What got you into bikes?

[pete376403]

Thats the wird thing, I am not that young, but I clearly remember the Kawa and its specs.... dont know where the 1200 came from!!! Wierd.

Wasn't a 1300 six? Large by huge in every direction?

[bungbung]

Joni, meet your dad, pete376403

[riffer]

Wasn't a 1300 six? Large by huge in every direction?

Yeah. Kawasaki brought out the Z1300. A big watercooled beast of a bike.

Only thing bigger at the time was a Honda CBX1300.

Of course, now you have mad buggers like Alan Millyards modifying Z1300's to make monster 2300cc V12's, not to mention an H2-1250-5 cylinder (yeeha!!!).

Check this out:
http://uk.zn1300.com/

[pete376403]

Nah, the CBX was quite compact - just wide. The Z1300 was huge in every direction. And the V12 version is so cool. I want one.

[riffer]

Nah, the CBX was quite compact - just wide. The Z1300 was huge in every direction. And the V12 version is so cool. I want one.

Shit, Pete. They all looked pretty big to a skinny punk kid. I thought my dad's GT750 was massive.

[Big Dog]

I liked the way they looked as a kid but was baited by trike/quad racing in Rotorua, hooked good and proper by a ride on the back of a BMW 1150rs (I think like the MOT bikes of the time but bigger.) When he lofted the front wheel of the big boxer that was it I was going to buy one one day. Took me six years but when I wrote of the car I needed to get to work and I could have a mechanically sound 8 year old bike and gear and insurance or I could have a 12 year old car no insurance and questionable reliability. As if I needed another motivating factor gas was $60 just to get to work (only the first four cars each day were allowed to use the car park but there was a half park noone else could fit in) bike was only $15 (ended up spending sixty anyway but i got around a lot more for the same money )

[Big Dog]

oh and back then it cost $80 less PA to register a bike not $80 more.

[Suzi Q]

I grew up on a farm in North Canterbury and my Dad had a Honda CT90 - now they are a CT110 - My Dad is not very big!!! I used to ride on the back round the farm with him - nothing fast!!! Then he taught me to ride - it was fairly easy as there was no clutch - 4 gears and a high or low setting? Then as I got older I started going out with guys who had bikes - loved being a pillion. I have been told I am a good pillion and they forget I am there. I am not like my husband who can not stand being a pillion, I still like it. My husband is a bike fanatic I think he is onto his 15th bike? Well he bought a bike that turned out to be nasty, the most uncomfortable thing ever, he bought it because the GSX750F was a little small two up on trips. He then traded for an RF900 that he liked and for some reason I decided to get my licence so I got an FXR150 - loved the digital dash and the fact you knew what gear you are in. Glen was worried that he was pushing me to get a bike and get me off the back of his, but he needent have worried, I love having a bike, but occasionally when not feeling up to it I ride on the back of his. I have to be on the ball - I am silly enough with out being a disaster waiting to happen!

[krisby]

I started riding little pw50s at Camp Williams in Gisborne when I was 5, and when we used to go on holiday (especially in Rotorua) I would ride the trikes and quads, but nothing really fired in me. When I was 15 I stayed at a mates place in Waitawheta (near Waihi) and we were blatting round the farm on some 100c thing, was great fun but still nothing really in me.

After being in London a few years I found myself in a position where I was commuting 2 hours each way every day. This soon became a drag, and expensive, so I got me bike licence and bought a TZR125. I enjoyed riding but it was slow, and I still was not excited, though I did like the look of the bigger bikes, but still knew jack about them. The jap importer around the corner from me had loads of Honda Bros (Hawk), so I succumbed and fell in love with motorcycling on my first ride.

I've had 3 more bikes since then (incl one that cost me over $10,000 to fix and eventually dump), but the force is still strong.

Upon returning to NZ my wife was not so keen for me to take up biking again. She said I could get an expensive car instead. However, having just lost about $60,000 with an ill fated Green Acres investment that is not likely. However, I am doing something about it and should soon be in a good position to buy a nice car, and it was my intention when I had a spare $10,000 or so to go and buy one with or without my wifes wishes.

Fortunately I will not have to now, out walking the other day she saw a lovely "red bike", I obvioulsy could not determine what it was from that, I asked if it had two exhausts, either side of the wheel or under the seat (she had no idea, only that it was nice), and she said that when we recoup our losses I can get a bike, so yippee!

T955i methinks.