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OHIO Talking Sh!! about Motos

sanjuro

Tube Smuggler
Sep 13, 2004
17,373
0
SF
http://hellforleathermagazine.com/2011/09/what-urbanization-means-for-motorcycles/

The incumbent manufacturers may be heading off to pasture, but the industry is far from done. The motorcycle is too practical, too iconic, and too fun to disappear. Abandoned by the industry, 20-somethings who’ve never assembled more than an IKEA end-table are taking matters into their own hands. Spend some time in San Francisco, Brooklyn or LA and you’ll see new riders on bikes that are timelessly styled and individualized, like a Harley-Davidson, but built for an urban environment — instead of loud and ornate, they are subtle and simple, instead of huge and powerful, they are lightweight and nimble.



My daily driver is a 2003 Yamaha R6 with the plastics ripped off, headlights from a Buell, handebars and a clutch off of a dirt bike, Ohlins suspension, and lots of scars from horribly incompetent parallel parkers. I built the bike because I had to; because no one was already producing one. While the Big 4 (Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki, Suzuki) continue to think of these segments as the traditionally economic dual-sport (supermoto) and standard (streetfighter) categories, pumping out detuned and outdated options, companies like BRD, KTM, and (again) Triumph recognize that this is the same sportbike customer who wants the highest performance and state of the art technology, but transplanted into a new landscape.
 

jimmydean

The Official Meat of Ridemonkey
Sep 10, 2001
40,939
13,133
Portland, OR
I drove the car yesterday and it made me hate my commute 10x more. On the moto in downtown, I can avoid idiots much better than in a cage.

I love the idea of a BRD and will be getting the dirt version. But an EV in town still makes me nervous. People don't see me now and the S3 is running the factory race exhaust. They would see me even less in stealth mode. But stealth does have it's advantages, too.



<edit> When I built the R1, it was purpose built for street and city use, not track. It was a 0-100 machine and worked well in that range. Gearing and tuning were key to getting the power into a usable rpm range.
 
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sanjuro

Tube Smuggler
Sep 13, 2004
17,373
0
SF
3 things: An electric bike has no exhaust, which is nice to keep the pollution in the valley not around my town.

Also, the bike should run much cooler, a factor when going light to light.

And instantaneous torque and no clutch means that Chicks Dig Burnouts.
 
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bean

Turbo Monkey
Feb 16, 2004
1,335
0
Boulder
People don't see me now and the S3 is running the factory race exhaust. They would see me even less in stealth mode. But stealth does have it's advantages, too.
Noise doesn't help me see people on bikes, it just makes me want to run them over. I hate loud motorcycles.