[BRAUNSTEIN82]

woody youll probly agree alot of people drive like that in clearwater and tampa. Hog fish grill saturday nights, stunter central.

Im in nc right now, with country road everywhere around me. There is noone who likes to ride twisties and no one stunts. Everybody has extended swings and want to drag.

[woody]

haha everyone in GA SC and NC love drag but the twisty's by my grandparents in NC (burnsville area) ARE GREAT!


anyways ya alot of that there at hogfishand i will openly admit there are alot of new riders to the scene here in florida and you can openly see it..

i try and take it one step at a time.. but i couldn't tell you how many R6's and all i have seen go down because the rider has only been riding for 4months and is trying to keep up with the boys.. i would rather be at the back of the line on twistys make it out safe but have fun then to try and keep up and screw up...

but some just don't get it....

[OldandReallySlow]

I like Woody already!!!

Come on out here to LoCal (and bring Jason with ya) We got some twisties and tracks for you!!!

[Slim]

Re: opinions on the Katana, time for some honesty.

I don't have the attention span to read through all three pages of replies. so all I'll say is:

what makes it a crappy sport bike?

maybe the fact that it's an sport touring and not a super sport ?!

and don't blame the bike for your mistakes - that's just a cop-out.

[mx916]

O.K. guys, Now is when one of two things should happen;

1- We drop this topic and move on.
2- Jason chimes in with "Cancel my membership,
I am joining stunters.com or some other site.

Don't mean to be harsh, but honestly we've beaten this to death, and Jason has aa different take on riding than the majority of this site.

[The CyberPoet]

personal responce i usually take that turn arround the speed limit 3rd gear about 6 grand only cause clearwater's city kitty's are always arround there...

i have taken it arround 65 though before still in 3rd gear about 9 grand...

9 Grand is never where you want to be in that kind of turn on a Kat (remembering that torque peak is nominally 9180 RPM or so for a stock Kat). Why? Because you are now very close to torque-peak and probably close to WOT, meaning four things:
(A) The maximum torque is going to the back tire, making it more likely to want to slide out from under you at any given speed in a turn if it starts to lose traction;
(B) Because you are close to torque peak, minor throttle position changes will produce the maximum amount of unsettling of the bike in the turn;
(C) Because there is effectively very little throttle left if you need to increase your speed to avoid something (7.8k in 4th would be a better choice at this instant -- that would change the throttle availability to be able to carry you through the main torque curve if needed, and your active speed is identical); AND
(D) Because of the RPM, your hand is as far away from the brake control as reasonably possible. Not a good thing...

You want the bike as settled as possible going through the turn to maximize both grip and speed. You want the engine to be at your beck-and-call on demand if needed. And you want your hands in such a way that all of the controls are readily reachable without seriously upsetting that settled posture.

where am i looking comming down the off ramp slightly ahead at the cars comming from tampa at the light as i get past the blind spot to me left and to the right where they come from mcmullen before the bayside bridge

reason for this is incase someone ran a red and or doesn't see me on the right side and is pulling out onto 60...

When you first start to head onto the off-ramp, you should have already scanned to the right, to see what traffic from Tampa is doing in general (to give you more information earlier) -- is it stopped, slowing, going, no-existant?
The biggest threat is southbound McMullen-Booth ramp onto Gulf-to-Bay if you're coming down the northbound ramp -- you have two main threats off that ramp: people who will swing wide to U-turn back onto northbound McMullen-Booth (coming into your lane) and those turning westbound onto Gulf-To-Bay and coming across lanes (not having seen you, because the typical cager glances literally for 1/3rd of 1 second to decide whether it's clear). You covered one of the two -- those turning westbound onto Gulf-to-Bay. There's also an exit to the water treatment plant on your right that most people don't notice...

usually don't like to go to fast in that area though also cause of oil on the roads and what not...

Wise... The road surface scan at this intersection is absolutely critical, although the oil spray usually exists on the other side of the intersection (eastbound Gulf-to-Bay onto Southbound bridge entrance).

puncture a tire actually had both front and rear go out on me on anclote road... didn't notice till later though

Then you were lucky. The question was what do you do if it were to happen on that same ramp we've been talking about, in a way that you notice immediately -- would you even notice the feeling in a way that made sense to you?

Woody, I honestly believe that you are far less likely to turn up dead or seriously injured than Jason based on all our past & present conversations, but some of your answers still show that there is significant room for improvement in your skill sets that involves training rather than strictly physical practice, at least in my humble opinion...

Cheers
=-= The CyberPoet

[woody]

i do apprecate it.. i can see your point on the 9 grand section at 9.5grand im in my power band big time.. remember i'm on the YZF but still not to much of a diffefrnence...

i have been riding for 2 years only have gone down twice... i try to be the deffencive type during the day at night i let it go SOME... still got drunks to worry about

[Bob]

this is a great advertisement for people to make sure they buy the right bike for their type of riding.

i know I did.

Bob

[Range]

point is...Jason said that he is DRAGGING HIS TOES


that just proves he has no idea how to ride a motorcycle....and since has has not responded...I hope he has moved elsewhere, because he couldn't handle the truth.

[gsxr6racer]

And your right practice makes perfect. Look at guys at the track spanking noobs in the twisties on brand new 600s with 15 year old fzr 400's.

I love my wifes FZR400 for this reason... It surprises me nobody has mentioned that the right place to practice all out nutball cornering is the TRACK! Check it out before it's too late... my wife doesn't want the FZR anymore, wanna buy it?

[woobie]

I love my wifes FZR400 for this reason... It surprises me nobody has mentioned that the right place to practice all out nutball cornering is the TRACK! Check it out before it's too late... my wife doesn't want the FZR anymore, wanna buy it?

Believe me if I had the cash I would have grabbed one last year when 3 different project 400s came up, sadly with being laid off every other 2 weeks the fun money budget has taken a servere ass kicking.

But since you mentioned it what type of shape is it in? mileage?, drilled frame former track bike or a 100% street fzr?

[rwcreigh]

all i am going to say is my kat kicks ass!!!and i love it

[The CyberPoet]

Just a heads up. I worked with Jason on some of his techniques today, and did find some serious problems, but he's starting down the right road finally... I will be honest and say it will take quit a bit of work to undo a number of his bad habits (I'm still of the opinion that a little bike as starter bike would have been much better for him), but I showed him several of the issues and provided constructive criticism that I feel may have a good chance at helping him, at least when he's riding alone (I don't know how to tame the "gotta keep up" mentality that plagues his riding when following others).

Oh, and Jim (BraadaJim), he needs a new frame desperately, but is a poor boy... make him a deal so he can quit riding the nightmare that is his frame now...

Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet

[woobie]

Good for you CP

at least when he's riding alone (I don't know how to tame the "gotta keep up" mentality that plagues his riding when following others).

The only way to tame that impulse is for him to do it himself, gradually most riders figure it out. It may take a major get off, or a minor Oh shit moment but with time (hopefully) it'll happen.

[DooD]

Overall, I see the bike as having great potential. I think a major part of owning a Katana is your expectations for it, and knowing what it can and can't do. And while the aftermarket parts selection for it aren't as wide as other bikes, I still see a TON of things out there that can make the Kat a HELL of a lot better than it is.

In general, it DOES suffer in the weight category. Having a steel frame and an array of parts that are heavier then those found on SS machines definitely limits it's abilities somewhat...however, the rider needs to realize that this shouldn't prevent them in any way from enjoying the bike. The bike may be heavy, but with that comes stability and inertia...now, we may not be able to break landspeed records on the straights, but a good rider will be able to carry amazing speed up to and THROUGH the corners - so maybe there's no flames behind us at the end of a straight, but we also won't have to bring the bike down from such insane speeds to enter the corners. Not only does that mean a lot less work for us, but it also means that we can look a lot smoother doing so.

As for the limited lean angles....maybe. This one is debateable, because it depends a lot on the rider. My riding style tends to have me on and off the bike like a monkey through the corners, because this was my first bike, and I knew that with stock tires, getting off the bike farther and keeping it more upright would mean less chance of having the touring rubber give out.....However, I've also had a few squidly moments where a corner that was entered WAY too hot had me scraping the feelers and exhaust.....So yes, it might have a lesser lean angle than the SS bikes, but I've only had a few situations (and BAD ones at that) where I've had to take the bike down that far just to save my hide. Once again, a smoother form appears to be the best choice; rather than just dumping it into a corner and hoping for the best.

Stock brakes in my opinion are decent, but far from what they could be with better rubber. I found that the inital bite of the fronts was ok, but they suffered from poor modulation - probably due to the factory 3-way splitter and cheap lines. I also hated how the front brake would easily overwhelm the front tire....it was just too damn easy to lock up, and I found that better tires complemented the brake systems VERY nicely....

Th suspension....well, in a word, it's gooey. Definitely comfortable, though I prefer something that offers more feedback - even if it IS a rougher ride. I always felt like I didn't really know what the bike was doing, or where it REALLY wanted to go mid-corner......everything seemed slightly vague, and even though it always managed to work, I really didn't feel like I had learned what a small change in one setting was really doing for me.

So yes, it's definitely limited by a couple things...but like I said, there's a good selection of parts out there than can help a TON with what the bike can do. For instance, yesterday I ordered a complete Galfer brake setup - braided lines, green pads, and wave rotors, as well as a set of Pilot Powers. Before that, I bought the Ohlins shock and fork springs off CP. Then the Racetech gold valves.....so really, for every little thing that you don't like about the bike, there IS an alternative (aside from the heavy frame....). Whether or not one of those few alternatives can WORK for the rider is another question!

Overall, I couldn't be more pleased with the bike I bought, and while I most likely will be buying a SS bike next year, the kat is definitely staying!