Motorcycles.

[Lurpy]

The Piaggios were used some years back, especially in the Giro, but I think all of the twin wheels I've seen this year have been Yamaha Nikens...Yamaha Niken becomes official Grand Tour support bike

[sk_tle]

Yes these are nikens and needs an A (motorcycle) licence.

I tried a Piaggo mp3 400 a few years ago. As much as I understand it being a depressing thing for an hardcore motorcyclist I could see myself buying something similar to commute all year long. In the wet those two wheels are really securizing. Hit a patch of oil in a roundabout ? You won't fall the bike will simply go into a gentle drift.

[maunahaole]

IIRC, the Piaggios had problems staying ahead of the riders on the descents.

[jerk]

Most modern motorcycles with cornering ABS and traction control won’t low side no matter what the road conditions. Frankly you couldn’t lean my bike over enough on anything short of a hockey rink to eat Shiite.
The Niken is actually pretty cool as a design concept but it is less similar to a three wheeled scooter than it is to a modern super bike with all the electronics. It can’t even stand up on its own and is using a lot electronic intervention to make it ride like a motorcycle. You actually counter steer it for example.
There really aren’t many adavantages to that Nikken versus a similarly priced standard bike. It’s more a proof of concept and pushing things like cornering ABS and traction control and the like to their limits. The thing shouldn’t work at all.

The extra wheels do give you extra traction I guess- but ooutside of a race track low siding is nothing any motorcyclist needs to worry about.

The three wheeled scooter things are cool because they can stand up on their own so you can keep your feet permanently under those weird warming blanket things everyone in Paris has on their scooters. Honestly I wish I had had blankets to cover me up on my bicycle ride last Saturday in North East France!

Scooters aren’t depressing. They’re actually pretty perfect for urban commuting and the three wheeled ones let you stay warmer. Three wheeled motorcycles though are an answer to a question no one ever asked.

Yes these are nikens and needs an A (motorcycle) licence.

I tried a Piaggo mp3 400 a few years ago. As much as I understand it being a depressing thing for an hardcore motorcyclist I could see myself buying something similar to commute all year long. In the wet those two wheels are really securizing. Hit a patch of oil in a roundabout ? You won't fall the bike will simply go into a gentle drift.

[j44ke]

Spotted in Castro Pretorio...Roma.

My friend Dennis the Ducati lover when he came to visit us in Tuscany: “I can’t believe it - I’m in Italy and everyone is riding BMW’s.”

[SteveP]

That's what i would rent if I was ever there to ride a moto in the Alps.

[sk_tle]

Most modern motorcycles with cornering ABS and traction control won’t low side no matter what the road conditions.

The extra wheels do give you extra traction I guess- but ooutside of a race track low siding is nothing any motorcyclist needs to worry about.

Maybe in your part of the world.

In europe with all those trucks leaking diesel on the roads some roundabouts are as slippery as riding on black ice when it is raining. Last time I visited my parents in Paris I got caught 2 times sliding on 4 wheels with my car at 30mph once in an highway interchange ramp (a car was struck on the guardrail having done a full 180°), once in a roundabout at less than 25mph. Thanksfully I am used to slippery roads and have done hours and hours of simracing in the past. It was a wet day. The number of badly maintained trucks and old diesel cars on the road is crazy in some countries despite the mandatory periodic checks.

[jerk]

Maybe in your part of the world.

In europe with all those trucks leaking diesel on the roads some roundabouts are as slippery as riding on black ice when it is raining. Last time I visited my parents in Paris I got caught 2 times sliding on 4 wheels with my car at 30mph once in an highway interchange ramp (a car was struck on the guardrail having done a full 180°), once in a roundabout at less than 25mph. Thanksfully I am used to slippery roads and have done hours and hours of simracing in the past. It was a wet day. The number of badly maintained trucks and old diesel cars on the road is crazy in some countries despite the mandatory periodic checks.

wow Thomas. that sounds brutal and scary. here in San Diego it rains so little that the roads get kind of crazy when it does rain because all the slippery stuff shows up but agreed- it's nothing like over there. i remember going into a four wheel drift while driving my old Citroen CX while taking some rotaries a bit hotter than I should have!

i'd think that in those conditions even the Niken wouldn't be immune from getting in to trouble either- although it is probably more likely to stay up than say- my RSV4 with all the nannies on.

i do want to ride a Nikken but Japanese bike dealers around here never let folks test ride anything- that's one thing that the Euro and Harley dealerships do really well around these parts.

[jerk]

My friend Dennis the Ducati lover when he came to visit us in Tuscany: “I can’t believe it - I’m in Italy and everyone is riding BMW’s.”

i have a 2005 BMW R1200GS that'd be perfect for tooling around Europe. It's comfy and big and goes pretty good. While it is the helmet mirror of motorcycles- the best Euro touring bike is probably still the lowly Honda ST1200. It's the most boring bike in the world- but really perfect for European roads.

[pdxmech13]

So this happened.

[seanile]

Im going to be trading this in (yamaha bolt)
CEAF229B-F250-4EF5-8CC7-AC844CA620B5.jpg

For this, on tuesday. And got a nice deal on it as far deals at dealers go. (Kawasaki z900rs cafe)
4C72D85D-FB88-4E40-B7E6-D37B92DD17FB.png

[jerk]

You traded in probably the least “cool” motorcycle for probably the coolest most bad ass bike out there right now. Good job!

Im going to be trading this in (yamaha bolt)
CEAF229B-F250-4EF5-8CC7-AC844CA620B5.jpg

For this, on tuesday. And got a nice deal on it as far deals at dealers go. (Kawasaki z900rs cafe)
4C72D85D-FB88-4E40-B7E6-D37B92DD17FB.png

[maunahaole]

We will need a ride report on that Kawasaki once you get the tires scuffed in a bit.

[seanile]

yea, they are quite a juxtaposition. i was working on building a '82 kz1000k the past couple years but didn't have the best facility to work on it so i gave it to someone starting a co-op as a shop bike/learn-to-wrench bike. having sat on that and explored it, i had fallen in love with the ergonomics and the history of it, so when i realized that this z900 rs cafe existed i damn near bought it day-of haha.

the insurance on it isn't comparable (way more expensive than the bolt), but such is the life of a sport bike vs a cruiser. i was initially looking at buying this really nice R NineT from a guy down in CT..it's a great deal and he seems like a solid guy from the short talk i had with him.
on the off chance anyone is in the market for one, here's the info i got out of him.
$9500 BMW R NineT, 2014, 775 miles.

Q: Is there a particular reason it hadn’t been ridden much?
A: A couple factors: I have a few motorcycles and I only ride for a few months in the summer. We had a new child about 4 years ago and it put a serious cramp on my free time.

Q: When was the most recent service?
A: March 2017 for the full service and they fixed a recall issue with the rear blinkers. I just found out that BMW issued another recall to replace a pivot pin on the rear wheel swing arm. This has not been done but I have the communication so can have performed before a purchase.

Q: Are you the single owner mentioned?
A: Yes.

Q: When and where was it purchased?
A: Max BMW in South Windsor

Q: What have been the storage conditions since purchased?
A: 100% garage

Q: What steps have been taken to prevent any buildup of stale gas?
A: I run the bike frequently. In the winter I put in dry gas. I just ran it this weekend.

Q: Is it registered at the moment/could we take it to a shop to get a once-over/do a test ride?
A: I could meet you at a shop for sure - as I mentioned I plan to get the recall completed.

[jscottyk]

Welp. The bike is back in my possession after 6 months again at the dealer.

Turns out there was a cylinder that was out of round so a bunch more crap was repaired.

Triumph UK/NA stepped up this time and replaced the bits under warranty and I'm expecting a check for the last $4K in repairs I had to cough up.

Good to be back on the bike even if it means sitting in traffic from time to time.

I'm glad that are getting you squared away and taking responsibility.

[rwsaunders]

One of my field supers picked this beast up and he's in the process of making some mods...750# of heavy metal rolling thunder.

[rwsaunders]

Better daylight pic...mods include louder/less restrictive pipes, airflow improvements, lighting upgrade and some cylinder work.

[mnoble485]

Bought with year end bonus that all of us guys deserve I suppose?

Mike

[rwsaunders]

I’m sure that helped too Mike, coupled with the fact that Frank is a real motorhead and his personal equipment and jobsites are always immaculate. He’s been itching for a bike and when he saw this used Harley in the shop, he pounced on it. He told me that he was the star of his MC safety class and that with the new pipes, he could drown out the noise of the other bikes and instructor if he cared to.

[rwsaunders]

HONDA-Davidson.