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Itty Bitty Triple Committee?

MotoFuzzle — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 19:50:31 GMT

About a year and a half ago I was bitten by the Cafe Racer bug. When I first started riding motorcycles, I didn't see the appeal to naked bikes...it was all about the futuristic looking, full-fairing sportbikes. Sometime last year, I finally came to appreciate the naked bike, the streetfighter, and even moreso, it's predecessor, the cafe racer.
Well, the other day, I'm working away at BuyMoto and the property manager walks in and asks if I want a free bike. I didn't believe him, so I followed him over to another business nearby. They had salvaged an old motorcycle from their dumpster months ago, and never began to restore it, so they wanted somebody to take it away. I was that somebody. At first sight, it looked like it wasn't even worth taking for free...but I checked it out and it's a 1973 Kawasaki 350 S2 Mach II. It turns out it's a 350cc two-stroke triple, the perfect base for a cafe racer project. On top of that, it only has 5k miles on it. It was last registered in New Jersey 30 years ago. It also has a mean sissy-bar on it too, which I'll have to save.
Right now it's a bucket of rust, but I may be able to clean her up and do something with her.

Attached Images

July 5, 2008 - Hypercycles

247BlackOut — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 06:16:20 GMT

So at the last minute I decided to buy Anny's spot at the track and make the trip down to Willow Springs with Matt and Mikey from San Jose. Thanks for driving guys. :wub: The night before we left I finally bought myself some bicycle pants, and omg do they make a world of a difference for me. I was able to suit up and get my bike out there after having barely missed the 5 minute call. (Before I had loose fit under armor pants that ended up bunching up at my boot, and I was never able to zip up my boots. >.<) Having the right gear for the right job makes a world of a difference.

So all morning I had butterflies in my stomach like usual. A lot of people were asking me why I was so nervous, and I guess one reason was that it was just from not being on the track for over a year. Reason number two is my love hate relationship with my bike. :hammer: The fuse has blown 2 times while I was riding it, and the bike stalls after I come to a stop, and not to mention it not charging the battery. Gah! So many things can go wrong with my bike, and the track is more high speed than anything on the street, so my greatest fear was having the bike blow a fuse and losing control of the bike while in a turn. And THANK GOD that didn't happen. Bike was 100% rider friendly for both Saturday (for myself) and Sunday (for Matt Fong).

So I love my bike so much more now. It makes a huge difference when your bike is reliable and doesn't mess with your confidence when riding. First session out with the sight laps brought back so many memories.

Second session of the day I felt great. I <3 my bike. It was mechanically sound and didn't blow any fuses. I guess it was happy it was going to romp around on the track again. Mikey and I completely toasted the right side of my power races hahaha. And Matt ended up finishing them up. Yay for boogers!

I believe I was doing pretty well in turn 2, and got better lines through 3, but no way to know since I couldn't have Mikey out there following me. (Not to mention there's never any pictures out there...it's always in turn 4 which I totally suck at) I scared myself once and rolled off the throttle which was a bad idea since the bike got upset and gave me a little wobble. :eek: Other than that, I had a great time out there.

It was good riding with everyone! Followed Lin around for a few laps, saw Joe pass me and I tried to chase him down only for us to run into traffic. Saw Howard pass me and wave through turn 8, had Arthur spook me in turn 9 :eek: Ran around with Pha for a lap and then had the yellow flag thrown up. No Janell and Kristen though...so maybe next time. Thanks Hieu for following me around a bit and giving me some advice. Too bad I already decided that was my last session of the day, but I'll apply it to the next time I go out riding.

Also thanks to Aaron, Lin & Sash and Mayhem crew for letting me sit in your shade this weekend, and keeping me hydrated. So all in all, thanks everyone for a great weekend, and glad everyone made it through the day. (That's all that I can remember for now. )

*why am I only allowed 4 smilies?!

I finally got to test...

MotoFuzzle — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 05:13:28 GMT

...my Frank Thomas suit! (More to come later)

To Tango or not to Tango? That is the Question...

247BlackOut — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 18:24:50 GMT

So I just wanted to document this little mishap and keep this thread available for anyone who does a kickstand tango (twirl) with their bike. http://www.hypercycles.org/forums/sh...ad.php?t=13019

I personally believe the kickstand snaped off due to a combination of rust (as you can see on the picture), wear and tear by multiple tangos by myself and possibly previous owners, and the actual force applied to the screw at the time I was pulling it. I don't think it snapped due to gavity or the full weight of the bike on the kickstand. I never lift my bike leaving the whole bike's weight on the kickstand. However, the other day Aaron did flip the bike around like that and I must admit it made me cringe a little, but nothing horrible happened to it, so I guess it's okay. :thumbsup:

This is an odd case and I honestly don't think this will ever happen to anyone else's bike. I don't doubt that the kickstand will snap with the full weight twirl, but I do doubt that the bolts will snap in half like mine did and therefore break the kickstand off the bike. Once I get the kickstand posted back on, I doubt I'll ever tango it again because you really shouldn't pick your scabs because you'd just end up bleeding again. But if I every get another bike I will still learn how to twirl it around on the kickstand because I think it's a great skill to know. Don't let my mishap discourage you from learning how to manuver your bikes. :)

Also a little random, but sitting on your bike and backing it up isn't always full proof either. I almost slipped on a leaf in my own garage while backing my bike up while sitting on it. Darn thing came out of no where! :hammer:

Track Withdrawal

247BlackOut — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 05:06:12 GMT

Do you ever ride so much that you just get sick of riding? Recently my bike and I have been having issues with one another. Maybe because I'm neglecting him, or maybe he just has internal issues that can't be found with the naked eye. I just don't know, but it's really been a while since I took my bike out on a ride and went "wow that was thrilling!" when I got home. I neglect him because he has issues, and he has issues because I neglect him...it's a vicious cycle.

Ever since my car was totaled I've come to find myself living a completely different lifestyle where I depend on my bikes for transportation. It's not fun when I'm commuting everyday to school and back, or downtown to work (50 mile roundtrip in dress clothes). I love my bikes for the thrill and the fun, but now commuting just kills it for me. I'm also so busy with school that I just can't find the time to riding during the weekends.

Even when I do find the time to ride my SV I'm now scared on it. Ever since taking that bike out to Pahrump I was in love. I wanted to sign up for track day after trackday and just romp on it. Being at the track allowed me to test the limits of my bike and allow myself to become more familiarized with every aspect of riding. Then trackdays just got too expensive on a students salary of -$, so I went to Palomar. At first I was still feeling the thrill of the track, and just applying everything that I learned about my bike on the street (but of course with caution).

But then I just got so busy with school, and just started commuting so much on my ninja. Then when I do take the Sv out now I feel so uncomfortable. I take it to Palomar again and the bike just keeps cutting out on me. O_o Why do I have to keep bump starting it every single time I want to start the bike?! Then the next ride he blows a fuse! :confused: As much as I love my bike, I don't feel like I'm an enough of an experienced rider to handle anything that bike throws at me now.

Maybe it's a combination of the failure of my bike in combination with the recent car accident I was in that makes me so skeptical of riding again. Everyday I'm on my bike I swear someone is going to hit me because they change lanes without looking or try to do stupid maneuvers to cut other cars off. Gah! :hammer:

Riding at the track has greatly helped my learning curve. I haven't been to the track since last years Hypercycle trackday, and since then I've been in a car accident and come to realize that despite having 3 bikes, none of them are 100% reliable. Riding has actually become something really scary for me now that I depend on it for my only means of transportation. I wish I could regain the confidence level I once had on my bikes, but I think that the only way that would happen is if I can take my bike to the track again. Too bad it's too expensive for me to go though. Sure people say stuff like eat ramen for a week, don't go out, save money etc etc. But honestly...hotel + truck rental+ gas for trip & bikes + food & water + track day + track fee. *sigh* I'm still paying off all of the other trackdays I've done in 07 so there's no way there's a trackday coming up in the near future.

I feel like I'm suffering track withdrawals, and in the mean time I'm also suffering from the scary life of commuting on a bike. It's a love hate relationship I have with my bike.

2nd

fherjohn — Tue, 20 May 2008 17:15:10 GMT

What is a blog?

Blog test

Bryant — Mon, 19 May 2008 06:30:37 GMT

1st bloggity blog.