07-29-2004, 12:08 AM
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
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
2010 Civic Si
2019 4Runner TRD Off-Road
--------------------------
Past: 03 Xterra SE 4x4 | 05 Impreza 2.5RS | 99.5 A4 Quattro 1.8T | 01 Accord EX | 90 Maxima GXE | 96 Explorer XLT
2019 4Runner TRD Off-Road
--------------------------
Past: 03 Xterra SE 4x4 | 05 Impreza 2.5RS | 99.5 A4 Quattro 1.8T | 01 Accord EX | 90 Maxima GXE | 96 Explorer XLT
