RubberSideDown

Hopefully you've run that road again to figure out what you did wrong (ideally without crashing again, and in better footwear).

Yep, run it again many times since then. Don't have boots yet but going to buy some when I get back to the UK.

Good- you got a cheap lesson in decent gear- we all <deleted> up on a bike once-in-a-while (lord knows I have;)) but dressing properly for the (potential) crash is cheap insurance- good boots can save not only your feet and ankles, but also your knees as they reduce the force of the impact if your feet hit the ground (which is the leasing cause of knee injuries)- you got out of that lightly- damage to the bike is never that big of a deal, but damage to you really sucks.

If you're going to track it I wouldn't put it on either, but it's the only kind of 'bling' that belongs on a sportbike, IMHO.

Have you seen the ROTOBOX CF wheels? Great stuff.

Hopefully you've run that road again to figure out what you did wrong (ideally without crashing again, and in better footwear).

90º V- Twin .....is what you miss

Had a SV650 before, the ER6 goes way better and stronger, although heavier.

Got the new CNX number plate today. But had to fly back to Bangkok, no time to touch the bike. But I removed those ugly flame stickers. I probably will go for all matte black respray. When I have the time it is...

I've had the urge to go matt black on my bike with some aftermarket fairings.

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It would be pricey, but carbon fiber bodywork would look great- I'm looking at several CF pieces for my bike.

Should be entitled American riders, not experienced riders.

I can't think of one European rider who would come out with rubbish like that.

That's pretty funny, considering I've read all of that 'advice' on TV in recent months, and none of it was from Americans.

Spend enough years riding and youre going to accrue some wisdom. Visit any biker gathering and you and I are going to hear it, too. Is there anything old timers like to do more than dispense advice?

Worst Advice Given

Helmets Restrict Vision

This is the most-used reason for why older, experienced riders who should know better insist on not wearing a helmet. The thing is, its utterly untrue. Humans are only capable of using 90 degrees of their vision to either the left or the right, while the minimum legal standard for helmet vision sits at 105 degrees in both directions 15 degrees more than we can see anyways. If a helmet restricts your vision up or down, it simply doesnt fit correctly.

Helmets Reduce Hearing

Wear a helmet in a quiet room and yeah, itll reduce your hearing. But, out on the road, the wind and engine noise make it so youll actually hear less at speed without a helmet than with one. Earplugs take this a step further; with them, the ambient noise (wind) is dampened, leaving you more able to hear important stuff like sirens, horns and screeching tires.

You Dont Need Gear If You Know How To Ride/Crash

Accidents can happen to anyone. How is skill going to help you if a tire blows out or the most common motorcycle accident a car pulls out in front of you too late to avoid. In that case, no super human feat of braking or turning is going to save you, youre going to go down.

And no, knowing how to fall is not a real thing. The forces involved in a motorcycle accident are extreme, way beyond those the human body evolved (which is a real thing) to handle. Our ancestors didnt have to deal with hitting a stationary object at 85 mph, then tumbling through the air to land in the middle of a busy highway full of other 85 mph objects. But, safety gear did, thats what its designed for. Wear it or face rapid natural selection.

http://rideapart.com/2014/01/best-worst-tips-given-long-term-motorcyclists/

Got a rough idea of all that. I'm more of a "I sit here, the gas goes in there and I twist this" type of guy. 55!

I used to be as well, but there aren't too many tuners in LOS who know my bike (though that's slowly changing as more of them hit the streets) and nowhere to get anything beyond a set of slip-ons, so I learned what I could about it as I knew I'd have to bring everything in myself.

I've got a 2013 ZX-14R. It's got a Brock's full titanium CT Single exhaust with the QuietKore can. I had to install a PC-V to avoid running lean, and it came programmed with the Brock's Street Map, which works with E10 95 octane. I also have a custom flash for my ECU, but only for timing and secondary throttle plate sequencing (and a few other tweaks like elimination the the speed limiter and on-the-fly TC setting, and especially the elimination a a 'nanny mode' that retards fueling when the throttle is whacked open in the lower gears) as the PC-V takes care of the FI system.

I imported the exhaust and PC-V (no Brock's dealers in LOS) from the States and bought an ECU flashing unit from Australia and worked with a tuner in Canada to create a map, which I uploaded myself- it took some trial-and-error, but he was basically able to set up my bike from the other side of the world, which was pretty cool.

The amount of power you have the potential to add varies by bike- it's also not always about peak power, which people get too caught up in- if a pipe adds 3hp up top it doesn't sound like much, but it might add 10hp in the midrange where we generally do most of our riding- many systems are a bit strangled to meet various emissions requirements (the US-spec ZX-10R being a great example as it makes nearly 20hp less than its Euro counterpart)- this is done either through the ECU or the exhaust system.

I agree your bike (and my bike) has all the peak power it needs, but my main goal was an increase between 3500-7500rpm, plus I dropped about 30lbs of unsprung weight, which had the same effect as a hp increase (improvement in the power-to-weight ratio).

Are the advantages of a full-system over a slip-on really worth the extra expense?

Depends on your goals- if it's a significant horsepower increase across the board (especially in the mid-range), then yes- a single-sided system (which obviously has to be a full system if it's going on a bike that came stock with duals) will also drop quite a bit more weight.

It's more work to install and requires a PC-V (to avoid running lean), but if performance is your goal, then a full system in the best choice. What Ninja4Me is planning to do is fine (go for slip-ons with the possibility of upgrading other components later)- I just think it's an expensive route he's taking.

Prices from http://www.motosport.com/TH

Akra slip-ons THB 78.798,81

If you then add the exhaust header (THB 22.386,,-) and a link pipe (THB 7.703,-) you will have a full system - so I figured I could start with slip ons and then upgrade if nessesary.

In the US the slip-ons are about USD 1.900,-

Which full system have you seen at around 70K ?

If you can source the Brock's CT single or CT Meg through the US, they're both less than 60K (the CT dual is $2300, or 75K)- I got my CT Single (QuietKore) full titanium system to LOS for just over 60K by marking it as 'used' on the shipping label (I only wanted a single system as my goal was to drop as much weight as possible)- I can't say that will work every time, though- if you have any trips scheduled, you can bring it back yourself as it's not very big. Most other full single systems are less than that, but they won't be titanium.

The full Akra system with the header is less than 78K at Revzilla.

If they're new for 34K that's a really good deal in LOS- 70K for slip-ons when you can buy a titanium full exhaust (single-sided) and a mapped PC-V for that amount seems a bit excessive...

Even with a customs hit I'd still look into the full exhaust option over slip-ons for that much money.

Are you sure that 70K doesn't include the Akra header as well?

I think that's a 'for sale' listing, at any rate- the Bing translation is a bit shaky.

Check out the ZX14 Thailand FB page if you're interested in the Yoshimura slip-ons- someone is selling a pair of carbon R-77s for 34K.

Motosport.com is one of those companies that adds an estimated tax charge upfront (about 40%) so you're guaranteed to pay more if you use them- you're better off taking your chances with an eBay merchant where your stuff might slip through without an import charge.

If you register with them you'll see the additional charge when you add stuff to your cart and start the order process.

On the subject of oil, does anyone know of an Amsoil distributer in LOS?

I used to go by the 'break it in with dino or semi-synthetic oil' rule, but BMW fills the S1000RR with Castrol 1 Power Racing fully synthetic oil from the factory- they also use it in the K and R bikes in their line- Porsche uses it as well- those Germans know how to build an engine, so my mind is changing on the matter.

I've read that the viscosity difference of synthetic oil makes it a poor break-in oil, but I've also read reports contradicting that info.

Still, as has been mentioned, the main advantage of fully synthetic oil is its longer service life- if you change your oil within (or more frequently than) the manufacturer's guidelines, semi-synthetic is fine- if you push the limits or ride your bike on the track (or you just want to make sure you always have the top-spec stuff in your bike), fully synthetic is a better choice.

I never had pain on my ass from riding but wearing the kevlar jeans and admittedly i rode a longer trip i got quite sore. I am think its because i wear briefs not boxers as most of the pain was more towards the legs as my ass.

Lightly-padded bicycle shorts worn under your Kevlar jeans can help quite a bit with that.

This is a good video for showing the proper way to tie down a bike- the video is for a trailer, but the basics are the same for a pick-up:

I'd invest in a Canyon Dancer II or Cycle Cynch II (with integrated cam tie-downs) to secure the front.

What's the point of fixing a soft wheel? If the OP is sure that a stretch of road that really wasn't beyond what the Multistrada should have been on caused the damage, straightening the wheel will only delay the inevitable.

Wow- it would be great to be able to run on a MotoGP track- I rode Laguna Seca once years ago (though, alas, it's no longer a MotoGP track..), but it was on my porky Busa. I remember the rental fee being pretty expensive, and there were quite a few of us sharing the cost- what does it cost to run Sepang (though you're probably sponsored and might not know/care;)).

Please start a thread with pics when you're done- that would be a nice addition to the bike section.

I meant power-wise- I'm sure you don't get out of third-gear very often over here.

Still have the track S1000rr and a track yamaha R6....running out of room to store bikes, will have to keep the race bikes in the trailer..lol

I saw it on the S1000RR forum- it looks like a great bike, and it's nicely set up- it's got to be one of the fastest privately-held track bikes in LOS.