How to up-armor a V7?

[canuguzzi]

Possibly the most incorrect assertion ever posted on this board

Let's ask the dead and injured dirt  riders. Street riding is very unlike riding in the dirt. The decisions you need to make are very different but maybe cars drive in the dirt alongside, who knows. Then there are those darned red lights and semis hitting the hills too.

Rocks and hard clay are so much more forgiving than asphalt and the Stelvio that falls on top of you off road in the dirt won't injure you at all, its just the padding provided by the dirt. :Beating_A_Dead_Hors e_by_liviu

[oldbike54]

 Wait , whoever suggested a Stelvio was a dirt bike , let alone a beginner's dirt bike 

  Dusty

[canuguzzi]

Well, if we quantify it enough we can all reach the conclusion WE want.

My only objection was "MANY" and "NEVER".

I make no exceptions or exclusions.

I don't care who is to blame.

I'm just going with the odds (and my personal observations). They don't stand up by themselves (off the kickstands, and even then sometimes the stands fail). So eventually they fall down.

I bet that happens in some way to all eventually.

Of course there's always the exception that proves the rule.

Come on, let's be real here, a failing sideatand is not called dropping the bike. Someone colliding with you is not your fault. Context is everything until it is used to support something.

Yeah, plenty of people, and most do not drop their bikes. Most people do not get off their bikes and forget to put down the side stand down anymore than most people do not forget tonuse the brakes to stop at a redlight.

But right, everyone will fall, there is no hope, uparmor your bikes because you will fall.

All the ads saying the bike was never down must be liars, there is no other explanation. It must be the other bike they have that they dumped.

[canuguzzi]

When did I say everyone must fall , or that I am immune . You are the one who is claiming superior skills and just can't possibly fall down  I was merely using examples of very talented riders that have fallen , if you are a better rider than these boys , well , great . Look , the issue at hand isn't whether or not it can happen , but how to deal with the after effects and how to minimize the chances of it occurring again , not what fabulous MC riders you or I are, and some time in the dirt is very beneficial , whether you agree or not .

  Dusty

Okay, enough. Where did I say that superior riding skills make it impossible to fall down? You know I said no such thing.

I see the way it works, some fall, can't believe others will not.

The only point I've tried to make but that sticks in the craw is that contrary to what some right on this forum have said, falling is not some inevitably nor does falling make you a motorcyclist, if you fall, drop your bike not through the fault of someone else or something beyond your control, that means you lack some skills or aren't paying attention.

It isn't about the dirt, the uparmor or anything else. Pure and simple, if it is your fault, you lack some skills or didn't pay attention. Sorry, that is the way it is and hard to take maybe for those who dumped their bikes on a clear day, going through a curve and just ran off the road because they messed up.

[Mayor_of_BBQ]

Norge Pilot,

When people suggest her trying some dirtbike, we are talking about riding around on in a field, getting used to turning the bike, starting and stopping, putting it on and off the sidestand...  no one is suggesting she needs to ride across Baja on a Stelvio to learn road skills

[oldbike54]

Norge Pilot,

When people suggest her trying some dirtbike, we are talking about riding around on in a field, getting used to turning the bike, starting and stopping, putting it on and off the sidestand...  no one is suggesting she needs to ride across Baja on a Stelvio to learn road skills

 Thanks Mr Mayor , better than what I was going to say .

  Dusty

[Rough Edge racing]

Sigh  All of those skills are best developed in the dirt , once again , there is a reason why almost every fast pavement racer trains in the dirt .

  Dusty

 Let's have some fun with this ..Valentino Rossi started on go karts...Since he's one of the best we can assume go karts are better than dirt bikes?
 

[sturgeon]

What good is an uparmored bike if the rider gets hurt?

If you select good "armor", it can protect the rider as well as the bike.

[oldbike54]

Let's have some fun with this ..Valentino Rossi started on go karts...Since he's one of the best we can assume go karts are better than dirt bikes?

 Sigh  He still trains on dirt bikes . Hell , even Jimmy Johnson was a motocrosser 

  Dusty

 

[Triple Jim]

Let's have some fun with this ..Valentino Rossi started on go karts...Since he's one of the best we can assume go karts are better than dirt bikes?

I'm partial to a dirt bike on a go-kart track.   

[rocker59]

Yeah.  Rossi doesn't do dirt...

[tiger_one]

The first time I saw Freddie Spencer was on a gocart track, but not sure it was a dirt bike.  LOL

[rocker59]

I think Fast Freddie is one of the few American Superbike/GP racers that did not have a dirty background.

[oldbike54]

I think Fast Freddie is one of the few American Superbike/GP racers that did not have a dirty background.

 Nope , he grew up in the dirt also , as did Schwantz . KR more or less developed the modern GP style while riding AMA flat track, he says it is the main reason he spanked the Europeans so quickly .

 

Yeah.  Rossi doesn't do dirt...

 Great shot of Rossi .

  Dusty

[El Pescador]

I feel like I dropped a grenade in the middle of the room and walked away.  I apologize for that.  Let me clear up some information...

My wife is 5'10".  She has no trouble flat footing the V7.  When she wrecked she had on a helmet, boots, FirstGear mesh jacket, and gloves.  The only piece of gear she didn't have on was armored pants, she was in jeans because "Motorcycle pants are ugly".  She's still thinks they're ugly, but has bought a pair and won't ride without them now.

As for the dirt riding, my personal opinion is that so many great riders started there only because it's the only way to get on a motorbike at a young age.  I think pro riders do it still to cross train.  These opinions may be right, they may be wrong, but they have about as much empirical evidence as those to the contrary.

It is impractical for my wife to train in the dirt.  It will mean buying another bike, loading it in the truck, finding a place to ride it, and clearing time for the entire evolution.  It's just not going to happen. 

Thanks to all for your responses.  Please feel free to resume your discussion.

[rocker59]

I still think buying a lighter, less expensive bike to practice on would be a great idea.

With her height, a street-legal dual-sport like the Yamaha XT225 or XT250 would be great.



Otherwise, you can get these from Hepco + Becker:

[oldbike54]

 There are street legal dirt bikes that make very good learning tools .


 Don't worry about dropping a grenade on WG , a lively discussion re motorbikes is a good thing , and there have been several good suggestions made . Once again , the goal is to create a competent confident rider .

 OK , here is the hard part . Marketing has convinced way too many folks that a 750 CC MC is a good beginner bike , and yes , a 400 lb MC is fairly light , but most of us started out on much smaller devices when a 750 was considered large . So , now you have to ask your self some tough questions , what is the ultimate goal here ?

  Dusty

[not-fishing]

Motorcycles don't fall over by themselves, you fall over and take the bike with you or forget to do something. Don't blame the bike, it doesn't do anything by itself.

This reminds me of the pilot's adage and retractable landing gear.  There are those who have and those who will .....

I've always figured I ain't so good and need to "armor up" because broken bones are painful.

Then again I've "fallen off" dam near anything I've tried to ride in my life.  tricycles, wagons, bicycles, mountain bikes, ten speeds, roller blades, three wheelers, street bikes, horses, skis, x-country skis, rowing shells, kayaks, canoes.

I guess I have to count my blessings as I've never rolled a car, pickup, dump truck, bobcat (well not all the way), reachlift, manlift, tractor or sheepsfoot roller.  they won't let me on the Dozers or 'Cans

[canuguzzi]

The adage of those there are those who have and those who will came from those that have and follow the other adage:

Misery loves company.

The oft heard comment from someone who has fallen through no one else's fault...don't worry, your turn will come. Why do they say that? No reason other than the denial that just maybe they goofed up and can't bring themselves to admit they need to learn something better.

When in doubt, blame the sidestand, the tires, the big breasted girl who made you look, anything but your own skills.

[tiger_one]

Is Spenson the famous mime ?

  Dusty

I just reread that, who typed that?  I did change it.  Damn!  Getting old is not for sissies.

[davedel44]

 

Dave
Galveston

[Kev m]

The adage of those there are those who have and those who will came from those that have and follow the other adage:

Misery loves company.

The oft heard comment from someone who has fallen through no one else's fault...don't worry, your turn will come. Why do they say that? No reason other than the denial that just maybe they goofed up and can't bring themselves to admit they need to learn something better.

When in doubt, blame the sidestand, the tires, the big breasted girl who made you look, anything but your own skills.

Who is making excuses?

Saying that "it happens to everyone" is simply playing the odds.

Since NO ONE IS PERFECT, everyone will eventually screw up, and put a foot down on something loose, or leave it on a hill without it in gear, or let the sidestand sink into something, or misjudge the amount of sand in that corner, or grab a little too much brake, or SOMETHING that will lead to the bike falling over.

If there are some out there that NONE of these things have ever happened to - kudos. I might suggest they consider hanging up their helmets soon then, cause odds are they won't escape forever.

But saying that it happens to everyone eventually IS simply to make people feel better about screwing up.

Where's the harm?

[Rough Edge racing]

Well, I ain't winning any arguments with "Old Bike" so I better stay on topic.......This woman is my race bike rider's girlfriend...Yes, 6 foot tall and no need to discuss her lack of safety gear 
 She never rode a motorcycle previously enrolled in a 3 day class about 4 months ago, she's 38 years old. The bikes used were 400 cc Japanese...She passed the course and got her license..... Besides the kick start 650 Triumph she rides a 90's Harley Big twin...She never dropped a bike while learning...She is an excellent car driver, very alert and smooth even when running in dense high speed traffic.Drives a clutch car without issue.. I'll stand by my first statement, a good car driver makes a good bike rider. If you have trouble and fumble the bike at low speeds on a sound road surface you may want to reevaluate bike riding..
 
         
   
 

[sib]

The adage of those there are those who have and those who will came from those that have and follow the other adage:

Misery loves company.

The oft heard comment from someone who has fallen through no one else's fault...don't worry, your turn will come. Why do they say that? No reason other than the denial that just maybe they goofed up and can't bring themselves to admit they need to learn something better.

When in doubt, blame the sidestand, the tires, the big breasted girl who made you look, anything but your own skills.

What's the big deal about having limited skills?  I'll never ride a bike like a racer, nor will I ever play the guitar like Eric Clapton.  So what?  I have other skills, things I'm very good at.  I can still enjoy motorcycling even with my limited skills.  In my case, armor is useful to minimize my chances of injuring myself.  No biggie, that's why armor is available.  This isn't a pissing contest.  If you need to brag so much about how you've never done anything less than perfectly on your bike, perhaps you need to hone your skills at tact and get some control over your overconfidence.

[LongRanger]

Here's my two cents. Admittedly it's putting the cart in front of the horse, but the year away tells me she's just not into it. If you could somehow encourage her to join you on a nice "long" ride, away from traffic, intersections, and freeways, on a road she's familiar with, the fun factor might be rekindled and she might be interested in relearning her skills. An overnight destination 2-3 hours down the road perhaps. Make it a date, not just a ride. I tried this with my SO and it got her riding again. I also agree with the benefits of dirt riding but that's a non-starter here.

[sincolita]

El Pescador & Mrs. El Pescador: I'll chime in on the merits of starting on a smaller bike (NOT a beater bike, just something more manageable), from the perspective of a middle-aged woman who didn't start riding seriously until I was 40 (and didn't have the option to ride in the dirt, because if so I would have been all for that).

In 2009 I got a Ninja 250, and I put 19,000 miles on it in the six years I had it. I went from "OMG what the hell did I buy this thing for? I must be nuts! I'll never be able to ride this!!" to riding the heck out of it every chance I got, including an overnighter from Philly to Waynesboro VA to ride Skyline Drive. Yes I dropped it a couple times in the early days, but it wasn't a big deal because it wasn't a big/expensive bike. About 18 months into owning the bike I low-sided in a sharp turn on my way to work, and all I did was pick it up and ride the rest of the way to work (then learn how to replace a cracked faring and turn signal). Riding the Ninja taught me all the basics of how to handle a bike, but more importantly it helped me build the skill and confidence to very comfortably upgrade to my V7, which I've ridden over 1400 miles in the four weeks I've had it. I'm not exceedingly brave or a daredevil or a risk-taker; just a normal woman who wanted to learn to ride well, and with some patience and the right machine I eventually did. At this point in my life there are few things that I love more than riding with my husband and our friends on my own bike.

Here's me six years ago on my brand new Ninja, wondering how the hell I'll ever learn to keep the shiny side up. (See? NOT a beater; a very nice bike IMHO):



And me four weeks ago, moments after taking ownership of my brand new V7, ready to hit the road. (I rode it 150 miles solo that day.):



That's my two cents. I really hope it helps.

Kim

[oldbike54]

 Kim , that was brilliant . We needed a woman's perspective on this , leaving out the psuedo-macho stuff .

 Oh , you certainly don't look middle aged .


  Dusty

[rocker59]

 

[Triple Jim]

Kim, I'm not sure if you read my post above, buy my daughter is in the transition from "I hope I can learn to do this" to "Let's go for another ride" on the Ninja 250.  It's great to hear another success story that involves that amazingly capable motorcycle.

[Kev m]

And me four weeks ago, moments after taking ownership of my brand new V7, ready to hit the road. (I rode it 150 miles solo that day.):



That's my two cents. I really hope it helps.

Kim

Standing outside FBF!

Congrats on the bike. Hope you enjoy.

I love my V7!