New rider. Older bike.

[alanmcorcoran]

Although I suspect that most of us that got bigger bikes did so for extra highway and hill power, I think the "fit" is another significant reason. I think I am of average height (5'11") and I can easily sit on the BACK seat of the GZ. Everything on it is a little too close for me. When I rode bicycles that were too small, or with the pedals, bars and seat not properly adjusted, my knees hurt. On the GZ, I just feel kind of scrunched up. Sitting on the back helps, but it kind of messes with the handling and my head then sticks out way over the windshield.

I read somewhere on here about a guy that was 6'3". I just can't see someone that tall riding a GZ for very long.

One of the reasons I got the Strat is it just seemed to fit me better. Not to tall, not too short - just right.

[music man]

[quote=Easy Rider]

Originally Posted by "music man":1cei0ea2

I could out run him in my 73 Beetle.

Would that be with or without pushing with your foot through the rusted out floor pan (a-la Fred Flinstone) ?? :biggrin:

Yes, I had one......and two vans too.[/quote:1cei0ea2]

The floor pans aren't rusted out on mine, it is still solid as a rock. Still got the original interior and owners manual, etc... in it.

And AlanC, the thing about the "Bigger is Better" was not a personal stab at you, just a fact that Americans in general have that mentality in regard to our vehicles, and the rest of the world generally doesn't.

[Easy Rider]

Originally Posted by music man

the "Bigger is Better" was not a personal stab at you, just a fact that Americans in general have that mentality in regard to our [everything], and the rest of the world generally doesn't.

There, I fixed that for you. :biggrin:
It's called capitalism.......among other things. :roll:

[music man]

[quote=Easy Rider]

Originally Posted by "music man":l2flgo11

the "Bigger is Better" was not a personal stab at you, just a fact that Americans in general have that mentality in regard to our [everything], and the rest of the world generally doesn't.

There, I fixed that for you. :biggrin:
It's called capitalism.......among other things. :roll:[/quote:l2flgo11]


True, very true.

[Fish Baseball]

On the note of "bigger is better" I just don't get it. If i wanted to go really fast i'd have gotten a hyosung gx250 or some other sport bike. However, I got the bike because its so damned cheap to run ($14 or so a fortnight in aussie dollars, 98 octane too!) get about 320kms out of the tank, is possibly the simplest engine known to mankind to work on, max speed around 105kmph which is more than enough for where i ride, and if all this about it doesn't suggest I am pretty happy with this bike and don't want anything bigger......the most important reason to all aussie men.....with the luggage rack it carries 2 slabs of beer with no problems.

so to wrap this diatribe up, i see bigger bikes all the time, but why? I like my GZ. I've ridden a few other bikes now, and really, I don't see the appeal of bigger being better.

[bonehead]

The ability to carry the essentials of life(beer) is a very important factor when purchasing a bike.;-)

[dhgeyer]

There was a guy here in town that had an old 80's vintage BMW K75 that looked like it had been through the wars, but ran like a Swiss watch. He was taking a trip way up into the far reaches of Northern Canada, and, whether rightly or wrongly I have no idea, he was concerned about obtaining fuel for some of the longer stretches of road between any human habitation. So, he had someone build some auxiliary tanks into the body, which about doubled the fuel capacity, but you couldn't tell they were there. He had it rigged so he could switch from tank to tank as the need arose, kind of like on some aircraft. Anyway, after he got back from his trip he always made a habit of keeping the auxiliary tanks full of wine. I haven't seen him in years, so I don't know what became of him or the bike. He was kind of out there, but he knew how to live.

[alantf]

Originally Posted by Fish Baseball

get about 320kms out of the tank,

??????????????????????????? Last time I forgot to fill up I had to switch to reserve at 260 km. O_o

[alanmcorcoran]

Fish,

I think you summed up the GZ benefits nicely. If you have neither hills nor freeways to contend with, you may well be one of those that don't go bigger. I appreciate all of the things you cited, but there is a certain pleasure I get barreling down the four (or five or six) lane on the Strat that is hard to describe and doesn't involve gas mileage (or beer!)

As with many things, there are plusses and minuses to the various bike configurations and sometimes you don't know what you like until you've tried it. I like my GZ but I like my Yamaha a lot more.

Sounds to me like you are having a blast on the new bike and that is the best result one can hope for with any new adventure.

[burkbuilds]

Good for you Fish Baseball, so many people are never satisfied with anything they own and are always looking for "greener" grass on the other side of the fence. Sounds like your driving conditions are ideal for the GZ. I was extremely happy with my GZ and only sold it because my driving needs changed drastically. My Vulcan does what I need it to do on the highway now and it's not a huge bike either (500 cc). I was reading about the early Model A Ford cars the other day and if I remember correctly they weighed about 700-800 lbs and had about 10 hp engines. By comparison the GZ is almost half the weight and about twice the power. I am not trying to bash anyone for owning a larger displacement bike, there are a lot of good reasons someone might want to own one and I'm certainly glad we have all the variety and choices available to each of us. I'm just complementing you on your attitude that what you have works well for you and you are satisfied with that and other peoples opinions shouldn't be the reason to change to a different bike if you are happy with your bike.
Your attitude reminds me of a local architect I worked with about a dozen years ago, he was at the end of his career, a very successful career, and still lived in the little house he bought after WWII ended. He was perfectly satisfied with that house, yes it was in excellent condition, but it wasn't big and it wasn't "modern" and it was in an older neighborhood where mostly mid to lower income residents lived. He and his wife raised their family there and the home had a great welcoming spirit to it when I met him there on several occassions. He knew all his neighbors and he was very happy living in that little house, doing a little stained glass work in a small hobby room out back and playing golf with his son and grandson once a week. He didn't have a luxury car and he didn't dress in expensive clothes and it was an eye opener for me to see how satisfied he was with his life, knowing that he could have afforded to live in a large luxury home in a new subdivision and drive a luxury automobile. I have a lot of admiration for that man and it sounds like you are cut from the same material. Enjoy the GZ !