Probably the one thing I miss most from the old twf was the wealth of OTB threads. They're all entertaining and educational and they should really be brought to this forum. I'm taking the liberty of copying and pasting some of his most informative ones here.
Hope you don't mind OTB.
Used Bikes: Making A Deal
The warm winds of spring are blowing, and just as sure as God made little green apples, some of you have got the "BUG". You know, the "I gotta have a bike, right now!" BUG. So keep yer money in yer pocket for a couple of minutes, and I'll share with you a couple of hints to hold on to as much of that "green" as possible, and still get the bike you "need", (want, lust after, have an aching hole in your soul for).
I am making a couple of assumptions: You've picked out a
used bike, gone over it with a fine toothed comb, by yourself or with a knowledgeable buddy, checked the title, and you have a source of cash, and that this is from a private seller. Used bikes from a dealer and new bikes are a different kettle of fish because you are purchasing the bike from a business, so, for the business, it is strictly a financial transaction. Why is this distinction important? In a moment, you'll see.
Without getting all Zen on you, I'll say that in order to get the best deal, you have to know a little about what it is you are buying, yourself and other people, and that if you take the time to get this knowledge and apply it, you will achieve success in both this transaction and others in life.
Knowing your own motivations and limitations can be used to keep you from "giving away the store". What does that mean? It means that if you go look at every bike with a hyper kind of "I gotta have a bike, RIGHT NOW!" attitiude, you will cue the seller that he has an "easy mark". If you blurt out that "THIS is the bike I want!", you have just given away any bargaining position you may have held.....and that's OK if money isn't important to you.
But if getting and keeping dollars is as tough for you as it is for most of us, read on.
I'm NOT talking about "driving a hard bargain". Far from it. I'm talking about understanding what is really taking place in the process of buying and selling, and then using that understanding and a little self control to make everbody happy.
THE PROCESS
In order for a "sale" to take place, a couple of things have to happen. You need to have someone willing to sell something (in this case a used bike), you need to have a party willing to buy the product, you need to have the correct product (the "right" bike) and you need to agree on a price (and sometimes terms of the sale).
What frequently happens, is that our intrepid buyer (that's you, with money burning a hole in your pocket) find that bike you may be interested in in the classifieds, or Craigslist; listed at a price you think you can afford. You look up the bike, pouring over sexy photos of the bike and rider in full leathers in full lean, watching your buddies go riding with envy, building up a good head of
Buyer's Fever...you've convinced your wife, your SO, and/or your parents that you NEED a bike, and they've OK'd it (or at least you've worn them down to the point where they've given up protesting and say "Fine, but don't come to ME when you kill yourself"). So, you rush on out with money in hand "Before someone else can get THAT bike", kick the tires, fondle its smooth lines, drool on the aftermarket pipe and make a halfhearted attempt to knock the guy down a couple hundred; and when he says the price is "firm", you hand over your hard earned cash for the asking price.
Try another way.
First, understand that there are PLENTY of good used bikes out there, ALL THE TIME. So if the one you want gets away, there will be more. So do your homework. Settle on a couple of models AND MODEL YEARS you may be interested in and then check out pricing for those models and years in KBB.com and NADA.com.
Now, start looking for and AT bikes; talking as little as possible, except to ask questions; questions like, "Why are you selling this bike?" ....and then LISTEN to the answer the seller gives. "How soon do you want to sell?"...and then LISTEN for the answer. Frequently, a motormouthed seller will give you all the information you need to make a great deal in answering just those two questions. Why?
Have you ever heard the term "motivated seller"? It's a catchall term for someone that wants to unload something as fast as possible...and that's what you are looking for; a motivated seller. We already know that you are a motivated buyer; you've got the bug so bad that you can barely sleep at night. If you listen carefully, sellers will tip you off to what's going on in their lives that motivated them to list that bike to begin with.
I once looked at a like-new 929rr that a VERY serious and intimidating cop was selling; after asking him the two questions, the dam broke and he poured forth with the fact that he had a new house, new furniture, and his wife just found out they were expecting and he needed the money RIGHT NOW. I asked him how much he "needed" for the bike, and he gave me a number almost a thousand below what he listed it for. I handed him the cash and rode it away. He was happy and so was I.
I looked at another bike that I had tried to see several times, but the seller kept cancelling and we kept missing each other; I nearly gave up. He called me out of the blue after a couple of weeks of this, I popped on over and inspected the bike. It had some mild neglect issues, and I told him so. I then asked him my two questions and then listened. He was going through a divorce, really didn't want to sell, but if he didn't have some cash TODAY, he was going to lose his house. I asked him how much he needed for his bike: he gave me a number almost 1500 below his listing. I gave hime the cash and took the bike. He was happy and so was I.
Notice I didn't make a "counter offer". I didn't have to. Yep, I could have saved another hundred of so, at the cost of good will. But I knew that both deals were well below what I knew they were worth ('cause I had done my homework), so I didn't have to embarrass myself or "beat the other guy up".
Ask questions, pay attention, and keep your mouth shut.
Happy hunting.
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Simple But Effective
I have two tips for new(er) riders to help with getting through the early stages of riding. Both are simple (so simple that people wonder if they really work; trust me, they do) but highly effective.
A. Remember to breath while riding, ESPECIALLY when tense. This is true of any physically challanging endeavor; instinct (flight or fight) has our bodies take in air and hold it during high stressor times; a holdover in our "lizard" brain times of "puffing up" to appear more intimidating to a foe. Great for making us look bigger to a competing organism, but most decreasing radius corners aren't impressed. The only result is a stiffening of our whole body (bad when you need to be able to react quickly) and oxygen deprivation (even worse). When you find yourself tensing up, remember to take large slow breaths; this will keep your blood more oxygenated and have the natural benefit of keeping muscles more relaxed and supple.
B. Kind of related, but more specific: don't lock your elbows or your wrists! Many modern sportbikes force you into the "monkey humping a football" posture, with much of your upper body weight on your wrists and arms. Newer riders have a tendency to lock their wrists and elbows in an effort to take some of the pressure off their back muscles. The end result is that all of the jostling and front suspension effect gets fed right up into your upper body, ecouraging a phenomenon known as "weave".
Little, minor oscillations get refed back into the frame/suspension interface by a tense, frightened rider, amplifying the oscillations and worsening the problem.
You also have less throttle and brake control when the controlling wrists are stiff:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...arch&plindex=3
This vid is a classic, but also because it is a classic "fear" reaction; the bike starts doing something the new rider does not expect, he tenses, the bikes starts to buck because of poor/stiff throttle control, the bucking causes his locked arms/wrists to feed more motion into the throttle, which increases the bucking motion and on and on until loss of control.
Tense, fearful, unsure of yourself? BREEEEAAAATHE and cock your elbows, relax your wrists and take up some of the weight with your stomach muscles (what better way to six-pack abs anyway?)
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Clutchless Upshifting
OTB started a discussion about
this article on how clutchless upshifting is underrated way of shifting smoother. It made me adopt the practice and it saves tons of time and makes riding a lot more enjoyable.
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The hypothermia thread...
I was out delivering furniture yesterday; temp was around 50-55 and sunny in the early afternoon. Saw a number of bikers out; as the afternoon progressed, the sky clouded up and temperatures plummeted into the lower forties. I pulled up to a traffic light on Rt2 S next to a fellow on a TLR (Blue and White with Arrow cans; anybody here?) and noticed he was shivering almost uncontrollably while waiting for the light. Helmet, no bandanna or balaclava, tight fitting leather Suzuki leather jacket, jeans and high tops, regular gloves, no insulation or gauntlets (skin showing between jacket cuff and glove). Guy took off from the light poorly, wobbly and missed a shift, then disappeared into the distance. Hope he made it home ok.
You would think that anybody riding this time of year would be prepapred for rapid temperature drops; the rapidity of loss of heat when temps cycle down even 10 degree can be astounding. One minute the sky is sunny, warm and inviting, the next minute air temps can drop 10-20 degrees, putting the unprepared rider at risk.
Wikipedia describes Hypothermia as follows:
Normal body temperature in humans is 37(98.6°). Hypothermia can be divided in three stages of severity.
In stage 1, body temperature drops by 1-2°C below normal temperature (1.8-3.6°F). Mild to strong shivering occurs. The victim is unable to perform complex tasks with the hands; the hands become numb. Blood vessels in the outer extremities constrict, lessening heat loss to the outside air. Breathing becomes quick and shallow. Goose bumps form, raising body hair on end in an attempt to create an insulating layer of air around the body (limited use in humans due to lack of sufficient hair, but useful in other species). Often, a person will experience a warm sensation, as if they have recovered, but they are in fact heading into Stage 2. Another test to see if the person is entering stage 2 is if they are unable to touch their thumb with their little finger; this is the first stage of muscles not working.
In stage 2, body temperature drops by 2-4°C (3.6-7.2°F). Shivering becomes more violent. Muscle mis-coordination becomes apparent. Movements are slow and labored, accompanied by a stumbling pace and mild confusion, although the victim may appear alert. Surface blood vessels contract further as the body focuses its remaining resources on keeping the vital organs warm. The victim becomes pale. Lips, ears, fingers and toes may become blue.
In stage 3, body temperature drops below approximately 32°C (90°F). Shivering usually stops. Difficulty speaking, sluggish thinking, and amnesia start to appear; inability to use hands and stumbling are also usually present. Cellular metabolic processes shut down. Below 30°C (86°F) the exposed skin becomes blue and puffy, muscle coordination very poor, walking nearly impossible, and the victim exhibits incoherent/irrational behavior including terminal burrowing or even a stupor. Pulse and respiration rates decrease significantly but fast heart rates (ventricular tachycardia, atrial fibrillation) can occur. Major organs fail. Clinical death occurs. Because of decreased cellular activity in stage 3 hypothermia, the body will actually take longer to undergo brain death . (emphasis is mine)
I have had mild hypothermia a couple of times while riding; it was terrifying, unpleasant and took a long time to recover from (like in the better part of a day). I grew up in Minnesota, and spent one year with no car and just a bike, so I've ridden in just about every type of weather, including snow and sub-zero (though I don't recommend it).
Hypothermia can occur up to 5 times faster when you add in rain or spray. Remember that with riding, we're not just concerned with ambient air temp, we're also concerned with wind chill. Riding a motorcycle (even a fully-faired sport bike) is pretty much like standing outside in a 60 mph wind blast. AT 40 degrees, that would have you suffering frostbite to exposed flesh in about 30 minutes...add rain with no raingear and you're looking at serious problems in a matter of minutes.
For safe cold-season riding, the key elements are gear that can first BLOCK the wind and water, INSULATE the rider from cold ambient air, and BREATHE enough to prevent perspiration wetting (as bad as wetting from rain or spray). A thrity degree day would prolly not be a good one for that mesh gear you bought. A one piece or zip-together two piece leather or heavy ballstic fabric unit is the way to go, with fleece or flannel-lined garments underneith. Tall neck closures, wrist closures, gauntleted gloves (heated is even better) and a neck gaiter or balaclava (I prefer a turtle fur balaclava because it also insulates my head more, where 40% of heat loss occurs.....you ARE wearing a full-coverage helmet, right?). Insulated sport-touring boots need to replace those racey (read thermo-formed, tight fitting) Aplinestars. Too tight means no airspace, which means no insulation, which means cold-feet-in-a-hurry. For those travelling regularly in the 40's and below, a set (vest, gloves and boot liners and/or chaps) of HEATED gear can keep you toasty even when the snow blows (but that's another story), as long as your charging system can handle the load.
Being caught out in the elements doesn't have to mean being dangerous, or even uncomfortable if you have the right gear. I have a heavy rain suit that has been used numerous times as an additional wind-blocking layer when the temps have dropped faster or further than anticipated. A friend of mine once used discarded foam sheets of packing material stuffed in his jacket when he got caught in an early-September cold front when the temps dropped 30 degrees in a matter of minutes. It wasn't pretty but it got him home safe.
Remember that cold temps mean cold tires, hard to see frost and more sand and gravel in the turns.......
If you've even been out riding in the cold and found yourselve shivering violently, making clumsy moves and bad decisions, you've been in the second stage of hypothermia...a potentially life-threatening condition.
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