Topic: The Motorcycling Thread

[Jaeger]

Youth?? 

[Jaeger]

So I had been initially booked for a safety course in August but requested any earlier opening. Not long after, I was slotted into this weekend, which coincidentally happens to be their first teaching weekend after the most recent shutdown. Good timing right?

Wrong.

I just got bumped from the course this weekend as they are rescheduling those who lost their slots during the shutdown on a priority basis.    Is that unfair to me? No. Does it suck most mightily? Yes. When will I be rescheduled? "Don't call us, we'll call you.

Sigh.

More obstacles than I would ever have imagined to buying a damned motorcycle.

I'll let you all know if and when I get a bike and otherwise skip the ongoing saga. 

PS - if I get a wee little bike it will be the Husqvarna Svartpilen 401. At least it has some style and doesn't bore me to tears just looking at it.

[Arthur Dent]

e-bikes are the most dangerous in my opinion. No gear, no rules, no tests and good power for some of them. A lot of them will go faster than a small scooter with the governor removed.

[dkaz]

You can be like me and rider the speed limit most of the time, maybe not on curves , and follow all other rules of the road.

There's also this Ruckus rider who thinks he's an electric bicycle or something. It's pretty painful to watch:

https://youtu.be/PkLDO-lLUyI?t=270

[Jaeger]

I feel that for the type of motorcycle riding I will be doing (leisure rides in the country as opposed to daily highway commuting) the risk level is comparable to what I'm already exposed to doing the same type of riding on my bicycle. Lower speeds if I fall, but far less protection. And as you say, I'm taking the lane rather than squishing close to the curb / ditch and hoping for the best.

[dkaz]

I feel that for the type of motorcycle riding I will be doing (leisure rides in the country as opposed to daily highway commuting) the risk level is comparable to what I'm already exposed to doing the same type of riding on my bicycle. Lower speeds if I fall, but far less protection. And as you say, I'm taking the lane rather than squishing close to the curb / ditch and hoping for the best.

Everytime I ride a bicycle, I think to myself "This is almost like motorcycling as drivers don't see me, with the added benefit of I'm not wearing enough protective gear and I don't have enough power to get myself out of hairy situations."

[PJungnitsch]

Thing I find is that e-bikes can travel down shared paths and bike lanes, out of traffic

Motorcycle you are stuck on the roads. Never found that a problem in Medicine Hat or Lethbridge, but in Edmonton traffic is heavy and people do dumb and random things

I keep thinking on getting that TW running again, and every time I get that thought someone is in a horrible motorcycle accident here

https://edmonton.ctvnews.ca/stars-airlifts-one-person-to-hospital-with-serious-injures-after-crash-rcmp-1.5468978

https://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/westbound-lanes-of-whitemud-drive-closed-as-edmonton-police-investigate-collision

https://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/motorcyclist-in-serious-condition-after-colliding-with-barrier

https://edmonton.ctvnews.ca/2-motorcycles-involved-in-central-alberta-collision-1-male-critically-injured-1.5468694

[Jaeger]

I feel that for the type of motorcycle riding I will be doing (leisure rides in the country as opposed to daily highway commuting) the risk level is comparable to what I'm already exposed to doing the same type of riding on my bicycle. Lower speeds if I fall, but far less protection. And as you say, I'm taking the lane rather than squishing close to the curb / ditch and hoping for the best.

That's what I have been telling myself too.  If I get one too, we can ride the local country roads together.  You can go first.

  We could live up to forum expectations and make it our own episode of Death Race 2000. 

[Triple Bob]

Guys, let's leave all the links to deaths and injuries out of this thread, we already know the dangers, no need to be like every non-riding friend/relative.

[Brig]

Guys, let's leave all the links to deaths and injuries out of this thread, we already know the dangers, no need to be like every non-riding friend/relative.

 

Fear-mongering is extremely useless and very irritating.

[Fobroader]

Guys, let's leave all the links to deaths and injuries out of this thread, we already know the dangers, no need to be like every non-riding friend/relative.

Thank you.....I get that from my cousin enough. Some twatwaffle 19 year old crashes his GSX-R 600 because he was doing 240km/h in a construction zone, I get a text about death and destruction from her.

Sent from my SM-G960W using Tapatalk

[PJungnitsch]

Thank you.....I get that from my cousin enough. Some twatwaffle 19 year old crashes his GSX-R 600 because he was doing 240km/h in a construction zone, I get a text about death and destruction from her.

All you f**king newbies 

To be fair, I rode streetbike actively for 23 years (and dirt bike a number of years before that) before I got as much as a scratch.

My work mates in the 'Hat gave me grief when I had my pileup in Montana, and I pointed out three of them had broken bones in the previous year from their damn horses

Now that is a dangerous sport

[Jaeger]

Just FYI I called Riders Plus.  They weren't forthcoming with a list of "beginner approved bikes" - and I asked several different ways.  But they did quote me $1700 for the year for a Trident and $1080 for the Svartpilen 400.  Obviously that's way more than some pay, but nothing that would put me off a 600cc bike.  They did say that if I am considering a sportbike of any kind, basically fuhgeddaboudit. 

[Great_Big_Abyss]

Best beginner bike is a well used 2nd hand bike that doesn't mind being dropped like you inevitably will...

[PJungnitsch]

If he's not too upset when it gets dinted up, no issue. And some street bikes are not too bad, depends how they land.

Must be some stock of that Triumph around somewhere:

https://www.argyllmotorsports.com/--inventory?category=motorcycle%20%2F%20scooter&condition=new&make=triumph&pg=1&sortby=Price|asc

[DriverJeff]

PS - if I get a wee little bike it will be the Husqvarna Svartpilen 401. At least it has some style and doesn't bore me to tears just looking at it.

Svartpilen would be a cool choice.  But they're costly for what they are and would be trickier to get your $$$ back out of it again if it's a stop gap ride.

The idea in suggesting this route is it is essentially "renting" the bike insomuch as you buy a relatively affordable one at a good deal, ride it for as long as you want / need and lose little-to-no money in reselling it. 

I like the Duke 390 suggestion too (mechanical twin to the Husky), and I had an absolutely blast riding around on Kawi's Ninja 400 (or Z400 naked alternative).  Or what about an older Bonneville for around $6k?  Still has the brand and style you're working toward with the Trident, but easy to ride and should be easy to sell after? 

[DriverJeff]

If he's not too upset when it gets dinted up, no issue. And some street bikes are not too bad, depends how they land.

Must be some stock of that Triumph around somewhere:

https://www.argyllmotorsports.com/--inventory?category=motorcycle%20%2F%20scooter&condition=new&make=triumph&pg=1&sortby=Price|asc

Oooh... the matte black one looks sharp and appears to be in stock.

Wonder what shipping would be from AB to ON?

Better yet, fly me out and I'll ride it back for ya. 

[PJungnitsch]

PS - if I get a wee little bike it will be the Husqvarna Svartpilen 401. At least it has some style and doesn't bore me to tears just looking at it.

Svartpilen would be a cool choice.  But they're costly for what they are and would be trickier to get your $$$ back out of it again if it's a stop gap ride.

The idea in suggesting this route is it is essentially "renting" the bike insomuch as you buy a relatively affordable one at a good deal, ride it for as long as you want / need and lose little-to-no money in reselling it. 

I like the Duke 390 suggestion too (mechanical twin to the Husky), and I had an absolutely blast riding around on Kawi's Ninja 400 (or Z400 naked alternative).  Or what about an older Bonneville for around $6k?  Still has the brand and style you're working toward with the Trident, but easy to ride and should be easy to sell after?

If getting an older bike to start, would recommend it has ABS. Pretty sure that would have saved me a couple times, both front (hitting oil) and back (highside)

[blur911]

Guys, let's leave all the links to deaths and injuries out of this thread, we already know the dangers, no need to be like every non-riding friend/relative.

 

Fear-mongering is extremely useless and very irritating.

Don't contribute to threads within threads that you don't like.  Simple as that.

For a lot of people, thinking through the risks and the ways to reasonably manage them is part of the decision making process behind deciding whether to get a bike and which bike to get.

And what sane person thinks matching bike to rider with a view to safety is "extremely useless and very irritating". 

As I age I am trying to become more accommodating of perspectives I cannot relate to.  But...here it goes...what a stupid post.  Apologies.  I earnestly tried not to say it.

I actually watch a fair bit of motorcycle crash videos, it shows you how crashes happen and where to pay attention so it doesn't happen to you.  It can be a dangerous sport, knowing that isn't a bad thing.

Also, too bad Jaeger is in the city, learning on dirt roads and off-road is the way to go IMHO, at least for the mechanics of learning controls and operation.   
Riding on the street is a very different thing, especially urban/suburban.

[Jaeger]

If he's not too upset when it gets dinted up, no issue. And some street bikes are not too bad, depends how they land.

Must be some stock of that Triumph around somewhere:

https://www.argyllmotorsports.com/--inventory?category=motorcycle%20%2F%20scooter&condition=new&make=triumph&pg=1&sortby=Price|asc

I'm really not.  happens.  Not like I'm going to total the bike with a walking speed drop.  Scuffs, scrapes and dings are fixable.

If he's not too upset when it gets dinted up, no issue. And some street bikes are not too bad, depends how they land.

Must be some stock of that Triumph around somewhere:

https://www.argyllmotorsports.com/--inventory?category=motorcycle%20%2F%20scooter&condition=new&make=triumph&pg=1&sortby=Price|asc

Oooh... the matte black one looks sharp and appears to be in stock.

Wonder what shipping would be from AB to ON?

Better yet, fly me out and I'll ride it back for ya. 

Matte black is my #1 choice.  Add bar end mirrors and call it a day.  Looks so slick. Oh, and a lot of these dealer web-sites make it appear that every bike is in stock, when they're not.  Go on GP Bikes web site and it looks like you can have any Trident in any colour right now, today.    Only, you can't.    But hey - if it is and you're willing to ride it back to Ontario, we can def. talk! 

Thanks for the Duke 390 suggestion - seems like a very well-reveiwed and highly-regarded option, though the angry wasp styling doesn't appeal to me nearly as much as the Husqy.  And KTM is just so deeply and unrelentingly ...... orange. 

An older Bonnevile might be an option but I wonder if the displacement problem wouldn't still be there in terms of insurability?  The smaller ones are still 900cc, no?  Buying used in general is less appealing because while I have enough confidence in my own knowledge to buy a used car, I have ZERO equivalent knowledge to confidetly buy a ued motorbike.

Anyway another fun fact about insurance is that I must have my M2 to get it (at least from Riders Plus).  So that's around my birthday in mid-August anyway even if I took the course this weekend, due to the mandatory 60 day sentence one must serve at M1.  So if I decide to go with a stop gap bike this year, I will be riding it for two months then all of next season as well.  Because I would be inclined to wait on the Trident for next year versus going through all the related expenses of getting a new bike just for 2 months then flipping it.

So the die is cast.  Wait until mid-Agust and see what Trident availability is then.  And if I can't locate one, then decide to ride a gap bike the rest of this year and next, or just start next spring on a Trident.