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Spoken like someone who doesn't have what it takes to win in a drag race. :)

An automatic, line lock and launch control?

I don't have what it takes to be fast in a straight line either. :P

I have two Miatas, both 1990's. One is mostly stock, the other is mostly...kia engine, rx-7 rear end, ect ect. Just because it runs 12's doesn't mean it's alot more fun though!

Love pure cars. Want to off road? Wrangler. Have fun on road? Miata. Go fast in a straight line? Mustang. Drive forever with no thought about the car? Accord.

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I want to be a Biker one day, when I can afford a bike.

This is the kind of Bike I might like, the Yamaha Tesseract:

yamahatess_800x600_d.jpg

I love Yamahas, and this thing goes beyond cool - although to be fair, that love is based off a neighbour of mine, who has the sexiest looking bike in the world, which is a Yamaha. It's Cream with Red detailing and... I'm gonna get a photo sometime. :)

Edited by Tenure
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I want to be a Biker one day, when I can afford a bike.

This is the kind of Bike I might like, the Yamaha Tesseract:

Too bad you can't use that thing in the US, since it's got four wheels it's technically a 'car' and thus has to pass side impact, front impact, rollover, etc etc crash tests.

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Tenure:

Glad to see you want to take the road on a "wheel"! (okay, still four but....)

Matus1976:

This is one case in which we might see the law change (or be enforced) with some common sense. The law could (relatively) easily be changed to redefine a cycle-type vehicle. If I saw one of these on the road in the US and I would never have even considered "hey that should have air-bags since it has four wheels." I think even the government might recognize that making what could be a more stable cycle platform could be a good thing. I have seen one of these in the US.

I guess we'll see what happens. They are making them now and I can't imagine they wouldn't want full scale marketing in the US at some point.

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RationalBiker: I thought my interest in Bikes might pique your interest in this thread. I've got to say, I'm new to the whole field. I don't know much - all I know, is I think Bikes look really cool. I've never ridden one, but I look forward to doing so one day.

And I'm aware what's pictured isn't a traditional bike, and I might loose kudos from real bikers for wanting such a bike, but there's something I like about it. Like, notice the suspension between the wheels. That thing doesn't just turn the wheels, like on a quad bike or something - you do have to lean into your turns, just like on a normal chopper. And I can imagine doing that leaning, whilst having that suspension to bounce against, would be a lot of fun (as well as safe! :dough:).

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RationalBiker: I thought my interest in Bikes might pique your interest in this thread. I've got to say, I'm new to the whole field.

I can't stress enough.... MOTORCYCLE SAFETY COURSE. Lots of folks over here get a bike, jump on it and ride with the sparse instruction of the dealer who sold them the bike. (Yes, when i was 22-23 I did the very same thing) I didn't know what I didn't know about riding until I took that course. You learn so many important riding fundamentals from that type of course that it should greatly reduce you likelihood of being in an accident.

I might loose kudos from real bikers

Yea, but I know you will be riding for you, not them. Pay them no mind. Pick the bike that is you. I went with the HD Ultra Classic but I looked at the Honda Gold Wing as well. The Ultra had the look and features I wanted. The Gold Wing looked a little too "spaceship-like" and not as much "motorcycle-like" for me. :dough: I got space, I got tunes, and I can (literallly) ride all day.

you do have to lean into your turns

Yea, the BMW 3 wheeler works like that as well.

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Ah, you have to take a driving test to ride Motorbikes here, see this link.

It turns out the Met run a Safety Course as well, so I shall take that when I learn to ride. Thanks guys. :dough:

I have a question: it seems like a very good idea to wear leather, or some padded or protectional material on all areas of your body when riding. A guy told me once how he fell off his bike at about 40 MPH, and the skidding along with the fall left a first degree burn (or at least, the equivalent of) all up his arm. It was his leather jacket (and, obviously, helmet) that helped him walk away with only that tiny injury.

On the other hand, it seems very impractical to have to dress up and dress down everywhere you go. What do you do?

Edited by Tenure
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Ah, you have to take a driving test to ride Motorbikes here, see this link.

It turns out the Met run a Safety Course as well, so I shall take that when I learn to ride. Thanks guys. :lol:

Virginia DMV requires a riding test as well as a written test but both can be passed without having taken a safety course. However, over here if you take and pass the MSF Basic Rider Course and pass, that counts as your driving test in most states.

As far as protective gear, I wear my helmet, jeans, boots and gloves all the time, but I'm not as vigilant about wearing my leather jacket or jean vest all the time. Despite not setting the best example, I would suggest it is smarter to be inconvenienced and perhaps a little hotter in the leather gear in the event you do crash. If you have cooler weather all the better.

Leather wear (well most anyway - the cheap patched buffalo stuff is iffy) is better than jean wear for protection against abrasion. The padded armor tends to help with impacts as well and it usually located over bony areas of the body. Obviously leather will help more with sliding but not necessarily much at all with impacting. You can look at racing videos on youtube and see guys taking bikes down at really high speeds, slide along the ground for a bit, and then get up and walk away. I don't honestly know where to put the nylon gear in comparison to jeans or leather. Some of it seems quite good, but I'm not sure. I can see the mesh summer weight nylon stuff lasting no time at all in a bad slide.

My pet name for protective gear is "skin graft prevention devices". :dough:

A friend of mine was in a crash several months back. He did not get skinned up too badly because he does where his leather all the time but he had a very hard impact going down and fractured his shoulder. An SUV cut across three lanes of traffic to get to a turn lane and cut him off in the process. He avoided the vehicle but still went down in the process.

Edited by RationalBiker
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I just picked up one of these, and I'm really enjoying it!

Nice! I'd like to do a little off-roading sometime but certainly not on my beast. LOL

There's a small part of me that would like to have one of these babies but with all the luggage options on it. These bikes seem like they can go just about anywhere one would need them to go. Ewan McGregor and his pal rode 1150 GSA's around the whole freakin' world.

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I took (and passed) the Michigan drivers test at the end of my MSF class. I've talked to other people who didn't have to take the same test I did when they went to the DMV for their test. One guy I talked to just went around the DMV parking lot and stopped a couple times and got his MC license.

I always wear a helmet, gloves, textile jacket (mesh for summer), and good MC boots. I have pants too, though I usually wear those on longer trips. If it's too hot for a jacket, I don't ride.

Tenure,

leather still is the best material for MC clothes. Leather specifically for MC jackets is usually called "competition weight" and it is much thicker than the leather found in casual jackets. Textile jackets are like leather in that, the durability can vary depending on materials. Textile jackets made out of at least 550 denier nylon are pretty tough (they will usually say this on the label). Though you can find cheaper jackets that use lighter spec nylon, they will not hold up very well up if you take spill.

RB,

the KLR is a bit big for me to use on really knarly off road stuff, but it will do fire roads just fine. There are a lot of guys who use them off road with no problems, but they are much better riders than I am. If you saw "Long Way Round" you know how tough those BMW GS beasts can be off road, I really have to give them kudo's for accomplishing their goal!

I got the KLR because.

It's cheap! ($5500 OTD)

It's reliable

It's easy to work on

After market stuff (hard luggage, etc) are cheap and plentiful

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