From: osborn@cs.utexas.edu (John Howard Osborn)
Newsgroups: rec.motorcycles
Subject: Like You Care
Date: 15 Oct 1992 11:49:27 -0500
Organization: CS Dept, University of Texas at Austin

I'm thinking about doing a CFD of rec.motorcycles.osborn, which will
be used for posting only articles of interest to me.  So there.

%%

Why are motorcycle reviews so bad?  All the US mags talk endlessly about
rake and trail, lean angles, 1/4 mile times, etc.  I like to know that,
but how is the damn bike to live with?  When I buy a motorcycle I ride
it *ALL THE TIME*, not just on Sunday morning trips to pose at Alices.
I want to know things like:  How well does the headlight work?  How
waterproof are the saddlebags?  Where can I staff small items on the bike?
How does it handle in the rain?  How much are commonly replaced items such
as clutch and brake levers, turn signals, and filters?  How bad will the
damage be if I drop it in a parking lot?  What accessories can I get for it?
How well do they work?  How easily can I wrench the common stuff like
oil changes and valve adjustment?  How comfortable is it on a long trip?
(Not speculation, but go ride the damn thing for 1000 miles and tell us
what hurts.)  How easy is it to pick up when you drop it?

%%

You get get two does of Kevin Cameron per month if you read Cycleworld
and Motorcycle International.  And when is his damn book coming out?

%%

The local BMW shop (Lone Star BMW) is dumping their Bimota dealership.
They've sold 1 Deici in the past year and the importer hasn't come
through on promises to supply them with a Tesi.  These are definately
rolling art pieces (they move me like no Ducati can) but I'd hate to
try to make a living selling them in the US.  Still, I bet that they
become as collectable as Ferraris have become over the years.
(So buy yours now!)

%%

I've seen '93 BMW K-bikes, PD's, and R100R's.  The new white and green
PD color scheme works really well - it looks great.  The R100R now
comes with dual front disks.  (Does this make a single disk R100R
suddenly collectable?)

%%

The wires for heated grips on my PD run inside the handlebars.
So, if you want to install a barsnake or something similar
you need to reroute the wires.

%%

When I ride with the grip heaters on, I feel an interesting connection
with my bike.  It sounds weird, but I feel more intimately connected
with it when it works to keep me warm and comfy.  I expect the
feeling will only grow when I get a heated vest.  This is part of
why I like riding in cool temperatures.  (The fact that my unvented,
heavy, black leather jacket roasts me in the summer could be another
reason.)

%%

Why do people always want to talk to me about my bike when I'm in a
super nasty mood?  If I bomb an exam, lose my homework, or don't
finish a program on time it is almost a sure thing that somebody will
come up to me as I'm getting on/off the bike and say "Wow!  I didn't
know BMW made dirt bikes!" or "Did you modify that yourself?  BMW doesn't
make enduros do they?" and they always finish with "How much did it cost?"
They usually get real quiet when I say $10,000.  From now on, I'm very
tempted to play with the brains of the clueless...

  "Actually, I work for BMW and this is a prototype of a bike we're
   thinking of selling.  What do you think about it?  Please don't
   tell anybody you saw it, OK?"

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Who rides a smoke-grey colored R90S (?) with a DOD plate-frame and
a broken speedometer to UT?

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If you ride an old H-D or BMW or Triumph or Norton or Guzzi, people
think "Cool bike" when they see it.  If you ride an old Japanese bike,
even if it is in great shape, people think that you're just cheap.
Too bad.

%%

I wish I got to ride half the bikes that Alan Cathcart gets to.  Sigh.

-
-John H. Osborn
-osborn@cs.utexas.edu
-DOD# 2001  '92 BMW Paris-Dakar
-Queer and Proud