A cruiser is a bike with an upright seating position where the rider's weight is on his backside, and he has time to watch the scenery and the sky as he goes along at an easy pace. A sportbike is a bike with a lean-forward seating position where the rider's weight is on his thighs and his wrists, and where he only has time to watch the road ahead of him as he lines himself up for the corners as fast as he can. The key factor in what makes a cruiser is wher the rider's weight goes - and by that definition, a Valkyrie is a cruiser, as is a Guzzi California.
The Mikenomad Factor: Cruiser = Single-crankpin, Narrow-angle V-twin
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3,415 Posts
Re: Hmm....
Not being anal enough to catagorize everything I see, I'd say a sportbike or race rep would be a...ummm.... replica of a race bike, IE forward crouch riding positin, low bars, high rearset pegs, tight fairing and instument cluster, cutting edge materials and technology..
a standard would be a basic motorcycle, IE upright riding position, higher handle bars, mid mounted pegs...still a technologically advanced engine and frame design but not the latest unobtainium..
A cruiser would be a flagrant Japanese attempt at buying into and copying a heritage they themselves do not posess. mainly because the market for heritage type Japanese motorcycles such as 90 cc step throughs.... chromed tank panels, pressed steel framed 160's and 125cc air-cooled two stroke twins is a little soft at this point in the US.
a Touring bike would be any bike with a large fairing and windshield, hard bags and possibly a trunk, upright riding position and gooshy seat. Most have some sort of gadgetry like cruise control, CD players and the like.
That leaves Harley, BMW, Triumph, Moto Guzzi and MV-Augusta which build pretty much what they've alway built, IE distinct motorcycles with a recognizable style they created themselves and have improved and tweaked over the years.
Customs, which I consider anything from choppers to bobbers to cafe` racers...ideally a stock platform modified by the owner into a more personalized version. But often now-a-days bought pre-assembled from small job shop type builders
And, Duel Sports which are usually standards with longer suspension and larger tanks for highway and mild off-roading.....
I think that pretty well covers it from personal perspective over the last 40 years as a motorcyclist..
Not being anal enough to catagorize everything I see, I'd say a sportbike or race rep would be a...ummm.... replica of a race bike, IE forward crouch riding positin, low bars, high rearset pegs, tight fairing and instument cluster, cutting edge materials and technology..
a standard would be a basic motorcycle, IE upright riding position, higher handle bars, mid mounted pegs...still a technologically advanced engine and frame design but not the latest unobtainium..
A cruiser would be a flagrant Japanese attempt at buying into and copying a heritage they themselves do not posess. mainly because the market for heritage type Japanese motorcycles such as 90 cc step throughs.... chromed tank panels, pressed steel framed 160's and 125cc air-cooled two stroke twins is a little soft at this point in the US.
a Touring bike would be any bike with a large fairing and windshield, hard bags and possibly a trunk, upright riding position and gooshy seat. Most have some sort of gadgetry like cruise control, CD players and the like.
That leaves Harley, BMW, Triumph, Moto Guzzi and MV-Augusta which build pretty much what they've alway built, IE distinct motorcycles with a recognizable style they created themselves and have improved and tweaked over the years.
Customs, which I consider anything from choppers to bobbers to cafe` racers...ideally a stock platform modified by the owner into a more personalized version. But often now-a-days bought pre-assembled from small job shop type builders
And, Duel Sports which are usually standards with longer suspension and larger tanks for highway and mild off-roading.....
I think that pretty well covers it from personal perspective over the last 40 years as a motorcyclist..
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5,447 Posts
Re: Hmm....
I dunno, I'd kinda dig it it Yamaha offered a 125 Big Bear Scrambler again (with those giant chrome up-pipes).
Japanese heritage is a copy of ours, dontcha know (Ever since Doug MacArthur that is).
And before us they copied the Brits. They even still drive on the wrong side.
(I think the "copycat" thing ended around 1980 when Mercedes Benz had to go to Japan to get a cylinder head design for that miserable little 2.3 litre 4 banger. )
I dunno, I'd kinda dig it it Yamaha offered a 125 Big Bear Scrambler again (with those giant chrome up-pipes).
Japanese heritage is a copy of ours, dontcha know (Ever since Doug MacArthur that is).
And before us they copied the Brits. They even still drive on the wrong side.
(I think the "copycat" thing ended around 1980 when Mercedes Benz had to go to Japan to get a cylinder head design for that miserable little 2.3 litre 4 banger. )
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3,415 Posts
Re: Hmm....
I think they should too. with gas heading towards $3.00 a gallon a new version of a press-frame 160 getting 60 mpg would probably sell.
I think they hit their mark with inline 4 cyl. '70's UJM's, excellent bikes for their time that would have evolved into a complete line-up of the sporty-standards we have today if they hadn't decided to copy Harley and Indian. I just think cookie-cutter imitations of someone elses design is crass.
If they're going to build cruisers then fine, at least try to develop a signiture look instead of carbon copying someone else.
I think they should too. with gas heading towards $3.00 a gallon a new version of a press-frame 160 getting 60 mpg would probably sell.
I think they hit their mark with inline 4 cyl. '70's UJM's, excellent bikes for their time that would have evolved into a complete line-up of the sporty-standards we have today if they hadn't decided to copy Harley and Indian. I just think cookie-cutter imitations of someone elses design is crass.
If they're going to build cruisers then fine, at least try to develop a signiture look instead of carbon copying someone else.
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1,865 Posts
Ah yes, the good old Highwayman days.....
I've never heard of Valkyries, VMax, or Magnas be described as overweight, poor-handling, underpowered, cruiser-styled sportbikes or standards. It would seem with the first portion he was describing Harleys to a tee.
I've never heard of Valkyries, VMax, or Magnas be described as overweight, poor-handling, underpowered, cruiser-styled sportbikes or standards. It would seem with the first portion he was describing Harleys to a tee.
1st- the highwayman was poetic garbage with no factual basis. This guy is flat out blunt with opinion that's at least based on some fact. I most definitely like Mikenomad's approach better, even if I don't completely agree.
2nd- If you haven't heard the above bikes described as overweight or poor-handling, you haven't been listening. I won't say that any of them are bad motorcycles - I've even shopped for the Vmax and Magna myself - but none qualify as lightweight or good handling machines.
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