Memorable bikes you've owned.... A biking history...

Quiet day... so thought we'd have some 'bike' related discussion.

going back to the depths of your mind, which bikes were your 'game changers' in the terms of ownership.... and why...

My first is the ZXR400... The first bike i ever rode... owned for about 18 months... but was an amazing time of learning to ride on the roads of Liverpool... then we had some great adventures...

I then had a Thudercat, a gsxr600 SRAD and eventually onto the next game changer... Honda Fireblade.



This was significant because it was the first bike i had on track.. Donny park.... it was awsome !!!! I wasn't.... It was also the bike i raced first.... in Streetstocks class with NGRRC. Crashed and eneded up having many many hours of surgery after it shattered my femur, hand, wrist, ribs etc. The bike then want on to finish 28th in the TT Senior... (not with me riding i must add)

I then moved on to a 916, this was of crouse the 'dream' bike.... Started life in primer grey without a headlight, turned into a Bostrom rep, then a track bike, then a race bike, blueprinted, gasflowed, STM slipper, Ohlins all over the place... Truely amazing machine. Managed my first (and only 1 of 2 EVER) podiums on it.



Next was the 2005 Yamaha R1.... This was the bike i adored in Jerez.... 3 days of pure fun out there, including a crash in the damp... but glorious !!!
It was a 'proper' 1000 in every sense of the word



2nd last on the list.... The Ducati Sport 1000.... Shit and bollox... the one that got away.... i REALLY should have kept this beast, had the engine out over winter and professionally finished...



Lastly.... It goes to the Superduke... could be this incarnation or the earlier orange one i had... various reasons for this going in... but mostly because i am going to do my best to ensure this one doesn't get away.



Have to put in a special mention for the GPX750-R... the bike i did the most work on... from ugly ducking to beautiful swan over 4 months labouring....

“beautiful swan" hmmmmm...

Briggs & Stration water pipe hand built by me mini bike at 13 years started it all off. B&S on a 26"Schwinn pedal bike. 1961 HD Hummer 165cc. 197? Yahama DT1 250. 1976 Suzuki RM 250. 1978 Yahamha SR 500. 1982 Kawasaki GPZ 750. 1982 Husqvarna WR 430. 1986 Kawasaki 600R Ninja. 1982 Yahaha TT500. 1987 GSXR 1100. 1986 Suzuki GSXR 750. 1992 Kawasaki ZX7R 750. 1996 XR400. 1998 EXC 300. 2002 Ducati ST4S 998. 2002 Suzuki Bandit 1200. 2000 Honda XR650R. 1999 Triumph Tiger Adventure. 2008 KTM Super Duke 990. 2001 KTM EXC 300. 2004 KTM Adventure 950.
8 of above are still in the shed, and want to get down to 4 or 5.
I made this list last month, and after looking at it, I think I been having on hell of a good ride all along. My street miles are over 400,000.

I would have to say all the bikes I have owned have been special in their own way and for the experiences I had riding and fettling,
The Yamaha RD's were very special and took up a big part of my biking life,
The big 'Game changers" would have to be my 92 Fireblade that high sided me into hospital on a Snetterton trackday in late 98 when I was supposed to be working, that got me an ultimatum from my then wife "give up the bikes or I leave you" so before I came out of hospital I ordered a black 99 Suzuki TL1000s, the wife left, I got divorced.....
My life changed completely, much for the better, a few bikes have come and gone since then but the TLs is still in the garage with 4 other bikes,
My current wife never gives me a problem, my 7 year old son loves being in the garage with me, life is great,
13 years together, my Tl1000s the bike that changed my life

special,,,,,,,,,,,,,,as "new"

intense fun ++

peg draggin stability

120mph all day long

leaky Jap bike

After owning a CBR600F (92, 25kW rule) for over 1,5 years I bought this little animal I can only describe as a true toy with all the wheelies, sliding and jumping it 'made me do', learnt a lot on that thing:



After a while the 150km/h top speed got annoying when riding with friends on the roads on their SS, most of the twisties weren't twisty enough so I bought a long time dreambike of mine, ZX6R '05:



Thought it was great until I realised it's potential lay mainly on the track and I wanted less wind protection and a wide bar again. Superduke always was a dreambike to me because the stunt and track potential so here's my current beauty:

1988 no speed cameras ...Me on the bike that I probably had the most fun ever on

Weeksy, why no mention of the yellow GSXR-750 - It must have been a K1 or K2 as it looked like my Y model?

Really nice bike.