The last bike

On Feb 27, 5:06 pm, timeOday <timeOday-UNS... DeleteThis @theknack.net> wrote:
> Turby wrote:
> > It's a means of transportation. I use it to go places. It's no more a
> > hobby than my truck, or any other vehicle I've ever owned.
>
> I also use my motorcycle as my primary means of communication even
> though I have cars.  But if I ever ceased to enjoy motorcycling and it
> were solely down to practicality, I would go car-only.  I don't find
> motorcycling any cheaper than an econobox, and it's certainly more
> dangerous.

I don't even have an econobox and my bike costs me as much in gas
because I never travel as little as I do in my truck. I tend to ride
further, take the long way around such that I end up spending more in
nice weather for gas for my bike. Then again I only get like 28-30mpg
on my bike and 18-20 in my truck.

Greg
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

My bike gets almost twice the mileage (40mpg) compared to my V6 Jetta
(22mpg) in the city, so that's nice.

But then, what percentage of bikes actually live to 150K miles? That's
normal for cars now. Based on what I see in parking lots, I don't think
the average for bikes is over 30K miles. That means you have to
multiply by 5 to compare to car prices. A $10K bike is roughly
equivalent to a $50K car per mile.
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

On Feb 28, 3:36 am, timeOday <timeOday-UNS....RemoveThis@theknack.net> wrote:
> My bike gets almost twice the mileage (40mpg) compared to my V6 Jetta
> (22mpg) in the city, so that's nice.
>
> But then, what percentage of bikes actually live to 150K miles?  That's
> normal for cars now.  Based on what I see in parking lots, I don't think
> the average for bikes is over 30K miles.  That means you have to
> multiply by 5 to compare to car prices.  A $10K bike is roughly
> equivalent to a $50K car per mile.

I dunno. If I take care of my bike, I'm willig to bet it could make
150K, but I'd have to commit to regular mtc of valves, replacing the
clutch, etc, but I'll probably sell it long before it starts costing
me real money. I'm the 2nd owner and my bike has over 22K and hasn't
been wrecked and it lives in garage (even with the orig owner). It
gets ridden, but everybody who asks me about it is shocked to find
it's a 2002 and not a 2006 or later. All I do is keep good tires on
it, change the oil, do the 12K valve thing. Garage living does wonders
for bikes and keeps me form having to wrry about rust or cleaning the
damn thing all the time.

Greg
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

"timeOday" <timeOday-UNSPAM DeleteThis @theknack.net> wrote

> But then, what percentage of bikes actually live to 150K miles? That's
> normal for cars now. Based on what I see in parking lots, I don't think
> the average for bikes is over 30K miles. That means you have to
> multiply by 5 to compare to car prices. A $10K bike is roughly
> equivalent to a $50K car per mile.

Yep, that's the OTHER discussion.

There is no doubt that a bike CAN be cheaper to own and operate than a car;
I have one. It cost me about $4K near-new and gets 65 mpg. It costs me
less, both in simple operating costs AND in total life cost than 99.9% of
the cars on the road.....
BUT......
Most bike riders do NOT choose a bike that is that economical, either in
initial cost or in daily operating cost so when you do all the math, "most"
bikes end up costing just as much or more than a compact car.

YMMV!
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

Turby wrote:

> On Wed, 27 Feb 2008 10:07:51 -0700, timeOday
> <timeOday-UNSPAM RemoveThis @theknack.net> wrote:
>
>>Turby wrote:
>>> On Tue, 26 Feb 2008 16:09:58 -0700, timeOday
>>> <timeOday-UNSPAM RemoveThis @theknack.net> wrote:
>>>
>>>> BryanUT wrote:
>>>>> Sometimes I think the next bike will be the last bike I'll ever own.
>>>>>
>>>>> And sometimes I think the bike I have now is the last bike.
>>>>>
>>>>> Other times I think, "What the hell am I thinking?"
>>>>
>>>> You never know. Sometimes people do wake up one morning and decide
>>>> they're done with a particular hobby.
>>>
>>> Hobby? Motorcycling as a hobby. huh. What a bizarre concept.
>>
>>Well, what would you call it? For most of us it's not a job. It's not
>>a religion (Thumper notwithstanding). Even if you "live to ride," hey,
>>some people live to climb mountains, or watch movies. They're all
>>hobbies whose *practical* value is negative. If I ever wanted to quit
>>motorcycling, I wouldn't feel obligated to continue, like I am to my
>>family and (to some extent) co-workers.
>
> It's a means of transportation. I use it to go places. It's no more a
> hobby than my truck, or any other vehicle I've ever owned. (I've never
> owned a 4-wheeler or trike that's only useful on weekends in the
> dunes.) I ride daily, to the store, to work, to the beach, to anywhere
> else I go. My motorcycles are my primary means of transport. The
> practical value is incredible. My truck isn't practical. It gets lousy
> gas mileage, it takes up far too much room to park, has poor
> visibility, and it has poor maneuverability in town. Its only
> advantage is carrying the rare load too big for my bikes.
>
> The fact that bikes are _fun_ to ride is a bonus, but it doesn't
> negate the prime purpose of the machine.
>

Turby, not everyone feels the same about bikes as you and it doesn't
necessarily make them any better or worse than you. Personally at going on
63 and crippled with only one leg and half a functional heart, with a bunch
of other injuries from a deer/MC accident in 2004 I feel fortunate to even
be riding 100-300 miles a week.(mostly weekends) and I've been riding since
1963 (my 1st solo ride on a Honda 50cc step though). In those 45 years and
15 motorcycles I've commuted very little and done mostly weekend riding and
vacation camping trips or like a "hobby" not a lifestyle. I've ridden dirt,
UJM-street to later sport bikes (incl a GSXR1000K3) and done a dozen or
more track days, some in the red expert groups.

As far as running to the store or commuting on a MC goes, you can have it
because I consider that sort of 99% riding pushing fate a bit to much.

I choose my rides carefully (mostly on sparsely traveled roads) in the early
morning hours with trusted and like minded comrades and as little riding
light to light in town as possible but then maybe you feel invincible or
live in a small town or in a rural setting. Myself, I was hit by a red
light runner late to work at his minimum wage job at McD's back in 1977 and
lost 2" from my "crocked now" left leg. That's two no fault of my own
accidents and frankly now I'm quite cautious about where I ride and do as
much defensive riding as I can.

--
Bob Nixon, RZ-350, 06-SV-650#2, Chandler, AZ.
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

On Fri, 29 Feb 2008 11:07:52 -0700, _Bob_Nixon_ <bilbo.RemoveThis@nospam.com>
wrote:

>Turby wrote:
>
>> On Wed, 27 Feb 2008 10:07:51 -0700, timeOday
>> <timeOday-UNSPAM.RemoveThis@theknack.net> wrote:
>>
>>>Turby wrote:
>>>> On Tue, 26 Feb 2008 16:09:58 -0700, timeOday
>>>> <timeOday-UNSPAM.RemoveThis@theknack.net> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> BryanUT wrote:
>>>>>> Sometimes I think the next bike will be the last bike I'll ever own.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> And sometimes I think the bike I have now is the last bike.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Other times I think, "What the hell am I thinking?"
>>>>>
>>>>> You never know. Sometimes people do wake up one morning and decide
>>>>> they're done with a particular hobby.
>>>>
>>>> Hobby? Motorcycling as a hobby. huh. What a bizarre concept.
>>>
>>>Well, what would you call it? For most of us it's not a job. It's not
>>>a religion (Thumper notwithstanding). Even if you "live to ride," hey,
>>>some people live to climb mountains, or watch movies. They're all
>>>hobbies whose *practical* value is negative. If I ever wanted to quit
>>>motorcycling, I wouldn't feel obligated to continue, like I am to my
>>>family and (to some extent) co-workers.
>>
>> It's a means of transportation. I use it to go places. It's no more a
>> hobby than my truck, or any other vehicle I've ever owned. (I've never
>> owned a 4-wheeler or trike that's only useful on weekends in the
>> dunes.) I ride daily, to the store, to work, to the beach, to anywhere
>> else I go. My motorcycles are my primary means of transport. The
>> practical value is incredible. My truck isn't practical. It gets lousy
>> gas mileage, it takes up far too much room to park, has poor
>> visibility, and it has poor maneuverability in town. Its only
>> advantage is carrying the rare load too big for my bikes.
>>
>> The fact that bikes are _fun_ to ride is a bonus, but it doesn't
>> negate the prime purpose of the machine.
>>
>
>Turby, not everyone feels the same about bikes as you and it doesn't
>necessarily make them any better or worse than you.

Never said it did, and I don't see how you could possibly infer
otherwise.

>1963 (my 1st solo ride on a Honda 50cc step though). In those 45 years and
>15 motorcycles I've commuted very little and done mostly weekend riding and
>vacation camping trips or like a "hobby" not a lifestyle. I've ridden dirt,
>UJM-street to later sport bikes (incl a GSXR1000K3) and done a dozen or
>more track days, some in the red expert groups.
>
>As far as running to the store or commuting on a MC goes, you can have it
>because I consider that sort of 99% riding pushing fate a bit to much.

I always figured I'd die before I turned 35. If I didn't, I wasn't
having enough fun. 25 years later, I'm still trying to kill myself.

>I choose my rides carefully (mostly on sparsely traveled roads) in the early
>morning hours with trusted and like minded comrades and as little riding
>light to light in town as possible but then maybe you feel invincible or
>live in a small town or in a rural setting. Myself, I was hit by a red
>light runner late to work at his minimum wage job at McD's back in 1977 and
>lost 2" from my "crocked now" left leg. That's two no fault of my own
>accidents and frankly now I'm quite cautious about where I ride and do as
>much defensive riding as I can.

I've been put in the hospital twice by cagers, but not since 1980.
Both were urban situations. I ride so much in cities, I'm accustomed
to it and so deer scare me more. I used to ride 1/3 in the city, 1/3
in the back county roads, and 1/3 on long trips, but in the last
couple of years I've spent more time at home. This year, I should get
back to my old averages.

--
Turby the Turbosurfer
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

On Feb 26, 11:12 pm, Turby <turbosur... DeleteThis @beach.comber> wrote:
> On Tue, 26 Feb 2008 16:09:58 -0700, timeOday
>
> <timeOday-UNS... DeleteThis @theknack.net> wrote:
> >BryanUT wrote:
> >> Sometimes I think the next bike will be the last bike I'll ever own.
>
> >> And sometimes I think the bike I have now is the last bike.
>
> >> Other times I think, "What the hell am I thinking?"
>
> >You never know.  Sometimes people do wake up one morning and decide
> >they're done with a particular hobby.  
>
> Hobby? Motorcycling as a hobby. huh. What a bizarre concept.

I agree!
Dirt bikes are my hobby. Steetbikes are transportation; The best
transportation money can buy!
--
Rayvan
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike