Just something I recently wrote up for another forum (hence the US dollar values) and thought I'd share here as well. Just trying to share the love of motorbikes:
(1) Whereas sports cars tend to get heavier every generation, sportbikes almost always get lighter.They get more powerful, stiffer, and more direct-feeling too. Whereas many will say that the E92 M3 is faster than an E36 but it lacks the visceral feel of the E36, you'll never hear a CBR600RR rider complaining that Honda has dulled the CBR since the Hurricane days. Every generation, it not only gets more powerful, but it gets lighter, stiffer, and more communicative. In short: dynamically better in every way.
(2) Performance driving skills translate readily to motorcycles and vice versa.The concepts of weight transference, managing traction in each contact patch, and choosing the right line are shared between performance driving and performance motorcycling. The only critical dynamic difference is how the vehicles turn (banking versus yawing). Once you have a feel for banking, a good performance driver will probably be a good performance rider.
(3) The controls are laid out in a way that gives you greatest sensitivity where you want it the most.On a motorcycle, the controls where you want precision--gas, clutch, front brake--are controlled by the hands. And you can always be in contact with all three at the same time. The controls which require less precision--gearshifting and rear brake--are left to the feet. For contrast, not only are clutch, brake, and gas relegated to the less-precise feet in a car, but it's pretty damned hard to control all three at once.
(4) Bikes are cheap enough so that they don't have to be your only vehicle.Sure, you can't carry three friends on a motorcycle (at least not comfortably or legally...it's done all the time in the third world). And while you can ride a motorcycle in the snow (I've done it), I wouldn't recommend it if you've got another option. However, bikes are cheap enough so that you can own a pretty nice bike AND a decent car. For the price of a V6 Genesis coupe, you can own a Yamaha R6
and an a Civic Si sedan, for example. The R6 kills the Genesis when you want performance, and the Civic Si sedan kills the Genesis when you want practicality, while still being a driver's car.
And while you can get world-class performance for less than $10,000 in the form of a 600cc supersport bike, you can go much cheaper and still get a good bike. Two of the greatest performance bargains out there are the Kawasaki Ninja 250R (US$3,999) and the Suzuki SV650 (US$5,999). They're both absolutely brilliant machines, and don't believe the tools who say they're too slow and dull for anyone but a novice (particularly the SV).
(5) Speaking of cheap, Italian passion is real-world affordable.The chances of any of us owning a Ferrari or Lamborghini are pretty small. But check this out:
Yours for US$14,000.
Yours for US$14,000.
Yours for US$9,000.
(6) The mainstream American race circuits don't suck.I won't even post a video of how dull NASCAR is. But for comparison,
AMA Superbike:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuiLtXnXpn0&AMA Supercross:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKPkGV85N2I&(7) More fuel-efficient than a Prius.That's right, a Ninja 250R or a Suzuki SV650 will beat a Prius when it comes to fuel economy. If gas shoots back up to $5.00 per gallon, this really really matters. There's a reason that so many Londoners use motorcycles or motorscooters, even though it's not fun riding territory.
(8) The risk can be managed.There's no safe way to smoke a cigarette. But there ARE ways to manage the risks of motorcycling.
If you're very risk-averse, stick to the track (paved or dirt). Even if you wipe out at 120 mph on a track, you'll almost certainly walk away. It happens all the time in World Superbike and the like. The next step up is only riding in the country, wearing full-leathers and not pushing your bike to 10/10ths performance (especially when you can't see the exit to each turn). Still fun, and not particularly dangerous. By far the most dangerous sort of riding is urban driving, or anything where intersections are involved. Intersections are where the majority of motorcycling accidents, and serious injuries, occur. So don't use your bike as an urban commuter unless you're not particularly risk-averse.
But remember, the danger of getting T-boned on a motorcycle isn't
higher than the risk of being T-boned on a bicycle, and many of us ride bicycles in urban areas.
(9) "Electronic nannies" and "automatic transmissions"? What are these foreign things of which you speak?Seriously. You can find bikes with ABS and traction control if you want, but if you don't, great, because they aren't even options on most bikes.
As for automatic transmissions, there's only one motorcycle on the market where it's standard (Aprilia Mana), and on most it's not even an option.
(10). It's fun as hell. Even Jeremy Clarkson admits it.If you haven't already watched the Top Gear Vietnam special, that's one of two dozen reasons to do so.
