NAC: Assistance with motorcycle needed in SE Virginia

[David Ullrich]

So, you would say take a pass on the 1966 BSA Lightning bobber that's for
sale locally? LOL I would never really consider any bike that used Lucas
electronics. But, thankfully, the new Triumphs are very reliable and very
low maintenance. And for my beginner bike...it's going to be a Honda.

Dave
87 CGT 2.3
Portsmouth, VA

On 1/18/07, Unka Bart <gatorojo at earthlink.net> wrote:
>
> I'm mostly in deep lurk mode these days, but I gotta chime in on this one.
>
> First, I'm an ex-rider, not active anymore.  Still, I rode for 40 years
> before I got tired of healing and I have a couple of tips worth passing on
> that I haven't seen so far.  Sold my last Scoot in '94 after buying a
> ragtop Porker.
>
> Be very aware that the vast majority of car/motorcycle introductions (of
> the painful/fatal variety) happen when an on-coming auto makes an
> unsignaled left turn in front of a motorcyclist.  Assume that every driver
> you see is an idiot and determined to give you a trip to the
> hospital/morgue and you will not be far from wrong.
>
> Be very aware that the center of the traffic lane at every stop sign/light
> becomes soaked with oil that has dripped from countless automobiles
> waiting
> there before you.  Want to learn how to bust your fanny and your scooter?
> Accelerate rapidly from the center of the lane when the light changes.
>
> Be equally aware that all pavement absorbs oil from the traffic passing
> over it.  Rain will bring this to the surface.  The first hour following a
> rain storm in a city is very dangerous for this reason.  Doubt this, see
> advice above.
>
> In the mountains or other areas that make earholin' fun, the inside of
> tight curves tends to get a build-up of sand and loose gravel.  Guess what
> happens to a motorcycle wheel when it encounters this when you are leaning
> over through the turn...
>
> Many fine, upstanding, genuinely friendly and otherwise fine citizens seem
> to have a deep-seated homacidal hatred of motorcyclists.  Expect to learn
> this for yourself, as you will without question.  I have had gray-haired,
> saintly looking grandmothers drive up beside me, look over and make
> eye-contact just as she cut the wheel hard over and ran me into a ditch.
> Likewise, with my wife on the rear, I've had a van with a family in it, do
> the same on the eastern shore approach to the Chesapeak bridge on the way
> to Annapolis.  For the record, I've always dressed like someone for an
> Apple Pie ad, so it wasn't as if they thought I (or my wife,  for that
> matter) was an outlaw biker.
>
> If you buy a british bike, be prepared to learn why the limeys drink warm
> beer.  Also, have deep pockets and be prepared to regularly replace the
> bits that vibrate off during each ride.  Things like Air-cleaners,
> etc.  As
> an old BSA rider, my life brightened when I became an ex-BSA rider.
> Neither my CB750, nor the Kawasaki Z1B that replaced it, ever had anything
> lost to vibration and I've ridden both of them for many 8-10  hour days.
> Rode the Honda coast to coast when I returned from SEA back in '71, and
> rode the Z from Annapolis to San Angelo, TX in 2 1/2 days (1750 miles).
> All of this was a comfortable cruise at about 85.
>
> It's not a bad idea to always be on the lookout for a soft place to crash.
> No kidding.  With one drive wheel and many possibilities for said wheel to
> stop turning, opportunities to meet pavement at speed abound.
>
> All of that said, there is no finer way to see the country than from the
> saddle of a scooter.  A trip through the mountains on one is almost a
> religious experience.  You'll love it.  Good luck.
>
> Oh yeah, one parting thought.  I recall that in about '66 or '67, the AMA
> (not the medicos) released a long term study done with insurance industry
> backing.  They determined that nearly 97% (if memory serves) of all
> fatalities and serious injuries ocurred to riders in their first year of
> ridership.  Think about it and keep your attention on the job at hand.
>
> yer kindly ol' Unka Bart
>
>
>