How do people ride 800 lbs. bikes?

[Rogue Hawk]

http://www.visordown.com/motorcycle-top-10s/top-10-biggest-capacity-motorcycles/24130.html

This is a list of the highest displacement bikes. I never rode anything that big, so I wonder how people can possible handle them, particularly at slow speeds.

My previous bike was a Honda VFR 1200 and it was 600 lbs. I had a terrible time getting it to turn at slow speeds. It would always go way wide, much more so than the VFR 750 it replaced.

 

[cptjam]

Easily

I rode Harley electraglides for decades. Piece of cake. I know a 93 pound 65 year old lady who rides her 800 pound Harley. Technique.
Interestingly, the giantTriumph is only 146 HP. I have a KTM with 160, and it weighs 503#! It is not as much as engine size as performance and output. More is better!

 

[Dubliner]

I rode singles for years, lightweight nimble and fast then I rode sidecars slower but lots of panache. Then came the GL 1500 800 lbs plus dry but a blast to ride and nothing falls off it but me [emoji6] but it's a pig to lift up when you drop it! It's fine at slow speeds but it took a while to get used to not being able to see the front wheel.


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[cuznjohn]

i had a couple of bikes on the list, they were all easy to ride

 

[vided]

it only mattered when you had to horse in backwards up an incline (FLTH had no reverse)

 

[Pampurrs]

My Honda Goldwing and my Victory Vision were both well over 800 lbs each. They are designed with a low center of gravity, and I had no problem with slow speed manuevering. Even a top heavy bike like a big Harley can be managed. You would be surprised at how easy it is once you get used to it.

Pam

 

[Bob Denman]

The folks who build them KNOW that horsing them around can be a battle... nojoke
They try and design them to be as inherently stable as possible. :thumbup:

Just don't put your foot down on a slippery section of pavement!! :yikes:

 

[Orange Spyder Man]

I owned and rode 2 - GL1800 GoldWings... they were a easy to maneuver ... never dropped either of them.. both had over 70,000 miles on the clock when I got rid of them... since I just sold my 2014 Spyder... I am thinking my next ride will be another GoldWing.. but it will be next summer before I do buy another bike..

osm

 

[DrewNJ]

Technique is truly key, and it takes years of riding/practice. It still cracks me up to see an inexperienced rider buy a monster bagger and try to muscle it around.

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[Bob Denman]

It IS a bit like watching someone try out out-muscle a Bulldozer...

 

[Highwayman2013]

My two wheeler is a Kawasaki Voyager 1700 it weighs 895 lbs wet without anything in the bags or trunk. It is hard to pick up but I have done it myself. In a gravel lot it's not much fun but on the road it's a great touring cruiser.

 

[Buggy]

I never felt comfortable turning sharp at low speeds on my Harley Ultra and was always amazed at the police mc teams going through their obstacle course. These guys can make these bikes dance. Now it might be easier to learn on some else's bike!

check this out. https://youtu.be/IBGwzK6Q1Gg

 

[cuznjohn]

to be honest i found the wing i had was one of the best handling bikes i have owned. it was like a sport bike

 

[Lamonster]

I drove this 1200+ lbs 5700cc bike for 5 years. Rode it like a dirtbike. :doorag:

 

[Chupaca]

Here's the thing....

Keep the proper air pressure in the tires and most any will handle with ease...:thumbup:

 

[Tazzel]

Thats one of the top reasons I went to a Spyder, never felt comfortable with the weight. Parking on the slightest incline, I just could not back it up, so I had to make very careful where I did parked. Dropped it once when pulling into a flat drive way, did not see the oil spill under the leaves, came to a stop and put my feet down and my foot slipped slightly, just enough to throw the bike off balance and down I went. High winds on Highways, it was also very hard for me to handle. Sand when making a turn, also big trouble. It was all these things and stop and go traffic working a clutch, just killed my hand.

 

[blacklightning]

I have owned 2 Suzuki Boulevard M109's, and I loved them. With me being a sort of big guy (6'-2", 255), anything smaller in a cruiser really didn't make it. I am able to ride a smaller sport bike, but the M109 is still one of my all time favorites. Next year, about this time, I plan on owning another M109, or a 2nd. gen. Vmax. As you can tell by the picture, you can lean a big bike over pretty good.

 

[Lamonster]

I have owned 2 Suzuki Boulevard M109's, and I loved them. With me being a sort of big guy (6'-2", 255), anything smaller in a cruiser really didn't make it. I am able to ride a smaller sport bike, but the M109 is still one of my all time favorites. Next year, about this time, I plan on owning another M109, or a 2nd. gen. Vmax. As you can tell by the picture, you can lean a big bike over pretty good.

:doorag:

 

[blacklightning]

:doorag:

Doing it with a trailer!
I really liked your comparison of the M109R and the F3 when we talked in Maggie Valley last summer. Hopefully we will get to see each other and talk some more next fall if you are able to make it to the revised Spyders in the Smokes.

 

[M109Dreamer]

I have owned 2 Suzuki Boulevard M109's, and I loved them. With me being a sort of big guy (6'-2", 255), anything smaller in a cruiser really didn't make it. I am able to ride a smaller sport bike, but the M109 is still one of my all time favorites. Next year, about this time, I plan on owning another M109, or a 2nd. gen. Vmax. As you can tell by the picture, you can lean a big bike over pretty good.

:doorag:

Man, you 2 are gonna have me digging my 9 pic's out...[emoji41]

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