Someone talk me out of buying a motorcycle...

British_Rover

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Sep 4, 2006
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Location
Torrington, CT United States
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OK first a little background...

flashback

CB750.jpg


My senior year of HS I bought a non-running 1978, or maybe 1979 I don't remember exactly now, CB750. I only paid a 100 dollars for it because the motor was locked up.

If this story sounds familiar Blaro has a thread about his CB550 going on here...
http://forums.finalgear.com/post-your-car/my-honda-cb550-bike-restoration-project-19365/


I managed to get it running OK but it never ran great. My plan had been to take it to college as it was much easier for a freshman to get a motorcycle parking permit then a car parking one. Well after screwing around with it for most of the summer I never got it running well enough that I wanted to risk bringing it to school so I left it at home.



The next summer I decided that motorcycles just weren't for me and ended up parting it out on eBay. I made back my initial 100 bucks plus all the other money I spent in parts plus a decent hourly rate for my time. I ended up using all the money to pay for my books sophomore year.

/flashback

Over the past few weeks I have been thinking that maybe I do like motorcycles but that bike just wasn't the right one for me.

http://www.triumph.co.uk/streettriple/streetTripleFlash.asp?lang=en-US

Triumph came out with the Street Triple 675 late last year. Its basically the Daytona 675 without all the crotch rocket fairings, called a naked from what I have learned over the past few days, that I don't like plus a few other changes. It has slightly less power then the Daytona and has a lower seat which is fine with me as I have short legs and I haven't ridden a Motorcycle in almost 10 years.

http://www.totalmotorcycle.com/photos/2008models/2008models-Triumph-StreetTriple675.htm

So someone talk me out of this as it is a bad idea ok... ;)

Seriously I will hurt myself and I don't need a motorcycle in New England where I can't even ride it but about six months out of the year anyway... :burnrubber::?

I would be crazy and/or stupid to buy a bike.

Even if it is as hot and badass as this one is. :evil::wub:

2007-Triumph-StreetTriple675a.jpg


2008-Triumph-StreetTriple675a.jpg


2008-Triumph-StreetTriple675c.jpg


2008-Triumph-StreetTriple675d.jpg


2008-Triumph-StreetTriple675e.jpg


Street_Triple_1.jpg


Seriously doesn't that thing look sinister in black?
 
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If you do, I'll tell your wife you have been cheating on her.

Will that work? :dunno:
 
A Triumph Street Triple is a fantastic bike! It will probably be the best thing you ever buy!!

-Sorry..
 
Don't buy a bike.




Now that that's out of the way....GET IT!

The 675 is a facking sweet machine; I've only ever heard people raving about them. Triumph really knows what they're doing with that machine. Granted, I've only flogged the Daytona, but that engine is a sweet, sweet unit. You will NOT regret getting it.
 
Don't buy a bike

If you do get a bike, don't get that one right away. First you should take a course to refresh your skills and get comfortable. You may want to get a cheap-o bike to start with and then step up to the Triumph.

If you want someone to talk you out of a bike you are reading the wrong post. I love my bike, I love going on group rides, zipping through traffic, breezing past gridlocked cars, carving through the canyons and up the coast road, going to meets and the comradery of the motorcycling community.

It's fantastic in every way.

Edit: I did actually include an anti-bike message in here somewhere.
 
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Don't do it.

Do it. Do it for people like me who can't afford to. Let us live vicariously through your joy.
 
Bikes rock. I miss my old honda.....
 
My feelings are that you can have 95% of the fun on an older bike that costs a few hundred dollars.

Or you could buy a Formula Vee instead and go racing. Now THAT'S fun!

Steve
 
In the words of Arnold Schwarzenegger: "Do it now!!" Now that I've gotten into motorcycling I wouldn't give it up for anything. I'm in the same boat as you with no being able to ride for about half the year but it just makes you appreciate it that much more. I absolutely love the new Triumphs! If I had a spare 5 grand or so I'd be in possession of a new Bonneville. :wub: I think the Street Triple would make a decent (relative) beginner's bike, just take it nice and easy.
 
[If you do get a bike, don't get that one right away. First you should take a course to refresh your skills and get comfortable. You may want to get a cheap-o bike to start with and then step up to the Triumph.

The Street triple was meant to be a "first time" bike, and it's very easy to ride but still fun enough to grow with..
 
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Bollocks.

Is it risky? Sure. Most motorcycle accidents are single-vehicle crashes and the most common type of bike to be in a crash is a sportbike. If you ride smart and wear your gear you will probably be fine. I say probably because there are no guarantees in life. The first thing I notice in that second photo is the guy has NO gear. No leathers, no armor, wrong shoes, no boots - I assume he had a helmet, but there are some states where even that is not required. Bikes go down, I regularly ride with the knee-dragging crowd and there is always someone with scraped up plastics. On one of my rides a guy hit some debris in the road and washed out his front end on a left-hander; his bike went down and slid into the guardrail and he rashed the hell out of his textile jacket. His fairings were fucked up but the bike was mechanically fine and the rider was shaken but uninjured. Why? He was riding safe and wearing his gear.

Owning a motorcycle is a fantastic experience and one that should not be missed. If you let your fear control you then you will probably live a very long time, but what is the fun of living in fear? I don't want to look back on my life and think, "You know, I really wish I bought a motorcycle" when I'm on my death bed.

I'm not afraid of dying, I'm just afraid of not living.
 
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Don't do it, you will have to wear leather and become gay! :lol:

and another reason

[YOUTUBE]http://youtube.com/watch?v=lsJs4AYa8sU[/YOUTUBE]
 
^ good message for "cagers" - as a biker, when I see a car like that I always start to slow, so that if he pulls out I will be able to stop or swerve around. Essentially I start coming to a slow stop so that if he does pull out, I'm going slow enough to stop on a dime. It also gives the driver more time to see me. Sometimes I will flash my headlamp if I think they are not watching.

There are things you can do to reduce risk and make yourself more visible. Ride defensively.
 
No, no, no! I thought of it first!

On the topic of motorcycles, I have just realized that the Triumph Street Triple only costs $8,000, brand new. That's used Jap bike money! I mean hell new R6s run close to 10k. Couple that with a promotion at work in the next month or so and it would only take me two or three months of saving before I can plonk down cash for one. Less if I can sell the Porsche before then. Then I just have to buy a good helmet, gloves, leathers, back protector, boots, oh and insurance.

Damn I want a motorcycle. And who said every two seconds men think about sex, with me all I think about is naked British. . . . . motorcycles.
Oh, and my friendly Triumph person said they're demo bike likes to pop wheelies in 4th - at 90 mph.
 
That doesn't sound like a beginner bike to me, but I ride a steed of steel and chrome, not plastic and carbon.
 
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