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General SportbikesThis area is made for sportbikes in general. Posts that dont really belong anywhere else besides here. Questions can be answered and addressed to fully understand certain aspects. If your question is Manufacturer specific please post it there.
Posts: 324
Casino Cash: $250
Sportbike: 1995 Yamaha Seca II
Well, that whole rant- of which I read about half before going into skim mode- is based off a little kernel of truth. Seems like the average Harley rider nowadays is buying almost purely for the image. I took the H-D Rider's Edge version of the MSF program, and I was mostly surrounded by middle-aged graysters driving Lexuses and dropping lots of change on Motorclothes during the class breaks.
But I give credit to even these people, because they felt it was important to actually try to learn about riding safely, instead of just hopping on a two-wheeler and thundering around town. And I felt like the people in my class still shared the enjoyment of riding itself, outside of the H-D mythos. So maybe they're a little sucked into the brand-name image thing. I think I can live with that.
And then, on top of that, there are plenty of folks out there who are old-school riders, who really do ride for the fun of it, and who really do like Harleys regardless of how popular they might be. One of my instructors was a guy who'd been riding for over 45 years, and he had a piecemeal harley that he'd built and cobbled together himself, starting with a wrecked bike and some spare parts. During the class, he was getting signed up for a group ride from Delaware to Oregon. This grizzled old guy had more miles and more hard-won riding wisdom than many people could ever hope to match
The end result is this: Despite what I might think of some of the bank-executive posers riding around in leather on the weekends, if they're really doing it because they love riding, and they're riding safely and enjoying themselves, it's absolutely not my place to talk crap about them. Riding is riding, and just because they've got money and a "let the dealer fix that" mindset, it doesn't mean I have to demean them because I seek out performance.
where are all the 'cruisers' monday through friday? driving their giant suv's, or worse, honda accords.
You must not get out much
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Nekkidleesta
Yes I ride a Harley and no I won’t wave at you!
“Speak without offending, Listen without defending”… author unknown
But I woke up the other day and it was plastered on my fridge
When will the Harley flaming ever stop hear this almost everyday. Not everyone wants a sport bike, not everyone wants something completely modern styled. Would you prefer someone who wants a classic styled cruiser to get a Japanese HD knockoff? Might as well flame the new Triumph Bonnevilles/Thruxtons since they aren't full of modern technology, don't have enormous gobs of power, etc and tell me my bike is a POS.
My dad has a Road King and him and I often go out cruising together. The Road King is his coice of cruiser and I couldn't see him on some other modern cruiser, like a BMW or a Goldwing. He's gone on long distance trips with his bike and we have a trip planned this summer. A crotch rocket isn't a good choice for someone who wants to go on longer trips, wants a comfortable riding position, storage, etc...
I personally don't want a Harley but the reason I won't get one is not because I think they're crap, I just don't want a cruiser bike. I must say that the newer HD's have some good craftmanship to them, the paint, chrome, etc.. is really nice. Many Sportster cafe racers are pretty sweet looking:
I'm curious what you think about Buells.
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"Happiness is like peeing in your pants, everyone can see it but only you can feel it."
Well I read about half of that repetitive rant before my eyes glazed over. I have to assume that that is either a very OLD article (written in the days AMF owned Harley), or the writer is an ignorant fool who doesn't know what he's talking about.
Harleys don't leak oil anymore, and their quality and level of fit and finish rivals anything that Japan or Europe puts out. You don't have to like chrome to recognize that it is GORGEOUS, well-made chrome.
The writer also didn't mention the new V-rod engine, which is a fine motor (of course, HD had to go to Porsche for that motor design ). Curse HD for not (yet) giving that motor to Eric Buell, but I predict it WILL happen soon.
As it is, I wouldn't mind owning any of the Revolution-powered HDs, and it'll be even more tempting once they finally wrap that motor up in a proper (sport or sport-touring) chassis.
The one thing the writer of that rant got right is that is IS all about image, but that isn't Harley's fault - they are just making what alot people want, as inexplicable as it may seem.
But HD riders don't have the poseur market cornered - lots of sportbike riders are every bit as much the image-obsessed poseur as any chap-clad badass biker wannabe on a HD.
Those of you that automatically assume HD riders are all just posers need to take a look at the Iron Butt Association's list of certified rides, compiled by bike:
Quote:
Ride Statistics by Motorcycle brand May 2005 (complied by Scott Leahy)
While you're at it, peruse the IBA list of certified rides and tell me how many of them were accomplished on sportbikes. Yeah, there are a few, but not many. IMO, getting an IBA-certified ride illustrates just as much passion for motorcycling as doing a track day, and these IBA guys and girls are every bit as much, if not MORESO, "real riders" as some dude on a race-replica dragging his knees for an hour or two.
I like harley's but the harley guys brought it on themselves. They always bash sport bikes. Everywhere i go people bash sport bikes. Sometimes they dont even wave.....what a bunch of dicks.
I like harley's but the harley guys brought it on themselves. They always bash sport bikes. Everywhere i go people bash sport bikes. Sometimes they dont even wave.....what a bunch of dicks.
That is certainly true to an extent, but I'd say it only applies to genuine HD poseurs and is a stereotype that doesn't apply to them all.
Yeah, I've encountered the "I'm better than you, you don't have a real bike" attitude from the guys who swallowed the HD "lifestyle" hook, line, and sinker.
But one of the coolest riders I ever met was a Harley rider too. At the end of a day's ride, I was at an ice cream shop that is popular with riders. There was this real grungy-looking biker dude that I initially tossed off as just another image posuer. But then he came over and started to talking to me (I was on my ZZR1200). He admired my bike and didn't have a single even remotely derogatory thing to say. Then I took a good look at his bike: a totally ratted-out Softtail Springer, with a custom seat and larger aftermarket gastank and 66,000 miles on the odo. No bling, all purpose. He told me about his various cross-country rides, bike-camping along the way. Then I noticed the GPS mount on his handlebars, and we started talking about GPS' (I have one too), mapping software, and such.
It completely and forever shattered my stereotype of grungy-looking guys on Harleys.
While you're at it, peruse the IBA list of certified rides and tell me how many of them were accomplished on sportbikes. Yeah, there are a few, but not many. IMO, getting an IBA-certified ride illustrates just as much passion for motorcycling as doing a track day, and these IBA guys and girls are every bit as much, if not MORESO, "real riders" as some dude on a race-replica dragging his knees for an hour or two.
As I recall, doesn't Harley sell more motorcycles than anyone else (in the US).
I would like to do an IBA this year.
A lot of those guys ride a lot, though. They have the bikes to do it with. I really don't care what they ride, as long as they aren't dicks.
Don't care for chrome - a PITA to keep clean. Pretty to look at, though.
edit: Look at how high BMW is on that list. I know they don't sell as many bikes as the big 4 manufacturers.
double edit: Wow - that list is cool. One guy at 73 logged 108K miles in a year. I can't imagine driving 100K miles in a year, let alone riding that much. Added to my bookmarks. F&D are you on there yet?
Last edited by lemosley01 : 03-09-2007 at 10:49 AM.
hear this almost everyday. Not everyone wants a sport bike, not everyone wants something completely modern styled. Would you prefer someone who wants a classic styled cruiser to get a Japanese HD knockoff? Might as well flame the new Triumph Bonnevilles/Thruxtons since they aren't full of modern technology, don't have enormous gobs of power, etc and tell me my bike is a POS. 
). Curse HD for not (yet) giving that motor to Eric Buell, but I predict it WILL happen soon.
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