Post pictures of your Motorcycle!

I get paid to ride this one:

 

Lucky!

 

Here is my 06 GSX-R1000 when I dropped it off at the dealer to be sold the other day.

 

My 2009 SFV650 Gladius


scollins_SFV650 by scollins1868, on Flickr

 

some of the toys ive had

 

Before




After my wreck in 07'. I broke 3 ribs, cracked my sternum, and ruptured two discs in my lower back


how it sits now but with high rise bars (Street fighter style)

 

very nice. how you liking the gladius?

 

Rumor has it that Austin is looking at losing their Beemers to go to the Vic Cross Country, to cut their maintenance costs. I know that there was a company that did a mock-up on a 2010- if I find a pic I'll post it.

 

Victory has now released a factory police line based off the Cross Roads, Cross Country and Kingpin:

http://victorypolicemotorcycles.com/enforcer.html

Personally, I think these would be an improvement over my Electra Glide. As far as the performance comparison ladder for police bikes, the Harleys would own the bottom rung. They are heavy, have no top end, little cornering clearance, and my '08 won't turn at speed without the chassis unsettling and trying to buck me off. I'm hoping this issue, at least, will be corrected with the '11 I am about to get.

The BMW would be nice with performance to match the job. BUT, the real bad boy and the bike I would LOVE to have is the Kawasaki Concours P:
http://www.kawasaki.com/NewsEvents/police-concours14.aspx

 

I don't know anything about the Kaw, but have two issues with it even in my ignorance: One, I'd prefer cops ride American made - period. I understand this puts them at a disadvantage with the sport bikes they might be chasing, but fools like that don't usually last long anyway. Second, it would seem the legs tucked under would be less comfortable than a stretched out ride. Again, I dunno, it's just my thinking.
Having owned a Kingpin and a Vision, and knowing the Cross bikes are a lightweight Vision, I can imagine a world of difference in handling and acceleration from the Harleys.

 

660lbs dry. Add the extras and you're gonna need a wrecker to pick that up if you drop it...and that's not even the heaviest one

Around here, there are Kawi's, BMW (RTP and some R1200GS's) and Honda's. I think the CHP just dumped BMW for the Kawi--who knows if they'll actually get them or as many as they hoped for.

 

...and this is one of the big reasons we are on HD's, particularly in the Heartland. I've done a little research but have not yet come up with hard numbers on how many parts on an HD are actually from another country, or how many units are built outside of the US. I have heard that Victory is better in that department. Kawasaki has plants in the US as well, and possibly employs more people than HD does. HD is an American company while Kawasaki is not, but the amount of economic stimulus each company creates in the US is probably pretty similar.

I have not ridden a Victory, but the info I have read indicates the Victory's do have superior performance numbers over the HD's. While overtaking violators I have had the HD chassis become unstable. This has resulted in high-speed wobbles that could easily result in loss of control, crashes, and serious injury. I find this completely unacceptable. I think HD's are fine for their intended mission...leisurely cruising at highway speeds or less. The motors do not run well at higher speed, the chassis can't handle it, and after 35,000 miles the engine on mine is knocking loudly to voice its displeasure at having to work so hard. I think the HD would probably be fine for city P.D. work, as well, as extended runs at high speed are typically not as much of a requirement. For sheriff's departments and highway patrol agencies, however, where work is done on more open highways, the necessity for better performance far outweighs the "American brand" argument.

The Kawasaki and BMW have a more upright riding position while the HD does have a legs forward position. The HD is NOT particularly comfortable while on long rides...the leg forward position puts all your upper body weight on your back and butt. With an upright position you can use your legs to bear some of that weight, or to shift around more easily. Neither the Concours nor the BMW have the riding position of a sport bike. I own a sport bike and have a ball on it, but wouldn't think of riding it for 8 hours straight as a police bike.


I see this discussion becoming worthy of a thread of its own so as not to clutter the picture thread. Mods, any way to clip everything after my work bike pics off of this thread, and starting a new one with the same pics?

 

Nope, it isn't. My Electra Glide weighs in at over 900 lbs with equipment and fluids. In police motor officer school one of the first things they did was knock our bikes over and tell us to pick them up by ourselves. They showed us the proper technique and it is actually fairly easy. Once or twice, anyway. During that two-week course I dropped that bike at least 100 times! That course was an ass-kicker...physically and mentally!

I have also heard the CHP is going with the Kawasakis. I will be watching their progress with the Kawis with much interest.

 

Newer (2005+) RTPs weigh in around 650 pounds wet; the STA is 680 dry and the Kawasaki is in that same range too. I think all three of these are better equipped too (that's probably a matter of opinion depending on the agency that's making a purchase).

Picking up a heavy bike is easy once you know how. I have picked up both the RT and my GSA--loaded. Not that I want to do that often during the day

I guess my point is most of these bikes are incredibly heavy and anything you can do to lighten them and improve the handling and performance is welcomed.

 

My 2002 Ducati Monster

 

I've picked up both my Vision (835 lbs) and my Kingpin (640 lbs) after dropping them without any issue. And no, I did not back up to the bike to walk it up. I don't know how much weight you're actually lifting, but I guarantee it ain't the whole thing.

And the number I have heard for HD's imported part content is 73%. Vics are approx 48%.

 

The good news is with crash bars (or in my case, jugs), they never really fall all the way over I can tell you for sure that I'd rather pick my 530 up 10x a day than my GSA...LOL

 

I like it quite a bit, but it is also my first bike (and only the second bike I've ridden), so I don't have much to compare it to. I did find the standard bars (and subsequent riding position) wasn't ideal for me, so I switched over to clip ons. This gives it a much more aggressive riding position, which I oddly prefer (being 39 years old and a little overweight....)

I like the power (not too much, not too little), although the throttle is a little abrubt at the low end. The v-twin provides quite a bit of engine braking too.

I figure once I've got a few thousand more miles (only 2,000 so far), I'll have an even better idea of the kind of riding I want to do, and might change to a different bike. I figure I have a Japanese truck (Tacoma), a German SUV (BMW X5), so I need an Italian bike to complete the WWII "Axis of Evil" trifecta!

 

Currently for sale to fund a Super TENERE (probably)