Killa's biking history *Part 6*

[killa]

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5

Killa’s biking history *part 6*

Well, it’s been five years now and I haven’t posted anything about my biking history since 2006!
I thought I’d continue this series with part 6, I made these in parts so if readers get bored they can move on.

So, what have I learnt since 2006? Anything?
Have I become conservative in my riding? Am I riding a Harley?

I think I must start where I left off. With the 1998 Honda VFR400R.
The bike was fantastic, a real dream. I had heard stories of the engine being a bit hard to live with but I seriously had no problems with it at all...well...

Sadly by this time most school leavers had gone off to do their separate things, most had hung up their lids for the car thing. I’ve always been more suited to solo riding anyway, often if I’ve been out with others riders and they’ve commented on my riding. I’ve been out with many different riders and I must admit the ones that are more vocal about their skills, commit some awful road no no’s which has always kept me back from group riding.

My general riding skills increased massively with the VFR, it had to. With bigger power, bigger brakes and tyres, you really feel like you can apply these skills and feel confident with it. Gone are the days of power to weight issues, dodgy single pot brakes and rebuilds...this was proper!
This is where I got into, CLEANING!
Oh man did I clean, there is nothing quite like popping out on the bike after a good scrub and hose down. This was the first bike I really wanted to care for, due to the fact she was pretty in the first place and I wanted to keep it that way. I’d spend anything up to five hours going over the bike, I’m not a detailer though, I just got the bike very presentable. Que the arty photo shoots when out for random hoons through the Cotswolds.

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The stories are true with this bike. It handles wickedly, it’s fairly cheap to run and won’t let you down if maintained correctly. It is a must own machine in my opinion.
As I was 21, earning a fair wage now, I decided it was time to move out. After some scouting about I finally settled on the idea of moving in with one of my best mates. It all went pretty smoothly but I had issues with transport. The front door to my flat wasn’t somewhere you’d want to park a bike. No cover, near the town centre and just round the corner, a housing association for under privileged kids who had a tendency to ruin things.
For several weeks I took the slightly over the top method of ragging the bike in the front door into the lobby area. The neighbours were fine with this and I felt safe knowing my bike was in my building.
Sadly the landlord wasn’t so keen and asked me politely if I could not do that any longer (fire hazards etc). Thinking quickly of options I had, I remembered seeing a blue shipping containing round the back of my building which was used by the furniture store below me (part of the landlords empire). A small negotiation later and I’m paying £60 a year for the use of my own, personal lock up! I felt like street hawk or something, walking to my lock up in the morning, getting the ramp out which my Dad kindly knocked together for me, then I was off!

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It was a day like any other day. I had become a little unhappy with work and one afternoon I came out in a bad mood. Thoughtful and distracted I went to the petrol station. Picked up the blue pump...pumped away. Paid...then rode off. As I banked down around the motorway slip road, she died. That woke me up, I wasn’t in the kind of head space for bike problems, I wasn’t happy at all.
A local mechanic I know came to my rescue after a panicked phone call on the hard shoulder, with his three wheeler and trailer.
Sad and pissed off, I went home with the bike in the van.

I really had no recollection of what happened before the engine cut out, I was in a world of my own, I couldn’t think of what had been different that day. My mechanic spent a total of nine hours on the bike (I actually lost count and at one point he stopped charging me labour), we found one of the HT leads required replacing and there was a leak in the fuel vacuum pipe which later cured my flat spot at six thousand RPM.
He was at a loss, no fire, but there was spark, not a lot going on really. We handed it to an electrical expert on automotive stuff who went over the bike. He didn’t come up with much either. These were two very experienced chaps...It was starting to get embarrassing.

It took one woman to sort the problem out in five minutes. Sat down having dinner with his wife, the guy working on the electrics discussed this weird Honda that looked spot on but didn’t run for love nor money.
“Did he put the right fuel in it?” She said, naively.
Out to the garage he went. Sniff, sniff .FUCKING.DIESEL.
https://www.bp.com/liveassets/bp_internet/globalbp/STAGING/global_assets/images/press/mr_bp_ultimate_diesel_570xvar.jpg
Bloody BP Diesel ultra mega premium or whatever the hell it is, is on a blue pump. I wasn’t on the ball that day. What a doughnut.

During the time the little Honda was off the road. My parents were moaning I shouldn’t be biking, my money was low and so was my morale.
I had whipped out another loan from the bank in frustration. I needed wheels and pronto.
After hours of scouring the internet I had whittled the selection down to a few, pretty uninspired by reasonably new metal. I wanted something bigger but not a litre bike, I wanted something retro looking like the VFR but not a money pit. Finally with this selection in hand, all of it was thrown out of the window the moment I remembered one, iconic bit of kit. The Kawasaki ZX7R.

I remember travelling somewhere ten or twenty miles north of Birmingham to go fetch it, the furthest I’d ever been for a bike. The bike looked stunning in the pictures, I liked the work that had been done to it. It was the silver and black scheme but with the Kawasaki decals removed, braided lines, tail tidy, single seat cowl and small indicators. It certainly stood out from the rest of them.
The guy who had made all of these modifications was a mechanic who had it from new but didn’t need the bike anymore, there was only seven and a half thousand on the clock!
I was sold the moment he wheeled that bike out from the back of his van. That is what a super bike should look like.
The feeling sat on this, was one of intimidation. I knew right away this was a dedicated machine, something not get cocky with.
The ride home was pretty intense. It had been drizzling up north for sometime so I was taking it easy, getting used to that inline four sound and the power through the changes. The position is very full on and the suspension was tough at first, the difference in size of the cockpit to the VFR was incredible, I’d had a bad experience with the VFR, this was going to push me forward in more ways than one.

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https://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y278/Killa127/Ninja3.jpg

I took the decision to get rid of the VFR, much to the horror of my old dear who realised I’d just bought a larger capacity machine, again.
I took the VFR out during the last week of owner ship, the contrast between the two machines was obvious but the performance of both gave me the grin factor every time.

https://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y278/Killa127/DSC01418-2.jpg

It was hard seeing the VFR disappear with the two enthusiasts who collected her, she had been a great bike to me, only to be let down by my pump fail. I did however regain the money lost to the ZX7R and peace was restored once again.

I think my lasting great memory of the ZX7R was my trip to Belgium. During ownership of the VFR I had been invited into a little group from the VFR forums. They sometimes head over to a thing called ‘Bikers loft’ which is situated in a converted fire station. Rock music, food and drink all weekend.
Some of the roads were fantastic over there, I recommend anyone to go and have a look around Belgium, it’s very flat and gives you a good view of what’s ahead. Apart from that it was an awesome weekend at Bikeloft and the couple of war museums we visited there.

https://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y278/Killa127/DSC00383.jpg

The Journey there nearly killed me though, I hadn’t ridden for more than say an hour at a time on the 7R but this was a trip to the ferry (about 3 hours) and beyond. By the time I reached bikers loft I was starting to think I wouldn’t be keeping the 7R for long, everyone on the VFR800’s were looking pretty fresh faced . I was wrong though, the next day, after a night on the beers, I wasn’t achy and my body had moulded into the shape of the old girl, permanently it seemed. I went out that day for a four hour romp around Belgium with my mate on his VFR800, she never missed a beat, that was one of the best rides I’d ever been on. I won’t forget that in a hurry.

Well I hope you enjoyed what I can remember here, I try not to go over every detail just to keep it moving.

Coming in part 7.
How did I write off the ZX7R? Why did I buy another one? Why is the 7R so addictive?

Killa

Part 7
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Cleverly disguised as a responsible adult.
Bike:- Yamaha TRX850 | Killas Biking History | Killas Gaming History | Killas autmotive history

[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

Great post Killa. Your biking history always seems so eventful.
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My Flickr

[DrDonnyBrago]

[stevo as b4]

Nice update to your biking story mate! I think mid-late 90's 750's are a bit special and quite different and distinctive to the generic 600's or the bigger 1000's which now look like 600's anyway.

The ZX7R is one of the best looking 90's sportsbikes ever, and possibly the best looking bike to come out of Japan in that period. The old SRAD 750 Suzuki's look slightly similar, and also have some character and distinctivness as does the YZF750. But the 7R was a bike that was all about it's styling and stable handling and planted feeling. It also has all the typical Kawasaki quirks and thier characterful nature. It's not a clinical do everything well bike and is not super smooth and quiet, but all the better for it!

When my KMX200 is back on the road, i think i'll try and write a quick summary of my biking history and what has influenced my choices and feelings about bikes and what i want from them over the years. I certainely would struggle right now to go into a new bike showroom and choose a brand new machine, as i don't know whats new and current anymore, and what really modern bikes are like?

If i went for a litre sports bike, which i probably wouldn't these days, then i think i've not really seriously liked anything since the 2002 R1, or maybe the first 2004? ZX10R.

[ajbsmirnoff]

The photo on the level crossing embodies cool.

[Tim..]

As soon as I read 'blue pump' it made me cry a little inside.

Interesting post
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Project builds: My VFR400 nc30 build thread + Honda Britain Rep VFR + What? Another VFR +Project 'cos I want one' + V8 coffee table
www.marshallracing.co.uk
OCD - Helping to bring the standard of my bikes up and make me slowly go mad since 1999

[killa]

Don't forget you can see all the previous parts at the top!

Thanks so much for the feedback
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Cleverly disguised as a responsible adult.
Bike:- Yamaha TRX850 | Killas Biking History | Killas Gaming History | Killas autmotive history

[CarlosCBR]