FS: 1986 944 turbo (Mods listed in Thread) $7995 obo
08-12-2011, 08:37 AM
#17
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So to clarify, are you saying that with 18psi on pump gas with 300whp you trapped at 117mph ?
08-12-2011, 04:23 PM
#18
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When dealing with cars, it's much better to look at something more tangible, like trap speed, when judging real world power compared to just a single dyno with no comparison.
Last edited by 951_RS; 08-13-2011 at 01:22 AM.
08-25-2011, 05:35 PM
#19
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I think the triumph is a good choice though. Its expensive enough to make you think twice about pushing it too hard. You don't see a lot of those bikes around either.
08-25-2011, 06:48 PM
#20
As a fellow 951 owner and former ProAMA licensed motorcycle racer (and technically still a rider, I store my dad's bike in my garage and ride it on occasion) I feel I should at least say this: don't buy too much bike. A Speed Triple might seem tame by comparison to other bikes in that price range, but if you're a beginner, it's still a LOT of bike. Even a current 600cc sport bike is a LOT of bike - most guys don't realize that a new 600 makes the same amount of horsepower as the older CBR900RR from the early 90s (bikes that were considered "death machines" when they first came out) and are MUCH more twitchy. Twichy == BAD for a new rider. While "twitchy" feels "light and maneuverable", it also means it's VERY responsive to both rider input, and the road - and the wrong input from a rider can make things turn ugly in a hurry. My old R6 was twitchy, I could run just a few tenths off the lap record at a local track here and have several national level wins... and that bike STILL tried to kill me a few times, even with a steering damper (that aids in reducing the twitchiness.)
Take a rider class. Not sure if they have this down in Houston but up here in IL (and also in WA state) they have courses given by the Motorcycle Safety Foundation. In IL the courses are free - the even provide the bike and helmet. Excellent courses that give you some really good instruction. Hopping on a bike is NOT as simple as hopping in a car... some things might appear counter-intuitive at first (like counter-steering) but are really KEY to keeping you in one piece in an event that requires quick maneuvers.
Then, after you get your bike, sign up for a few track-based rider schools. You'll learn a lot there too.
I've been riding bikes since I was 12, and racing since I was 15 - first motocross, and then eventually road racing. I've seen a lot of friends get hurt, and a few die (one friend a VERY experienced rider, died because of a brain fart and a simple mistake that lead to him running off the road.)
Taking the slow, learning route might not be as cool but if you go this way you'll learn more, you'll appreciate it more, and chances of you being a "one and done" are slim. ("One and done" being the guy who buys a bike, rides it a bit, scares the hell out of himself, and sells it never to ride again.) Riding is awesome but it's dangerous and anyone who tells you otherwise probably shouldn't be riding. Learn slowly and you will have a much greater appreciation for it. Pick yourself up something like a Suzuki SV-650 - plenty of power, faster than the typical supersport inline-4 600 from the mid 90s, cheap, lots of parts, and handle REALLY well. And let me tell you, there is a LOT of satisfaction in passing a guy on a "big bad 180hp R1" on an SV!
Ok... sorry, hate to sound like an old fuddy-duddy. I just want to try to pass off a little bit of what I consider to be sound advice and maybe help turn you into someone that will be a long-time rider and not someone who "rode a little when I was in my 20s." I'll get off my soapbox.
Good luck with the sale.
Take a rider class. Not sure if they have this down in Houston but up here in IL (and also in WA state) they have courses given by the Motorcycle Safety Foundation. In IL the courses are free - the even provide the bike and helmet. Excellent courses that give you some really good instruction. Hopping on a bike is NOT as simple as hopping in a car... some things might appear counter-intuitive at first (like counter-steering) but are really KEY to keeping you in one piece in an event that requires quick maneuvers.
Then, after you get your bike, sign up for a few track-based rider schools. You'll learn a lot there too.
I've been riding bikes since I was 12, and racing since I was 15 - first motocross, and then eventually road racing. I've seen a lot of friends get hurt, and a few die (one friend a VERY experienced rider, died because of a brain fart and a simple mistake that lead to him running off the road.)
Taking the slow, learning route might not be as cool but if you go this way you'll learn more, you'll appreciate it more, and chances of you being a "one and done" are slim. ("One and done" being the guy who buys a bike, rides it a bit, scares the hell out of himself, and sells it never to ride again.) Riding is awesome but it's dangerous and anyone who tells you otherwise probably shouldn't be riding. Learn slowly and you will have a much greater appreciation for it. Pick yourself up something like a Suzuki SV-650 - plenty of power, faster than the typical supersport inline-4 600 from the mid 90s, cheap, lots of parts, and handle REALLY well. And let me tell you, there is a LOT of satisfaction in passing a guy on a "big bad 180hp R1" on an SV!
Ok... sorry, hate to sound like an old fuddy-duddy. I just want to try to pass off a little bit of what I consider to be sound advice and maybe help turn you into someone that will be a long-time rider and not someone who "rode a little when I was in my 20s." I'll get off my soapbox.
Good luck with the sale.
08-27-2011, 02:17 AM
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As a fellow 951 owner and former ProAMA licensed motorcycle racer (and technically still a rider, I store my dad's bike in my garage and ride it on occasion) I feel I should at least say this: don't buy too much bike. A Speed Triple might seem tame by comparison to other bikes in that price range, but if you're a beginner, it's still a LOT of bike. Even a current 600cc sport bike is a LOT of bike - most guys don't realize that a new 600 makes the same amount of horsepower as the older CBR900RR from the early 90s (bikes that were considered "death machines" when they first came out) and are MUCH more twitchy. Twichy == BAD for a new rider. While "twitchy" feels "light and maneuverable", it also means it's VERY responsive to both rider input, and the road - and the wrong input from a rider can make things turn ugly in a hurry. My old R6 was twitchy, I could run just a few tenths off the lap record at a local track here and have several national level wins... and that bike STILL tried to kill me a few times, even with a steering damper (that aids in reducing the twitchiness.)
Take a rider class. Not sure if they have this down in Houston but up here in IL (and also in WA state) they have courses given by the Motorcycle Safety Foundation. In IL the courses are free - the even provide the bike and helmet. Excellent courses that give you some really good instruction. Hopping on a bike is NOT as simple as hopping in a car... some things might appear counter-intuitive at first (like counter-steering) but are really KEY to keeping you in one piece in an event that requires quick maneuvers.
Then, after you get your bike, sign up for a few track-based rider schools. You'll learn a lot there too.
I've been riding bikes since I was 12, and racing since I was 15 - first motocross, and then eventually road racing. I've seen a lot of friends get hurt, and a few die (one friend a VERY experienced rider, died because of a brain fart and a simple mistake that lead to him running off the road.)
Taking the slow, learning route might not be as cool but if you go this way you'll learn more, you'll appreciate it more, and chances of you being a "one and done" are slim. ("One and done" being the guy who buys a bike, rides it a bit, scares the hell out of himself, and sells it never to ride again.) Riding is awesome but it's dangerous and anyone who tells you otherwise probably shouldn't be riding. Learn slowly and you will have a much greater appreciation for it. Pick yourself up something like a Suzuki SV-650 - plenty of power, faster than the typical supersport inline-4 600 from the mid 90s, cheap, lots of parts, and handle REALLY well. And let me tell you, there is a LOT of satisfaction in passing a guy on a "big bad 180hp R1" on an SV!
Ok... sorry, hate to sound like an old fuddy-duddy. I just want to try to pass off a little bit of what I consider to be sound advice and maybe help turn you into someone that will be a long-time rider and not someone who "rode a little when I was in my 20s." I'll get off my soapbox.
Good luck with the sale.
Take a rider class. Not sure if they have this down in Houston but up here in IL (and also in WA state) they have courses given by the Motorcycle Safety Foundation. In IL the courses are free - the even provide the bike and helmet. Excellent courses that give you some really good instruction. Hopping on a bike is NOT as simple as hopping in a car... some things might appear counter-intuitive at first (like counter-steering) but are really KEY to keeping you in one piece in an event that requires quick maneuvers.
Then, after you get your bike, sign up for a few track-based rider schools. You'll learn a lot there too.
I've been riding bikes since I was 12, and racing since I was 15 - first motocross, and then eventually road racing. I've seen a lot of friends get hurt, and a few die (one friend a VERY experienced rider, died because of a brain fart and a simple mistake that lead to him running off the road.)
Taking the slow, learning route might not be as cool but if you go this way you'll learn more, you'll appreciate it more, and chances of you being a "one and done" are slim. ("One and done" being the guy who buys a bike, rides it a bit, scares the hell out of himself, and sells it never to ride again.) Riding is awesome but it's dangerous and anyone who tells you otherwise probably shouldn't be riding. Learn slowly and you will have a much greater appreciation for it. Pick yourself up something like a Suzuki SV-650 - plenty of power, faster than the typical supersport inline-4 600 from the mid 90s, cheap, lots of parts, and handle REALLY well. And let me tell you, there is a LOT of satisfaction in passing a guy on a "big bad 180hp R1" on an SV!
Ok... sorry, hate to sound like an old fuddy-duddy. I just want to try to pass off a little bit of what I consider to be sound advice and maybe help turn you into someone that will be a long-time rider and not someone who "rode a little when I was in my 20s." I'll get off my soapbox.
Good luck with the sale.
I started with a DRZ400sm and it was a lot of fun. If its your first bike, buy a sv650 like this user suggested and toodle around on it. Then after you have it down.. get the triumph! Even then, the sv650 seems like a lot of bike for the first bike.
Watch out for those people on cell phones too. I swear they are subconsciously drawn towards motorcyclists.
08-27-2011, 02:30 AM
#22
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One of my friends Ephraim used to ride alot in Houston. James Coney Island meets every weekend night, cruise and run all over town after dark. One nite he and 3 other guys rode down Memorial Drive towards downtown with 2 Vettes chasing. Illegal alien driving the wrong way took out all the bikes and if the riders did not die on impact then the Vettes running over them at 100mph did the rest. This was at the kink just before the Sabine bridge. There are still wreaths there. Many of our friends sold their bikes within a month of that accident. Houston is dangerous enough in a car.
Ofcourse if I must drive through to get to ***** Ray's BBQ, in Beaumont, I'm all in!
