The No-Excuses Motorcycle

[eddiekay]

I've sat and listened to guys complain about their bikes for years.
The big BMW that's too heavy to take on a dirt road, the super sport that isn't happy in traffic ( it's a bike dude, not a person), the HD that's no good on twisties, the KLR650 that gets blown around too much on the highway.
And the complaints are always followed by excuses not to ride a particular route or go someplace. Yet, the limits are never the bike and always the biker.
Motorcycle have always been go anywhere do anything rides. As they became more specialized, the media began telling us what the bikes would and wouldn't do and many of us bought into it. So...we stopped trying to take our hogs down cowpaths, the sport bikers stayed on the pavement and I haven't seen a dirt bike on the street in years. Fish around on the net and you WILL find pix of HD's in mud, on mountainsides...as to the dirt bikes, they're ridden in asia in every possible situation and sportbikes, likewise can do just about anything you want....but not at 160mph. The ninjette, honda rebel and 125 kawa cruiser are the only 3 mainstream bikes that take any possible excuse away. They all run to the legal limit, they're all light enough to pick up when you drop it and theyre all simple machines that won't self destruct if you fall. But, because none of them have big motors nor fat tires, they're used or seen as beginner bikes. True, a small bike is best to learn on. False, they're not just for beginners.
I'm a 60 year old rider with many years in the saddle but I'm not an accomplished rider. I can't stunt, never dragged a knee and still wet my pants when I come into a turn too fast....though not as often on the ninjette.
I'm a typical street rider with no special skills.
But...I ride with guys whose engines are at least 3x as big as mine. True...when they blip the throttle on a straight road and wind up 1/4 mile ahead of me in a few seconds...well...you know the feeling.
But, very few riders continue at 100+ speeds for any distance.
And, after they get that "blip" out of their system...they setle back down to 75, 80, whatever conditions allow and we're all together again.
And we pretty much finish the day as a group.
I've been out with "adventure tourers" too and the fact is that about the only difference in practical machine capability is ground clearance ( so you go around the rock and not over it). Even when you stall a ninjette on a hill...it's light enough so that it's not going to roll backwards or fall over.
Riding with cruisers is no more difficult. They blast off in a thuderous roar and within a 1/2 mile...settle back into a cruise that the ninjette can easily maintain.
Look, if you want to compare your bikes to hyabusa's or ducatis or ulysses's or ktm's then you'll be intimidated...but remember that the specialized bikes are always tested by pro riders who can use the bike to it's limit and all thereports are written in light of that.
But, in the everyday-real world , bikes are almost never ridden that way.
Wanna have a little fun?
Ride out with some cruisers and tell them it's a 250...
first time you stop for coffee, you'll be asked "What size did you say that motor is"
Go with a sane group of sports...you WILL see them looking in the mirror when you chase them thru the turns
In everyday riding, the ninjette can do everything and nobody has any excuse not to take it out with any other bikers.
If you want excuses, get a bigger bike. Everybody who rides big bikes has excuses. IMHO

[Snake]

Very well said. Lets just get out there and ride and not worry about what any one else has to say.

[ScraitT]

I actually purposely got the 250 partially for the fact that it won't break 100. There is absolutely no reason in the world to do those speeds on the street ('m not saying I wouldn't or haven't, I'm just saying there is no justifiable reason)...so I bought a bike that I couldn't do those speeds on. I don't want the temptation.

I have riders brag about how they hit 150 on the way home from work, and all I can think now is "wow, you're an idiot and the reason people hate sportbikes".


And funny mention about Harelys, BMWs, and offroading. My friend rides a Harley and was on his way to work a few weeks ago. He has a pretty far drive out to the middle of nowhere for his current project site. On the way he pulled behind a big BMW adventure type bike. It was a dirt road, so he kinda wanted to show off that his Harley could keep up with the BMW just fine, and it did....until the road curved to the right and the BMW decided to go straight, hit a small hill a about 55 and just keep going on his apparent shortcut. So my friend gave up...his Harley was going to be doing any kinda of jumps or serious offroading, the BMW won.

[Blackwidow]

up until this site, I never knew that engine size was such a big deal in the motorcycle world. I figured it was all about the experiance and the feeling of utter freedom when you ride. My bf has a 600 CBR, no one ever asked him what the size was, at least when i was around. the people that have the audacity to point out the size of 250 or "make fun" of it, are insecure themselves, they need power between their legs to make them feel better, cuz they lack other things.

[kamikaze]

Originally Posted by Blackwidow

up until this site, I never knew that engine size was such a big deal in the motorcycle world. I figured it was all about the experiance and the feeling of utter freedom when you ride. My bf has a 600 CBR, no one ever asked him what the size was, at least when i was around. the people that have the audacity to point out the size of 250 or "make fun" of it, are insecure themselves, they need power between their legs to make them feel better, cuz they lack other things.

couldn't have said it better myself.

If someone doesn't want to ride with me cause of the bike I ride, then they aren't someone I want to ride with anyway.

[demp]

for the record I take my "Pavement Only" sports bike through dirt roads, gravel, and whatever else I can find I've yet to meet an actual pond, but there was that one flash flood we had back when - I was certain I was going to stall the bike (water in the air intake) but we made it through just fine! (water was so high it was filling my boots!, yeah they're waterproof, but not when they're submerged in water!)

[eddiekay]

I dont wanna sound like a crazy old guy repeating himself but...WTF....
every time i take this bike on a trip I'm more impressed with what it can easily do. I rode the iconic yamaha 350's and honda 350's way back when and they were incredibly durable and versatile bikes but had definite handling limits. I've come no where near what the ninjette can do in corners, in braking...and it's just hair faster than the old 350's.
back in the day...everybody who rode was a RIDER and most of us couldn't afford cars so we did everything we could with the bike.
Modern riders have so many choices with how to spend their time and money that it's easy to understand why a 300 mile day is considered hard core by many. I dont think less of the rider who makes excuses not to go out but they'll never have any idea what they're missing. What I did find out after getting the 'jette is that the RIDERS are not who I thought they were.
They come in all flavors and the most important thing is that we talk to each other....you never know how much fun a riding buddy can be till you talk to some dude you don't know. Yeah...95% of them will have excuses but the other 5%...for me anyway...have become comrades.

[wvninja]

I had a 250 and I agree from the line I would get dusted and in the twisties I'd always be playing catch up. What I don't agree with is the 70 mph cruise.. I have no experience on anything bigger (or faster rather) than a 600 .. and I can tell you without a single doubt cruising is much better on the highway with my 600 than on the 250. I also had the problem of trying to pass a car doing 30 mph in a 45 to only hit the gas as soon as you get around to the side of them. Now here I am flooring it just to get around some idiot who wants to race me because they think I'm on some super sport. For every day commuting around town sure its a great bike. But I couldn't get past the fact that when my friends wanted to ride 45 minutes on interstate away I wouldn't ride because I'd be be doing 70mph close to topped out with no power to pull if I needed it to.

[eddiekay]

nate....no argument that passing takes an extraordinary amount of care....the honda will blast by but the ninjette crawls by but, I do it all the time when I can get a long enough stretch to drop back speed up and crawl by...normally , I won't pass someone if they're moving 40-50 even on an empty 2 lane. As to the huighway speed, I respectfully disagree. Again. I'm just an avergae rider but the bike effortlessly runs @ 85-90 for miles on a level road and it's nicely into it's HP at those rpm's. At 70...the bike isn't even near it's power.
You sound like a smart rider and that's what we all need to be but, if the bike is in good shape and all, it will easily run @ 10, 11,12000 rpm. BTW...I DO have a big windshield and it makes a real big difference. Coming off the honda, yeah, it feels like there's nothing there...no brute force like the cb but I guarantee you that if you run the bike up past 10k you'll be a happy man.

[Flashmonkey]

Ya I actually found regular and long distance freeway riding more enjoyable on the 250 than on the current full-fairing'd hippo I ride to work these days. I guess it was a combination of the tiny physical size of the bike, lack of wind protection, and the fact that I was usually WOT all the time hehe. In any case, the ninja 250 didn't lack power at all for most of my needs, and I was pretty damn heavy when I rode that bike.

Now, regarding the OP, I complain TONS about my bike hating traffic and the heat, but I still ride her in traffic and in heat because that's all I have right now haha. I refuse to ride in the rain, because most of my riding is done on my commute, and I've had far too many close calls with wet streetcar tracks to try that on purpose again. I do love the feeling of riding in the rain, though....but only when there aren't streetcar tracks everywhere.

[Hadyn]

Great post, Eddie. +1 to all of it.

But...I ride with guys whose engines are at least 3x as big as mine. True...when they blip the throttle on a straight road and wind up 1/4 mile ahead of me in a few seconds...well...you know the feeling.
But, very few riders continue at 100+ speeds for any distance.
And, after they get that "blip" out of their system...they setle back down to 75, 80, whatever conditions allow and we're all together again.
And we pretty much finish the day as a group.

Before I wrecked it, I took my ninja on 5 or 6 group rides, all with bigger bikes. If anything, the 250 got more respect than I expected. I wasn't demoted to the back of the group as 'the slow one' or left behind, and everyone seemed to understand that the 250 was a fantastic little machine and not something to be scoffed at. Like Blackwidow said, people who make fun of engine size and throw out horsepower numbers and top speeds just don't understand. Sure, passing cars that are already doing 55+ on windy backroads took a lot more planning than just twisting the throttle and rocketing past, but I kinda liked having to plan out my passing, it kept me from stupid things. On my last ride, everyone was saying that I was ready for an upgrade, but after I thought about it I realized that I wasn't really done with the 250. I'm probably going to pick up another one in the spring.

A story littledog told in this thread has really stuck in my mind:

He looked my bike over for a minute and said " That is a 250 isn't it?" I said yes, I had been riding for about a year, it was my first bike, and I had wanted to start with something managable. He said "modern bikes, especially sport bikes, are incredibly overpowered. Your bike will go the speed limit on any road all day long. What more do you need?"

And it's completely true.

[m3fan4ever]

My riding group consists of my 250, a Buell XB9, a SV650S, and an 800cc cruiser. We all have different styles of bikes and riding but we all enjoy the ride. We all respect each one's reason to ride. When on the highway they don't blast off and leave me behind, but on the twisties we don't leave our cruiser friend behind either. I can usually out-do the bigger bikes in the turns anyway. We just enjoy each part ourselves and enjoy doing it with some comrades. Having good biker buddies helps us enjoy the ride so much more instead of arguing about who is better and has the best bike. We are just all motorcyclists and riders first.

[Blackwidow]

Originally Posted by m3fan4ever

Having good biker buddies helps us enjoy the ride so much more instead of arguing about who is better and has the best bike.

probably because you guys arent insecure about the size of your penis's. did i say that outloud? LOL

[eddiekay]

Seth...A++

[lockie]

As a 60+ rider I also get all the thrills and speed necessary from my little Ninjette. I cruise the four lanes at the speed limit (110 kph) with ease and more. Yea a bigger bike or a cruiser might be a bit better but not as much fun when you take off on the side roads here in the Maritimes. Hard to beat that.

[Yoda]

Love my ninja 250 and the MPG i get out of it. Rather then 50-60 bucks or more a week in gas it is only costing me 9-10 to commute.

Bike is wonderfully light handling and nimble and honestly this is being more fun. I would prefer EFI but cant have it all.

There have been times where on the highway I would prefer a few more horses but that might be fixable with some tuning and such.

As for the gotta do 100+mph crowd Id just mention the 2 riders they scraped off the highway here this week.

[ScorpionNinja]

Originally Posted by eddiekay

Wanna have a little fun?
Ride out with some cruisers and tell them it's a 250...
first time you stop for coffee, you'll be asked "What size did you say that motor is"
Go with a sane group of sports...you WILL see them looking in the mirror when you chase them thru the turns
In everyday riding, the ninjette can do everything and nobody has any excuse not to take it out with any other bikers.
If you want excuses, get a bigger bike. Everybody who rides big bikes has excuses. IMHO

+1

Afew bike nights where its the typical cruiser/HD crowd, ill get afew questions about my bike. When they find out its a 250, they perk up and seemed even more interested. IMO It seems they suddenly respect me for starting on a 250, not a 1000cc like all the other out there!

Also, ive made some riding friends with men 50-60's that ride BMW touring bikes. During the last 2 group rides, im the ONLY sportbike amongst 12 or so Blue/Silver/Gunmetal grey BMW RT1200's, etc... as my RED bike Stands out!!! yet i can keep up with them up to 100 MPH, can and have passed in the turns.

Yet they still ask questions about my 250.
What cc is it again?
What HP does it have again? really??? WOW thats impressive!

even when i 2UP with my GF on back during the BMW group rides.

[m3fan4ever]

Originally Posted by drsketch

I hate cruisers, imo there is no point in even owning one

I'm not a big fan either. Especially Harleys. I just don't like the style. Plus there is usually an attitude from the rider. My friend that rides one doesn't have that jerk attitude and also rides a metric. He can usually keep up with us on curvy roads, as he rides more aggressively than most cruiser folks (as in he actually goes the speed limit on regular roads). Plus we were friends before we started riding so that definitely helps.

[RedNinja09]

This is my 2nd summer with my Ninja, I ride with friends all the time and I have never had a problem keeping up or "getting left behind." Keep in mind they have an 1800 and a 500 cc bike respectively. Sure, my friends could blow by me if they wanted to, but we ride together...we dont race each other. Just today, I was riding home and a dude was like "I like your bike" as I was waiting for a light to turn green. I gave him the thumbs up, I love my bike too.

And I like what someone had to say above about not needing a bike that goes 100 mph +. I am in agreement, I dont need to go over 80 mph, I am trying to stay alive and enjoy riding. I am not into racing or pushing the limits of life. I am here to live. I ride like everyone is going to kill me on the road. Defensively, that is the way it has to be. I want to live to ride again.

[eddiekay]

Everybody ought to read scorpioninja's post....seeeee, i'M NOT MAKING THIS UP. the bikes will run fast. The reason I began this post was because I saw so many ninjetters questionning the ability of these bikes to run fast. I'm not criticizing anybody for riding at prudent speeds and novice riders should stay within their comfort zone but....no excuses...the 250 can safely and dependably be taken out with much larger bikes and what you WILL find out is that you will be outrunning them too because you dont have to be scared of pushing your bike. On a stright road...you'll keep up but when the road turns...you'll lead.
As to the much maligned HD crew....talk to them and you'll find that, generally, they're not hardcore vet bikers but noobs. fact is that the HD's are very easy bikes to ride...very stable, totally dependable and until you've owned one...even a sporster...you can't understand that having an HD is like joining a very big brotherhood. I had one and it wwas avery nice feeling. People stop and look at your bike...little kids wave at you..other HD guys nod..all HD riders talk to each other...where...sport riders just dont.
Do you see how friendly ninjette.org is..........well, having a HD is like that only offline.

[backinthesaddleagain]

On group rides that I go on a guy on a 250 Yamaha supermoto type bike usually leads. He knows great roads and rails on that thing. There is a mix of Guzzi, Duc, BMW, and Honda literbikes, as well as a 250Interceptor whose rider also hauls through the corners. Though put that guy on a bigger bike and he continues to rail, but in the tight RI backroads the smaller bikes definitely carry corner speed.

[backinthesaddleagain]

Originally Posted by eddiekay

Everybody ought to read scorpioninja's post....seeeee, i'M NOT MAKING THIS UP. the bikes will run fast. The reason I began this post was because I saw so many ninjetters questionning the ability of these bikes to run fast. I'm not criticizing anybody for riding at prudent speeds and novice riders should stay within their comfort zone but....no excuses...the 250 can safely and dependably be taken out with much larger bikes and what you WILL find out is that you will be outrunning them too because you dont have to be scared of pushing your bike. On a stright road...you'll keep up but when the road turns...you'll lead.
As to the much maligned HD crew....talk to them and you'll find that, generally, they're not hardcore vet bikers but noobs. fact is that the HD's are very easy bikes to ride...very stable, totally dependable and until you've owned one...even a sporster...you can't understand that having an HD is like joining a very big brotherhood. I had one and it wwas avery nice feeling. People stop and look at your bike...little kids wave at you..other HD guys nod..all HD riders talk to each other...where...sport riders just dont.
Do you see how friendly ninjette.org is..........well, having a HD is like that only offline.

I agree on the HD community. I was on vacation recently and the HD riders (a mix of working people and retirees) that I came accross were interested in each others bikes and how it was riding from their homes to NH. Of course there are your "tough" bikers too. I often laugh because in the summer we rarely trade waves but on a 40 (or cooler) degree day we do.

[backinthesaddleagain]

Originally Posted by drsketch

I hate cruisers, imo there is no point in even owning one

Buddy has an 883. He likes it. Its fun to ride occasionally for me too. All that really matters is that you enjoy the bike you ride and the roads you ride. I want to turn, he wants to take the straight roads to the beach. Both enjoying different facets of road riding. Even when I rode dirt and mx, some mx guys looked down on enduro riders. You know how dirt riding improves road riding skills - well dodging trees and rocks makes an mx rider a better mx rider. Again its all about finding what you enjoy and a bike that helps you to enjoy it.

[wvninja]

Don't get me wrong I loved my 250 and if I could still own both I would. I think I would prefer my CBR on longer back road cruises and the 250 for commuting.

As for passing I rode with 600s and I sometimes lead the pack and sometime sat mid or even rear. I agree the 250 got respect for being able to keep up. Problem was in wv the curvy roads are everywhere and a passing section is few and far between. So we find one and I'd start to pass (only with good reason) and people speed up every time. I don't understand why someone would drive for 10 minutes 10 to 15 mph lower than the posted speed limit and as soon as I go to pass them they hit the gas. Another thing is when they bigger bikes went to pass them like they were sitting still .. by the time it was my turn the car was already going faster. We had a system worked out in the end though. I'd let them pass first (even if I was at the front of the pack or rear) and let the get in front of the car and slow down LOL.

One thing I've noticed on the CBR I didn't get as much on the Ninja is everyone and I mean everyone tells me to ride a wheelie. Seriously I get people yelling out windows, standing on the side of the road doing hand gestures. I guess owning a sport bike people think we all ride wheelies LOL.

As for cruiser.. that will be the next bike I buy. I think when I get this one paid off I'm going to buy a cruiser / dresser (maybe something with some good storage) so I can take some long trips.

[Sailariel]

I like anything on two or three wheels. Four wheelers have their place, but I find them boring. They do serve a purpose when I have to pick up a 25lb bag of cat litter.

[tinng321]

Some people feel the need to upgrade for whatever reasons. I admit I belong in that group. I sold the 250 and got the 600 not because I wanted to go fast. I usually do 10-15 mph over the limit and we all know that the 250 is capable. The sound of the 250's engine didn't appeal to me. It was too quiet. That was the same reason why I went with a mustang instead of a civic. Different people have different tastes and preferences. I don't think it matters what bike you ride as long as you ride and ride it safe.