Eater Motorcycle Riders

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Posted: Wed Feb 14, 2007 12:50 pm

My first bike was a Honda CB200 like this one here (mine was red):

Not much horsepower, but I didn't have much money. I was just happy I had a machine at all.

Posted: Wed Feb 14, 2007 1:03 pm

All this talk about your 1st bikes got me nostalgic. I found a pic of my first road bike. This is exactly what it looked like.

Oddly enough, I really miss it. I wish I could find one for sale.........

Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2007 4:31 am

Okay, so when is Daytona Bike Week?

I will probably be there, since I plan on moving. I know almost no one there now, but at least I'll know who to call when I need my fence mended.

Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2007 11:29 am

Bike week is March 2-11. Bring a camera, you will see things you never knew existed...... Laughing

Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2007 5:00 pm

Mhmm, a bit late to this thread, but here we go...

My first ever bike (some years ago):

My current bike Wink

:

In between, I had another Enfield and a Triumph. The Triumph was a real beauty - pic will follow...

Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2007 5:58 pm

Many years ago, I used to have one of these:

Harry Bawls wrote:

one of my favorite pics of riding near the Blue Ridge Parkway......

I'll be doing a photographic safari along the Blue Ridge parkway and Shenandoah national park in May this year (not on a bike, unfortunately). Can't wait!

Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2007 7:03 pm

Anyone ever go to the Transatlantic Trophy at Brands Hatch in the late seventies, and through the eighties?

The days of Barry Sheen and Kenny Roberts going head to head.

Used to happen over the Easter holiday. I think they stopped running the event in the early nineties? I miss the smell of burning castor oil.

Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2007 7:42 pm

Damn. I leave the 2nd. However, I might be back by the 10th or 11th. We'll see if I can make it this year...

Posted: Fri Feb 16, 2007 7:47 am

Joaquin wrote:

Well actually the one I had was a "500", just like the one in this picture:

According to Honda, they replaced this model with the 550, which had more power and bigger tires. Still, I preferred the older one. But the 550 is up to this day a fine motorcycle.

I had a friend who completely rebuilt a 500/4, was a lovely ride. Unfortunately he is one of the reasons I dont ride any more - too many accidents and none were his fault. Last one was on the 500, a low speed accident that really hurt him bad.

Here's a photo a nearly identical beeza - apparently they were nicknamed the "Hand Grenade" 10:1 compression and the tank is fibreglass - running with factory hot cams they occasionally exploded.

Posted: Fri Feb 16, 2007 8:17 pm

Most folks here know Radden is my son. This is a pic of him on his bike.........

Notice the upper Midwest theme......

And here is his first riding mower............

Posted: Fri Feb 16, 2007 8:32 pm

^^^

Love the mower!

** SUSPENDED ** Joined: 26 Mar 2005 Posts: 1267

You gave too much details about my life away, now the scammers will be able to find me Surprised

The mower was mine, till I turned 8 years old, which was yesterday.

Posted: Fri Feb 16, 2007 8:38 pm

Harry Bawls wrote:

Bike week is March 2-11. Bring a camera, you will see things you never knew existed...... Laughing

Damn! I'll miss it. I'll be in your general vicinity in May (probably middle week); anything on around then? Last year I arrived, purely by chance, in the middle of Americade in Lake George. I was there on one of my photography trips, but didn't know about Americade. Was somewhat concerned when I drove into Lake George town and found myself surrounded by 30 000 Harleys!

Posted: Sat Feb 17, 2007 12:17 am

^^^

Quote:

Myrtle Beach Bike Week�
May 11-20, 2007

That is a close second to Daytona. I WILL be there.

Posted: Sat Feb 17, 2007 12:23 am

Thanks HB. I'll bookmark that.

Posted: Sat Feb 17, 2007 1:39 pm

As a slight aside, does anyone have any experience of using 'Goop' or other similar puncture preventer in tubed tyres?

Master Baiter Joined: 08 Jul 2004 Posts: 188

This is what I have right now. 93 GS500 with roughly 12k miles on it. It needs some minor work done, but I am selling it. I have the stuff that it needs (plugs and wires, old and filter), but I'm not touching it while it's 5 degrees outside. Make an offer and I'll probably be willing to part with it.

Am I done riding? No, just looking for something diffferent. Two bikes I'm looking at are:

Suzuki SV650, preferably the older one (pre-2003).

or

BMW f650

Would have bought a new bike this summer, but I just jumped into another 5 years of car payments last weekend, so I gotta keep the cost of the bike within reason, which based on my math would be below $3k.

Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2007 8:24 am

@reload - On a bike like that, what would be a good offer?

I'm glad there are riders here. The more I think about it, once I am living in Florida, a motorcycle will be much more practical for me than a car... and more fun.

I assume when the time comes, you guys can point me in the right direction and give me good advice on what to buy. Any good advisors here?

Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2007 12:54 pm

^^^ I don't know what you would consider a good advisor, but I have been involved in motorcycles most of my life. You really have to consider what "type" of bike you want first, then you can figure out from there which make, model,...etc. Do you want cruiser, sport, dual purpose, etc....you get the idea. I would start by picking up some magazines that concentrate on the style of bike you would like. If you find one that interests you, then you can start looking for something similar. For instance, you like the Yamaha sport bike style, and you like a particular model, you can look for an older version of the bike, and buy a used one. If you have never ridden before, I suggest a "smaller" bike to start with. That will accomplish two things. It will give you some experience, and also let you know if you really like riding or not. One thing that you will have to be aware of in Florida, that is older drivers, refered to as "cotton tops" in biker lingo. They sometimes do not "see" bikes. Whatever you decide, it is of utmost importance to have the mindset of "everyone in a car is trying to get me". I have been riding many, many years, and have yet to have an accident with a car. I ALWAYS expect them to do the wrong thing, and try to be prepared. The most common collision between a bike and a car is at an intersection, where the car is turning left.....remember Ben Rothlesberger of the Steelers? Anyway, research is the best tool when deciding on a bike. PM me anytime if you want to ask anything. Good luck!

Posted: Mon Feb 19, 2007 3:40 pm

Hell, I go away for a week, and you do a motorsickle thread. Kickstart, I was at a rally once, drunk, when the Police showed up at the pub, well after closing time. Because he was too drunk, and a scared girly, I ended up having to ride a friend's Starfire, just like the one in your picture, back to the campsite. I only clipped one car on the way back, and the next day the BSA's big end bearing was completely shot. I dont think he ever forgave me, or was that for stealing his girl at another rally? Embarassed

Anyway, here's the current Croppermobile, a 1200 Harley Sportster.

This is the previous one, which I built from the remains of an old police bike which I bought in the pub one night. Last I heard, this bike was on its way to a new home in the South of France.

I have raced bikes a lot, including on the TT course, but I decided to quit before I broke anything important.

Posted: Mon Feb 19, 2007 4:00 pm

@Roy

What I wouldn't give to have that Norton now. When I was 16, I worked in a bike shop that sold Hondas and Norton. My job was to complete the assembly, and test ride them before they went on the floor. I remember my first ride on a Norton, shakey, but fun, and powerful. I wanted one back then, but could not afford it. Crying or Very sad

Posted: Mon Feb 19, 2007 5:18 pm

Harry Bawls wrote:

One thing that you will have to be aware of in Florida, that is older drivers, refered to as "cotton tops" in biker lingo. They sometimes do not "see" bikes. Whatever you decide, it is of utmost importance to have the mindset of "everyone in a car is trying to get me".

I have had that problem in buses, where people do not see me because either 1) they genuinely don't, somehow, and 2) they don't want to (ever heard the phrase "the elephant in the room"?) so they don't. I can only imagine how the first way is amplified when you are a quarter the size of them. I have been driving to avoid any collisions since I got my driver's license, and I am paranoid on the road. But post all that again for anyone who wasn't listening!

I will definitely have questions for you, so expect them soon. But after I get moved.

Posted: Tue Feb 20, 2007 1:44 pm

OK, fantasy time for me. This is what I want to build if I ever get the time.....For some strange reason, I really like the "Bobber" style.

** SUSPENDED ** Joined: 26 Mar 2005 Posts: 1267

If you build it, I wouldn't go over 20 mph..... Don't want the engine or front falling off....

Posted: Tue Feb 20, 2007 2:25 pm

^^^Please take your postwhoring here........

http://forum.419eater.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=70116&start=10725 Laughing