m not impacting anyone.

 

[smv]

What gives me the biggest giggle are the folks with the "Loud Pipes Save Lives!" safety plan are also typically the same people who's idea of PPE is a do-rag, a leather vest, and assless chaps.

 

[Half Fast]

Ya know, every time I start getting excited about getting into motorcycling, someone starts bringing up crashes. Head, neck and body trauma. The back and forth, It is a real buzz kill

You need to read something besides POA to get your buzz back. I highly recommend

https://www.amazon.com/Leanings-Pet...Z5QENAT1YSB&psc=1&refRID=5PR7GGKEMZ5QENAT1YSB

 

[Brad W]

Helmets. yeah yeah yeah personal freedom blah blah blah. But you know what? when you get into an accident I don't want to go to prison for vehicular manslaughter because you neglected your own personal safety.

and adding to this....I've thought for a long time...I DO NOT want me or my kids to be scarred for the rest of our lives from seeing your opened skull, should we come on the scene or be involved in the accident....

I don't see the lane splitting very often.... I have a bigger problem with bicyclists riding two wide or not keeping right...but that's another thread I suppose...

 

[falconkidding]

Got stuck behind a couple road pirates so pulled off and enjoyed the view before resuming the zoom zooms I think I get less evil side eyes with the top case makes me look less crotchrockety

Spoiler

 

[Ghery]

I'd say on any given day, 80% of drivers can't hold the speed limit for more than a mile.

The other 20% don't know what the speed limit is where they are or aware of being reasonably close to it despite driving the same road every day to work for 20 years and passing by four speed limit signs on the way.

Well, I guess that puts me in the infinitesimally small group who can hold a set speed for miles and miles. Cruise control in my car works great. As it did in my Jeep Wrangler. As it does in my wife's Jeep Commander.

My wife worked at medical facilities for years. Many of her coworkers referred to them as "donorcycles".

And the orthopaedic surgeon who put us back together after an idiot in a car ran a stop sign and hit our motorcycle broadside a bit over 46 years ago called them "murdercycles". He also wasn't a fan of them.

My favorite was on a fully loaded (GVW 1,370 lbs) K1600GTL between Valley Joe and Frisco during evening "rush" hour. Wife on the back seat did not much care for the experience.

I don't mind you calling San Jose "Valley Joe", I lived there for over 11 years, but please remember Ogden Nash's poem. written after he got caught calling The City that name. "May I be boiled in oil, or fried in Crisco, if I ever call San Francisco, Frisco". Sorry, but my mom's parents were both survivors of the 1906 earthquake and Nana never called it anything other than "The City". Woe be unto anyone who called it Frisco in her presence.

Please don't get me started on bicyclists. They are indeed the worst around here. They ride like they own the road and the RCW (Revised Code of Washington) doesn't apply to them, even though it does. I've even had one riding on the wrong side of the road and try to tell me that he was correct. Well, if he was walking, yes. but riding a bicycle? No way, just looking to become a hood ornament on the Jeep Grand Cherokee I was driving at the time. Idiots!

 

[smv]

I don't mind you calling San Jose "Valley Joe",

Actually it ws Vallejo I was calling Valley Joe. It is litteraly spelled Valle-Jo.

I was stationed in Stockton for three years and did a couple multi-month tours at Mare Island going through various electronics schools in the 80s & 90s. I actually taught myself how to ride on the street while I was in Stockton. I used a 1976 GL1000 for those lessons. Prior to that my primary experience was riding a '72 Honda 175SL through the mountains in SW Montana. Lots of trail and off-road riding, zero street.

Woe be unto anyone who called it Frisco in her presence.

Hahaha.... I am surprised it took as long as it did for someone to react to that...

 

[timrb]

Actually it ws Vallejo I was calling Valley Joe.

When I was a kid I called it Valley Joe--I was really mystified when I heard it pronounced correctly. How someone could get San Jose out of that is beyond me.

Tim

 

[Jim K]

assless chaps.

All chaps are assless by definition.....assed chaps are called pants.

For the record, I do not own chaps.

I do, however, own pants.

 

[rtk11]

I know of someone whose fiance died riding a motorcycle around in a parking lot without a helmet, tipped over and struck a parking block with his head.

Point is that stuff happens. Stupid stuff. Untimely stuff. And hence why it's ATGATT for me. I have a full face as statistically, a large percentage of helmet impacts are to the chin area. (https://motorbikewriter.com/crash-statistics-motorcycle-helmets/)

Even when I had a 125cc scooter, I'm wearing my mesh jacket with body armor, gauntlet gloves and full face helmet. If I think I'm going farther than around the neighborhood, the nylon pants with body armor go on also. For the faster bikes, it was ATGATT including the Sidi Apex boots.

I know of people who feel strongly about not wearing a jacket or full face helmet. It's all personal choice. But I will say that a rock kicked-up by a car in front at 80 mph hit my shoulder in an armored jacket and it stung and had me sit upright on my sport bike. I would HATE to imagine what that would feel like with an impact to the face with an open face helmet (or no helmet.)

 

[ateamer]

When I was a kid I called it Valley Joe--I was really mystified when I heard it pronounced correctly. How someone could get San Jose out of that is beyond me.

Tim

Nah, you misheard us over in Santa Cruz saying Valley Go Home.

 

[timrb]

I would HATE to imagine what that would feel like with an impact to the face with an open face helmet (or no helmet.)View attachment 87329

I have unloaded on pavement several times in the many thousands of miles I've ridden. Every single time there was evidence of a scrape or impact on my helmet, even if I didn't think I had hit my head on anything. I always figured that at least some of those, without helmet, would have been emergency room rather than get up and walk away.

Tim

 

[cessna182b]

Beats North Dakota 46.

116 miles, not a single curve ;-)

You probably won't be riding it on your Harley, but it looks as though the longest straight section of road is in Saudi Arabia at 140 miles: https://www.cntraveler.com/story/the-longest-straight-road-in-the-world-is

I would have guessed the Eyre Highway which crosses the Nullarbor plain in Australia - but they only claim 90 miles for it. By the way: Null + Arbor is Latin for "Treeless". I once embarrassed an Austrailian over that -
since he had no idea what it meant.

Does the name of the Author of the referenced article ring a bell?

Dave

 

[weilke]

I know of someone whose fiance died riding a motorcycle around in a parking lot without a helmet, tipped over and struck a parking block with his head.

Point is that stuff happens. Stupid stuff. Untimely stuff. And hence why it's ATGATT for me. I have a full face as statistically, a large percentage of helmet impacts are to the chin area. (https://motorbikewriter.com/crash-statistics-motorcycle-helmets/)

The good news is that chin injuries by themselves dont kill you and that there are excellent maxillofacial surgeons who can rebuild a nice looking face from the pieces. So open face with goggles vs. full-face is truly a decision of personal choice. Do you like your face ? Do you like pureed food ? If the answers are 'no' and 'yes', an open face helmet may be for you !

I do get a kick out of the prussian military helmet style that some riders wear. Are you expecting mortar fire ?