Talk me out of/into a motorcycle

[checko 180]

My job just transfered me to Mt. Olive so my commute has practically tripled. I'm living in somerville and this move will put me dangerously close to being over my leased miles. figure this could be a good excuse to buy one. Is this feasible or a really dumb idea?

 

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[magnawing 5]

I used to commute from Warren County to White Plains on mine...it's definitely feasible

 

 

This signature is AWESOME!!!

[1LtCAP 4,265]

JERSEY DRIVERS. 'nuff said.

[RobertJames 14]

Take a msf course, get good, visible gear, get very good rain gear, and keep your head on a swivel.

[ted527 21]

JERSEY DRIVERS. 'nuff said.

+1

[gleninjersey 2,142]

I would rather be dangerously close to being over on my lease and owing some money than being dead or severly disabled. Jersey drivers suck. Jersey drivers during rush hour REALLY suck.

 

Don't get me wrong. Get a bike if you want one. I wouldn't use one on a regular basis during rush hour traffic though. Especially a long commute in rush hour traffic.

[kirk2022 43]

2 10" steel rods, 18 screws in my lower leg and A destroyed knee.

 

Then fired by Lowes when I couldnt return to work on their timeline. After 13 years with them.

 Im still not walking right 10 monthes later.

 

Need I say anymore

[ogfarmer 138]

nj drivers, texting drivers + new motorcycle rider = death or paraplegic

 

 

maybe take the money you'll spend on a bike, training etc and buy a cheap car

[Theron 5]

It's not a question of if you will have to lay the bike down, but when, and how hard.

[T Bill 649]

If you work near normal hours you'll be going against the flow of traffic on Route 206. It's not too bad, I used to go from Blairstown to Branchburg everyday. Only when weather was rain-free. I was homeward bound by 4-4:30 so not to bad on traffic in PM but inbound from 5-6 AM always worried about the deer and believe it or not the cold. When there is fog and cooler temps in the AM you get cold fast. I did it more because I liked to ride. Saving money probably not with insurance, maintenance, cost of bike, etc! Fuel efficient car just a better idea. How much to early terminate the lease and get something new?

[bulpup 98]

Commuting by motorcycle anywhere is better on an off hours commute. While you might think you will be getting through traffic faster than your car during rush hour, to do so would be to be breaking a lot of laws every day.

That said, I bought my second bike for exactly the same reason you state. It is $6990 new out the door with 3.4% financing, which I paid off very early. It is a Honda NC700X, not a high performance bike at all but gets 64mpg regularly on my rides in and out of Manhattan.

I don't like using my cruiser to commute because it is too big to get any real benefit in tight spaces and the NC is an upright standard riding position so it helps me look over the tops of most SUV's. Water cooled too, that helps a lot.

 

Don't be afraid of NJ driver's, just keep your eyes moving and wits about you. Your mentality for survival should be your focus rather than trying to ride with the same mentality as driving your car. I find it exhilarating. Better than coffee. This is me, sped up

[checko 180]

I usually have to be at work at 5 am or 1 pm. Most definitely off peak. I don't care about the length of commute honestly, I'm in no hurry.

 

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[bulpup 98]

I usually have to be at work at 5 am or 1 pm. Most definitely off peak. I don't care about the length of commute honestly, I'm in no hurry.

 

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Then deer is what you need to look out for. I see more deer at those hours on my bike than I ever did in my car.

 

Two more things to consider. One is that they are recently finding that starting to learn to ride a motorcycle in your 40s and later is actually a pretty bad idea. I don't know how old you are but I figured I would put that out there. This is been found because the muscle memory and eye scanning that you've done all the time in your car is very hard to unlearn as riding a motorcycle in traffic it's very new to the body.

 

The other is the flip side to that. people that commute regularly are actually found to have fewer accidents

[checko 180]

If you work near normal hours you'll be going against the flow of traffic on Route 206. It's not too bad, I used to go from Blairstown to Branchburg everyday. Only when weather was rain-free. I was homeward bound by 4-4:30 so not to bad on traffic in PM but inbound from 5-6 AM always worried about the deer and believe it or not the cold. When there is fog and cooler temps in the AM you get cold fast. I did it more because I liked to ride. Saving money probably not with insurance, maintenance, cost of bike, etc! Fuel efficient car just a better idea. How much to early terminate the lease and get something new?

I *just* got this car like a month ago lol. Like I said it won't be my main vehicle, something I can use on sunny days and days off to save some miles

 

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[checko 180]

2 10" steel rods, 18 screws in my lower leg and A destroyed knee.

 

Then fired by Lowes when I couldnt return to work on their timeline. After 13 years with them.

Im still not walking right 10 monthes later.

 

Need I say anymore

Which store?

 

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[checko 180]

Then deer is what you need to look out for. I see more deer at those hours on my bike than I ever did in my car.

Is it just Murphys law? I've been driving up there a week and haven't seen a one

 

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[bulpup 98]

I don't really know. I am in morris plains and plenty of little critters seem to be less afraid of my quiet small machine.

[67gtonut 847]

After riding for 10years.... I sold the bike...  just not worth the risk.

 

As far as commuting, I would not do it.  That one day when work really wears you out, you are not safe making that commute home. It takes much more attention, motor skills....  and that will be the day the texting teenager will make that left hand turn across your path.....

 

for a weekend toy..... great.... commuter ...... no

[kirk2022 43]

We are in Legal proceedings against them, the Reed Group and Cigna Insurance

So theres not much to be said.

 

I gave to much to the Company, Time to get my returns

[bhunted 887]

I always said, learning to drive a motorcycle will make you better than any other 4 wheeler. If you were taught right, you'll pay attention to things you never did in a car or took for granted. For instance, you may ignore a sign saying Curve Ahead in your car, but you will heed it on a bike like white on rice.

Every divot in the road, pot holes, garbage, etc., is your enemy. Add that to people who window shop while doing 40. Road ragers are more deadly to bikers, and so on. Again, if you learn well and be a vigilant biker, you will survive.

 

But if you have never road and want one now to stave off car mileage, forget it. It takes time to learn everything you need to know to be that good biker. But taking it into hell as a new driver, the world will eat you alive. Buy a cheap 4 cylinder for now. Learn motorcycling at your leisure and learn correctly!

 

Be Safe!

 

 

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[Malsua 1,422]

I have to echo what others have said.  Unless you have a history of riding bikes, picking it up at 40+ in NJ is a bad idea.

 

I rode my whole life outside of Jersey from a Mini bike at 10 years old a Honda 70 dirtbike a little later, tons of other dirt bikes(including a nutz RM 370), 3 wheelers, quads and up to my Nighthawk 650 street bike and within 2 years of being in NJ, I'd had enough and sold the bike.

 

I even live up here in the "country" and I think you really have to be a pro at it do to it as a commute.

[checko 180]

We are in Legal proceedings against them, the Reed Group and Cigna Insurance

So theres not much to be said.

 

I gave to much to the Company, Time to get my returns

Gotcha. I've been with them for 12 years. We may have crossed paths once or twice. Hope it all works out

 

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[mustang69 505]

I used to commute from Glen Gardner to Piscataway by bike.  Got to be too crazy on the highways and parked the bike.  Sold it a couple years later when I realized I wouldn't be riding anytime soon again.  

 

I wouldn't consider commuting by bike in NJ again.  Deer, cellphone drivers and just the typical Jersey driver attitude make it too risky IMO.  As someone else said there are only two types a riders - those that have gone down and those that will go down.  It gives the term 'bodywork" a whole new meaning.  My drop was at least incidental, with no injuries on my part and only cosmetic to the bike.  Driver pulled out on me and I dumped it into a slide.

 

If you're concerned about the commute and miles, there are plenty of cheap cars out there.

[kirk2022 43]

Yea I know, So you know where I'm at with them

[bulpup 98]

A few other things.

Get yourself Cycle World's "the Total Motorcycling Manual" and start reading. It isn't nearly total, but it's a good inexpensive primer for what you should be looking at.

 

Next, you NEED to kit up. Especially if you are on the road at 5 am and then back at 1pm.

 

5 am is dark 'till light and 1 pm is usually the hottest part of the day. This means in the spring and fall you will need to be able to wear warm gear in the am and then less than that on the way home. I wear a two piece zip together suit that has multiple inserts one waterproof/windproof and one is for warmth. I also own three pairs of gloves, one for summer one for spring, one for fall. The reason is, you don't want the temperature or the weather interfering with your ability to ride at any time so with the hours that you are commuting the difference in the temperature ...if you prepare for the cold in the morning it will be too hot on the way home. I prefer Olympia transition gear.

http://olympiamotosports.com/products/transition-gear-learn-more/

 

You want reflectors built into your suit/ gear and you want a high viz color too. I have a hi-viz helmet.

 

I want to be clear here -If you don't commit to the gear you shouldn't bother.

[Budasac 13]

I started riding dirt bikes when I was 15 and stepped up to a Suzuki 750 when I was 19. I considered myself a pretty good rider. When I was 22 I had to put my bike down in a turn when an oncoming driver crossed the double yellow. Just barely missed a street sign and guard rail. Could have been really ugly. Instead I just ended up with road rash on my hip and forearm. I kept riding after that but gave it up at 27 when I had kids. My wife simply got too upset worrying whenever I went out.

 

My father has been riding for 45 years. He puts thousands of miles a year on his bikes. When he goes to Sturgis he rides all the way from there NJ A few years ago he totaled a bike when he got caught up in some road debris on a curve while taking a ride in the country. Luckily they both walked away with only minor injuries.

 

I also know guy who lost a leg when a driver blew a stop sign.

 

The point is, bikes can be dangerous even for experienced riders. I'm not saying don't get one, just be aware of what you're getting into. I personally would not commute on one. I did it back in my twenties, but that was before cell phones and all the other distractions drivers are dealing with today.

 

[RecessedFilter 222]

I say go for it. But you must be ready to handle everything from learning to ride to learning how to ride safely and literally watching everything around you all while keeping your eyes on the road and shifting, accelerating, braking, changing body position, turning, etc.

 

When I ride, I expect everything. I expect that car to cut me off, I expect the person merging to not see me….that's what you have to do when you ride a motorcycle and I feel it has kept me pretty safe in the 5 years I've been riding on the road.

 

People who say it's not if you're going to crash it's when - it's pretty true. There are a small number of riders who have never wrecked in 40 years of riding but most of us have dropped the bike, hit gravel and lowsided, or even involved in a motorcycle to car accident. Keep that in mind.

 

Oh, and ride a little faster than the cars around you. It really helps. 

[oneshot 45]

I've been riding for 32 years ,I've been in 3 accidents.Thankfully no serious injuries. One was my fault and it happened at very low speed. The other two , some lady made a left if front of me ,i tboned her, went over the car , some old man got mad when i got in front of him at the toll booth to stay with the group i was riding with and tried to run me over.

 Any time i hear someone say they want to get a bike i tell them don't do it . New jersey is the hotbed of jerkoff cage drivers with no concern for anyone.

  There again , if you can survive riding in NJ you should be okay riding anywhere. Trial by fire

  If you decide to get a bike be safe have fun and pretend that no one sees you

 

 PS like recessed said .

  One thing i do is looking into cars driver side mirror and rearview  mirror, you can tell if they are paying attention and if they know you are there.

so far its kept me alive

[SuperSixOne 4]

My job just transfered me to Mt. Olive so my commute has practically tripled. I'm living in somerville and this move will put me dangerously close to being over my leased miles. figure this could be a good excuse to buy one. Is this feasible or a really dumb idea?

 

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Where in My. Olive? I'm in Budd Lake.

[checko 180]

Where in My. Olive? I'm in Budd Lake.

The Lowe's on international drive

 

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