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SuzukiSavage.com
/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl General Category >> The Cafe >> Why Ride? /cgi-bin/YaBB.pl?num=1399385291 Message started by RatdogWillie on 05/06/14 at 07:08:11 |
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Title: Why Ride? Post by RatdogWillie on 05/06/14 at 07:08:11 good article........... Why Ride? http://ericpetersautos.com/2014/01/19/ride/ |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by verslagen1 on 05/06/14 at 07:51:27 touchy feely poetic BS |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by bobert_FSO on 05/06/14 at 09:05:28 Nah. I don't ride to flaunt "sticking it to the man". I don't ride for the adrenaline rush of speed. I ride because it is just plain escapist fun. I like being immersed in my environment-- the sights, the smells, the weather conditions. I ride because I am a mechanical geek and like the mechanical simplicity of a motorcycle, especially the older, simpler ones. I like having all the mechanicals hanging out there for all to see. I most often ride by myself. I enjoy plodding along country roads at 50 mph, getting hypnotized by the blat of the exhaust pipe. It is a good place to be alone with my thoughts. To me, it appears that the article author is a road racer and needs thrills in his life. A lot of us don't go there. |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by WD on 05/06/14 at 09:16:34 Why ride? Simple... CARS SUCK |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by Serowbot on 05/06/14 at 09:40:15 Different folks ride for different reasons... I don't relate to the authors view at all... I admire the simple functionality of a motorcycle,... the directness of the controls,... and visceral sense of moving through nature's elements... That's why I like my Savage..."à la carte"... low tech, nuttin' fancy... ...and why I'm not crazy about bags, or shields, or stereos, or coms... It's a primal locomotion... |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by Dave on 05/06/14 at 10:10:55 Nope.....That story doesn't describe why I ride. Back in the 70's I was a 135 pound teenager with a Suzuki TM125. We spent countless hours together in the strip mines, woods, and race tracks. Most weekday evenings I would spend 2-3 hours riding....weekends it was often more like 6-8 hours a day. That bike and I had a complete understanding of each other, and we knew what each other was capable of doing......I have never had that kind of a relationship with another mechanical entity since then. The last couple of years I am coming back into riding motorycles after a 35 year absence. I bought a trials bike in 2009 and started riding off road again, and in 2012 I bought my Savage. So far I have only put about 3,500 miles on my Savage, and about 1,500 were in the stock form and 2,000 since the Cafe' conversion. We are still getting to know each other.....it is starting to feel like "my" bike........but we have not yet developed a thorough understanding of each other. I went out for an hour ride last night on a curvy country road with little traffic. No blasting down the straights or corners....just a nice smooth 50 mph down the straights and through the curves. We are currently dating........I believe it is going to be a nice long romance! PS.....The Dragon Rides are a great way to spend some quality time with your bike. It starts to feel a whole bunch more familiar when you spend 4-5 days riding! |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by RatdogWillie on 05/06/14 at 10:14:25 3D2B3C21392C213A4E0 wrote:
I have to agree....I like the simplicity of my Savage. I no longer feel the need for speed. I like to putt around the back roads and take in the views. I like to go fast enough in the twisties so I can experience the thrill of a low lean and the scape of a peg. I no longer worry about my motorcycle being a chick magnet.....that's what I have a 1993 Ford Tempo for. ;D |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by pgambr on 05/06/14 at 17:29:08 Re: Why Ride? "To get my nuts in the wind." |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by RatdogWillie on 05/06/14 at 17:49:37 6A7D7B7778681A0 wrote:
I always wear pants............is it really better to ride without? |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by Paladin. on 05/06/14 at 18:28:04 0A195D0 wrote:
I hate being in a cage. I do not do "the ritual", do the maintenance when I remember, rarely clean the bike and never polish anything. I have no need to go fast, car or motorcycle. I have never learned to "finely balance on the razor's edge" because I do not want to crash. I simply need to be go places further than I can walk, and I really hate being in a cage. Same as my dad -- he did not want to sit at a desk, he did not want to sit in a squad car, he rode a Servicar and didn't even were a motorcycle helmet. |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by LANCER on 05/07/14 at 03:13:43 I guess I'm kind of like a dog; I like the feel of the wind in my face. I like mechanical things. I like simplicity. The Savage helps to meet those needs. I like listening to the exhaust of a well tuned engine; "hearing what the engine has to say" as it accelerates & decelerates; the mechanical noises of the valve system, etc. More and more I prefer the easy cruise vs the "black line ride". Pushing the limits is not a need. |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by arteacher on 05/07/14 at 15:33:43 When you ride as opposed to drive, you experience the ride with more of your senses than when you drive. The smell of the air, the sound of the road and everything else, the vastly increased view of your surroundings, the feel of the machine, and even the taste of the bugs ( ;D). You are also controlling the machine much more actively, and getting much more feedback from it. That is also why I chose the S40, as opposed to a larger, heavier bike. My brother-in-law has raced just about everything with a motor, and his favorite is flat track. He says it's because you have a more intimate sense of being one with the machine than you do anywhere else. The only thing I can think of that I have done that is more of a total experience is sailing. |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by Kris01 on 05/07/14 at 16:02:53 I didn't read the article. From the previous responses, I don't think I need to. I think Bobert summed it up nicely for me. It's a magical experience you can't get from driving a car. |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by pgambr on 05/07/14 at 16:13:11 6A594C5C575F6F515454515D380 wrote:
I always wear pants............is it really better to ride without?[/quote] Just a figure of speech. ;) |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by RatdogWillie on 05/07/14 at 18:05:53 3225232F2030420 wrote:
I always wear pants............is it really better to ride without?[/quote] Just a figure of speech. ;)[/quote] There's a huge motorcycle rally here in June....I was willin' to give it a try. http://visitjohnstownpa.com/thunderinthevalley/ http://visitjohnstownpa.com/thunderinthevalley/general-information/ |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by pgambr on 05/07/14 at 18:39:07 It's been a long time since I've been back to western PA. I miss it quite a bit. I'm afraid to see what it may have turned into in 20 years. |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by ToesNose on 05/08/14 at 19:12:31 I just enjoy it, it's not even hitting nice curvy roads or a nice long 2 lane country road sometimes even just a short ride to work on the bike makes my day so much more satisfying then taking the SUV ;) |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by RatdogWillie on 05/08/14 at 19:52:21 6374727E7161130 wrote:
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by Rembrandt on 05/08/14 at 21:40:40 I'm 47 and have been riding motorcycles since I was eighteen. My first bike was a Suzuki 250 twin, two stroke, kick start, six speed. It felt like a heavy, big bike to a five foot eight, 160 pound kid and although from what I've learned online in recent years, the speedo was likely off, it showed to top out at 110 miles an hour. My first bike happened out of necessity. I couldn't afford a car or it's crazy insurance. I've owned two small Yamaha 250 single cylinder Exciters, ridden a number of friend and family's bikes...my brother's 500 Yamaha Virago for one summer in the eighties. There's nothing like a bike...no way to describe it. Those who don't ride can't get it. I left home at seventeen and have worked like an Egyptian slave since the age of ten. Most of us here are no strangers to work, but my first wife left me after three kids. I've worked two jobs, many times for weeks and months at a stretch with long hours and no days off only to still slide further into debt for, sadly but quite frankly, children and an ex who don't really appreciate my effort. My current spouse and I have an eleven year old son who I'm very close with. I'll stop soon; I promise. Usually when people say, "I'm doing such and such for me; sometimes something has to be for me", I want to slap them...hard. Sounds cliché and self-serving, but for me it's been too true. I haven't been on a bike in years. I've been tired and down. I reflected on the only time I've truly been happy--on a motorcycle. Last May I bought my 06 S40. I've put almost nine thousand miles on this bike. Tonight I just returned from a 120 mile ride through the beautiful towns and villages around Peterborough, Ontario, Canada...ran through Port Hope...the town where Farley Mowat lived most of his life. He just died yesterday...famous author. I ran on to Cobourg and Grafton and Colborne and Brighton and Codrington and Warkworth and Hastings and Westwood and finally home to Peterborough. Google these places if you like a frame of reference. I almost got caught in the rain...angry clouds spitting on my face because I have to ride with an open face helmet. Some riders mock my little ride. This forum, this site is great, but too tame for my liking sometimes. Right now I'd like to really share what I would like to say to the mockers of my little powerful ride, but I won't. I am old and too tired to fall out of line. I have no radio on my bike, but Meatloaf's "Bat out of Hell" plays often in my mind. Have a good night all. |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by Serowbot on 05/08/14 at 22:16:28 Painted quite a picture there, Rembrandt... Riding a bike, creates a time when you don't have to account for anyone or anything... I do like when I get that feeling... ;)... |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by pgambr on 05/08/14 at 22:20:13 497A6F7F747C4C727777727E1B0 wrote:
[/quote] The Burgh, Laurel Mountains |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by walterpump on 05/10/14 at 07:50:10 Why Ride!!! Because I gotta. I'm 73 and every time I get on my Savage I feel like I'm 20. That's when I bought my first bike, a Honda 55cc - ha, ha. Then moved up to a Honda 175cc with a hammer head tank. Later came a Yamaha SR500 (great bike), then a Triumph Bonneville, then a BMW R75/6, then a Honda GL1000, then a a BMW 650 Funduro (single), and now the best - 2003 Savage. I sold the Funduro when I was 71 and told myself that's it for riding. Nope. Approx one year later in September while browsing a local bike shop just for fun I bought the Savage. Great bike at my age being a light bike, single, simple, enough power, easy to mod a little, and FUN. Riding keeps us slightly older fellas young 8-) |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by old_rider on 05/10/14 at 10:29:10 LOL... I fell into the savage a little differently, but in the future I see a scooter of some sort that I can "Tim Taylor" and run on the interstate with. As it is some of the 300cc scooters are really small and can top out at 90mph! Now I still have a few years left in me (hopefully) at 55 (this month the 15th) and I am going to take my savage to its lightest possible weight (health reasons) to make it my long time ride. As for riding....if i'm not broken beyond repair and can still straddle a bike...I am going to ride! :) 8-) |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by RatdogWillie on 05/10/14 at 11:57:23 4B4840564D404156240 wrote:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TIsDaUckuo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbIzdiCIcjk |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by shorty on 05/10/14 at 12:16:40 when all my buddies in High School were looking at used cars and trucks, I started looking at used bikes.. Not for price, for thrills. Now I got a truck, but only for stuff too big for the bike.. cars suck |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by justin_o_guy2 on 05/11/14 at 09:47:20 I would agree, generally, cars suck,, if its got an automatic trans, youre just a passenger holding the wheel,, I THINK I could be happy driving a little 2 seater with a 4 speed.. otherwise, if I cant be on a bike, give me a pickup,,with a standard,, |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by Paladin. on 05/11/14 at 13:44:34 6D6E66706B666770020 wrote:
I have the 245cc scooter so I don't need to swing over the saddle. When I can no longer put a foot down at a stop I will bolt on a sidecar. I have seen a motorcycle/sidecar with a ramp so the rider could ride his wheelchair into the sidecar, with controls in the sidecar, so he could continue riding. As long as I can see, I will be riding. |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by Oldfeller on 05/11/14 at 17:18:37 Why do we ride? Same reason Why we group together and go on Mountain Rides together? Because life is daily and mountain riding isn't anything daily at all ..... Really, where else for the price of a tank of gas can you have just as many adventures and beautiful scenic spots and lots of good company all at the same time? Only way you could top it would be to combine it with shooting and fishing and going to a motorcycle rally after touring a whiskey plant. White water rafting and zip lining and bungee jumping too, if you felt adventurous enough to go do it. I mean really, let's go check us a couple of things off the 'ol bucket list while we are about it. |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by rl153 on 05/11/14 at 18:26:28 This forum is awesome! |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by RatdogWillie on 05/11/14 at 21:31:11 I got my MC license in 1968 when I was 16. I took my test on a 1960 something Honda 50cc that I bought for $50 . The test consisted of the written part and the other part where I rode around several blocks in Hyattsville, Maryland by myself. The testing officer couldn’t see me for more than ¾ of the test….I asked the test officer if he was coming along, and he said that he wasn’t getting on that thing…. I passed. At that time, I had a job as a busboy at a Rustlers Steakhouse in Laurel, Maryland making 1 dollar an hour.. I rode that little bike to and from work all year round…. even in the snow. Other times I would take it thru trails for miles in the woods even with the header pipe glowing red hot. Sometimes I would take the bike out on the highway and lay my body out flat across the seat to reduce wind resistance, trying to break my top speed of……if memory serves me correctly………..somewhere around 60mph. It was while doing this that I blew a piston. I then sold the bike to Heyser Cycle in Laurel, MD. for 25 dollars after pushing it there for more than 5 miles. I then bought a 1961 Chevrolet Biscayne for $100…… Many years, cars and bikes have come and gone…..and now I have a Savage…. now I am happy. At first I didn’t like the silver color and I sometimes think of painting it and making a bobber…..but I still love riding it as she is. I once had a 1978 Yamaha 500SR that I bought new in 78. I remember walking into the Yamaha dealer in Waldorf, MD. with cash in hand, and saying that I wanted to buy that black SR500. The dealer was hell bent on trying to sell a Yamaha 650 and even though the 650 was a good ride……I wanted the thumper. The SR500 had a kick start……..a break your ankle if you didn’t get the piston at TDC (top dead center) before you pushed your foot down in a hard fast stroke motion…..don’t do it right…..the bike would kick back with such a force that it will slingshot you off the bike with foot damage……but…. it didn’t take much time to get the feel of how to do it right every time…..(there was a little window that let you know when the piston was at TDC and there was a compression release control on the handlebars…..but as I say…..you soon just got the feel of it and didn’t need to think about how to start the bike....or look at the little window…..you just did it. Back then I lived near Rocky Gorge Reservoir lake. There was this fantastic curve at Scotts Cove picnic area. Most evenings I would make a few passes at it then bamboozle before the rangers would show up. Riding in one direction was more thrilling than going the other direction. First let me describe the curve….. It went downhill…..then uphill to the right……and the road pavement was banked like a racetrack. Hitting this curve at 60 MPH felt like the forces of a roller coaster on my head. There was loose rock and gravel on the side….so caution was the rule….but darn if it wasn’t a blast. Twenty five years later I still own a thumper (and a 1997 Chevy pickup, a 1993 Ford Tempo, and 5 dogs). |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by walterpump on 05/12/14 at 05:51:02 Hey RatDogWillie: I started riding in 1961 at 20!!! I also had a SR500 for about 5 years and loved that bike - great handling. Used to go camping on it with all the gear loaded on the bike. A real fun bike. Used to ride it to work every day it wasn't raining and sometimes when it was. Our Savages have same fun factor. |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by RatdogWillie on 05/12/14 at 07:07:55 6F79746C7D6A686D7568180 wrote:
I used to take mine camping in the Shenandoah Valley and Harpers Ferry West Virginia. I loaded all the gear on the bike and headed off for the woods. I also would go out of state to camp in parking lots at Grateful Dead concerts. There were 3 versions of the bike.....the SR500 - street, TT500- dirt bike (no lights) and the XT - street legal dirt bike. My second bike was a Sears Mojave 125 (the Honda 50 was my first). The Sears Mojave had an oil leak in the gasket that went down the middle of the bottom of the engine, which made braking wonderfully exciting. I didn't dare attempt to fix it as I had tried to fix my Honda 50. After replacing the Honda's' piston, I had parts left over when I put the engine back together......the engine locked up when I tried to start it. So..... I put many miles on the Sears bike even though the top speed was 45MPH....which was okay with me since the back tire was always coated with oil, and every once in awhile... things just fell off and I would have to stop, go back and pick them up. I once got banned for life from the town of Hagerstown, Maryland while riding the Mojave. The portly old Chief of Police was directing traffic at an intersection and he waved for me to stop. He told me that he didn't like motorcycle hoodlums in his town. He told me to leave immediately and if I ever returned, he would lock me up and throw away the key. I was 17 years old (this was 1969) riding a little ratty rat bike that had a parts shedding problem and an oil shined slick rear tire. I was still in high school and clean cut. I left town as quickly as I could.....but I fooled him....I have returned many times.....one of my sisters lives there now. Shortly after I left the town.....while riding up a hill on a 2 lane blacktop in the Maryland countryside, I saw a Maryland State Police car crest the hill coming the other way. In my only rear view mirror I saw him make a U turn. Being the only vehicle around I knew he was coming to get me...... so I ran. Since the bike had a maximum speed of 45.....I turned right on a dirt road just past the top of the hill.....now I am heading downhill with the throttle wide open hitting maybe a little better than 45, but leaving a cloud of dust. Somewhere about a mile or so down the trail....he caught up with me with lights flashing and siren wailing. Just as he got out of his car.....my only rear view mirror dropped to the ground. I asked the trooper if he had a wrench I could borrow. He was take aback a bit and replied that he had no loaner tools, then he asked if I was trying to run from him? I replied, "On this little motorcycle?" I said I was just exploring. He then said that the reason that he wanted to stop me was because Maryland had a helmet law. I said I am wearing a helmet....to which he stated that the helmet had to be DOT approved. I was wearing a Jockeys helmet that I borrowed. I worked part time with horses at the Laurel Race Track. Well....he let me off with a warning and told me to get my mirror fixed at the next service station I came to. ......funny...the Hagerstown Police Chief hadn't mentioned any problem with wearing a jockeys helmet.....I guess he was too worried that I was probably a Hells Angel. |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by walterpump on 05/12/14 at 16:14:51 Hey RatDogWillie: Here's me on my SR500 back in early eighties: http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7411/13986301357_546c5a10ae_b.jpg Hope that link works |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by RatdogWillie on 05/12/14 at 17:45:25 67717C64756260657D60100 wrote:
Mine was black also, no windshield or crash bars. |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by shorty on 05/13/14 at 05:27:20 crash bars?? ..I still call them that but a dealer told me to call them "engine guards" :-X |
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Title: Re: Why Ride? Post by old_rider on 05/13/14 at 09:11:47 Well.... crash once and that's what you will call them.... LOL.... saved my leg (just a road cherry) from being broken. :) |
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