Random Motorcycle thoughts unworthy of a new thread

budman

budman

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Apr 4, 2002
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Menlo Park, Ca.
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Name
Budman
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This has worked well in the polsink. You have a thought but not really thread worthy, but there we have a spot. It has led to some insightful discussion.

Thought to myself.. heck we are a motorcycle forum and I am always thinking about motorcycles and not all thoughts are worth throwing out a new thread. So giving it a try.

So..

Is being a fan of Dakar like being in a small book club??

There might be 6 of us discussing it in the thread.
I have asked a few moto heads if they are following Dakar and I usually get a yes.. "Who is ahead?"

If you don't know you are not following. :twofinger :laughing

Ricky Brabec is leading FWIW :flag
 
I'm a bad motorcyclist in that I don't really make the time to follow racing. I do enjoy watching when I have the chance, but I don't always seek it out. Trying to get out to a few more this year.
 
Most of the racing I watch is streamed.

MotoGP, WSBK, Moto America, American Flat Track and Dakar on an app. SX I am missing since I don't have PeaCock so watch highlights on YouTube and record on regular TV after the races.

Some extreme stuff on the RedBull TV app.

Since I did some racing it is in my nature to watch others chasing their passion. I am a total loon when it comes to racing.
 
Here is a good one.

Does HWY 130 up to Lick really have 365 turns??
I love the road and feel like I should count them :laughing

I wonder how that compares to 108.... to 4.... to Legget? :teeth
 
Hodaka.
Just that. Yeah then Yamaha Yamaha Yamaha Honda Honda and fuck I can’t remember. ATK?
Hodaka burns in me in a good way. Warms me.

Alta Alta TM TM I am redundant. But hey.
 
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budman said:
Here is a good one.

Does HWY 130 up to Lick really have 365 turns??
I love the road and feel like I should count them :laughing

I wonder how that compares to 108.... to 4.... to Legget? :teeth
Click to expand...

My local Mount Hamilton expert says(see below). And I trust him. :x

Butch said:
Turn count is right depending how you count. There is Ghirardelli chocolate involved in the story also, I think.
Click to expand...
 
Am I the only one who thinks AFT is killing flattrack? I miss open qualifying, when there were so many riders that you needed to qualify to make the program much less the main event. AFT has made it so expensive that Kody Kopp and Jarod Vanderkooi can not get rides in the premier class. The local hot rider used to be able to compete and challenge the national riders. Maybe I am just old.


This is how bad it has gotten.
 
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What about it has made it so expensive in your mind??

I have noted smaller crowds at a lot of the races besides the lower grids.

For sure in the hey day of flat track local racers abounded and took their shot to make the show.
 
budman said:
What about it has made it so expensive in your mind??

I have noted smaller crowds at a lot of the races besides the lower grids.

For sure in the hey day of flat track local racers abounded and took their shot to make the show.
Click to expand...

NASCAR crew running the show. Need a team and big money to run the premiere class.

From sideburn's website. 2022 NEW AFT RULES EXAMINED trying to find current rule changes for 2024.
 
Well... that does seem screwed up. No more FTR spares..? :wtf

Perhaps rule changes would help. Want a factory bike. Sell 10 min engines to others sort of thing. Just throwing darts, but the series does need something to get the juice going again.
 
If memory serves, it was the AMA that killed flat track back in the 80s. Remember the Kenny Roberts TZ750 ride at Indianapolis? There was a Honda 750 four flat tracker in the works (Yoshimura, I think), and a couple of 750 Kawasaki triples being considered. AMA decided that only four stroke twins could compete. It reeked of Harley protectionism. Honda and Bubba Shorbert won a championship, and the AMA said that because it was an overhead cam motor they have to run a restrictor. They won again, and AMA said they have to run a bigger restriction. Honda said screw it and left. Yamaha factory left. Flat track died, as it became only a Harley factory show. No Sacramento, San Jose, Oklahoma, Indianapolis, etc. I got a kick out of Harley bitching about having to use a production based motor for the latest form. Up till Indian, everyone used a production based motor (i.e. 650 yamaha, Honda 750). If you can't beat 'em, outlaw 'Em. Hell half the fun for the Harley guys was watching the beat the Yams, and Hondas. When the Yams were all privateers left, there was little competition against the Harley factory teams, so no one came any more. Dead.
 
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The random moto thought that always pops up in my mind is… ring ding ding… ring ding ding…

Sally used to call it “the call of the wild”.
 
The Kawi triples were on the grid already.

Those and the TZ's were the best of the ring ding ding's for sure.

Beautiful words Butch that really only ring ding ding in the minds or those that know.
 
I'm wondering if riders would pay for a trackday that included a selection of bikes for them to ride: for the 1K class: R1, S1000RR, RSV4 Factory, V4S, ZX10R, GSXR-1K. Etc.

It wouldn't be cheap, but for someone looking to buy a particular bike it's a good try-and-ride.
 
3 years ago I started a random thought on bike and riding thread:
https://www.bayarearidersforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=548114&highlight=random+thoughts

I tried counting turns on Mt Hamilton, but it's like counting sheep - very hard to count past 50, and don't think I ever got close to 100. I tried memorizing and visualizing the entire road up to the observatory but I couldn't do it. I often thought, "did I already past this section I'm thinking about, or is it coming up?"

I usually get an empty feeling after sitting thru an entire sporting event of any kind, that it didn't live up to the hype; I'd rather waste a huge amount of time on YouTube and Craigslist instead. Highlight reels are good enough for me.

Currently I'm losing sleep between getting a water-cooled R1200GS and a R1250GS next, spinning my wheels on the usual cost-reward debate.

Another thought is that a kickstand foot enlarger makes parking off pavement so much more worry free, why isn't it standard equipment on any bike?

Why are there so few interesting bikes for sale on Craigslist, while so many bikes for sale are uninteresting and uninspiring? It's like 99% of people buy and sell boring bikes.
 
Holeshot said:
I'm wondering if riders would pay for a trackday that included a selection of bikes for them to ride: for the 1K class: R1, S1000RR, RSV4 Factory, V4S, ZX10R, GSXR-1K. Etc.

It wouldn't be cheap, but for someone looking to buy a particular bike it's a good try-and-ride.
Click to expand...

I would think some would. That is an interesting idea.
 
Last year I only did two track weekends- one at Thunderhill (5 Miles and East) and one at Buttonwillow (Config 13 both days).

This was not enough. I spent all day Saturday and half of Sunday each weekend just remembering what the heck I'm even doing.

It wasn't until midway through day 2 that I felt as if I was grooving with the bike the way I should.


Clearly I need to do a lot more track days this year.
 
Kyle McCoy must be one bad ass dude.
Standing in 10th overall in the Motul Original class after 11 Dakar stages is amazing :flag

Motul Original is the class where you have to do all the work on your own bike. No fancy crew helping. True Cowboys of offroad racing.
 
I wish there were a few more track days specifically for small capacity / old bikes. They're a couple down here at Willow Springs but I've not seen them anywhere else.

Riiiiiing ding ding, indeed.
 
I wish I was more motivated to ride more.

I used to ride every day, mostly year round, weather pending, as a commuter from SF to the South Bay.
Put 50k on an cbrf3 from 96 to 2002.

Now I wfh, have long winter weather making local riding nearly impossible for 4-5 months a year.

But the dirt bike can still get loaded and a 1.5hr drive gets me away from the cold and snow. But when you're in the claws of winter I forget I can easily escape with a drive.

I do miss being able to just go out and ride 12 months a year.
We had a warm(ish) dry spell in late December and I ran errands in the 890. Felt so good, till the flurries started lol.
 
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