My thought has always been that they'll take my license if I get pulled over going that fast and they'll take my license if I run from the cops and get caught. Might as well run
As for 500cc twins being too much bike for a first time rider - maybe a 16 year old.
Once you get old and crusty I think it's safe to say one could start with a bigger bore bike making 70-90HP. The danger primarily being in whiskey throttle scenarios or not learning how to stop the bike: don't go fast if ya can't stop fast.
My first bike was a 1980 Honda 650 custom, It wasn’t slow, but it wasn’t a 600 super sport either, after that came the xs eleven special, I never crashed it .
I'd call anything under 100hp and 500lbs a decent bike to start out on. However, a legit 600cc sport bike can be twitchy so I'm glad I started out on a GS500 instead of my ninja
Yeah I think the risk for young bloods is wanting to show off and race everything in the highschool parking lot (which I certainly wanted to, and did, on my 48hp $50 XS500). My buddy got back into riding after a decade plus away from it and hopped right on a 148hp FZ1 and was fine. Just stayed away from much more than 5k on the tach for a good while.
Bear in mind that my 50 year old twin putting out maybe 30 hp can easily keep up with traffic, and plenty of kids zipping around on Groms with all of 10 hp and making good time in city driving. Sometimes smaller is funner, although I do admit that any highway driving should at least be 70 hp or more. That's not to say 500 is too much or too little, just that you gotta match the bike to the rider and the riding style.
I ride a mighty 44HP bike, which is my first and rightly so, but have dorked around on bigger bikes. Being old and wise(r)/less prone to hammering it everywhere I can easily see having started on something double the power. One just needs to be easy on the throttle which young men are not prone to do. Source: I was a young man once! This is what I was getting at with the 'maybe if you're 16' bit - the young do not have the same concern and care and are much more prone to do dumb and dangerous acts on public roads.
No motorcycles in my garage at the moment but I DID get caught in the same rainstorm as you, only coming across the Cascades from the east in my trusty old Defender. I’m sure you were more comfortable and less damp than I was by the end of it.
Glad she's being appreciated. And yes, I've lost a few rolls to liter bikes but she'll still be pulling when they're in the junkyard. Just ask my friends zx-12. It's too bad the weather prevented us from becoming best friends! https://youtu.be/0fnpgbYF9N0
Funny, my main riding buddy for years lived in E Wash while I lived in the west. He shrugged off the wind which drove me crazy but he hated rain. Which was natural to me. I miss my sports bikes, but my hips don’t.
I took my bike from Snohomish to Pullman when I went to WSU. I had it there for a few months before I gave up and trailered it back home. The Palouse around Pullman has some curves so I can't claim every road was arrow-straight, but the speeds seemed ridiculous to me. I discovered I liked the twistier, more technical roads in the west as opposed to running flat out in the east while still being passed by double-trailer alfalfa trucks.
That bike made me buy a ZX12R. My bike at the time was a 1998 FZR600...a fine first bike. I remember opening up the throttle on the bird for the first time on a freeway on-ramp. I'd never experienced that level of raw acceleration before and instantly became addicted. I wanted more so I ditched the FZR in favor of a barely decent (but extremely affordable) ZX12R. The bird and the 12 went on some sweet adventures together. I ditched the 12 in favor of something more responsible (a 2014 Ninja 1000) but was certain Jeff would be buried with that bird. Glad it's heading to someone who will take proper care of it!
As much as I like to poke fun at the 12 I have to say I've never ridden a bike with an engine that big that revved that fast. It was a unique experience.
Sometimes I look back at the missed opportunities in my life and wonder what would have been. I think learning to ride a motorcycle would have been great fun and made the UP summers when I was in college even more incredible. But now I'm 42 years old and married to Baroness Joykill, to whom fun goes to DIE. But at least I still have these columns and commenters through which I can live vicariously!
If you don't have kids, go for it. Even if I had a yuge life insurance policy I'd hate to leave my children fatherless or worse burden them as a quad/vegetable.
I’ll tell you what I did, a well placed brochure on the coffee table was the conversation starter. She wasn’t happy about my interest, but we have never told each other what to do.
Can't speak to the sportsball or the clothes, but the project car and other hobbies? It takes time, attention, and money away from them. Almost a jealousy thing, especially if my experience is typical. My wife used to nag about every minute I spent in the garage and every penny spent on the project car. One argument even ended with her screaming that I loved that car more than her. To be fair, I had that car before I had her, so ... Finally got rid of it. Now she bugs me to get out of the house and find something to do. Go figure.
The day I bought my 335i, my wife and kids were out for dinner at one of our local pizza joints.
I pulled the car up to the curb right in front of the pizza place, got out, and greeted them. My wife gave the car a once-over, rolled her eyes at me, and then, to her immense credit, told me she was happy for me that I had it.
Those are the very words our oldest son lives by. Speaking of which, if he ends up liking motorcycles, he's going to need someone trustworthy to ride with...
There is hope for the future, as Nate said up there! But priorities first, I would like to have a fast car in my garage first (or at least an interesting one) before I start thinking seriously about motorcycles.
What is fast? Cause the way I define it is like 500hp minimum, but really like 6+. I had a 911t that was 700/700, and it was mid $40’s. I’ve heard they’ve gone up. That’s fast. Anyways, fast bikes are waayy cheaper. You know all this :)
Well, my CX-5 is 150HP. I had a Mazda3 before it with less HP, and my JDM Impreza in Japan was the 1.5L engine with barely more than 100 HP. None of them were leaving anything behind them from a stoplight. My wife's V8 4Runner probably still makes close its rated 235 HP (it's an 04 with 180000 miles on it) which feels like a turbine in comparison to my car. My car handles much, much better though. Fast for me in relation to these vehicles would be something with even as few as 300 HP. I dream of something like a shiny, well-kept mid-90s C4 Corvette in my little garage. Or maybe a Thunderbird, a Turbo Coupe from the late 80s or one from the 90s with a V8 (maybe not fast, but interesting at least). A 60s Bullet 'bird would be cool (and interesting) but I don't think I could afford one. The maintenance on a European car does not appeal to me, and the really cool Japanese cars from my youth have had ridiculous price tags for years now. My means aren't enough to get anything truly fast, at least at the moment.
It's fun to dream of fast cars from the old days but disappointing to realize that "80s fast" is slower than most regular grocery getters today - even those ridiculously expensive Japanese cars of our youth. As a result, I find my facebook marketplace searches skewing more and more to the odd - Geo Trackers and Storms, Isuzu Vehicrosses, and the occasional Barretta GTZ. Come to think of it, my facebook feed is a mess...
My uncle had a Beretta GT when I was a boy (though not a Z if I remember correctly). It was a cool car, bright red with gold snowflake rims. Even though they're basically just Corsica coupes I've always thought they were pretty cool.
Thankfully, 80s fast is still a bit swifter than all our cars have been. Except my wife's 4Runner. For someone who likes cars as much as I do, I've never really had anything exciting.
You like that ST? “Brother Bark” hated his. I keep eyeballing a fiesta ST at work... reminds me of the old SVT Focus’s back in the day. To bad them and the contour’s are all smoked beyond repair.
So this is what you have been hinting around about! What a score. These are such lovely motorcycles. Since I got my CB1000 I have been looking for these on my local Facebook marketplace and they do turn up once in a while. Certainly not as rare as my old CB, but not common either.
I could see having one of these in my garage and I think it would probably make a better freeway commuter than the bike I have, but I don;t see any vehicular additions in my future. Guess I will have to continue to live vicariously through you. Feel envious over here.
I think there are a few owners here.
Ducs, yes. Current model, no.
Italians know how to make mechanical stuff sexy. And nothing sounds like a Duc at anger!
I’m thinking it would be comfortable based on the height of the grips. I’m sure your local dealer would be happy to let you give it a go.
Same!
Same!
Oh, wait. I still have to. But I've never ridden it more than 80 miles without stopping.
I've found the faster I go the more comfortable the ninja is. Till I run out of skill and end up speaking with Saint Peter.
My thought has always been that they'll take my license if I get pulled over going that fast and they'll take my license if I run from the cops and get caught. Might as well run
I’m a 62 year old with a 998s. Don’t ride that one much or far. About an hour or so is about it. It’s garage jewelry, there’s other stuff to ride.
Wow bringing this back.
As for 500cc twins being too much bike for a first time rider - maybe a 16 year old.
Once you get old and crusty I think it's safe to say one could start with a bigger bore bike making 70-90HP. The danger primarily being in whiskey throttle scenarios or not learning how to stop the bike: don't go fast if ya can't stop fast.
My first bike was a 1980 Honda 650 custom, It wasn’t slow, but it wasn’t a 600 super sport either, after that came the xs eleven special, I never crashed it .
I'd call anything under 100hp and 500lbs a decent bike to start out on. However, a legit 600cc sport bike can be twitchy so I'm glad I started out on a GS500 instead of my ninja
Yeah I think the risk for young bloods is wanting to show off and race everything in the highschool parking lot (which I certainly wanted to, and did, on my 48hp $50 XS500). My buddy got back into riding after a decade plus away from it and hopped right on a 148hp FZ1 and was fine. Just stayed away from much more than 5k on the tach for a good while.
Bear in mind that my 50 year old twin putting out maybe 30 hp can easily keep up with traffic, and plenty of kids zipping around on Groms with all of 10 hp and making good time in city driving. Sometimes smaller is funner, although I do admit that any highway driving should at least be 70 hp or more. That's not to say 500 is too much or too little, just that you gotta match the bike to the rider and the riding style.
I ride a mighty 44HP bike, which is my first and rightly so, but have dorked around on bigger bikes. Being old and wise(r)/less prone to hammering it everywhere I can easily see having started on something double the power. One just needs to be easy on the throttle which young men are not prone to do. Source: I was a young man once! This is what I was getting at with the 'maybe if you're 16' bit - the young do not have the same concern and care and are much more prone to do dumb and dangerous acts on public roads.
No motorcycles in my garage at the moment but I DID get caught in the same rainstorm as you, only coming across the Cascades from the east in my trusty old Defender. I’m sure you were more comfortable and less damp than I was by the end of it.
I'm certain that's the case, because I called off early and went to a hotel!
Maybe my Street glide, though I think my low rider s was more interesting, but I sold it in one day in the first week of listing.
Thanks for reminding me I used to fit on a CB900 😂
THOSE... WERE... THE... DAYYYYYYYYYS!
Fifty dollars paid the rent
Freaks were in a circus tent
Those were the days!
Glad she's being appreciated. And yes, I've lost a few rolls to liter bikes but she'll still be pulling when they're in the junkyard. Just ask my friends zx-12. It's too bad the weather prevented us from becoming best friends! https://youtu.be/0fnpgbYF9N0
The 12 might still be alive somewhere!
Ya, but at this point it's the 12 of Theseus.
I think I was more like YOUR official stalker!
There are times I regret not getting a blackbird. They are great bikes.
I should have sacked up and bought one in 2000 instead of the new black YZF600R I actually bought. But I had eight grand cash, not twelve.
I'd just bought a house and was a bit hurting for cash.
Funny, my main riding buddy for years lived in E Wash while I lived in the west. He shrugged off the wind which drove me crazy but he hated rain. Which was natural to me. I miss my sports bikes, but my hips don’t.
I took my bike from Snohomish to Pullman when I went to WSU. I had it there for a few months before I gave up and trailered it back home. The Palouse around Pullman has some curves so I can't claim every road was arrow-straight, but the speeds seemed ridiculous to me. I discovered I liked the twistier, more technical roads in the west as opposed to running flat out in the east while still being passed by double-trailer alfalfa trucks.
Agreed. Twisties are the main reason I ride. I find long straights boring.
I want my 1974 Harley Baja 100 back. First and unfortunately the only bike I’ve owned aside from a Harley Sprint that never ran.
Cost you a grip nowadays, IF you could it.
Now you have a bike here in Salt Lake I can join the trackday club and you can help me climb to the top of TT3.
Obviously! Where are you driving? The former Miller park?
Yes, now owned by Geely.
A 28-bike salute for Harambe! May we NEVER forget!
He had information...
Arkancide?
That bike made me buy a ZX12R. My bike at the time was a 1998 FZR600...a fine first bike. I remember opening up the throttle on the bird for the first time on a freeway on-ramp. I'd never experienced that level of raw acceleration before and instantly became addicted. I wanted more so I ditched the FZR in favor of a barely decent (but extremely affordable) ZX12R. The bird and the 12 went on some sweet adventures together. I ditched the 12 in favor of something more responsible (a 2014 Ninja 1000) but was certain Jeff would be buried with that bird. Glad it's heading to someone who will take proper care of it!
If I ever find a non-deranged ZX-12, which is about as likely as finding another copy of the Rosetta Stone, I'd be a player on it, too.
As much as I like to poke fun at the 12 I have to say I've never ridden a bike with an engine that big that revved that fast. It was a unique experience.
Sometimes I look back at the missed opportunities in my life and wonder what would have been. I think learning to ride a motorcycle would have been great fun and made the UP summers when I was in college even more incredible. But now I'm 42 years old and married to Baroness Joykill, to whom fun goes to DIE. But at least I still have these columns and commenters through which I can live vicariously!
And it's better still to refuse to ask for anything.
:)
What Scott said ! .
Why I don't miss my ex wife one bit .
If it gave me joy she hated it no matter what it was .
A _good_ woman (to be P.C. : PARTNER) will maybe be concerned but would never say "no" .
I've met lots of guys older than I who began riding Motos in their 60's after they retired .
A few even got their old lady to ride beside instead of pillion .
-Nate
I'm going to take this comment as a sign of hope for my future!
My wife is actually pretty great so I shouldn't really complain about her. She laughed when I told her what I had posted.
If you don't have kids, go for it. Even if I had a yuge life insurance policy I'd hate to leave my children fatherless or worse burden them as a quad/vegetable.
If she laughed…
I’ll tell you what I did, a well placed brochure on the coffee table was the conversation starter. She wasn’t happy about my interest, but we have never told each other what to do.
Why do women do that? Why does the wife hate the project car, the Sunday afternoon watching sportball and the old, comfortable clothes?
Wrong woman.
Can't speak to the sportsball or the clothes, but the project car and other hobbies? It takes time, attention, and money away from them. Almost a jealousy thing, especially if my experience is typical. My wife used to nag about every minute I spent in the garage and every penny spent on the project car. One argument even ended with her screaming that I loved that car more than her. To be fair, I had that car before I had her, so ... Finally got rid of it. Now she bugs me to get out of the house and find something to do. Go figure.
The day I bought my 335i, my wife and kids were out for dinner at one of our local pizza joints.
I pulled the car up to the curb right in front of the pizza place, got out, and greeted them. My wife gave the car a once-over, rolled her eyes at me, and then, to her immense credit, told me she was happy for me that I had it.
That's the reason I have as many comic books as I do...
Those are the very words our oldest son lives by. Speaking of which, if he ends up liking motorcycles, he's going to need someone trustworthy to ride with...
Come on MD! Just bring it home with a jacket and helmet and don’t say anything. Ya only live once. Tell her to pull the plug if you’re a veg.
There is hope for the future, as Nate said up there! But priorities first, I would like to have a fast car in my garage first (or at least an interesting one) before I start thinking seriously about motorcycles.
What is fast? Cause the way I define it is like 500hp minimum, but really like 6+. I had a 911t that was 700/700, and it was mid $40’s. I’ve heard they’ve gone up. That’s fast. Anyways, fast bikes are waayy cheaper. You know all this :)
Well, my CX-5 is 150HP. I had a Mazda3 before it with less HP, and my JDM Impreza in Japan was the 1.5L engine with barely more than 100 HP. None of them were leaving anything behind them from a stoplight. My wife's V8 4Runner probably still makes close its rated 235 HP (it's an 04 with 180000 miles on it) which feels like a turbine in comparison to my car. My car handles much, much better though. Fast for me in relation to these vehicles would be something with even as few as 300 HP. I dream of something like a shiny, well-kept mid-90s C4 Corvette in my little garage. Or maybe a Thunderbird, a Turbo Coupe from the late 80s or one from the 90s with a V8 (maybe not fast, but interesting at least). A 60s Bullet 'bird would be cool (and interesting) but I don't think I could afford one. The maintenance on a European car does not appeal to me, and the really cool Japanese cars from my youth have had ridiculous price tags for years now. My means aren't enough to get anything truly fast, at least at the moment.
It's fun to dream of fast cars from the old days but disappointing to realize that "80s fast" is slower than most regular grocery getters today - even those ridiculously expensive Japanese cars of our youth. As a result, I find my facebook marketplace searches skewing more and more to the odd - Geo Trackers and Storms, Isuzu Vehicrosses, and the occasional Barretta GTZ. Come to think of it, my facebook feed is a mess...
My uncle had a Beretta GT when I was a boy (though not a Z if I remember correctly). It was a cool car, bright red with gold snowflake rims. Even though they're basically just Corsica coupes I've always thought they were pretty cool.
Thankfully, 80s fast is still a bit swifter than all our cars have been. Except my wife's 4Runner. For someone who likes cars as much as I do, I've never really had anything exciting.
Reminds me of this... https://youtu.be/Oq2Fdd-7veg
Shoulda kept my Firebird.
Shoulda kept my Impala.
Shoulda kept my P71.
Shoulda kept my Thunderbird SC.
NOT selling my GSX-R750.
NOT selling my Ninja 250R.
NOT selling my 850 Turbo.
NOT selling my Focus ST.
You like that ST? “Brother Bark” hated his. I keep eyeballing a fiesta ST at work... reminds me of the old SVT Focus’s back in the day. To bad them and the contour’s are all smoked beyond repair.
Bark had a Fiesta. Mine's a Focus.
And yeah, it's grown on me.
He hated the Focus RS, I think.
Beautiful bike. The titanium color is gorgeous in the sun
I love it! It turns a very pretty bronze if you catch it in the golden hour. Not something I get to see often in Seattle.
So this is what you have been hinting around about! What a score. These are such lovely motorcycles. Since I got my CB1000 I have been looking for these on my local Facebook marketplace and they do turn up once in a while. Certainly not as rare as my old CB, but not common either.
I could see having one of these in my garage and I think it would probably make a better freeway commuter than the bike I have, but I don;t see any vehicular additions in my future. Guess I will have to continue to live vicariously through you. Feel envious over here.