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+--- Thread: yamaha v max = the "o" face (/showthread.php?tid=759)
yamaha v max = the "o" face - ScottyB - 07-29-2004
i was on my way to an enjoyable back road today around 7 pm or so. i go to this road about once a week at around sunset because the road traces the spine of a very large foothill that comes out of the surrounding plains of greenville, SC. at this time of day, the air is cool, the sunsets spectacular, and the road is fairly empty yet not so dark that i need my lights. i, and the car, can unwind after being trapped in a cubicle, then gridlock, for the majority of the day.
i take the less traveled 2 lane highways to get there. most roads around here are 2 lanes per side, and some are always packed, while others hardly get their money's worth in use. i take the latter of course, which happens to be on the way to get gas. so after filling up at my favorite amoco station on the way to my mountain road, i pull out and come to the nearest light. im making a left, and im in the rightmost of two lanes turning left. as i come to a stop, i pull almost even with two bikers. one is riding a yamaha YZF something (the bike im about to mention was in the way of the model name on the fairings), while the other bike, closest to me, was a brand new, very black yamaha V max. i have zero knowledge of either bike, except that i immediately take notice that the YZF has a yoshimura pipe, and the V max has what i think was a Kirchner (kurcher, kircher, i cant remember exactly).
the two bikers are talking, and it was an encouraging sight to see they were in full gear, which is a rarity among any bikers here in SC. as the light is about to turn green, the V max rider flicks his wrists a few times, and the kirchner pipe absolutely rips! it was a heavenly noise, something between a small block V8 two octaves too high, and an S2000 on the power cam. thrown into the soundtrack was the off-beat stumble of a harley. the YZF on the other hand sounded meek and pedestrian by comparison, even with a similarly low restriction pipe.
as we move off from the light, the riders impatiently throttle their engines between shifts as the oldmobile in front of them meanders through the intersection. as the olds pulls a gap on the car next to it in the right lane, the riders do not hesitate. within a second's notice the haunches of both bikes lurch downwards and plant violently into the tarmac, hurling both bikes side by side through the gap in a left-right s-curve. i was watching intently of course, but i was overwhelmed when i saw them take off. and it wasnt just the speed, it was the sound of the V- max! what a noise. it was as if the bike automatically gained a litre of displacement and a straight pipe by just cracking the throttle. i could smell the gasoline reek of a mixture slightly too rich, and of rubber and tar heated to a good 150 degrees wafting in the wake of the bikes. it was awesome, and all the sudden, my car felt absolutely anemic. maybe it was the load of fuel i just took on (i was nearly empty) but man, how slow i felt. it was as if my windscreen was a tv screen, and everything around me was just wallpaper in a world on "pause."
after that display of mechanical glory, i was delighted to see the bikes stopped at the next light ahead. this time each rider has his own lane, and i could tell what they were thinking. it was like recieving a gift to actually see them do what i thought they would too....take off like bats out of hell down the open road ahead. with two mighty blips the v-max walked away from the YZF, low and black and sinister and sounding like pure evil. it was frightening to see how quickly they dissapeared. since i was focusing on them so intently, i didnt notice that when they cleared the rise in front of me, they were already a good 800, maybe 1000 yards away. they were gone that fast.
....only to reappear on the horizon again. i had the pleasure of hearing this symphony at 2 more red lights until they turned left at the last light and i continued straight.
this evening i actually savored the comforting, consistently slow pull of my 2.3 litre 4 cylinder. it gave me time to put into the perspective of the definition of fast. i feel fast, going to redline and hearing the roar eminate from my intake as the wind rushes through all 4 open windows. but alas. i am so, so far from understanding what fast is. i suppose in time i will come to find out, but until then, as long as i can thread my car into a few good bends every now and then, ill be satisfied
- PDenbigh - 07-29-2004
Hey Man, great post! I really enjoyed living that through your writing. Great way to start the morning!
As a side note, when I got my bike it completely redefined performance in my mind. It's only a 600, but it stops, turns, and accellerates faster than anything I have ever had the privilage of riding in/on. 0-60 in 3.4 is fast no matter what you are riding. It's an awesome thrill that, when respected, will never let you down.
I love the recent trend of going for high horsepower steet bikes like the V-max - it sorts seems like the old muscle car days when you could do a 14 sec quarter with the entire family in the car off of raw carbuerated V-8 HP.
- JessicaRabbit79 - 07-29-2004
Best post I've ever read!
- Sijray21 - 07-29-2004
nice post! good detail, painted the picture very well
- Mike - 07-29-2004
good read scotty mcbody!
- Dave - 07-29-2004
PDenbigh Wrote:Hey Man, great post! I really enjoyed living that through your writing. Great way to start the morning!You might want to submit that to some of the car magazines and see if you could get a job there. After reading that, I know I would hire you.
- ScottyB - 07-29-2004
you guys are too kind, too kind. just thought i'd share since it was so cool. i have a couple more stories that are halfway done right now, ill post em up when i get a chance.
- JackoliciousLegs - 07-29-2004
you're my hero. like roald dahl
- Sijray21 - 07-29-2004
ScottyB for President...let him run instead of Nader...probably get more votes :lol:
- Sijray21 - 07-29-2004
ScottyB Wrote:you guys are too kind, too kind. just thought i'd share since it was so cool. i have a couple more stories that are halfway done right now, ill post em up when i get a chance.
article section in MM site....that's where i think they need to go
...well and here :wink:
- ScottyB - 07-29-2004
theguywiththeSi Wrote:ScottyB Wrote:you guys are too kind, too kind. just thought i'd share since it was so cool. i have a couple more stories that are halfway done right now, ill post em up when i get a chance.
article section in MM site....that's where i think they need to go
...well and here :wink:
that's another thing too, i'd like to start writing some articles once and a while. i don't know if i can fully commit to it but i'd like to contribute. im still workin on the writeup for VIR in march...halfway done and 5 pages later.... 8)
- Sijray21 - 07-29-2004
ScottyB Wrote:that's another thing too, i'd like to start writing some articles once and a while. i don't know if i can fully commit to it but i'd like to contribute. im still workin on the writeup for VIR...halfway done and 5 pages later.... 8)
lol, you don't need to commit, we've only had a few articles since this site came about :p
- Kaan - 07-29-2004
a YZF.... is a YZF 600R.... yamaha's intro to 600 rockets. wrong gears, wrong sprockets, low compression compaired to the R6.... its basically the same as a 500 starter bike.