Bandit, Crotch Rocket

[LowRyter]

"What kind of motorcycle do you ride?"

"Suzuki 1200 Bandit."

"Is that one of those Crotch Rockets?"

"Ahhh, yeah, more or less."

....shakes head

[txbanditrydr]

Just hard to educate the unwashed masses.....    

[Red01]

"Is that one of those Crotch Rockets?"

"Ahhh, yeah, more or less."

....shakes head

I respond with "About like how a Camaro is a sports car."
It's usually something they can understand.  

[Vlad]

"What kind of motorcycle do you ride?"

"Suzuki 1200 Bandit."

"What kind of bike is that?"

"Awesome!"

[Barbarian]

The Official Quebec Sportsbike Checklist.

Answering yes to these questions means you'll be shelling out $1400 to register your bike in 2010. (And you don't want that. Noooooo)

Aerodynamic fairing covering the sides of the engine with a low windscreen;
Forward-bent riding position;
Short, low handlebar;
Footrests located high toward the rear;
Muffler directed toward the rear and upward;
Double front disc brakes and single rear disc brake;
Chain powered rear wheel;
Ratio of horsepower: weight above 0.50 hp/kg;
Absence of a central kickstand;
Oversized frame

My Bandit says yes to three of the above, but having disc brakes, a chain, and a slightly angled muffler are pretty damn common.

[Katamaniac]

The Official Quebec Sportsbike Checklist.

Answering yes to these questions means you'll be shelling out $1400 to register your bike in 2010. (And you don't want that. Noooooo)

Aerodynamic fairing covering the sides of the engine with a low windscreen;
Forward-bent riding position;
Short, low handlebar;
Footrests located high toward the rear;
Muffler directed toward the rear and upward;
Double front disc brakes and single rear disc brake;
Chain powered rear wheel;
Ratio of horsepower: weight above 0.50 hp/kg;
Absence of a central kickstand;
Oversized frame

My Bandit says yes to three of the above, but having disc brakes, a chain, and a slightly angled muffler are pretty damn common.

Bend the exhaust down and remove one of the front rotors and caliper, that should take care of two more.

I think your government is not working for you as far as insurance prices go. Do you have an organization like AMA to help fight the politicians on issues like these?

[Red01]

The Official Quebec Sportsbike Checklist.

Answering yes to these questions means you'll be shelling out $1400 to register your bike in 2010. (And you don't want that. Noooooo)

Aerodynamic fairing covering the sides of the engine with a low windscreen;
Forward-bent riding position;
Short, low handlebar;
Footrests located high toward the rear;
Muffler directed toward the rear and upward;
Double front disc brakes and single rear disc brake;
Chain powered rear wheel;
Ratio of horsepower: weight above 0.50 hp/kg;
Absence of a central kickstand;
Oversized frame

My Bandit says yes to three of the above, but having disc brakes, a chain, and a slightly angled muffler are pretty damn common.

A dual-sport could be saying "yes" to three or more of those pretty easy.

[06 Greyhound]

It was pointed out to me that we ride a "Gentleman’s Race Bike. The term Crotch Rocket is demeaning and best left for the children.

[Barbarian]

It's not so bad as it sounds. For one, they have an official list (Here's the pdf), which is full of Ninjas, Gixxers, CBRs, etc...
Second, registration in Quebec includes the personal damages part of your insurance. That goes for all drivers, or anyone hurt by a motor vehicle.

Yeah yeah  

There are a couple organizations that are lobbying for lower rates, or to at least make this ridiculous hike a little more justifiable. 4,000 bikers rallied last month outside the legislature, and that got a promise to re-evaluate the proposal to take driver education and experience into account.

If you ask me, they have two real reasons. First is that everyone who got any kind of license before 1970-something is allowed to drive a motorcycle -- so we now have lots of boomers getting bikes and they don't know what the hell they're doing, they crash, and they get a cheque from the govt for rehab. So they're doing this to convince people to give up their motorcycle certification.
Second is there are way too many squids on the road in Quebec. About once a week I'll spot someone popping a wheelie/lane splitting at 110kmh/riding on the shoulder. And many of the more sedate riders wouldn't know proper gear if they had their noses rubbed in it. (Yes, I'm talking about the guy in khakis and a t-shirt wearing the shortie helmet without the DOT sticker).

Third is when you say 'biker' in Quebec, most people think   thanks to our lovely biker gang war of the 90s. But that's not a real reason though -- that's just why the govt thinks it can get away with it without too much public  fuss.

[LowRyter]

I own a '94 Z-2 6 speed.  It used to spank 911s, but after 130k miles the optispark coughs a lot I am afraid to check- again)....It still steers & shifts better than a Boxster

The B12 has 57k miles

"Is that one of those Crotch Rockets?"

"Ahhh, yeah, more or less."

....shakes head

I respond with "About like how a Camaro is a sports car."
It's usually something they can understand.  

[leedogg]

I own a '94 Z-2 6 speed.  It used to spank 911s, but after 130k miles the optispark coughs a lot I am afraid to check- again)....It still steers & shifts better than a Boxster

The B12 has 57k miles

"Is that one of those Crotch Rockets?"

"Ahhh, yeah, more or less."

....shakes head

I respond with "About like how a Camaro is a sports car."
It's usually something they can understand.  

I put the MSD pro billet opti in mine...picked up 14 rwhp and 12 rwtq-  sure it is 450 bucks- but well worth it in my opinion....and yes, newer F-bodies were very much a sports car.  Though most still consider them a 'tweener:  somewhere between a sprorts and muscle car.


The Bandit a Crotch rocket....more so than any other type of bike....but still in a class of it's own.

[stormi]

See now,.. I'm confused,... do I or don't I ride a "crotch rocket"?? It's not on the list, but....

Forward-bent riding position; (changed the bars to clubmans)
Short, low handlebar;
Muffler directed toward the rear and upward;
Double front disc brakes and single rear disc brake;
Chain powered rear wheel;
Ratio of horsepower: weight above 0.50 hp/kg;
Absence of a central kickstand;

[ZenMan]

I think of a crotch rocket as a Gixxer or R1 or any of the race-based bikes.

To me, the Bandit is more of a "muscle bike". It's a big engine with wheels and handlebars.  

[orionburn]

For me the "super-sport" class equals the true definition of crotch rocket, which like Zen said would be an R1, CBR, etc.

I think of the Bandit as a "sport standard." All the fun of a super-sport, but without the leaning over. I've always felt that in the insurance compaines' minds that they see the more upright riding position as a "slower" bike. Which is fine by me that they're fooled  

[leedogg]

True- for the above..BUT  regular people classify bikes as Crotch Rockets or Cruisers or Tourers.

of those three- our mostly matches the CR.  My dad calls mine a crotch rocket...well more like- "he went off and bought a damn cratch rocket!"

Only when you get into the motorcycle community do people rally know the different classes of bikes.I know that down here in the south,  all the sportbikes and naked sport bikes and called a crotch rocket.  Any thing with a fairing(even half fairing) is considered a sportbike.  The Standard class of bike has largely disappeared from the USA- we just don't get them.