1-Yr Anniversary

[diffluere]

So this week is my one-year anniversary for owning my GZ! Sadly I've only managed to put about 4k miles on her. I only ride about 6 miles to school and back every day, plus a few awesome adventures. I've been trying to ride more instead of driving my jeep, but it always seems to rain RIGHT when I need to leave for work or I want to run to the store. Plus, today it was 100 degrees so I'd rather take the car with the a/c instead of sweating to death at every stop light. I'm just amazed I've made it a whole year without dropping it in a parking lot or something.

Next year when I pay off my Jeep I hope to get a little bigger bike, maybe a 600/650. I really want a sportbike but who knows. I might be moving out of state to go to grad school so I could be bike-less for a while.

In about two weeks I'm going to visit friends in South Carolina and I think my friend is going to let me use his motorcycle trailer. Last time I went to visit they let me ride their Ninja 250 and I had a blast up in the mountains. I'm curious to see how the GZ compares on the slopes and twisties.

Some things I've learned:

-It's not as scary as everyone makes it out to be. Not every car is trying to murder me. I'm still careful, but I don't get really anxious every time I go out.

-Rain isn't that bad providing your visor is clean and you have a jacket. And you stay far behind cars since they can't figure out how to stop in rain.

-I should stop being lazy and learn how to fix stuff myself.

-Slow-moving traffic skills. hooray rear brakes!

-I *can* use all four limbs to operate a vehicle! My attempts to drive stick shift cars were mostly failures so the clutch/shift part of riding was hard for me, but with practice I learned how to make my left hand and foot do what I want them to.

-BRING WATER. Everywhere.

I love Young GZ. I wish I had more opportunity to ride but school and work take up all of my time it seems like...

[dhgeyer]

Good lessons you've learned - all true.

Four thousand miles isn't bad. I think if you averaged the yearly miles of all motorcycle owners in the USA it would be less than that. I base this on the members of my local club, and the mileages I see on used bikes divided by their age.

Be careful. Riding a Ninja in the twisties could be hazardous to your wallet.

[alantf]

Originally Posted by diffluere

I've only managed to put about 4k miles on her...... I only ride about 6 miles to school and back every day............ it always seems to rain RIGHT when I need to leave for work........ I'd rather take the car with the a/c instead of sweating to death at every stop light.

Next year I hope to get a little bigger bike

Aw c'mon......... You've only done 4000 miles in a year. You don't ride in the rain. You don't ride when it's hot. You'd rather take the car. When DO you ride, & why would you want a bigger bike? Sorry if this sounds like a rant, but it seems you don't even use the bike you've got.

[alantf]

Originally Posted by dhgeyer

Four thousand miles isn't bad. I think if you averaged the yearly miles of all motorcycle owners in the USA it would be less than that.

Such a big country............So little mileage........... What a waste. Why even bother getting a bike? :poorbaby:

[burkbuilds]

Hey Diffluere, don't let Alantf get to you. He just likes to "rag" on us "Yanks". 4,000 miles in a year is probably way more than most people put on their bikes in the USA. I can tell by your posts that you have enjoyed your GZ and like to ride it. Not everyone has the same mentality when it comes to riding. I ride pretty much year round almost every day in almost any type of weather (except ice), other people only ride when its between 65 and 80 degrees and no chance of rain, most people fall somewhere in between those two extremes. You just keep enjoying your ride and do it the way that suits you. My cousin Sarah, just bought a V-star 650 to ride, quite a move up from her moped riding that she's been doing for several years now while in college. I'm hoping to get a chance to ride with her sometime this Fall. There is nothing wrong with wanting a different bike than the one you have, if there was, we would probably all be guilty sometimes if we were honest about it. The GZ is a wonderful motorcycle, but just like any motorcycle, they fit different people with different needs and riding situations, but none of them fit everyone in every riding situation. Congratulations on your first full year of riding, way to go. I hope you have a great Fall semester at school, and if you change colleges for your graduate work, be sure and keep us all posted, good luck with your education.

[dhgeyer]

Originally Posted by alantf

Such a big country............So little mileage........... What a waste. Why even bother getting a bike? :poorbaby:

Well, I've done over 12,000 miles in the last 6 months, including crossing this continent twice (out and back), so I think I have the right not to be judgmental if I choose.

Most MC owners here in North America own their bikes for fun, status, or to portray an image. It's also a big social activity to ride in groups, or go to MC club meetings, rallies, and bike weeks to compare bikes, stories, and etc.

Some of us are serious about putting on miles regardless of conditions, doing long distances, vacationing on bikes, and so on, but we are in the minority. A very typical profile of a North American motorcycle owner would be someone who owns the bike more for the sake of owning it than anything else, and rides when the conditions are conducive to enjoyment, and doesn't when they're not.

Of course there's a spectrum of MC dedication. Some people will ride to work on days when they wouldn't otherwise go for a ride, and so on. But I think there are a lot more fair weather riders than otherwise here. Given that there are a lot of bad weather days in most parts of North America, that not everyone is retired with all the free time they want, and that people raising families rightfully tend to put that commitment first, it's not surprising that many MC owners don't get to ride very much, and consider it kind of special when they do.

It's easy to feel superior to people who ride less, but, looking at it another way, they're probably actually accomplishing more than I am. As far as I'm concerned, if anyone owns a bike for any reason, more power to them. It's their money, and they should enjoy it however they choose.

[Water Warrior 2]

Happy 1st Diffluere. You are above average in miles ridden and probably below average for the number of drops. I agree errands and a hot day are better with A/C.

[blaine]

Congratulations on a safe first year.Good luck in all your endeavours.Have fun.Ride safe.

[diffluere]

Thanks guys (well, those of you that left nice comments).

I ride my bike pretty much every week day, but like I said school is only 3 miles away! Same with work, it's about 4.5 miles away. Even if I ride to school AND to work, that's only 15 miles per day..or 5465 miles per year. *shrug* Gainesville isn't that big and I don't go that many places!

As I said before I don't mind riding in the rain, but it's such a pain in the ass to purposely go out and ride my bike to work in the rain, have to bring extra shoes, the rain gear, etc. when I could just grab an umbrella and get in the car. If it's raining, cold, hot, locust swarming, dark, a riot is happening, and I have class I still go on the bike; they don't let off-campus people to have car parking passes. I don't have a choice, so I'm not really a "fair-weather" rider. Sometimes I just prefer A/C over sweat dripping in my eyes.

For comparison, in the past year I've only put about 10,000 miles on my car, and that includes two trips to South Carolina (800 miles each way) and a few trips to my mom's condo (about 300 miles away). I really don't have time to go anywhere unless it's Spring Break or something. I have school every weekday (including summer) and I work every weekend. I'm not as lucky as some of you guys. =( One day I will have a 'real job' with banker's hours and I can go on adventures every weekend....

[Water Warrior 2]

What you really want is a banker's salary and perks. :lol: