BikeWNC

There was a "bike" rally in Johnson City Tn this weekend and some of the motorcycles made it down my way. On the way back from my ride today on the BRP I had to wait as the NPS and local rescue had to clean up a wreck in the middle of a tunnel. I was told a motorcycle and a car collided. I didn't hear the outcome of that accident but it can't be good.

cyclinfool

Let it go - ain't nothing your going to be able to do about it anyway.

tcs

"When they came for the scooter riders, I said nothing, because I was a cyclist. Then they came for the cyclists...."

tcs

Terrierman

I have a strong preference for the kind of bikes you have to make go yourself. The only time I have ever been yelled at on the road was by a Harley Rider. "Get off the road, dumbass!" is a direct quote. I thought he had a good point, and regret that I did not ever get the chance to tell him so.

probe1957

You're WAY more of a man than I am if you can ride 1000-1500 miles in a day on a motorcycle.

zoste

IIRC, Wanderer is an Iron Butt motorcyclist. When I was 18 I rode a Honda CL 360 from Philadelphia to Stuart, Florida (about 1,000 miles) in a shade under 36 hours. But that was a L-O-O-O-N-G time ago and I wouldn't attempt it now.

rnorris

Loud, obnoxious and irritating. Basically 2-wheeled Humvees. Given that most people report mileages of 30-40mpg on these things, on a per-pound basis they're among the most fuel-gulping vehicles on the road. I like most motorcycles, but not these.

Thulsadoom

Anyone who can ride a century could probably ride a thousand miles on a motorcycle with little problem.

zoste

In order to ride 1000 miles in a day one needs to average nearly 42 mph over 24 hours. Even if you could average 60 mph (you'd need to ride at 80 in order to do so), you'd still need 16 hours. That's a long time in any saddle, even if you don't have to pedal.

By contrast, an average of only 12 mph will allow you to complete a century in about 8 hours.

It might be more appropriate to say that anyone who can complete a 400km brevet could probably ride a thousand miles on a motorcycle with little problem.

cyclezen

actually, you can do something about it. There is a national level of compliance for noise and gases set by the EPA, which, ofr 49 states, is followed by Manufacturers. For CA the requirements are a bit more restrictive. Most states requires compliance to be able to 'register' a vehicle. Sadly, after a bike is rolled off the showroom floor, its no longer tested (because the relatively low numbers of bikes compared to autos would put even more strain on under-worked DMVs).
Its rarely enforced.
Still, not unseldom the LEOs who patrol the Santa Monica Mtns and also the Angles Crest HWY have been known to stop and 'ticket' riders with exhausts which don;t have the compliance label (which are ALL aftermarket exhausts! - compliance is expensive).
Personally, I think CA could fill a sizeable dent in their budget squeeze by applying these compliance rules.
And maybe some sizeable percentage of the noise polluters might go back to stock exhausts.
As a motorcyclist who's had many 20K+ mileage years on motos, its about the ride, not the noise.
I won;t speculate on choice of bike or why noise is needed, but somehow the concept of freedom gets misterpreted in the saying its OK to be an inconsiderate boor. Just another manifestation of much of the crap which swirls around in everyday life and is reinforced by primetime/cable/youtube crappage.
You don;t like the noise, do something! Call the mayor or your county Supervisors, state reps, governor's office.
Make some noise! ... with the ph and kybd

Thulsadoom

It's not a question of time, it's a question of energy. It doesn't take much energy to ride a motorcycle. You don't get very tired, and there's plenty to entertain you. I'm speaking from experience, I've done both(1000 miles on a motorcycle, and many centuries on a bicycle), and riding 1000 miles on a motorcycle is probably a lot easier than you might think.

Not that it's relevant to the thread......

zoste

I agree, not relevant to the thread...

However, sixteen, eighteen, twenty hours in a saddle is still a long day, regardless of energy spent. Maybe some touring mo'sickle like a Goldwing or a dressed 'Glide might not take much energy to ride, but my experience has been on small Hondas and a Sportster. Trust me, with no faring it takes a lot of energy just to hang onto the thing.

As for how easy I think it might be:

I know what 1000 virtually non-stop miles feels like on a bike.

genec

Had that on my daily commute for a while... no matter how prepared I was, I still jumped when they hit that throttle...

doctor j

I'm not much of a fan of the loud motorcycles. Some of them do tend to try to rattle me with a stroke of the throttle.

On my Sunday afternoon ride, a group of motorcycles passed us on the highway. The guy in the lead beeped his horn a couple of times, which I construed as a friendly gesture, and waved as he went by. First time that's ever happened. Didn't hurt my feelings at all.

I dislike the thump-thump cars much more so than the loud motorcycles. I'm not sure how anyone can actually ride inside when the air movement is such that it rattles the metal. The impulses can't be doing one's hearing a lot of good. That's where I'd love to see some enforcement. Perhaps the owners of these vehicles are intellectually challenged to the extent that they are compelled to think with their little heads instead of their big ones.

PaulH

I did run an open exhaust on the street once. I was at an autocross and had just taken off all four wheels and replaced them with small diameter Minilites with racing slicks. I'd also removed the muffler, replaced it with the megaphone, and reset the carbs. Lo and behold, my event got moved into the afternoon, and I was faced with the problem of how to get lunch. My solution was to drive the car in race configuration.

I learned 1) as long as I stayed close to idle power, the thing was very quiet, 2) the acceleration was so pleasant in that configuration that it was hard to resist temptation, and 3) redline in first was a lot louder when I wasn't wearing a helmet. Anyhow, I managed to sneak from the Boeing parking lot to the McDonalds and back sans tickets for either tires or exhaust.

Paul

Darth_Firebolt

i'm going to speak for the hardcore sport bike boys here for a few minutes. the ones that go to track-days and wear protective clothing, not the "stunta" squids that ride in shorts, crocs, a wife beater, and try to ride on one wheel everywhere.
stock exhausts are heavy. i saved 40 pounds off my bike by switching from stock exhaust (12 ga steel) to titanium. if the stock exhaust on my bike would have been lighter, i would not have switched. most of the go-fast types think this way too. we don't want certain people to know we're going fast, it just gives them time to set traps.

dynodonn 

I had an old Honda Dream, an hour and a half was max riding time due my feet and hands going numb from vibration, not to mention that the saddle width not being much wider than a bicycle saddle. Even on my newer smoother/more comfortable motorcycles, without a fairing, one gets tired from the buffeting at freeway speeds, and physical exertion manhandling curving mountainous roads.

sknhgy 

I have had this happen very blatantly.

reverborama

I'm an avid motorcyclist as well. Here's are my favorite comments on the matter:

1. If loud pipes save lives why isn't there an insurance discount for them?

2. The less you know about motorcycles the more you want a Harley.

3. ABATE stands for "Always Beer At The Event."

VegasTriker

You can take some solice in knowing that many of the Harley riders will be stone deaf before very long. I really haven't seen anyone step off a Harley, remove their helmet, and take out ear plugs. I've never owned a loud motorcycle though I have had one for almost all of the last 47 years and now have noticeable hearing loss in the high range. I attribute that to not wearing ear plugs for the first 35 or so years of riding (no helmet either until the laws changed in the 1970s). It wasn't until I bought an ultraquiet used BMW that the previous owner advised me to wear ear plugs while riding. Once gone, you never get the hearing back. Today I wouldn't get on a motorcycle without both ear plugs and a good helmet.

wobblyoldgeezer

^^ probably true
But maybe not a source of solace, as the deaf folk probably feel they want to make the machines louder to compensate!
Ear plugs, yes, necessary personal protective equipment - against wind noise mainly rather than engine noise
Also, a good pair of ear plugs can make your bike feel like you just changed the oil and lubricated and adjusted the chain, even if you haven't

sknhgy 

Those loud pipes make me wish I could do like that one redneck did to Dennis Hopper in Easyrider.

VROD

I have not had much to say in a while been doing a little riding on my mc and bicycle but have had alot of other things taking up alot of my time.work and family especially my mom and dad my dad has been in and out of the hospital this year so I have had to do alot of things for them.
but this kind of hit home for me since I work for collier harley davidson and have over a half a million mile on a mc most of them on a hd.I have 2 that run lol one a 2002 sportster with some engine work and loud pipes it is my hot rod and alot of fun to ride but it is not as fast as a sportbike.the other is a 2007 electra glide stock with stock exhaust also alot of fun and much more comfortable 1000 mi in 24 hours is not that hard the seat is real soft my bicycle seat is much more painfull.
people seem to complain about things they don't like.Some people don't like my bicycle because it goes to slow and is in their way give me a few minutes and as soon as I can I will pull to the right and let you by.Some people don't like my loud mc I will be gone in a couple of minute and you will not have to hear me anymore.then there is all those other things ,those kids cars are to loud, they shouldn't ride their skateboards there, man that car is loud,why does he have to cut his grass at 8:00 on sat morning and you know that guy that comes in a 3 on his loud mc probably has other problems.
a little acceptance ,patience and understanding will go a long way in life we don't all like the same things.
ps I make commission on those loud pipes and I like to eat lol thank ya'll for letting me rant

reverborama

I rest my case.