| Archive for Renault Sport Club - South Africa www.renault-sport.co.za |
| Robbie |
to bike or not to bike ?i want to get a bike but everytime i mention it i get told how bad they but nothing good.what advice u all got....good and bad ? |
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| WernerRs |
Offroad or onroad? | ||||||
| Robbie |
oh yes sorry onroad | ||||||
| WernerRs |
Not a fan, rather stay away and stay alive...
My 2c |
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| Lazer |
Yes, it's dangerous, but it's a feeling you'll never get in a car.
I say go for it! |
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| rudolfm |
Great fun, but very dangerous!!!!!!!! I had one, and dont think i will get one again. I fell and very very nearly lost my right leg! My foot was torn off and basically lying next to me in the road... Hanging on a piece of skin...
Luckely i got to the hospital in time, and they could reattach it. Some people fall, and dont get hurt at all, some get hurt badly! And people that tell you, you have to fall "right" are talking kaaak!! You can do that on a race track, but on the road its a diffirent story!! There are always something in the way, pavement, lamp posts, cars, trees.... If you slide in your car, and you hit the pavement, you damadge your wheel, alighnment. If you hit the pavement with your bike you might hit the tree or lamp post next to the road and lose a arm or a leg! I was warned before buying my bike, but did not listen... And i must admit its a kaaaak feeling lying in the road, and you just see the white bone sticking out from your leg, and you dont even know where your foot is... Use it, dont use it 
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| WernerRs |
If it were more safe, I would've had one years ago...
I'm riding enduro's.... |
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| Robbie |
wicked thanks all. hmmm maybe i take up track racing lol off road dnt do it for me lol | ||||||
| yesh_R26 |
reHad one when I was in Varsity.Awesome unrivalled feeling when out on the open road...but zero margin for error. Came off the thing about twice but thankfully at low speeds. And considering the way okes drive on our roads thesedays, I may think twice about owning one now. Thats about the long and the short of it. 
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| Lourie |
Nothing beats the freedom feeling you experience, but it is fooking dangerous on the roads, especially considering the other drivers and the huge excavations they seem to call small potholes when driving at night! | ||||||
| Jay |
If its on road, i would stay away in my own personal opinion bud, as todays bikes are speed demons
I race off road, always have full kit and never get too confident and love the adrenalin from it The moral of the story, a bike is just another coffin on two wheels. I have stopped but would like to get back on a bike |
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| Robbie |
cool ty all again.... think i am going to stay away from it cos life is to short to make shorter. | ||||||
| Dr Phill |
Here's my 2c - If you have an agressive driving/riding style or if you like being "windgat" stay away. Otherwise go for it, like I always say, your time is your time whether you're in your car or on a bike or buying stuff from the shop, you can get killed either way. If it will make you happy,get yourself 2wheels but keep your eyes open 
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| Bats_197 |
Noooooooo, IMO bikes are a bad idea !!!!
I know for a fact I would take myself out if I had one... Me likes speed to much, and the temptation to give it horns is too strong !!! Especially on our roads where you just can't be sure of what will be waiting for you, over the crest / around the corner.. I wouldn't but if thrill seeking its what floats your boat, then who am I to stop ya.. Personally I would rather jump out of a plane again, that drive a bike on our roads... |
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| Shark |
I would love a super bike but Mrs Shark won't hear of it..  Robbie get one for track days only then its the best of both worlds.. 
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| Robbie |
Iknow your pain shark and not a bad idea...was thinking maybe i just get my ass into Karting cos as bat says it will be to tempting to open that bike up and being on a track will not help that. I know if i owned a bike for the track i would put it on the roads 
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| Mrs Rustbucket |
My 2c, as I am also in 2 minds, if you got someone in your life that you need to consider, dont do the bike thing.
But on the other hand, if you dont - GO FOR IT! I honestly think that if you do go on road, make sure you do some advance lessons at Kyalami or something so you know how to handel it properly, i would not go on our roads being wet behind the ears. I say that a biker makes the best car driver as they have learnt to drive for other people. |
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| rudolfm |
Being killed is "fine", its being a paraplegic thats the the problem!!
When i fell, i wasnt being windgat, or trying to show off, i went round a corner, at about 60km/h (maybe even less), and a car was basically standing still in my lane... i swerved, the rear wheel locked as i tried to stop in time, and the bike just started sliding. Just as i started to get control again, and started to lean into the turn, the mountain was just to close and i realised i was going to hit it, with a reflex reaction i pushed my leg out to "protect" my body as i hit the mountain. my foot hooked against a rock and tore off... No matter how safe you drive, its the other people on the road, and road conditions that is your worst enemy!!! My foot will be fairly stiff for the rest of my life, i have 7 screws and 2 plates in my ankle. but very gratefull to still have my leg. they said if they cant save my foot they are going to amputate my leg just below the knee. The dr that treated me had 2 other "biker patient" they both had very bad injuries, the one lost almost all use of his one leg. the other guy has had numarous opperations, his knees, back, and pelvis is giving him problems... I got a hellicopter flight out of it though...  But that cost me R15000!!!! 
Total Dr bills was almost R90 000!!! But as i said some people are lucky and ride their whole life and nothing ever happens. If you do get a bike, get yourself decent kit aswell. you NEED a jacket! good boots, and gloves. even leather pants is a good idea. you may look like a power ranger but rather that than sliding off all your meat right to the bone....  (incidentely that is what happened to the one guy's knee that was with me in hospital)
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| WillieG |
Robbie
Some good comments made here, but at the end of the day it is your decision on what you wanna do. Let me tell you - there isn't a better feeling than to be on the open road. I've been biking since 1976 and have not been without a bike ever since. Been through the good and the bad. Had some good spills and falls, but always manage to survive. It takes a lot of responsible driving to be able to enjoy biking, and you always need to be able think on the run, cause there are so many idiots in cars on the road. Come to think of it, there are a lot of idiots on bikes as well. BEst thing is if you decide to get yourself a superbike, make sure you enroll in motorcycle driving school to be taught defensive riding techniques etc. Nowadays you need them to survive on the roads and specialy around the Durban drivers who has no friggin idea what those orange lights on the side of the cars are for. INDICATORS. If you want to commute to work and back. be careful, but you will always enjoy the open roads as long as you are comfortable on the long roads cause doing 240 kph on a bike is totally different than doing it in a car. There are no margin for errors then. But if you want to be windgat and showoff, stay away cause you will damage yourself. Modern bikes are not for show offs and windgatte. |
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| slakkie |
My heart says YES but my brain says NO! 
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| Frank |
+1 |
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| WillieG |
Or else get one of these
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| Frank |
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| F1_dre |
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| Alpine1 |
If you get one, don't use it at night, when the traffic is heavy or as an alternative means of transportation to work I bumped into somebody I hadn't seen for years over the weekend and he's now in a wheelchair after he crashed into a broken down truck with no reflective tape in the middle of the road whilst travelling back from work at night.
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| Sub-Zero |
eish thats bad! all the horror stories on here has also made me give the idea of getting a bike a second thought
I have been contemplating one for years now and Now is the perfect oppertunity for me to get one.. only prob is it will be my primary source of transport... |
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| F1-1087 |
Keep it on the track of off road only mate, I've been hit by cars twice on the road
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| Dark Angel |
Agreed with WillieG! I've also always had a bike for the last 14 years - and still do. The riding school is a very good idea, especially if you're new to bikes - will be attending one soon, even though I've been riding for years.
I currently use my bike for commuting and fun - when it's not raining. As mentioned before, modern bikes are a handful if you don't know what you're doing or try to be a show off. 9/10 times, it'll end in tears. Just remember, when you're on a bike - you have to at all times be very alert and think for everyone around you. Best of luck with the decision and be careful out there
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| Bats_197 |
Rudolph ** CENSORED ** thats hectic !!!
There is a young guy at my graft, he came off his bike when he was 18 and wrapped his arm around a tree, severed one of the tendons and to this day 9 years later he still has no feeling or movement in his arm and probably never will.. He decided to keep the arm on, purely in the hope that one day technology will advance to a stage where they can repair tendons !!! Another story, and the primary reason I will never get a bike, My old man used to be big into offroad with his mates, anyway one day they were just messing around in a park about 10meters off the road !! A car lost control and shot into the park hitting my dads best mate side on.. His mate lost both his arm and leg that day !!! Now if that can happen 10 METERS off the road, imaging the horror that could happen on it.. You only need to take a drive to Harties to see how dangerous it really is !!! IMO, if you have a bike you basically sign your death wish. |
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| Dark Angel |
Bats, that's not really relevant - this might sound harsh, but that was a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time - freak accident. Had they been walking through the park, because for arguments sake, they liked hiking - would you never walk anywhere again? Yes, biking is more dangerous than driving a car, but I'm sure there are similar stories about car accidents - and that doesn't stop us from driving. Just my 2c. |
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| Bats_197 |
Understand and agree with your argument, that story is just more to illustrate the sheer lack of protection you have when on a bike, which for me is enough to deter, if something goes wrong or if you're in a freak accident, but aren't most bad accidents just that, freak.. As for walking around, I've had guns put in my face while walking the street on 2 separate occassion (once to steal a R50 pair of sunglasses), so I don't do that either
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| Alpine1 |
Biking is definitely safer than walking...that sh!t is off the charts crazy
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| WernerRs |
Biking is more fun that walking, use it, dont use it....
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| Gavin G |
I have a theory that everybody should learn to ride a bike before they step into a car.I found that I became more observant of whats going on around me while riding a bike,and it transposed itself when driving a car! | ||||||
| Dark Angel |
Agreed! 
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| Bats_197 |
I think purely because of my fear of bikes, I am overly aware of them and all else that goes on around me.. I will always give a bike as much space as possbile on any road, what grates me though is how some people just flat out ignore them on the highway and sometimes even purposefully close the gaps at the last moment... 
I dig getting the thumbs up or nod of appreciation from our biker community
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| Sub-Zero |
If all goes to plan... Ill be getting myself one of these
Ill only settle for white!! 
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| WernerRs |
Fark that is nice.... | ||||||
| Bats_197 |
Now that is pretty
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| Dark Angel |
Very nice Sub Zero! Now that's one of those looney tools where you be going at warp 1 without even trying...
Have fun bud - safely! |
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| Dark Angel |
This is what I'm currently riding (mine's silver with Scorpion slip-ons):
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| Sub-Zero |
nice bro.. what CC? | ||||||
| Dark Angel |
It's a 1000cc twin 
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| Sub-Zero |
OR MAYBE ONE OF THESE???
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| Dark Angel |
ag shame
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| Lourie |
I`d rather die on a bike instantly than being trapped in a car and burn alive!
My dream one! 
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| Dean Megane F1 |
agree! being riding Moto-X and enduros since i was a lighty.. yes yes its not the same as driving on road but i believe it helped me a lot when i started driving
i love the idea of a Yamaha R6! but my head says no.. dont ride off road anymore and sold my bikes, got one MX bike left but dont ride at all
would hate to imagine what could happen to me on a superbike
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| Multicrisis |
Get one like this.........
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| HanroR26 |
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| Arun |
seems we have quite similar experiences - from the Clio engine mount noise to almost loosing the right foot in bike accidents :) this was my right foot in April: http://i150.photobucket.com/albums/s93/welcare/arn/ankle4.jpg slipped on a wet patch in a curve at over 160km/h - 14 fractures in the ankle, ankle dislocation and fibula sticked out through the motorcycle leather boots. I tried to get away from the middle of the road to avoid cars and didnt realize I was stepping on my bone instead of the foot which made me loose some fragments on the road. got synthetic bone graft now bought the 197 after the accident - I can still shift gears at 8k and not have to worry about loosing body parts ...but I know I will get back to biking some day...nothing beats the in-gear acceleration feeling on a road bike. It's like having your own rollercoaster at your right hand and you don't have to wait in a queue to ride it :) |
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| rudolfm |
Wierd coincidance....
I also baught the clio after my accident!
I dont know it his is a bit grose for the forum but anyway, This is my foot, i dont have any pics with my foot off. Just these from about 4 weeks after the accident. on these pics the staples keeping the skin together have already been removed. As you can see it was a clean straight break off, right in the ancle joint... only the piece of skin on the inside of my ancle keeping my foot attaced. 
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| Arun |
I hope your bike wasn't a FZ1N because then it really gets creepy
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