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General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: SlowOldGuy on October 28, 2009, 01:39:44 PM

Title: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: SlowOldGuy on October 28, 2009, 01:39:44 PM
(I posted this on the Yahoo list, but it was just so impressive that I've got to share it here also.)

So, you think you can ride a motorcycle, do you?  Well, prepare to experience the mind blowing sight of sheer speed.  See these daredevil riders defy the laws of physics and be humbled by their mad skillzzz. 

See what happens when you take a Texas rider on a literbike who has known nothing but flat, straight, boring roads all his life and put him in the twisty mountains of Arkansas.  You'll see firsthand how the Texan instantly adapts to his new surroundings.  The skilz he displays in advanced motorcycle control will astound you.  Learn how the great riders from Texas (Schwantz, Polen, Edwards, Spies) got that way.

While staring transfixed at the video, unable to tear your gaze away, you'll ask yourself time and again:
"How do they do that??!!"

Normally we would change for viewing this video, but in the interest of helping my fellow riders, it's presented to you free of charge for your infinite viewing pleasure.

"How do they do that?"

You only wish you could duplicate their racing techniques;
Trail braking all the way to the apex (while remaining fully upright on the bike),
Maximum lane management and use of all available asphalt,
Advanced body positioning techniques (especially the guy at the 6 minute mark)

"How do they do that?"

You only wish you could set up a bike so well that it would instantly change lines at will in the middle of a corner. 

"How do they do that?"

Experience the eyeball flattening speed on the straights.  It's so real, you can almost smell the brake pads melting in the curves. 

"How do they do that?"

Unfortunately, some things will forever remain a mystery.  The video cannot answer that question and neither can I. 

I have no idea how they can ride a motorcycle that slowly and keep it from falling over.  :-)

Arkansas 10/17/09- NDFWS & TSR AR 123 - Group (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOlgm8aCjOI#normal)

DavidR.
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: Marsh White on October 28, 2009, 01:51:36 PM
Ha!  Thanks for the laugh David!!  Those guys SUCK!!!   Are you sure this is not supposed to be in the Jokes section? ;)   :lol:
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: SlowOldGuy on October 28, 2009, 02:54:22 PM
Marsh,
The Jokes Section thought occurred to me after I posted it.

I can't begin to tell you how proud I am to be a Texan.  This takes all the joy of Spies winning the WSB and totally deflates it.

I got the link from my local riding group.  A few of my fellow members left comments on the video that evidently weren't too complimentary.  The video owner deleted the comments and disabled the option. 

I was hoping that as the camera guy (who appeared to be the only decent rider) got closer to the front, the riders would get better.  Alas, that was not the case.  I particularly liked the guy that scooted his butt to the inside of the curve then twisted the upper part of his body back upright.

The road they were clogging up, AR-123, is a really nice route up the side of a mountain.  The run is much longer than the video and the good section was coming up.  Unfortunately, those guys were so slow and took so long, I can only assume the camera ran out of memory before the good part.  Either that or the riding was so ugly that it was edited out.

It's so bad, but I can't stop watching it.  :-)

DavidR.
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: higbonzo on October 28, 2009, 02:59:15 PM
How do they do that.....  "Drugs and Alcohol?"
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: craigo on October 28, 2009, 03:57:49 PM
Jeez David,

You had me all worked up for some great high preformance riding in the mountains of the midwest.  Oh so dissapointed!!!!!  On my worst day, I can blow by these guys.  And I don't even go nutzo anymore.  I'll bet I can take them on my old CX500 (a death machine in anyone's hands).  :crazy:

Too funny and thanks for the disapointment.

Craig
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: racerman_27410 on October 28, 2009, 04:06:49 PM
Damn i watched two minutes and couldnt take anymore......seriously.



i could feel my riding skilz slipping just by watching them "ride"


Frank
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: craigo on October 28, 2009, 04:14:46 PM
However, the road looks frickin awsome
Craig
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: SlowOldGuy on October 28, 2009, 04:33:56 PM
Quote from: racerman_27410 on October 28, 2009, 04:06:49 PM
Damn i watched two minutes and couldnt take anymore......seriously.
i could feel my riding skilz slipping just by watching them "ride"
Frank

You've got to give them a slight break, after all they are from Texas.
Actually they looked a lot like me on my first rally at The Gap, except I didn't see any of them putting their foot down :blush:

But watching it does sort of suck the skill right out of you.

The roads in that area are pretty incredible.  I was up there about 6 weeks ago and got a 340 mile loop in.  Took us the entire day and I was beat up by the end.  Unfortunately the rain ran us off before we could get any more riding in and we had to pack up and go home early.  :-(

It was probably best, though, I was sore for a week.  Takes a while to get back in riding shape.

DavidR.
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: Fred on October 28, 2009, 04:36:51 PM
I resisted posting when I first watched the video. Not being the fastest rider in the world I like to think I could hold my tongue, unless I knew the guy was a real ass hat. The nicest thing I can say is next time leave the camcorder at home. No need to have evidence such as this floating around the web.  :nea:  I now return to biting my lip.
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: threejagsteve on October 28, 2009, 06:15:54 PM
Yes, I'd like to think I wasn't THAT bad the first time I got back on AFTER SIX YEARS!
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: rossco on October 28, 2009, 11:56:24 PM
Like watching a trainwreck :shok:
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: FJmonkey on October 29, 2009, 12:31:42 AM
Quote from: rossco on October 28, 2009, 11:56:24 PM
Like watching a trainwreck :shok:


yeah, a train wreck, one corner at a time.....Over and over and over again..........  :rofl2:

Thank God they ran out of footage, I jumped to minute 6 after 2.5 minutes and had enough. I cannot comment on 3JagsSteve on his first voyage after his 6 years off 2 wheels but, my last ride with him may not have been a knee-dragger event but he was smooth and kept his corners clean. May the Kookaloo clan be squid free and fail to document our errors and weaknesses.   :good2:
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: threejagsteve on October 29, 2009, 02:22:37 AM
Quote from: FJmonkey on October 29, 2009, 12:31:42 AM

I cannot comment on 3JagsSteve on his first voyage after his 6 years off 2 wheels but, my last ride with him may not have been a knee-dragger event but he was smooth and kept his corners clean.


Thanks, Mark!

At my age and at this point in my career, that's all I can hope for - I've been mindful that ya gotta be smooth before you can be fast, so I've been working on getting that back first. Get smooth, and the speed will come!

I have to admit that 10 years ago I'd've been embarrassed at the width of the chicken strips still on that new Sport Demon. But now I'm getting to be an old man, and I don't have to prove anything to anybody! (http://i36.tinypic.com/jgtvrt.gif)

FWIW, when I got home from that ride I noticed that I'd just barely crossed the 700-mi. mark since I first rolled out of my driveway in mid-June.

Cheers, and the duck says, "Kookaloo!"  (http://i35.tinypic.com/28a1gqx.gif)
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: andyb on October 29, 2009, 07:29:34 AM
Couldn't stand more than a short bit of that horror.

On the plus side, their group will be smaller as soon as the dude who can't stay inside the lines finds an oncoming car doing the same...
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: LA Mike on October 29, 2009, 12:09:29 PM
Marsh that riding looks and feels familiar... wasn't that how we were ridding the rode to Leggett  :biggrin: :biggrin:


I watched almost all of the video then I had to turn it off and take a quick run to Palos Verdes to get my Psyche back. I know you are suppose to ride at your own comfort level....but damn did they ever get out of 2nd gear!!
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: the fan on October 29, 2009, 01:54:39 PM
I think I can do better than that on a foggy mountain road in a downpour with a bald front tire...

Flatlanders got no skillz.
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: racerman_27410 on October 29, 2009, 04:05:46 PM
Quote from: the fan on October 29, 2009, 01:54:39 PM
I think I can do better than that on a foggy mountain road in a downpour with the front forks twisted like a pretzel AND a bald front tire...

Flatlanders got no skillz.


Fixed it for ya....


KOokaloo!
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: the fan on October 29, 2009, 04:55:25 PM
Nah you are just bringing back fond memories of the 2009 fall rally. But thanks anyway.
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: waricle on October 30, 2009, 07:28:05 AM
Maybe they were all just enjoying some recreational substances and things just kind of slowed.........
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: rktmanfj on October 30, 2009, 08:47:26 AM
Quote from: the fan on October 29, 2009, 01:54:39 PM
Flatlanders got no skillz.

We cant help it...     :sorry:

Randy T
Indy
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: mst3kguy on October 30, 2009, 10:42:04 AM
um, yes, hi, can you tell me if this is the end of the "david raforth owes me 9 minutes of my life back" line?

( :
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: SlowOldGuy on October 30, 2009, 11:30:00 AM
Quote from: mst3kguy on October 30, 2009, 10:42:04 AM
um, yes, hi, can you tell me if this is the end of the "david raforth owes me 9 minutes of my life back" line?

( :

I'm sorry sir, there are no refunds on this ride.  If you would like to file a complaint, please take a number and join the line forming over to the left.  While you wait, there will be a video to watch for your enjoyment.  Please see first page of this thread.

Thank you for playing and please come back often.  We have some nice parting gifts for you ... your very own bottle of bike wash and wax!!!

DavidR.
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: threejagsteve on October 30, 2009, 02:01:16 PM
Quote from: waricle on October 30, 2009, 07:28:05 AM

Maybe they were all just enjoying some recreational substances and things just kind of slowed.........


Now, that would explain it! (http://i38.tinypic.com/fjozko.gif)
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: ddlewis on October 30, 2009, 04:36:06 PM
lmao!   some nice lines there, w/ multiple apexes..  :yes: 
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: andyb on October 30, 2009, 07:24:21 PM
Hey! I don't cross the lines, but I apex some corners five or six times... it's my complex strategy for dealing with possible road issues ahead!

...thats my story and I'm sticking to it...

(Flatlanders don't ALL suck that bad, honest)
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: Mark Olson on October 31, 2009, 03:16:02 AM
I really like the part where the rider is on a left hander and he  puts a knee out tilts the bike left and sits up straight.  :wacko3:

My wife was watching from her computer and leaned over to comment. "what a bunch  of pussy's, they are just trying to get rid of their chicken strips with all that counter balance bull shit".

nuf said.
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: ssuv93 on October 31, 2009, 01:07:24 PM
Hey! That was me on the second bike!  Be nice!  Just kidding.  You knee draggers help me out.  I go into a corner, don't counter steer, stick a knee out 2 feet of the pavement, lean the bike one way, and lean my body the other way, right?  So I can keep the bike strait up during cornering, like a sidecar.  What kind of knee puck do I need, metal, plastic or extended?I call it the "cantilever style" :good2:.  NOTE; it was not me!  Really.  Seriously.
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: FJmonkey on October 31, 2009, 01:49:00 PM
Quote from: ssuv93 on October 31, 2009, 01:07:24 PM
Hey! That was me on the second bike!  Be nice!  Just kidding.  You knee draggers help me out.  I go into a corner, don't counter steer, stick a knee out 2 feet of the pavement, lean the bike one way, and lean my body the other way, right?  So I can keep the bike strait up during cornering, like a sidecar.  What kind of knee puck do I need, metal, plastic or extended?I call it the "cantilever style" :good2:.  NOTE; it was not me!  Really.  Seriously.

Try the flaming knee sliders, maybe we won't notice the rest of the impressive cornering technique. :crazy:
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: jamesearthdrum on November 05, 2009, 01:43:55 PM
Quote from: Fred on October 28, 2009, 04:36:51 PM
I resisted posting when I first watched the video. Not being the fastest rider in the world I like to think I could hold my tongue, unless I knew the guy was a real ass hat. The nicest thing I can say is next time leave the camcorder at home. No need to have evidence such as this floating around the web.  :nea:  I now return to biting my lip.

I couldn't help thinking as I watched that this might have been de'ja vu, as you were kind enough to follow me one afternoon at my first rally. :empathy3: After all I did get passed by a Goldwing on the Dragon that year.
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: Bigfoot on November 06, 2009, 09:32:04 PM
The guy with the camera did seem to have better skills but he is a friggin idiot. If I had someone riding up on my ass like he was, he would get his ass beat at the next stop. That guy is going to hit someone eventually. Of course they were going slow enough they probably would be ok.

AR123 is an awesome ride. The best part is the loop east of hwy 7 but the stretch west of 7 is very nice as well and alot longer. Not a real good road for beginners. Rode it twice this year and will probably get down there a couple times next year as well. I had no chicken strips left after this road on a brand new rear tire on my xs1100. Can't wait to get the FJ down there.
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: Fred on November 06, 2009, 11:28:36 PM
Quote from: jamesearthdrum on November 05, 2009, 01:43:55 PM
Quote from: Fred on October 28, 2009, 04:36:51 PM
I resisted posting when I first watched the video. Not being the fastest rider in the world I like to think I could hold my tongue, unless I knew the guy was a real ass hat. The nicest thing I can say is next time leave the camcorder at home. No need to have evidence such as this floating around the web.  :nea:  I now return to biting my lip.

I couldn't help thinking as I watched that this might have been de'ja vu, as you were kind enough to follow me one afternoon at my first rally. :empathy3: After all I did get passed by a Goldwing on the Dragon that year.

no worries brother. Hey some of those guys on their goldwings can be sneaky fast!  :good2:
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: E Double on November 07, 2009, 09:52:06 PM
I think the worst part about the 45 seconds I did watch was the ridiculous anthem-rock soundtrack.  I'm not one to throw shade, but really?  At least if they put "Dangerzone" by Kenny Loggins over it one could say they were using ironic humor.  As it stands, these guys were probably clinking O'Douls and giving hi-5's all round, proclaiming this the proof positive that any and all filmed would leave the likes of Haga in their dust.  I am sure their girlfriends know otherwise...
Title: Re: So, you think you can ride a motorcycle?
Post by: Brook on November 17, 2009, 01:31:19 AM
...... Two minutes, I was done!!!!