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pud
climber
Sportbikeville
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Jul 22, 2006 - 09:51am PT
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I think whats missing from this thread is HOW YOU RIDE a bike.
Even with "staight pipes" i can idle a 1300cc harley past camp 4 and not be noticed.
Aftermarket exhaust companies today cater to the whims of a generation of riders only interested in posing as motorcyclists. (sound familiar?)
many of these posers want loud pipes so they can make lots of noise and these manufacurers are more than happy to help.
Real motorcyclists know that a certain amount of back pressure is needed in four cycle engines for performance and to keep valves cool. The majority of people that ride around on really loud harleys will be doing whatever is fashionable a few years from now, but unfortunately will be replaced by other posers.
There are db limits on bikes in California on the street as well as off-road, and they should be enforced, especially in our national parks where they not only disturb others but influence public opinion of motorcycles.
I ride everyday. i ride street and off-road. Motorcycles are a way of life for me. it is the trendy rider that takes away many of the freedoms allowed to the motorcycle community.
The same as the trendy climber takes away from our chosen sport.
These are some of my rides and i can be really loud on them or i can be damn quiet. I choose to ride quietly when i know i am influencing others.
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Rankin
climber
Bishop, CA
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Jul 22, 2006 - 03:09pm PT
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Harley 'posers' do the same thing on the Blue Ridge Parkway. I try to grin and bear it, but sometimes its hard not to hate these guys. I understand that riding can be super fun. But HDs are really crappy bikes. They handle like station wagons, are loud and ugly, but more than anything, I find the 'HD biker' culture to be contentious and stupid. I can appreciate the need for speed, and crotch-rockets can get super loud when they're opened up, but they don't bother me too much. It's the HD culture that is so lame and offensive. And another thing, the women you usually find on HDs are hideous. Disgusting really. I don't believe in ugly sexy. Yuk.
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Toker Villain
Big Wall climber
Toquerville, Utah
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Jul 22, 2006 - 03:42pm PT
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Well Jody,
I think you've got a better chance with that than trying to cite a Harley owner for carrying a "hideous, disgusting" passenger.
Good thing the rangers can't cite people for THAT.
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TradIsGood
Trad climber
Gunks end of country
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Jul 22, 2006 - 04:31pm PT
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"Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves."
- Carl Jung
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BOMBER
Social climber
yOSEMITE
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Jul 22, 2006 - 05:13pm PT
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Just last week a friend & I were commenting on the same subject. I feel that to enter the Park, one should have to pass a decibel meter. Too high a volume of noise, the vehicle cannot come into the park. It's that simple. Those bike engines are so loud you can hear them from miles away. Keep them out of the park I say.
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Ouch!
climber
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Jul 22, 2006 - 05:28pm PT
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Old Black and White I took of some noisy bikers in Yosemite back in 1957.
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Jerry Dodrill
climber
Bodega, CA
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Jul 22, 2006 - 07:02pm PT
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"One time a biker rode out into the meadow in Toulumne leaving a sizeable rut. When the rangers stopped him they took his key, would not let him ride out and gave him a choice: either pay for a helicopter lift out or take the bike apart and carry it piece by piece back to the road. One of LEO's finest hours."
Hi Peter. Is that a true story? How did it shake out?
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Toker Villain
Big Wall climber
Toquerville, Utah
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Jul 22, 2006 - 07:15pm PT
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I suspect it is, and that he opted for disassembly.
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Ouch!
climber
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Jul 22, 2006 - 09:31pm PT
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WBraun
climber
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Jul 22, 2006 - 09:37pm PT
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Hahahaha .........
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Toker Villain
Big Wall climber
Toquerville, Utah
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Jul 22, 2006 - 11:45pm PT
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Where do you come up with these Ouch? Hilarious!
Phoolish looks like he's a bit beyond being scared of the "low frequencies" or did Werner just hug him too tight?
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Ouch!
climber
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Jul 22, 2006 - 11:58pm PT
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You're trying to stir up a ruckus, Ron. Must be a slow night in Utah. LOL!
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Toker Villain
Big Wall climber
Toquerville, Utah
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Jul 23, 2006 - 12:06am PT
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"Slow night in Utah"?
Is there any other kind?
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telemama
Trad climber
midpines
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Jul 23, 2006 - 03:48am PT
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Someone with more time than I have, could google Harleys being banned in Yosemite. I recall hearing rumor, maybe even reading on an NPS site that this was in fact going to happen. Maybe it was just talk though. But, I think it was supposed to happen this year, so I guess it never went through. Anyway, maybe someone will investigate...
Also, you can only hear them when they are in front of you-- AFTER they have snuck up and passed you on a double yellow--so I don't know how this makes them safer.
But... sure would be a nice view of the Park from a (quiet) motorcycle.
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Anastasia
Trad climber
Near a mountain, CA
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Jul 23, 2006 - 04:24am PT
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Oh dear...
I once kept the "quieter" stock pipes on my Harley to be civil towards my neighbors. I soon realized that there is a BIG problem with keeping quieter pipes... You have to realize that drivers generally "don't see motorcycles" on the road. When you option out to have quieter pipes they also "don't hear" you either. I was almost killed several times by cars turning blindly into me as if I didn't exist before admitting defeat. I "had" to buy loud pipes so people at least can "hear" me on the road. Ever since I bought them drivers have been" much less" likely to turn into me.
I am a rider and yes I would love to ride a quieter bike, but the safety issues...
Damn crazy drivers! At least my bike goes 70 miles per gallon and I don't take up so much space!
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Chaz
Trad climber
So. Cal.
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Jul 23, 2006 - 04:48am PT
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Do you wear bright colors when you ride?
Or are you like every motorcyclist I see wearing mostly black?
I don't ride a motorcycle, but when I ride my bicycle I always wear one of the flourescent yellow/green jerseys I picked up in about '93 when those colors were stylish.
Even though I've been hit by cars aprox. half a dozen times in the course of my two-wheeled life, never once have I been hit while wearing my "loud" jersey.
Remember, light travels a hell of a lot faster than sound.
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Anastasia
Trad climber
Near a mountain, CA
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Jul 23, 2006 - 05:01am PT
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I have a bright red helmet and a bright red leather suite that my crazy friend gave me who is also responsible for building my bike.
Good enough colors?
I personally can't stand them since I am partial towards blue and black leathers.
Yet beggars know better then getting picky about small things.
Too bad I don't have the leathers or bike anymore. Something about crowded roads in California and needing to live interfered with that habit.
I plan to pick it up later when I live in a more deserted area then the 101 freeway.
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Chaz
Trad climber
So. Cal.
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Jul 23, 2006 - 05:07am PT
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Who knows, wearing red may have already saved your life.
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wootles
climber
Gamma Quadrant
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Jul 23, 2006 - 10:15am PT
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I always worry about cars not seeing me while I ride my bicycle so I ride with a car alarm blaring the whole time. It must be working because I'm still alive. I no longer have to ride while assuming that cars are a danger to me and can ignore them entirely. Plus I get to wear all black.
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