Harley riders dropping like flies at Sturgis rally!

**BIG DOUG** · 20th August 2010, 21:35

You have to go big dave ,the broken spoke campground is the shit if you want to see some freakie shit I 'm going back in 2012 or 2013 and I'm going to ride my 51pan from la to sturgis can't freakin wait.

**rocketman1** · 20th August 2010, 21:36

Originally Posted by Swoop

Bloody sport bike riders' thinking they are Rossi!!!!

Oh, hang on a second. Tassle fever.
Bloody accountants!

Dont think I saw one sport bike at Sturgis!!

**Rogue Rider** · 20th August 2010, 21:39

I have had experience with some american riders. The ones I have dealt with like straight roads and have the handling ability of a 4 year old on a quad.......

For a nation of riders historically, like cowboys and indians, they shore have alot of learning to do. In saying that, there are like over 100,000 bikes at the event, a few accidents is to be expected......
I know alot of bikers here are novices, perhaps there are even more over there.

**Big Dave** · 20th August 2010, 21:40

Originally Posted by BIG DOUG

You have to go big dave ,the broken spoke campground is the shit if you want to see some freakie shit I 'm going back in 2012 or 2013 and I'm going to ride my 51pan from la to sturgis can't freakin wait.

Hmmmm - it's the crowds thing I mean. I d'nae like queuing up for anything. But I guess we're talking a-grade freaky shit huh?

**Muppet** · 21st August 2010, 17:01

Originally Posted by Big Dave

No arguments there - I found this while surfing around recently - I'm going to recreate it with photos and photoshop it.

But I think I'll make it 'cool gear' and 'fool gear'.

Attachment 216590

Crikey I remember that poster very well, only it was a photo and in colour.

**DarkLord** · 22nd August 2010, 20:54

Originally Posted by Banditbandit

You can see that happening ... the dumb shit hits the brakes, which stands the bike up, so he's going to mess it up .. then he locks the back wheel ... and the bike slides off the road ... Doh !

(I didn't know the brakes on Harleys were good enough to lock up ...)

And look at the gear they're wearing .. helmets, but short sleeved shirts .. no jackets ... gloves ...

No wonder the dumb shits are falling off and getting killed on the way to Sturgis ... all that testosterone mixed with large quantities of stupidity ..

American riders, bro.

Not all of them of course but when I was in California I often saw dudes riding in nothing but cut off jeans and flip flops. No helmet.... not even a freakin t'shirt

**Banditbandit** · 23rd August 2010, 08:57

Originally Posted by pritch

Deer are a serious problem in some parts of the USA and motorcyclists do get killed by them.

Twisted Throttle recounts a near miss in his book and Peter Egan (Cycle World) lost a friend to one.

If I was going to Oz I'd be getting off the road earlyish so as to avoid roos too.

Just as well we only have cattle to worry about?

I had a red spiker jump out in front of me in the hills of Hawke's Bay ... I was doing just over 100 klicks over the rise on a hill ... had the back wheel sliding sideways .. the front getting close to locking up ... I missed it, but it was so close I could have slapped it's arse as I went passed the back end ...

Originally Posted by DarkLord

American riders, bro.

Not all of them of course but when I was in California I often saw dudes riding in nothing but cut off jeans and flip flops. No helmet.... not even a freakin t'shirt

I once saw a guy in New Zealand pull on one of the most expensive helmets I've seen before climbing onto a Firestorm .. the rest ? T-Shirt, shorts and jandals .... Duh ...

**Taz** · 23rd August 2010, 09:46

More common in the the black hills region but rarely reported are the mutant spider bears. Only defense to these is a Sperm whale mega blast-a-tron apparently.

**Big Dave** · 23rd August 2010, 11:54

**buellbabe** · 23rd August 2010, 12:32

Originally Posted by WuZards-Eugene

Its definitely a bad mix to get some who doesn't yet know how to corner a bike, and then throw them onto a bike that doesn't know how to corner.

Don't blame the bike...HDs have no problem cornering...or stopping for that matter. I have said it before and I will say AGAIN...it takes balls to throw a HD around and its a helluva lot of fun to do so.

As for the gear or lack of...yikes that just makes me cringe. I see it here in good ol' NEn Zed too, the t-shirt, shorts n jandals outfit...and I have seen that on waaaay more sport bikes than cruisers.

The roads into Sturgis get so congested that it can be a bit of a nightmare. I bloody well hate sharing an unknown piece of road with a bunch of hyped up bike riders that I don't know (reminds me of a few poker runs I have been on). No matter how much clear road you try and leave in front of ya there is always some friggin idiot roaring past ya and diving into the gap. I have witnessed that happen so understand how easy it is for the motorcycleVmotorcycle collisions to happen.

Deer? Tree? Maybe when the deer leaped out onto the road in front of the bike the guy had no choice but to go off the road and unfortunately was unable to avoid a tree??? God only knows...

But like someone pointed out, when you consider the sheer numbers of people and bikes attending Sturgis the accident rate is not OTT. Afterall how many KB rides do we hear about where people bin???

**Muppet** · 23rd August 2010, 20:26

Originally Posted by buellbabe

Don't blame the bike...HDs have no problem cornering...or stopping for that matter. I have said it before and I will say AGAIN...it takes balls to throw a HD around and its a helluva lot of fun to do so.

You must be joking? Cruisers are notoriously bad at braking and cornering. Case in point: I was riding my 2001 R1 en route to Milford Sound a number of years ago when I came across a tourist doing a 3 point turn on a blind corner. I stopped a car length sort of hitting it. My friend on his 1500 cc Kawaski cruiser hit the front brake and locked it up skidding past the car and onto the wrong side of the road and this was after I lept off my bike and ran towards him wavving my arms. Harley riders will always tell you how much power their bikes have and how great they handle. I'm afraid the proof is in the pudding. I've ridden a Fatboy and a 1200 sporty and you can keep 'em!!

**Old Steve** · 23rd August 2010, 20:48

I assume that a double yellow line means the same thing there as it does her? And the gear makes me cringe too, one of them did have a leather jacket though - probably more for looks than any protection.

I'm at the "lusting after a bigger bike" stage of my learners license and am reading a lot of reviews. The Honda Shadow and Suzuki Boulevard are considered learner's bikes in the USA. You could get your license and go onto as large a bike as you could find in most places. That's a worry. I know I'm a better rider now than I was 6 months ago and with 6500 km under the wheels of my 250, I can't imagine how long I'd have lived if I'd gone straight onto what we consider a big bike right from the start.

**reofix** · 23rd August 2010, 21:27

we were lucky to get here alive ... but since we did ... we have the right to lecture others

**BIG DOUG** · 23rd August 2010, 22:03

Hmm did a track day once on my fxd dyna went out in the medium group,going down the back straight see two lights blazing towards me,thats an r1 mesthink so pull over to give him some room we hit the top corner and fuck me I had to pass him around the outside then he blast's pass me on the straight I just shook my head wasn't you was it MUPPETT.

**buellbabe** · 24th August 2010, 06:51

Originally Posted by Muppet

You must be joking? Cruisers are notoriously bad at braking and cornering. Case in point: I was riding my 2001 R1 en route to Milford Sound a number of years ago when I came across a tourist doing a 3 point turn on a blind corner. I stopped a car length sort of hitting it. My friend on his 1500 cc Kawaski cruiser hit the front brake and locked it up skidding past the car and onto the wrong side of the road and this was after I lept off my bike and ran towards him wavving my arms. Harley riders will always tell you how much power their bikes have and how great they handle. I'm afraid the proof is in the pudding. I've ridden a Fatboy and a 1200 sporty and you can keep 'em!!

You are entitled to your opinion but I am curious, did you own the Fatboy and the Sporty? Have you years of experience riding them? or are you just another HD basher? Cos I am NOT joking, like I said, it just takes balls. I know plenty of old school HD riders who can throw their huge bikes around like they are trail bikes. THATS how ya ride them, can be a little daunting for someone who is used to a nimble sports bike...

But I digress...my point is that they corner just fine IF you know how to ride them.

Don't blame the bike.

Blame the rider.