Jump to content

Hello from the SF Bay Area


Jelorian

Recommended Posts

  • Member Contributer

After a 15 year hiatus I picked up a 2002 VFR last Friday May 22nd.  She had 18k and wasn't pristine but the price was right.  She had fresh Pirelli Angel ST's and just had her oil change.  A bunch of records from the previous 3 owners and OEM saddle bags.  I knew she had been down and had been repaired but looked to be all cosmetic.  Went for  test ride and I immediately wanted to take her home.  Made and offer and after a little back and forth settled on number that we were both comfortable with.  Rode her home and started thinking about all the general maintenance items I wanted to do. 

 

Fast forward to the Sunday before Memorial Day....even though I just bought the 02, I was still watching Craigslist.  Saw an ad for a 01.  Less miles and some extras thrown in.  Emailed the guy and got a reply the next morning on Memorial Day.  Setup a time to meet in the afternoon and later that afternoon brought home my 2nd bike in 4 days.  LOL!  The 01 was a garage queen and hardly even ridden.  Never been down and looks to be very well maintained.  The guy was the 2nd owner and had the bike for the past 13 years.  Aside from the double bubble wind screen she seems to be all stock.  Came with a pair of Gaerne boots (fits!), Aerostich Road Crafter( fits...score!), light rain suit, 2 bike covers, rear seat cowl, tank bag, 4 beat up helmets (he said from the original owner),and the original wind screen.

 

For now I plan on keeping both and going through both of them to get them up to date on all services.

 

I will give the 01 fresh Pirelli Diablos, change all fluids, fresh pads and possibly rebuild the calipers, steel braided lines, and setup the suspension for my weight and then go from there.

 

The 02 needs right front brake caliper as it has tiny leak and I need to replace the oil cooler lines as the metal parts are corroded.  Will change all the fluids as well.   I'll probably add steel braided lines on this bike as well and then setup the suspension.

 

Hope to glean more info here as I slowly get both these beauties up to snuff.

 

When I first started riding I could not afford the VFR, so I settled for the YZF600R (I hear it was called the poor man's VFR....hahaha).  I loved that bike.  Now I have 2 of the bikes I originally wanted way back then.

 

I'm also on VFRW under the same name.

 

BTW, is anyone else bummed that there is no MotoAmerica, WSBK, and MotoGP?!

 

20200522_192431.jpg

20200525_203238.jpg

20200525_203443.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Jelorian

 

A very nice brace of VFRs and in the fastest colour as well. As with kids, I hope you don’t have a favourite😂😂😂

 

WRT Moto GP, here in Oz they are showing previous years Moto GP and the best of etc.  Great to see Casey Stoner leading the pack when he was still riding. I am going to be really bummed out with no Isle of Man this year though. To see those guys doing 150 mph + with brick walls Inches from their heads is amazing.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Congrats on the two beautiful VFRs and welcome to VFRD!!  The forums here include tons of information on maintenance, repairs, and mods.  VFRD has been a huge help to me many times.  Plus there are still tons of members all over the country - and world.  Some folks organize rides big and small, or you can put your own together.

I can't blame you for buying both bikes within a few days of each other.  Nice, low mileage 5th gens are getting rarer all the time.  I've even thought about picking one up myself.  The nice thing about aging bikes is you can buy most bikes now that you couldn't afford when they were new.  Actually, same goes for most cars.  Example:  I liked the original SuperDuke when it came out., but it was way beyond my means then.  Now you can pick one up for less than I paid for my used 6th gen 14 years ago.

 

I remember looking at the YZF600R when I was shopping for my next bike, which is when I bought my VFR.  I always did like that bike.  Pretty relaxed ergonomics for a sportbike IIRC, or maybe I was just young enough in 2006 that it fit me better than it would now!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

What a nice pair of bikes! Except for the seat your 6th gen looks exactly like my red '02.

 

Yes, I too am really missing racing, especially WSBK at Laguna Seca this year. Maybe MotoAmerica will race at Sonoma however. 

 

There are quite a few VFRD members here in the bay area, but we don't seem to have a lot of brand loyalty! I think the rule has been that there has to be at least one VFR on a VFRD ride: 

 

 

IMG_3510.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer
12 hours ago, Marooncobra said:

Jelorian

 

A very nice brace of VFRs and in the fastest colour as well. As with kids, I hope you don’t have a favourite😂😂😂

 

WRT Moto GP, here in Oz they are showing previous years Moto GP and the best of etc.  Great to see Casey Stoner leading the pack when he was still riding. I am going to be really bummed out with no Isle of Man this year though. To see those guys doing 150 mph + with brick walls Inches from their heads is amazing.

 

 

Marooncobra, thanks for your reply.  I don't have a favorite yet as my only experience with either was riding them home from the places I bought them from.  Each about 45 minutes away but each taking me over the glorious SF Bay Bridge during the golden hours around sunset.  What a great experience and a great time to be back on a bike.  Right now I like them both for different reasons and who knows, I just might keep them both.  Is it weird that I like the 01 because of the, to me better sound and the 02 for the angular look?

 

Been watching old MotoGP and WSBK races to get my fix but I'm definitely sad that our race season has been shot.  LOVE watching Isle of Mann as those guys are crazy!  Definitely the bravest road racers on the planet.  I think the NW200 takes it to another level as they do grid up as opposed to IoMTT where they are spaced out.

 

6 hours ago, TimC said:

Congrats on the two beautiful VFRs and welcome to VFRD!!  The forums here include tons of information on maintenance, repairs, and mods.  VFRD has been a huge help to me many times.  Plus there are still tons of members all over the country - and world.  Some folks organize rides big and small, or you can put your own together.

I can't blame you for buying both bikes within a few days of each other.  Nice, low mileage 5th gens are getting rarer all the time.  I've even thought about picking one up myself.  The nice thing about aging bikes is you can buy most bikes now that you couldn't afford when they were new.  Actually, same goes for most cars.  Example:  I liked the original SuperDuke when it came out., but it was way beyond my means then.  Now you can pick one up for less than I paid for my used 6th gen 14 years ago.

 

I remember looking at the YZF600R when I was shopping for my next bike, which is when I bought my VFR.  I always did like that bike.  Pretty relaxed ergonomics for a sportbike IIRC, or maybe I was just young enough in 2006 that it fit me better than it would now!

Thanks TimC!  From what I gathered from just looking at both sites, I probably won't even need a factory manual (although I always buy one for whatever bike I own).  I love that not only we all share a passion for motorycycling but also for a specific bike.

 

I definitely agree, that as I have gotten older and gotten more comfortable financially, I can finally afford to get a vehicle (or 2) that were unobtainium in my younger years.

 

The YZF600R had similar ergos to the VFR and yet, it was Yamaha's 600 super sport before the R6 came out.  That bike was basically a VFR with an inline four and a standard swingarm.

25 minutes ago, St. Stephen said:

What a nice pair of bikes! Except for the seat your 6th gen looks exactly like my red '02.

 

Yes, I too am really missing racing, especially WSBK at Laguna Seca this year. Maybe MotoAmerica will race at Sonoma however. 

 

There are quite a few VFRD members here in the bay area, but we don't seem to have a lot of brand loyalty! I think the rule has been that there has to be at least one VFR on a VFRD ride: 

 

 

 

St. Stephen, thank you sir!  The Corbin on my 02 needs a little TLC with the seat piping and maybe new cushion/foam as it is a bit hard.  I kind of don't like how blocky it is, but maybe I'll get used to it.

 

It would be nice to get out to the track to watch any road race, but MotoAmerica @ Sonoma is our best bet.

 

I'm hoping that I can get out on a group ride as soon as I get either bike more road worthy as I do I miss the camaraderie.  Luckily for me all my old gear still fits although I have a new helmet on order and I want to update the armor on my jackets/suits.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Welcome to the asylum Jelorian. Nice pair! You obviously have great taste in mc's.

 

What I really miss is the MotoAmerica Superbike Series, which I usually attend the first weekend in June at Road America in Wisconsin. The weekend was total emersion in motorcycles and racing with on-track camping. Road America is a fabulous four mile long venue for spectators with many elevation changes and video monitors spread aroung the grounds.

 

Being a fifth gen fanatic, I'd like to point out one thing that separates fifth gens from all other bikes. Motorcycle Consumer News, recently out of business, used to publish tables of used motorcycle prices a couple of times a year. At the end of the articles the published statistics on the best bikes in particular catagories. One of the catagories was braking from 60 to 0 mph: the 1998 VFR800fi stopped in 108.something feet. Most motorcycle reviews consider ~120 feet to be excellent. And I've experienced their benefit many times.

 

Thusly: Fifth Gens Rule!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Jelorian, just noticed your ID photo...Marco! What a fun racer to watch, almost nine years now since his final race in Malaysia.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer
43 minutes ago, MaxSwell said:

Welcome to the asylum Jelorian. Nice pair! You obviously have great taste in mc's.

 

What I really miss is the MotoAmerica Superbike Series, which I usually attend the first weekend in June at Road America in Wisconsin. The weekend was total emersion in motorcycles and racing with on-track camping. Road America is a fabulous four mile long venue for spectators with many elevation changes and video monitors spread aroung the grounds.

Hey MaxSwell, thanks for the warm welcome.  I just love the V4 sound!  Although the sounds of a cross plane plank of the newer R1's as well as the desmo VTwin of a Ducati are music as well.

 

I have never been to Road America but I would love to get out there someday.  Sometimes I bring a camera with a long lens and I'd love to shoot photos out there.  The farthest east I've been to watch a motor cycle road race was Barber...although I did also check out MotoGP at Indy a few times as well.

15 minutes ago, St. Stephen said:

Jelorian, just noticed your ID photo...Marco! What a fun racer to watch, almost nine years now since his final race in Malaysia.

 

Hehe..yeah I just changed it.  He was one of my favorite riders after Bayliss, Rossi, and Haga.  I actually met him in person and even hung out a little at a MotoGP afterparty.  Visited his home town in Italy back in 2016 and saw the monument that they built for him as well as visited the small store/museum they had there.

 

What a shame to lose him.  Such a character on and off the track.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer
18 hours ago, Jelorian said:

 

BTW, is anyone else bummed that there is no MotoAmerica, WSBK, and MotoGP?!

 

Super bummed...

Monster Energy Girls Cannery Row Laguna Seca
gallery_3131_5511_28885.jpg
gallery_3131_5511_166774.jpg
gallery_3131_5511_64374.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer
5 hours ago, BusyLittleShop said:

Super bummed...

Monster Energy Girls Cannery Row Laguna Seca
gallery_3131_5511_28885.jpg
gallery_3131_5511_166774.jpg
gallery_3131_5511_64374.jpg

LOVE the bike as well as the lovely ladies!  What year was this and for what series?  MotoGP or WSBK?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Welcom to VFRD from across the pond!

 

 

 

Be advised that there is always room to squeeze in one more...  (and then some...)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer
12 hours ago, Jelorian said:

LOVE the bike as well as the lovely ladies!  What year was this and for what series?  MotoGP or WSBK?

This was 2010 MotoGp and I will always remember the year because of Marco... a Lion on the track and a Lamb in person...

 

MarcoSimoncelliLarry.JPG

MarcoLarryPits.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer
On 5/28/2020 at 12:55 AM, Dutchy said:

Welcom to VFRD from across the pond!

 

 

 

Be advised that there is always room to squeeze in one more...  (and then some...)

Thanks Dutchy!   I have a saying...if it doesn't fit...make it fit.  Hahaha.

16 hours ago, thepretender said:

Welcome to the forum 🙂  Great excuse for a bay area ride, as I recall last time there were 2 VFRs in the group and when it got twisty it was the VFRs up front leading the pack 🙂 

 

 

tenor.gif

 

As soon as I get either of them sorted I will check here for any group rides.

15 hours ago, BusyLittleShop said:

This was 2010 MotoGp and I will always remember the year because of Marco... a Lion on the track and a Lamb in person...

 

 

Marco was such a cool cat.  Miss that guy!  He was always so fun to watch race as well as hang out in the paddock.

14 hours ago, vfrcapn said:

Welcome to VFRD, great couple of bikes!

Cheers vfrcapn!  Looking forward to getting to know both more intimately.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Tight squeeze.. ..

 

but it fits....  :beer:

 

IMG_20200520_183330.thumb.jpg.0f892486e98e42f7d2dfab356218d2db.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer
9 hours ago, Dutchy said:

Tight squeeze.. ..

 

but it fits....  :beer:

 

 

Looking good there Dutchy.  Is that an Edwards RC-51 replica?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy.