Is VFR Interceptor a "crotch rocket"?

Discussion in 'General VFR Discussions' started by GatorGreg, Feb 7, 2017.

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Is VFR Interceptor a "crotch rocket"?

  1. Yes

    28 vote(s)
    18.2%
  2. No

    87 vote(s)
    56.5%
  3. Maybe

    30 vote(s)
    19.5%
  4. Other (explain below please)

    9 vote(s)
    5.8%
  1. Deckrat

    Deckrat New Member

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    I would be willing to bet that MOST people, (riders and non-riders both) would refer to nearly any bike with full fairings as a "crotch rocket". Except of course those individuals who actually own and ride REAL crotch rockets. Honestly, it's one of the reasons I've always wanted a VFR. It has the sport bike looks, and more touring ergonomics. I don't mind if the uninitiated think I'm riding an insanely powerful race-ready track weapon.
     
  2. OOTV

    OOTV Insider

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    I'm with Gator here but I can see how the general public who doesn't know better might look at it and call it one.
     
  3. MooseMoose

    MooseMoose New Member

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    I call these people bike bigots. If it has plastic it's a toy that squids kill themselves on. Oh, I could never ride one of those it'll fuck up my back. I want a powerful bike, like a big 'ol Harley.

    Oh, fuck off with all of that. If you are so uninformed that you assume anything with a fairing is the same, I can't talk to you.

    Someone who is genuinely interested in different types of bikes, you can explain how the categories of bikes are a heck of a lot more fluid than they were 35 years ago and have a nice discussion. But the folks who use the 70s stereotypes are the motorcycle version of that guy that walks up to you and starts a friendly conversation with "Hey, ya'll hate n***ers too?"¹ Where do you go from there?



    ¹ Note: This actually happened to me while sitting with friends outside a Starbucks.
     
  4. GatorGreg

    GatorGreg Honda Fanboy/LitiGator

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    Wow - that's a crazy story MM - never had that happen to me and I live in the south. I will say that back in my off-roading days I always had my Lynyrd Skynyrd's Greatest Hits CD ready to play in my Japanese 4x4 just in case I ran into a bunch of KKK dudes out in the boonies - I figured it would help prevent me from getting lynched for not driving a Jeep/Ford/Chevy :glee: For some reason your story reminded me of this scene - LOL

    [video=youtube;r-zlkOg6_Zw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-zlkOg6_Zw[/video]
     
  5. MooseMoose

    MooseMoose New Member

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    Dude, it happened in Carlsbad! Happy little resort beach town in California where nobody gives a shit about anyone. Definitely not a hotbed of entrenched racism. The guy walked up out of the blue and started talking to us, then out of his mouth it came!

    We call that place the Starbizzle now. We had a good, uncomfortable sort of laugh about it after he left, but it really was an uncomfortable spot. How do you talk to someone like that?

    But my point is about bike people. I was reminded of the starbizzle because a guy there looked at my 3rd gen and said "I'd never be able to ride that, it'd fuck up my back." Seriously. I rode that thing from San Diego to Monterey, a day and a half on the track, then rode it home in one shot after that half-day. You don't put 1500 miles on in a weekend if a bike isn't comfortable.

    But, this guy was a baby boomer who still thought like it was 1973 and hasn't changed his world view one iota since he was 24 years old. He wouldn't believe us when we explained my friend's Concours put out 160hp, and that loud as fuck Harley he so admired with 200cc more displacement weighed more and didn't even put out 70hp.

    Those are the guys who use terms like Crotch Rocket. They're stuck in the 70s.
     
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  6. GatorGreg

    GatorGreg Honda Fanboy/LitiGator

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    Yeah I'm afraid there are racists in all corners of the world. It's funny you mention the Concours and bad back comments, etc - my buddy that I rode with this weekend has a Concours 14 and towards the end of the ride I pulled up next to him at a light and he asked me how my wrists were feeling and then said he could never ride my bike because he'd be too hunched over - LOL - he's added huge risers to his Connie and if you watch the vid he's sitting practically straight up :glee: I told him that Honda offers factory risers and that there are aftermarket ones even higher but that didn't seem to change his opinion.

    [video=youtube;Fs4dYrlqdBI]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fs4dYrlqdBI&t=191s[/video]
     
  7. Badbilly

    Badbilly Official VFRWorld Troll Of The Year!

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    There are more and more events of this nature on the news every day. Someone should take the lead and do something aboot crotch rocket riding KKK motorcycle gangs.
     
  8. V4toTour

    V4toTour New Member

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    Stupid questions deserve equally stupid responses. Next time say: "No, it's just a Honda. The Crotch Rocket brand has been having reliability issues as of late, last I heard consumer reports mentioned something about top end engine issues".

    When they give you that quizzical look after hearing that, just keep your face stone cold serious.
     
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  9. RhINO

    RhINO New Member

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    I think that if you're not interested in bikes a VFR and an R1 looks almost the same, which gives the question (I actually had to check and when you look at pictures of them they're quite similar :))
     
  10. fink

    fink Member

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    The first time I can recall hearing the term crotch rocket was back in the early/mid 80s in the UK when the Race rep Jap 400s were being unofficially imported( Grey Import).
    These bikes looked like race bikes compared to what was available for sale.
     
  11. Joey_Dude

    Joey_Dude Member

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    Regarding the fairings, I had always wondered why fairings weren't commonplace back in the '70's and 80's. But after a visit to the barber motorsport museum I got my answer. They had several motorcycles with fairings on display from as early as the 1950s and listed that they did not sell well because engines back in those days were not reliable. People wanted easy access to the engine in case of breakdowns.

    It's only due to modern technology that now engines are reliable enough so that one can install fairings without having to deal with the headaches of taking them off.
     
  12. zombie

    zombie New Member

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  13. Badbilly

    Badbilly Official VFRWorld Troll Of The Year!

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    That explanation sounds as if it covers street bikes. A source for "fairings" can be found under "streamlining" as well. Check this one out:

    https://www.printsandphotos.com/col...cts/keenly-streamlined-motorcycle-123mph-3494

    There are fairings and then there are fairings including the truly full fairings aka "dustbin" The commonality of both is that they make bikes handle like shit in crosswinds. Up until a few years ago Moto-Guzzi had an operational wind tunnel that was used for years to test out fairings for fast guy bikes. Case in point, the 1955 Moto-Guzzi 500cc V8 GP bike.

    Another source of pix and info are the many bikes of total fairing that run at dry lakes, beachfronts and the salt at Bonneville. aka Streamliners or Lakers.

    For a backward look the fully faired 1930 Henderson is another example and for the future some really spacy bikes of all kinds here:

    https://www.pinterest.com/carlovincent05/concept-bikes-motorbikes/

    Luddites need to go look at Harleys.
     
  14. Gator

    Gator Insider

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    A Ducati Monster is a naked bike. Is it a crotch rocket? lol
     
  15. Jeff_Barrett

    Jeff_Barrett Member

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    My 6th generation is considered a "sport touring" bike by Manitoba Public Insurance Corporation ... not a "sport bike".
     
  16. James Bond

    James Bond Member

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    It always insulted me that come people want to comment on my crotch. It's perfectly OK for some other kind of people to be interested in my crotch. Some certain kinds of people have the ability to make my crotch a rocket. What a subject.....
     
  17. Badbilly

    Badbilly Official VFRWorld Troll Of The Year!

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    To address this problem, an expert would need to know if the insults stem from a visual or an olfactory POV.
     
  18. SML

    SML New Member

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    I'm not saying this is the official definition, it's from the urban dictionary.

    http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=crotch rocket

    "A specific type of motorcycle, typically distinguished by it's aerodynamic 'hunched-over' seating position and high power to weight ratio. Often favoured by stunters, who choose the bikes because they are light and easy to perform tricks (such as wheelies and stoppies) on.

    Crotch rockets are not always Japanese motorcycles, Italian companies such as Ducati manufacture quite high-quality crotch rockets as well.

    Also known as 'sportbikes'.
    The Ducati 999, Suzuki GSXR1000 and Yamaha YZF-R1 are good examples of ~1000cc crotch-rockets."
     
  19. RobVG

    RobVG Member

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    There was a reason the RD350 was called the "750 Killer".

    Don't discount the smaller bikes.
     
  20. Alaskan

    Alaskan Member

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    Crotch-Rocket is a useless term, devoid of meaning. Supersport makes better sense.

    .
     
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