Does this make me crazy?

[HobbyMan]

Well, tonight is prom night. We raised lots of money this year for my SR class but prom tickets were still $70. That's way to expensive and besides, I spend all my money on my motorcycle. So tonight I decided to celebrate and take my 80G out for a spin. I have not driven it since I came home from the Jacksonville rally. (I drive the SF to school whenever possible) I was just going over to my sisters place put I just could not stop. I "think" the speed limit was 40 but I had no control. I just kept slowly opening the throttle. I saw the numbers counting 45,55, 65... It was very dark out and there were only a few street lights. One of the oncoming cars had a noticeable sign of police lights on the top. I did not care. I did not slow. I just kept accelerating. It felt so great feeling the smooth beat of the engine underneath me. I was being hypnotized. When I realized that there was a stop light approaching and the police car was making a sudden U turn I was not worried. There was a good half mile between us and the light turned green as I slid forward. By the time he made it too that same light, I was a mile away traveling at some speed over 100mph on the nearby freeway. I was not traveling fast out of fear, but sheer addiction to my motorcycle. I don't remember how fast I was traveling or how far I went but I do remember switching to reserve on my fuel tank. That was my bike cuing me to turn around. A short trip over the local dam gave me a chance to really slow my thoughts. Driving on a two lane road where one side drops off into a dark abyss and the other stretches out over the water with a few red and green lights shine in the distance really makes you think. As soon as I crossed, I turned around on the spillway to make one last high speed run. I was extremely impressed with my bike as it accelerated in 5th gear all the way to 120mph before the safe road came to an end. What a thrill. Its amazing that there are these secret places in the middle of a busy world. Eventually I made my way on back to my sisters house where I got to lay down on the couch. I guess I am "living" proof why you should not put an XS1100 in the hands of an 18yr old. Its hard to believe that my motorcycle is not alive. I don't know how many people feel this way about something. Knowledge and logic tells me that I am riding a bunch of steel and aluminum around on a set of rubber tires but I can't help feeling something else. That is why I wonder if I am crazy. I wonder if my motorcycle is alive. I wonder if it will be this way forever. Does this happen to anyone else. If not, I surely am crazy.

[prometheus578]

Well, tonight is prom night.

Well, yes it is, it's PROM's night, and to celebrate, I'm gonna lay into your young a$$.
Firstly, "ya don't clown... when the cop's aroun'."
Secondly, You don't go making high speed runs at night, whether you know the road or not.

Right before closing today, a good customer backed his truck up to the bay door. His kid's Ninja was in the back. I fired up the forklift and scooped it out.
The Ninja is now lying on the floor in a corner of the shop. His 18 yr old son is lying on a bed in the hospital down the road.

See any connection there, HobbyMan?

[midnight1980]

HobbyMan women are not worth dieing for..

while riding don''t get the two tangle up in your mind, while out for a cruse or you will be mangled up.
the cops would of caught up too you and laughed at your a** laying there

[Wildkat]

Not crazy so much...

but not the smartest thing I know you've done...

One of the things about riding and getting so in tune with your bike is getting to the point where you are one with the machine... no lines of division... just a meld of man (woman) and machine... and the road... People who don't ride... will never understand that feeling...
There is a point... as you get older... responsibilities change... your ideas change... the risks you are willing to take change... When I see you on your bike I feel a little envious, I think... You have a freedom... a lack of restraint... that I can no longer afford to have... but that lack of restraint can get you into trouble too...
So... the Mom in me says "BE CAREFUL Ya darn fool!!"


Ummmmm....

HobbyMan women are not worth dieing for..

WHAT!?!?!?!
Where did THAT come from? HobbyMan didn't say anything about a woman here...

By the way HobbyMan... probably a good choice on the prom (no... not you prometheus )... I went to mine and have no memories worth the megabucks it cost to get in...

[SanDiegoMike]

Ahhh...ignorance is bliss, and you you have just reinforced the old saying "Youth is wasted on the young".

I don't think anyone here would discourage you from having a great time when you're on your bike, but we would all preach the necessity of being a responsible rider. I can't begin to count the number of guys I've seen lay their bikes down on Sunday rides in the twisties...always the same formula--too much motorcycle + not near enough experience = road rash. As an ex-firefighter, I've also had plenty of experience loading "donorcyclists" into ambulances...everything from minor scrapes and bruises to seriously dead. And I can still remember very vividly the feeling I had at 18 when I was sliding backwards at 60mph with my helmet being the only thing touching the ground while my bike was sliding about 50 feet in front of me, creating quite a light show of sparks after being cut off by a drunk driver who came out of a side street without his lights on. Not fun.

Listen, I get it. I've been riding for over 30 years, and I still get that rush every time I fire my bike up. My advice to you is simple: Don't be a dumbass. Ride your bike in a manner that will allow you to someday pass along to YOUR kids some great riding stories. I'm getting ready to start my 16 year old daughter on a street bike, and I am looking forward to the rides we will have together.

[mason79]

you are not crazy at all a little tame, somehow i think you are too chicken to take it faster...

[81xsproject]

The first time I drove a motorcycle I rode a friends bike when I was 17. I got on, rode to a back road and then went as fast as it would go until the borrowed helmet on my head was trying to be removed by Brenulli.
I didn't ride again until it was my own bike and I was 25. I was scared to death of riding over 55mph. I am glad I didn't have a bike until I had developed a little adult maturity.

We only lecture you because we care. (ever heard that before )

[HobbyMan]

so the answer seems to be that it does make me crazy I know I don't have the experience yet to know what all is dangerous but I at least have some limits. There are a lot of things I wont do. Thank you for the valuable advice.

somehow i think you are too chicken to take it faster.

hmm... do I sense a challenge?
just kidding

[Dragonrider]

Yes. They're alive. No question whatsoever.

It's symbiotic, this relationship. Blood. Bone. Muscle. Steel. When you're not sure where the man ends and the bike...or the road...begins, that's when you've got it.

It doesn't always involve high-speed runs. It DOES however, frequently involves nights. Texas summer nights are just plain magic.

It is what it is. I've written a quarter of a million words and I still haven't really explained it.

Ride on.

[HobbyMan]

You know what I am taliking about.

[mro]

just plain magic

there are the times when all is right
mostly during moon lit nights
rush of air, growl of exhaust
don’t know or care if lost
twisting the throttle to it’s stop
revs passing red line I care not
calm settles over your mind
being one with the steel horse as it’s speed climbs
all the fears are left behind
reaching for a new plateau
only a few will ever know
the road is mine


mro

[HobbyMan]

good stuff. Its too bad I can't write like that.
It is as if these motorcycles have an essence of feeling.

[wingnut]

Hobbyman, I understand, but listen to one bit of advice. YOU WANT TO GO FAST MORE THAN ONCE? DO IT ON THE TRACK IN SAFE CONDITIONS. Find yourself a track day some where and have at it. We like ya kid and want ya around awhile. I second the don't be a dumb a$$ in the Texas night! Didn't you and your Dad just destroy a truck at night while on the road? Think about what would have happened if that elk had stepped in front of you bike? Hell even a jack rabbit at that speed would have been bad news.

[Wildkat]

Hey HobbyMan... check this out...

Texas Raceway in Kennedale
You probably already know about this... They have a few motorcycle events that look pretty cool... and it isn't expensive to race or run the track.
You are right... these bikes have a life to them and everyone of them is different... The FJ has it's own personality too... and I tend to do things with it that I would never do on the XS (as you have witnessed *ahem*)... They get to you... and they get inside of you... and it's all good... Just have to remember that you control it... not the other way around... no matter how difficult it can be...


Wow mro... that was really nice


and midnight1980... sorry I was so brass... You DO have a point.

[BLUEJEEPLAB]

Hobby Man. like Wildkat, the Dad in me as telling you to find the joy in the symbiotic relationship between man and bike in the safe and sane way. The Kenendale track sounds like a good option.

If you do want to open it up, that's the way to do it. The public streets aren't the place. You may be safe, but the other idiots may not be. Not to mention what kind of trouble you could have ended up with our friends in Blue. They take a dim view of 60 over....