California Riders
- Thread starter Racer 222
- Start date
wholy thread revival batman!!!
I was reading through the first page, reading all the posts thinking it was a fresh post and then I came to a post by Cache!! and I am thinking WTF!!!!! NO WAY IS HE POSTING!!! that made me look at the date on his post and then I realized how old this was.
I am from Cali and I take it easy...
I was reading through the first page, reading all the posts thinking it was a fresh post and then I came to a post by Cache!! and I am thinking WTF!!!!! NO WAY IS HE POSTING!!! that made me look at the date on his post and then I realized how old this was.
I am from Cali and I take it easy...
Rocketman
Registered
OK - I know this was a revived thread, but I lived in Cali for a while. It's been so long ago that I forgot about how awesome it is there. Great pics... I'll get some this weekend and post some of the same but from Utah...
Geez I miss it out there. I used to live on the Topanga Canyon route to PCH back in the 80's. Is the Rock Store still a cool hang out or is it old and crappy?
Geez I miss it out there. I used to live on the Topanga Canyon route to PCH back in the 80's. Is the Rock Store still a cool hang out or is it old and crappy?
Well this subject was just too good to pass up on. So many of you have touched on key points in this thread!
California DOES have a number of younger guys out trying to cut their teeth on the myriad of mild to insane roads we have here. The results vary by attitude of the rider; many, many honest mistakes happen and yeah, a few guys just flat blow it, but the wrecks punish them badly enough in my eyes that we don't have to bag on them too right?
My Busa is my 6th street bike in about 30 years of riding, 20+ on the street. I have done a little track work and went for some Keith Code training as well. I frequently put my knee down on the street, something I have never done off the track until this bike with these insane new tires - things have advanced so much!
If someone wondered if "we are really faster" I guess I would have to say that with so many opportunites to carve canyons, it is like being surrounded by training grounds of all skill levels, so perhaps so!
Some of the other things touched on here worth commenting on; most our fantastic roads do not have any sort of runoff area. Usually a rider finds terrible consequences like barbed wire fences, cliffs, cheese graters (guard rails) or other vehicles. While our roads are great, the effects of making an error or finding something slippery can be fatal, which is pretty scary when you have ridden long enough to see a variety of wrecks here.
I am part of a group here in Calif Central Coast that is made up of riders that have a good time, but keep things sane. We take new members on a test ride to see how they ride and what sort of risks they take. Sometimes someone still has a close call or even a fall, but quite rare.
As for Pasnhit; what a great guy! He has done all the homework for anyone who wants to know where to go and even see pictures of it beforehand! I think his subscription is a mere $20 for access to his whole database! That has to equal like 10 cents an hour for him based on the mass volume of info he offers, so clearly most of it is his (passionate) love of riding.
I spend a great deal of time every ride trying to work on whatever area my riding needs work at, or where I see my limitations currently. Practice Practice getting around barriers and doing new things just keeps paying off.
I think it is safe to say that there is some level (when you ride on the street) where you have to say: "I am not going faster than this", because you know that your tires, reaction time, and possible bad traction could take you out.
(Here is a great shot taken on hwy 150 just above Bocoli's, Ojai in a 1 mile section of incredible corners we call the "Roller Coaster")
I personally decided when I started putting my knee down on my Busa with a jacked up rear end (1" raise bones, no drop in front), that I was done trying to speed up. I am happy at this place and feel like I have good reaction to cars on the lines and other surprises that my level of overall risk is "medium".
Would you not agree that setting some kind of "limiter" on yourself could help keep you on this side of the "Wreck Due, Line"??
California DOES have a number of younger guys out trying to cut their teeth on the myriad of mild to insane roads we have here. The results vary by attitude of the rider; many, many honest mistakes happen and yeah, a few guys just flat blow it, but the wrecks punish them badly enough in my eyes that we don't have to bag on them too right?
My Busa is my 6th street bike in about 30 years of riding, 20+ on the street. I have done a little track work and went for some Keith Code training as well. I frequently put my knee down on the street, something I have never done off the track until this bike with these insane new tires - things have advanced so much!
If someone wondered if "we are really faster" I guess I would have to say that with so many opportunites to carve canyons, it is like being surrounded by training grounds of all skill levels, so perhaps so!
Some of the other things touched on here worth commenting on; most our fantastic roads do not have any sort of runoff area. Usually a rider finds terrible consequences like barbed wire fences, cliffs, cheese graters (guard rails) or other vehicles. While our roads are great, the effects of making an error or finding something slippery can be fatal, which is pretty scary when you have ridden long enough to see a variety of wrecks here.
I am part of a group here in Calif Central Coast that is made up of riders that have a good time, but keep things sane. We take new members on a test ride to see how they ride and what sort of risks they take. Sometimes someone still has a close call or even a fall, but quite rare.
As for Pasnhit; what a great guy! He has done all the homework for anyone who wants to know where to go and even see pictures of it beforehand! I think his subscription is a mere $20 for access to his whole database! That has to equal like 10 cents an hour for him based on the mass volume of info he offers, so clearly most of it is his (passionate) love of riding.
I spend a great deal of time every ride trying to work on whatever area my riding needs work at, or where I see my limitations currently. Practice Practice getting around barriers and doing new things just keeps paying off.
I think it is safe to say that there is some level (when you ride on the street) where you have to say: "I am not going faster than this", because you know that your tires, reaction time, and possible bad traction could take you out.
(Here is a great shot taken on hwy 150 just above Bocoli's, Ojai in a 1 mile section of incredible corners we call the "Roller Coaster")
I personally decided when I started putting my knee down on my Busa with a jacked up rear end (1" raise bones, no drop in front), that I was done trying to speed up. I am happy at this place and feel like I have good reaction to cars on the lines and other surprises that my level of overall risk is "medium".
Would you not agree that setting some kind of "limiter" on yourself could help keep you on this side of the "Wreck Due, Line"??
Cali is one of those places that I love to visit but wouldn't be caught dead moving to. Ya, you have beautiful weather, minus the acid rain. Smog? What the hell is that? Last time I was there the weather station had a Smog level for the city...when you have a weather man telling you what elevation the smog will be at...dude...wtf. Also, I'm a gun nut. I love em. Can't have enough of em. And to be honest...Cali is Draconic when it comes to gun laws. You can have your year round fast twisties. I'll be happy with my Bushmasters thankyou very much.
PS:
Cali drivers are F'ING NUTS!!! No wonder you guys are faster, you have to be just to survive the loonies! Everytime I got passed on the highway I expected to see a cop chasing them! And the whole lane splitting is absolutly nuts. Go to make a right hand turn and BAM! There's a motorcycle right where you planned to be. Change lanes? Where the hell did that Harley come from? Still don't understand how you peeps can think it's perfectly safe. Might shed light on the whole speed thing though...Cali riders are faster cuz it's a matter of survival. Be faster then the cagers or DIE.
PS:
Cali drivers are F'ING NUTS!!! No wonder you guys are faster, you have to be just to survive the loonies! Everytime I got passed on the highway I expected to see a cop chasing them! And the whole lane splitting is absolutly nuts. Go to make a right hand turn and BAM! There's a motorcycle right where you planned to be. Change lanes? Where the hell did that Harley come from? Still don't understand how you peeps can think it's perfectly safe. Might shed light on the whole speed thing though...Cali riders are faster cuz it's a matter of survival. Be faster then the cagers or DIE.
I gotta chime in here. I just moved here from Indiana of all places. Riding season in Indiana is from perhaps, March to maybe November. So I was thrilled to be out on the bike in December and January!
Driving a bike in this area is more hazardous then just about any place I have ever ridden. Perhaps not as bad as Bike Week in Dayton where a good percentage of the riders are under some kind of influence..
What is has forced me to do is re-evaluate my riding habits. In other words, it forces you to become more skilled or be more aware of your surroundings. I have found that people who lane split are watching the heads of the drivers of the cagers as they are approaching them. Not only should you be scanning the drivers heads but watching those front tires as well. The head may or may not turn before the car but the tire will always turn before the car does. If I get into a gap between traffic on the interstate, I prefer to stay there as long as possible. This is provided that the interstate is moving at normal speed. When I first started riding here, I was scared shitless most of the time. That fear made me think and think hard. I also started paying a lot more attention to what other California riders were posting on here. I figured these guys knew the battlefield and their advice would be priceless. Now that I have been doing it for a few months, I am no longer scared shitless, just very careful and concentrate on my surroundings at all times.
Driving a bike in this area is more hazardous then just about any place I have ever ridden. Perhaps not as bad as Bike Week in Dayton where a good percentage of the riders are under some kind of influence..
What is has forced me to do is re-evaluate my riding habits. In other words, it forces you to become more skilled or be more aware of your surroundings. I have found that people who lane split are watching the heads of the drivers of the cagers as they are approaching them. Not only should you be scanning the drivers heads but watching those front tires as well. The head may or may not turn before the car but the tire will always turn before the car does. If I get into a gap between traffic on the interstate, I prefer to stay there as long as possible. This is provided that the interstate is moving at normal speed. When I first started riding here, I was scared shitless most of the time. That fear made me think and think hard. I also started paying a lot more attention to what other California riders were posting on here. I figured these guys knew the battlefield and their advice would be priceless. Now that I have been doing it for a few months, I am no longer scared shitless, just very careful and concentrate on my surroundings at all times.
Rayabusa0818
Never Forgotten
I spent a couple of years in California when I was in the Navy. San diego has the greatest weather in the world. The roads and scenery are beautiful all over the state. There is no question about the thrill of camping in the Desert near Blythe. There is the majesty of Truckee, The Needles, Death Valley and The Sequoias and The Redwoods. However, for living I choose Tennessee...
cosmo
Registered
I'm a native New Englander (Go Pats!) and can appreciate your thoughts on the matter however the rain, snow, sleet, freezing rain, blizzards, hurricanes.........well, you see where this is going
Funny you should mention San Diego. Many of the people migrating to Norcal are fleeing southern California, and other urban areas, by the bus load.
XLCC
Registered
I am Cali born and bred as well. Born in Bakersfield, grew up in Placentia (OC), now live in the Antelope Valley... right up the road from Canyon Country (awesome place to ride). My favorite places to ride fast are Latigo Canyon, Mulholland Hwy, and ANY desert road that is cop-less and traffic-less. I was reading BusaBuddy's and SierraFlyer's posts and it really made me think. SierraFlyer, I think you really hit the nail on the head when you stated, "People on this site come from all areas, backgrounds, experiences,etc. and they all respect each other..." So, you may want to lighten up on BusaBuddy a little. The point is this... everyone in the sportbiking community starts somewhere. For some it was early in life... for others the sportbike bug caught them later in life (like myself). The past two rides I have been on we have had to tell the friggin new guys, "do not follow the riders up front". Most of us here probably heard that a time or two when we were the FNG's. Unfortunately, our FNG's didnt listen and they ended up on the side of the road, picking up pieces of their bikes and waiting for the medics to arrive. I mention this for two reasons... 1. the FNG's need to start somewhere and at least they had the support of their buddies (poking fun is generally considered "good support" when loss of life and/or limb is not part of the outcome of the wreck) when they ate crap trying... and 2. I remember how I felt when I saw each of them wreck. The first thing that went through my head, as I rode past them tumbling across the pavement, was "you frickin dumba$$... you ginxxed our ride and your not even seriously hurt..." Stupid thought, I know... but after getting my bike stopped my thoughts went straight to ensuring that both rider and bike were going to survive. Although upset for their misfortunes, both riders took it as an experience check. They considered themselves schooled for that day, on the intricacies of what not to do. How many here can honestly say that has never happened to us??? Point is this... no matter what happens to any of us, new or old, sportbike rider or cruiser rider, its our decision how we chose to ride... and its our decision to feel the way we feel about life... any aspect of life. Its one of the reasons both of my boys are at war, so that I have freedom to believe. Believe what? Believe whatever. I really aspire to the saying, "I refuse to tiptoe through life, just to arrive safely at death". However, that saying may someday end me up unsafely at death. The way I choose to ride allows me to respect those that choose to "arrive safely at death". One day I was riding harder than usual, maybe being a little too "anti-tiptoe". A buddy of mine, who chooses to tiptoe through life, took me to the side and reminded me that my wife and daughter were really looking forward to going to the movies in a couple of days. Although I still nailed the canyons that day, I did so with a little more caution, and managed to make it home in one piece (but man did I have some stories to tell that day!). It is my experience in life, that we all (well, most of us anyway) have something to contribute to life... some kind of experience that, once shared, will help someone else live THEIR life fuller, happier, or richer... Anyone who rides will, eventually, someday wreck. So, in my opinion, we are no better than one another. Skill levels and riding styles may differ... but in the end each one of us desires, from riding, that place in our own hearts that says, "Today... I have lived"... regardless of how we choose to end up there.
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