Clubmans...Your kidding right?

[boontonmike]

...

you shouldnt be holding yourselves up on sportsbikes with your arms. You're supposed to use your abs/pelvis to keep you up and your arms to control the bike, knees to pull the bike into turns. I mean it's alot harder that way and most people don't have the stamina or deisre to do this. If you ride road bikes or bmx though you get used to it ( I do both) . You'll notice the bike riding alot more fluently with this style also.

[MikeJ]

What happened to all the vintage Jap bikes?

i wonder how many people actually ride these vintage jap bikes? look around town and NOBODY has these bikes(kz's, cb's, gs's)! its all ninjas and harleys!! im gonna ride my gs untill it blows up

It's all a matter of numbers, and attrition, mates. What's left of the great 70's and 80's Japanese classics are the few survivors which weren't crashed, or rusted out, or wore out their engines, or the even fewer of those which did have A, B, or C (or all of the above) happen to them, but were lovingly restored.

Back in the day too many people thought of the excellently-engineered Japanese bikes as "throwaway" items when major repair or rebuild was required - because they were so cheap to buy to begin with, and also because they ran so well for so long, rarely needing any unscheduled repairs, compared to Hardleys or European iron. But the same guys who dissed our rides as "Jap junk" back then would think nothing of completely gutting and rebuilding a "valuable" old HD Panhead or a BSA or Triumph pushrod relic when they broke something every few thousand miles, damn the cost. Don't even get me started on what BMW fanatics do...

What happened to motorcycling in the USA was that bikes-as-adult-transportation (or long-distance sport-touring) never really caught on here that much, ever, despite all the "You meet the nicest people" ads in the 60's and the popularity of small Japanese bikes in the 60's and 70's, as high school and college putt-around wheels. Preppies who rode 250s (or smaller) just trashed those when they grew up and moved on to cars. So, except for a tiny group of hardcore Jap-vintage enthusiasts (us) and a similarly tiny group of lifelong commuting/touring riders (also some of us), what you've got left is the concept of motorcycle- as-lifestyle-accessory - which breaks down into your choice of either a laid-back ass-dragging cruiser, or a racer-replica crotch-rocket stunter. IMO it's a pity that those two extremes represent 99% of the current street-bike market. The old standards represented a happy medium.

[ryder60]

I have clip-ons on my track bike and have had drag bars on my GS for 6 years now. I find myself riding with one hand and with my feet on the rear pegs, except when in urban areas. I've ridden 400-500 mikes per day for 4-5 days at a time and survived well. I have a bad neck to start with and have learned to consciously relax my neck muscles and wobble my head around to keep from stiffening up. I'll also put my left forearm across the tank bag and lean on it.

I've just changed to Superbike bars for a planned long trip.

[Octain]

<<<<Back in the day too many people thought of the excellently-engineered Japanese bikes as "throwaway" items when major repair or rebuild was required - because they were so cheap to buy to begin with, and also because they ran so well for so long, rarely needing any unscheduled repairs, compared to Hardleys or European iron. But the same guys who dissed our rides as "Jap junk" back then would think nothing of completely gutting and rebuilding a "valuable" old HD Panhead or a BSA or Triumph pushrod relic when they broke something every few thousand miles, damn the cost. Don't even get me started on what BMW fanatics do.>>>>

Must be why so many 30 year old Jap bikes dont have any miles on em. I've wondered about this since I got into these things. IE, 78 GS1000 rusted to bits, sitting out under a tree with a rotted tarp for 10 years with 7k miles on it. Kinda makes one wonder why the bike was parked to begin with.

Excellently engineering my butt. These things are a cluster of un-needed wires and nuts and bolts that only god knows why they built em this way.
Still good *cheap* fun though. Especially if ya own another one that never requires wrenching and is ready to ride at the push of a button.

[GabrielGoes]

I find myself riding with one hand and with my feet on the rear pegs, except when in urban areas.. I'll also put my left forearm across the tank bag and lean on it.

hahah that is funny as hell man i was doing that for a while and thought it was rediculous leaning on the tank like that

[Zim]

My daughter's babydaddy rides an old Triumph 650 Bonneville. He told me to take it one day, so I did. I rode it about a mile and a half and turned it around and brought it back. I was actually straining my neck trying to see the road in front of me. And they ain't clubman bars, they're clip-ons about 2" below the top clamp. I bought an '82 Katana off the showroom floor and rode it for twenty-six years, and that bike was like a Honda Gold Wing next to this thing.

[sparki]

Must be why so many 30 year old Jap bikes dont have any miles on em. I've wondered about this since I got into these things. IE, 78 GS1000 rusted to bits, sitting out under a tree with a rotted tarp for 10 years with 7k miles on it. Kinda makes one wonder why the bike was parked to begin with.

maybe in your country fella..... but in the uk these things rack up high mileages. 60-70-80 000 miles no problem. suspect it was a previous pussy of an owner who would only do 7000 miles in it's lifetime.

.... and the constatant need to repair? nah, again, do it right the first time and it's done for the rest of it's lifespan imho. only realy issue is the wiring, sort that out and the rest is bulletproof

[GabrielGoes]

maybe in your country fella..... but in the uk these things rack up high mileages. 60-70-80 000 miles no problem. suspect it was a previous pussy of an owner who would only do 7000 miles in it's lifetime.

.... and the constatant need to repair? nah, again, do it right the first time and it's done for the rest of it's lifespan imho. only realy issue is the wiring, sort that out and the rest is bulletproof

lol "previous pussy of an owner" i dont care but whoever made these bars should be charged with assault