My Bikes 
My Bikes Like someone once said, if you are into motorcycling,
no word is necessary to describe the absolute exhilaration of the ride.
If you are not into it, no word is sufficient to convince you otherwise.
For me, it didn't take much convincing. I love driving convertibles, but
nothing tops the feeling of being one with the surroundings as you cruise
down the highway on your bike. And above all, I know of no other machine
on earth that will let me cut a turn like this:
My first bike was a '83 Kawasaki Spectre 550.
(sorry, no pictures) It's a pretty street bike. Supposedly to have
one of the toughest motorcycle engine ever built. The odometer read 45,000
when I got it, but the motor still ran great. Yes, I dropped it a few times
and had one minor wipeout on it. Turfed the speedometer and the signal
light. 
But
I figured, if I had to do some damage, I rather do it with an old bike
before I upgrade. Meanwhile, Kevin, my bike buddy, bought a 91 Yamaha FZR600.
I rode his bike once, and I just didn't want to get off. The riding position
was much more comfortable and manuverable. So I started looking around
. Guess what, 3 weeks after I bought the Kawi, I got a great deal on a
used '95 FZR600.(It's a '91 FZR600 in the picture. The only difference
between that and the 95 model is the fairing design.) Barely worn
in: the odometer read only 1,959 miles. The engine ran great. As a matter
of fact, it rode so well that I put 3 K on it in less than a month. I took
that baby everywhere at every speed.
Kevin and I rode in to New York City on one Saturday. It was cool to zoom in and out of cabs since the motorcycles are much faster and more agile than the bulky cabs. Sadly, the adventure in the city was the last that I had on my dear FZR. I went to Atlanta for Olympics for the following week. When I came back, I thought I must have driven into the wrong parking lot, because I clearly remembered where I had parked the bike. It was not there anymore! I gradually came to my senses. I was at the right parking lot, it was my bike that had been ripped off! It wasn't that hard after all. The FZR600 weighs about 435 pounds, which translated to a three man job with a pick up. What I couldn't believe was how they managed that with the police patrolling the complex several times a night. I guess these guys are professionals. So I called the police and filed a report. The officer was like, well, most likely you will never see your babe again. It's probably already taken down and sold as after-market parts. So all you FZR owners out there, if you ever buy an after-market exhaust pipe with a long scratch on the side, you know whom it once belonged to.
Not much 
I
could do about that. I was pissed off for quite a while. I was thinking
to myself: man, maybe I should just lay low and settle for the shitiest,
most beat up bike there is. So I started looking around. Sure I found great
deals on some HEAVILY (ab)used bikes. But, oh boy, I thought my FZR had
a bad case of vibration. You should have been on one of these bikes I test-rode
(most of them are made in mid-80's). No way I am going to down grade from
a FZR to one of these piece of crap. Next thing I know, I became the proud
owner of this '95 Yamaha YZF600, which had replaced FZR600 in 1994 to become
the official YAMAHA 600cc racebike. Oh man, can this baby fly. If you are
interested, you can check out this
bike's specification. I used to think that the YZF was way too big
for my build. But it feels perfect now. Hugging to the tank and assuming
the attack position, I am ready once more to piss off some sports car drivers!
My next purchase? CBR900 maybe
.
I heard you could pull a wheelie at 80 MPH on that bike so easily that
it's not even funny. Now if I have a little more to spare, I would have
to go with a Ducati 916 V-Twin 
with the Desmatronic Valve system. This machine cuts turns like you wouldn't
believe. Despite its hefty price tag ($15,700 for a 96 model), I would
choose a Ducati over a Dodge Neon any day of the week.
What's
next on my agenda? Well, I like to learn how to pop a wheelie like this.
Assuming I don't turf the bike trying it, I might just have enough money
left in my wallet to go to racing school.
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