Need for speed

[Car Dodger]

I dont know about you but I find it very hard to stay within the speed limits riding a sports bike, Even if I tried the bikes would just labour and spit. Also the way you have to sit on them is pretty much a pre-requsit to go fast.
I was amased when I got my first road bike how laided back I felt. I still had the option of going like snot if I wanted, but I quickly found that even a 50k granny run was also alot of fun and felt very cool.
My friends who own super bikes are always bragging of there near misses and what speeds they managed to reach that day. I bet if I plopped them on to a nice conventional road bike, that their would be a drastict change in the riding styles like myself, enjoy a ride a little more than just a quick adrenalin rush.

What do you think or

[Coldkiwi]

2 things

1) yes, very hard to stay under the limits. 600cc bikes are NOT designed for 50kmhr despite what the idiotic manual might say. thats why I bought a detector

2) different bikes encourage very different behaviour. even just switching from the GSXR to the ZX-6R this morning (feck it) reminded me of how different riding styles can change your approach to your ride. The 6R is much more upright (reminded me of that SV650 I rode last week as a replacement for the GSXR in service) and doesn't have the same 'I MUST BE RACED' attitude to it.. although that never stopped me

[wkid_one]

Feck - the R1 was like - 'Ride the fucken nuts off my please!!!!!!!!!!!!'

[merv]

Shame they didn't build more of these, see if this attachment works:

[Timber020]

The worst bike I know of for keeping below the limit are RGV250's. They have little torque and hate hate hate beetling about in the lower area of the tacho. Its also bad for the powervalves not to get them up in the revs to burn the oil around them properly.
You have to cane them, its in there nature, in there blood, its bad for them not to feed it to them, but do think plod believes this?

[merv]

Kitted for the street of course at a price we could afford.

[Lou Girardin]

New defence in court - my bike made me do it! - think it'll work?
Lou

[Sharkey]

Here's a novel solution. Buy a smaller, appropriate bike. Simply a case of using the right tool for the job. Noone would use an impact driver to remove the screws from the back of a calculator.

[bluninja]

Of course not...you'd use a sledge hammer, smash it to bits and then pick the screws up when they were broken free

I guess the issue is what you want the bike to be appropriate for. If I had enough money (to pay all the WOFs and REGOs) and a big garage I would have a selection of bikes appropriate for my different needs. Since I haven't I have the one that does what I want most of the time and that can make do with the other stuff too.......my bikes job is to make me feel humble

TTFN

[MikeL]

I suspect that speed is addictive, and that like all drugs as time goes on you need more and more to get the same "fix", until you can get it out or your system. One of the common ways in which you can get it out of your system is quite drastic, and often provides a permanent cure for all of life's little problems.

On the positive side, I have found that while riding my Suzuki 1200 is fun, doing the same speed on the Honda 400 is even more fun.

But the track is probably the best answer. If I can just conquer my fears: finishing last, being repeatedly lapped, being laughed at...

[Motu]

Big dual purpose are the way to go - sitting tall and upright you are able to use the bike more,you can maintain a rapid pace on back roads...who cares about roadworks,bumps,slips etc,nothing grounds,if that nice road has some gravel bits...just doubles the fun.Sports bikes are OK - but who wants to be that serious.

[Motoracer]

I guess the bike has a part in speeding but I think it all comes down to attitued. When I was riding my scooter, I was scraping the exhaust pipes and transmition case most of the time. Even got a "you'r going to kill your self" warning from our friends in blue once after he saw me go through a corner in my scooter.

You can give me a 1000cc sports bike or you can give me a 50cc scooter, I will still have to ride it fast to get any enjoyment. These days for the city/residential roads I have trained myself to stick to 59 on a 50K or 109 on a 100K area....umm, most of the time anyway.

[Big Dog]

Just to put the Cat Among the Pigeons.

I also have a theory it goes somink like this.

People who want to go fast buy a sport bike.
People who like to go fast but need to ride regular buy sport tourers.
People who don't see going fast as the attraction buy cruisers.
People who like to go off road as well by duallies.
etc
etc
etc

I have yet to hear of anyone who doesn't like to go fast buying a gixxer 1000, or anyone who does like to go fast selling a ducati to buy a GN250!

Me? I like to be ABLE to go fast, but view the journey and the destination as more important than how far round the clock I got. So I own a sensible bike (sport tourer) and crack the taps every now and then.

[Motoracer]

Originally posted by Big Dog
or anyone who does like to go fast selling a ducati to buy a GN250!

Affordability comes into it as well. I have always loved going a bit faster and I certainly was doing what the bike could do when I was 15 on the borrowed GN125, scraping pegs etc (the fun stuff).

I would think the only reason why a duke owner would trade his/her baby for a GN would be bankrupcy. This is because the 2 bikes are sitting on two opposite sides. One defines Economical and the other basically stands for $$$.

[bikerboy]

Any one want to by a Ducati?