Official Motorcycle Thread

[Pheidippides]

If I had to own an HD the Heritage Softail would be the model.

I faced that exact choice. Frame on the road king is better for touring and it has a couple of extra things but it's really about a counterbalanced engine versus a rubber mounted engine. I think the heritage softy looks very snazzy.

[chrisrenrut]

Looking forward to riding home today in 60+ degree weather. It will make me forget what it felt like riding to work this morning in 30 degree weather.

I have a 2001 Yamaha V-Star with about 50,000 miles on it, and a Yamaha FZ-1 with 15,000 miles on it. I rarely ride the V-Star anymore exept for touring and rides with my wife on the back. The FZ-1 is just too much fun.

I am hoping to sell the V-Star this spring and pick up a BMW R1200RT to do some serious touring.

[Commando]

I was thinking about getting a bike for a commuter. I like the look of something simple like a Honda Shadow or something in the $6,000-$7,000 range used. Any advice from the advanced riders as far as what bike to start out with?

[RobinFinderson]

I was thinking about getting a bike for a commuter. I like the look of something simple like a Honda Shadow or something in the $6,000-$7,000 range used. Any advice from the advanced riders as far as what bike to start out with?

I love my dual-sport. Handles well, light, and extremely versatile. With the right tires, it can handle anything. Mine is the BMW, but in that price range you could get a very sweet KLR.

[chrisrenrut]

I was thinking about getting a bike for a commuter. I like the look of something simple like a Honda Shadow or something in the $6,000-$7,000 range used. Any advice from the advanced riders as far as what bike to start out with?

First of all, take the MSF course if you haven't before. Absolutely must do, and if you don't already have your motorcycle endorsement, it will pretty much get that for you. Besides learning a ton, it is also a lot of fun.

You could go a few different ways. A semi-sport bike like the Suzuki SV-650 is a great commuter bike. Good power, manuverability, and more than enough power. It could also be fun for weekend canyon rides, but you won't get much more out of the bike than that. Yamaha FZ-6 also fits this mold, but the inline 4 may not be quite as fun as the torquey twin on the SV-650

Another option would be to get a japaneze mid-size cruiser, like a V-Star, Shadow, Boulevard, or Vulcan. I would not go less than 1000 cc's. The 750 and 800 cc bikes will leave you wanting more power in just a couple of months. My first bike ever was my V-Star 1100, and i never had any problems. With these bikes, you can add a few hundered dollars of accessories and do some multi-day tours.

A third option is to do a dual purpose bike, like Robin's BMW, the Kawasaki KLR, or Suzuki Vstrom. These give you some offroad of options that could be fun in Arizona.

[Shaka]

Any Japanese cruiser will do. I love the Yamahas and the Kawasaki Vulcans.

My current crush is the Kawasaki Versys. Very cool bike that combines the handing of a Ninja with the comfort of an upright ride. They also work well as a commuter and light touring bike.

[FN Phat]

A semi-sport bike like the Suzuki SV-650 is a great commuter bike. Good power, manuverability, and more than enough power. It could also be fun for weekend canyon rides, but you won't get much more out of the bike than that.

YES!

[pellegrino]

I love the classic look and the finish of a Vespa. But we went with the Kymco People 150.

http://www.kymcousa.com/showroom/scooters/people150/index.html

Seemed to have more power than the Vespa and I like the handling with the larger wheels. And it was about 1/2 the price. Six years later and we have not had a single mechanical problem.

Kymco makes a good scooter, and they're styled after some great Italian scooters, namely the Aprilia Scarabeo, of which I'm a proud owner/rider.

This is my Scarabeo to a tee, except mine doesn't have the saddle bags.

[Scott R Nelson]

How did I miss this thread the first time around???

I was thinking about getting a bike for a commuter. I like the look of something simple like a Honda Shadow or something in the $6,000-$7,000 range used. Any advice from the advanced riders as far as what bike to start out with?

If you want a cruiser, a Honda Shadow is a good choice. I also agree that a KLR650 is a good choice as well.

As has been mentioned, take the MSF course first. It will help you be a safer rider. I would also strongly encourage you to visit http://msgroup.org/ and read all of the safety tips. There is a lot of useful information there. Consider buying the book listed on that site, at least Volume 1, which is very good for the new rider. Have both of those books.

I don't believe that motorcycles necessarily save money over a good economy car. Neither of my motorcycles get as good of fuel mileage as the best economy cars and maintenance costs are higher. But I find them to be way more fun, and that's more important for me.

[Non Sequitur]

I was thinking about getting a bike for a commuter. I like the look of something simple like a Honda Shadow or something in the $6,000-$7,000 range used. Any advice from the advanced riders as far as what bike to start out with?

I've had a Suzuki Volusia (now called the Boulevard) for about 7 years and have loved it. It has about 40,000 miles on it and has never been in the shop. Very reliable bike.

[sparky]

I was thinking about getting a bike for a commuter. I like the look of something simple like a Honda Shadow or something in the $6,000-$7,000 range used. Any advice from the advanced riders as far as what bike to start out with?

Going anecdotal on the KLR 650... mine gets 50-55 mpg, but that's with everything stock on the engine. There are things you can do to squeeze more power out of it a the expense of mileage. In fact there are myriad ways to throw money at the thing just in aftermarket "farkles". At first I got it primarily for a commuter, but ended up putting 5k fun miles on it last summer just exploring remote areas around Idaho. Major kick in the pants. KLR riders will tell you that a it can do just about anything, but doesn't do anything really well (as opposed to a similarly sized BMW or KTM which I guess does most things well). If you're not into the adventure part of it, it's still a smooth ride to work (some guys never get theirs dirty, what a waste )

[Chadillac]

I was thinking about getting a bike for a commuter. I like the look of something simple like a Honda Shadow or something in the $6,000-$7,000 range used. Any advice from the advanced riders as far as what bike to start out with?

I learned to ride on a Honda Shadow 750. I thought it was a good bike. It might have been a little underpowered, but it cruised on the freeway just fine and was pretty forgiving for a beginner.

However, if you're planning on going on any trips longer than 50 miles, invest in a better seat.

[Pheidippides]

I'm convinced that bikes are a matter of taste and preference at this point (I'm selling mine, actually, if anybody wants it, as I don't have the time to ride anymore with all the running and cycling). I will say that my hog is amazing on the freeway. 70-80 mph is smooth as glass. But that's what it is made for.

I think I said it once in this thread already (and others have too), but take the MSF class. Invaluable class.

[chrisrenrut]

Any Japanese cruiser will do. I love the Yamahas and the Kawasaki Vulcans.

My current crush is the Kawasaki Versys. Very cool bike that combines the handing of a Ninja with the comfort of an upright ride. They also work well as a commuter and light touring bike.

I have heard the Versys is a blast to ride. White Knuckle in Springville has a new/2010 model for $6200.

The reason I went with the V-Star over a Honda 11 years ago was the drive train, breaks and suspension. The Yamaha had shaft drive, twin disc brakes up front and single disk in the rear, and under seat suspension. The Honda had chain drive, a single disk up front and drum in back, and external springs for rear suspension. The engines on each are probably a push. I didn't look too closely at Suzuki or Kawasaki at the time, I didn't like their styling.

However, I haven't kept up well with the latest models for any manufacturer. The engines on all will be pretty similar, but pay attention to those types of details. Shaft drive means a lot less maintenance than chain drive.

Now is a good time to buy. Lots of dealers are trying to get rid of older year models left on their floor, and the used market will be heating up pretty soon.

[chrisrenrut]

We have a weeklong motorcycle trip planned June 24th-30th. We'll head out to Boise on Sunday afternoon. Other than that, the goal will be to find backroads and avoid freeway as much as possible. Monday will be the day I'm most looking forward to, where i'll finally get to see this sign in person:


After that, we'll head west to Seattle, down the coast through Oregon, then wind our way back to Utah.

Does anyone have any suggestions or roads that we should not miss? Someone mentioned that we should ride around Mt Ranier, which I assume is the road to the south of Mt Ranier. I already know what will be stuck in my head as we do this:
[nomedia="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iz-WuLQz_ns&sns=em"]Motorcycle - YouTube[/nomedia]


One day we will be going from Astoria to Crater Lake, There appear to be a lot of roads from the coast inland, and we've already done the road from Newport to Corvallis. I'm half-tempted to go over towards Mt St Helens and then down, but I can't find a good route south.