nklr atk motorcycles - info?

[ephilride@aol.com]

In a message dated 8/31/00 11:08:30 AM Pacific Daylight Time, esanders@... writes:

> > > > Yo, > I hear stories all the time from X-"motorcyclists" that start out > with, "Yeah, back when I was young and stupid, I rode one of those things, > until I.........",

Yo Eric, Speaking for myself only, at age 46 (young old guy?) with 30+ years mc experience with a pretty broad background in dirt competition, I can say that with age comes an appreciation for just how fragile life is. When you are young, you don't just think you are indestructible, you KNOW you are indestructible (at least I thought that way). Now, I know that life is like a vapor, puff and its gone. Motorcycles in themselves aren't the problem, its the manner in which they are operated. Many of those ol' timer stories and their crashes are because they didn't know how to ride. It takes skill to operate a scooter. "Yeah, me and my buddy been chuggin' a few cool ones and he says, here Earl, take a spin on this cheer Harley Davidson, its a reel motosickle." You know the results, Earl crashes....... So who is getting hurt on bikes these days (excluding competition riders)? My guess is that it is the younger rice rocket crowd who have waaay more bike that their skill level can handle and the low hour "cruiser rider". In the first case, the rider gets in way over their head because they can't handle the bikes awesome performance. The low hour cruiser guy just lacks time in the saddle and makes bonehead mistakes - like turning into a gravel parking lot and while still keeled over decides to use the front brake to adjust his speed. And then there is the very special group who believe their dual sport bike is really dirt worthy and goes off down this trail and ......... On a motorcycle, an error in judgment can kill you. You can day dream in the cage and drop a wheel off the edge of the road and "yank 'er back." Do that on a bike and you just might..............crash real bad! Don't take advice for old guys the wrong way. Weigh what they have to say and ride like your life depends on it.........cuz it does! The MSF Rider Course is a good thing - do it. Knot - who hasn't crashed since Saturday (5 days and counting), corse he hasn't been on a bike since Saturday.

[Joe Percival]

So who is getting hurt on bikes these days (excluding competition riders)? My guess is that it is the younger rice rocket crowd who have waaay more bike that their skill level can handle and the low hour "cruiser rider". In the first case, the rider gets in way over their head because they can't handle the bikes awesome performance. The low hour cruiser guy just lacks time in the saddle and makes bonehead mistakes - like turning into a gravel parking lot and while still keeled over decides to use the front brake to adjust his speed. And then there is the very special group who believe their dual sport bike is really dirt worthy and goes off down this trail and ......... In our neck of the woods we have had a number of 17 and 18 year olds get killed on their very first bike. Tragically, many of these kids are riding brand new crotch rockets purchased as first bikes by their parents (graduation presents for the rich I suppose). What a waste of youth, energy, and how tragic for those left behind. The other crowd that seems to be dying off are brand new riders between their mid 40s and mid 50s on brand new Harley Davidsons. Seems like every week I'm reading about some fool on a brand new Y2K Harley who decided to pass an 18 Wheeler on the rightin the middle of a twisty turny, or tried to pass on a blind curve, over the double yellow, with predictable results. Of course, many of these guys have their wives or kids on the back when they decide to behave in such a childish manner. What a shame. Ride Safe, Live Longer. Joe

[Stuart Mumford]

Anybody know anything about ATK motorcycles? Reliability, aftermarket support, etc. ________________________________________________________________________ The American Dirtbike.... That can't make it all the way round the White Rim on a tank of gas... CA Stu <-- tanked