So, went to the Seattle iteration of the International Motorcycle Show today, frankly I was disappointed. Only two new models caught my eye. The rest of the cool bikes were specials.
Cruisers continue to get slower, fatter, heavier, longer, and lower. Most of the 800's dwarfed the V-max! We found nothing for my wife's frame that didn't have her feet stretched WAY out in front of her, the classic " butt in a barrel " look. No thanks.
Sportbikes get more and more alike. Even the sportbike customs follow the same recipe - chrome everything, extend the swingarm, put a fat rear tire on it, add spikes, and spray paint on the most garish graphics imaginable. Done.
Add to that both KTM and Triumph were absent, it was pretty slim for mechanical eye candy. Lots of Harley accessory type crap everywhere, though. Is this what we're heading to? Do-rags and cheap fringed leather?
O.K., enough whining. Here's my pics....
First, a neat stumpy special that began life as a Mille or Tuono. I liked the front, but the rear needed some downsizing to match. The big tailsection and twin big pipes made it look unbalanced. Different is good.
A classic Ducati 750 Sport was on display, looking low and long and stable.
This beast. A custom flattracker chassis, an a huge 1000cc vtwin from (my guess) a SV 1000. Nice work. A plaque stated they had to detune to reduce the power from 120 to under 100 to try to keep the tire hooked up. Forget XR 1000 replicas, think how much fun this thing would be on the street.
The first new bike, Ducati's 1098 sized replacement for the 999. Lots of Desmodecci cues here, it had a pretty constant throng of onlookers. Pretty.
Now, MY pick. Kawasaki's new Z-1000. Unlike the old, which contained a version of the old zx-9 engine, this beast contains the last (and more evil) generation of Kawi's top shelf sportbike motor, the zx-10. That's 160ish HP!! Though no doubt "tuned for torque" as all factory naked bikes are( why?WHY?), it should still be a ridiculous amount of fun.
Those pipes have to go, though. Like the old Z, they're a love-or-hate bit.
Muzzy's makes a $5000 turbo kit that bolts onto the zx-10, bet it'll fit here too. Hmmm, get rid of those ugly exhausts and gain even more dumb HP? That'd be no fun at all.
Finally, this is what the business side of a 350 mph streamliner looks like. Custom pieces everywhere, no wasted space.
There, thats all, folks. Donate your 13 bucks to me, and save yourself a trip.
Cruisers continue to get slower, fatter, heavier, longer, and lower. Most of the 800's dwarfed the V-max! We found nothing for my wife's frame that didn't have her feet stretched WAY out in front of her, the classic " butt in a barrel " look. No thanks.
Sportbikes get more and more alike. Even the sportbike customs follow the same recipe - chrome everything, extend the swingarm, put a fat rear tire on it, add spikes, and spray paint on the most garish graphics imaginable. Done.
Add to that both KTM and Triumph were absent, it was pretty slim for mechanical eye candy. Lots of Harley accessory type crap everywhere, though. Is this what we're heading to? Do-rags and cheap fringed leather?
O.K., enough whining. Here's my pics....
First, a neat stumpy special that began life as a Mille or Tuono. I liked the front, but the rear needed some downsizing to match. The big tailsection and twin big pipes made it look unbalanced. Different is good.
A classic Ducati 750 Sport was on display, looking low and long and stable.
This beast. A custom flattracker chassis, an a huge 1000cc vtwin from (my guess) a SV 1000. Nice work. A plaque stated they had to detune to reduce the power from 120 to under 100 to try to keep the tire hooked up. Forget XR 1000 replicas, think how much fun this thing would be on the street.
The first new bike, Ducati's 1098 sized replacement for the 999. Lots of Desmodecci cues here, it had a pretty constant throng of onlookers. Pretty.
Now, MY pick. Kawasaki's new Z-1000. Unlike the old, which contained a version of the old zx-9 engine, this beast contains the last (and more evil) generation of Kawi's top shelf sportbike motor, the zx-10. That's 160ish HP!! Though no doubt "tuned for torque" as all factory naked bikes are( why?WHY?), it should still be a ridiculous amount of fun.
Those pipes have to go, though. Like the old Z, they're a love-or-hate bit.
Muzzy's makes a $5000 turbo kit that bolts onto the zx-10, bet it'll fit here too. Hmmm, get rid of those ugly exhausts and gain even more dumb HP? That'd be no fun at all.
Finally, this is what the business side of a 350 mph streamliner looks like. Custom pieces everywhere, no wasted space.
There, thats all, folks. Donate your 13 bucks to me, and save yourself a trip.
Labels: Motorcycle
posted by Cyemm at 3:19 PM
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