05-21-2014, 11:11 AM
(05-21-2014, 10:26 AM)The ferret_imp Wrote: Popgun, the ST is a heavy beast no doubt, you just have to remember that and treat it as such. Keep it out of situations where it might get leaned over while stopped. You don't want to get it leaned over more than a few degrees and I've actually jerked mine back up before it made it to the sidestand multiple times, only to verify the side stand is down and go ahead and let it down to it. Honda smartly designed in heavy duty tip over bars, and pop away mirrors...and rear bars are available if you do think you might lay it over. I'm old, small and weak and have had mine for 6 years and 40,000 miles. Getting ready to take a 6,000 mile trip soon. I think you'll be ok.This is no lie. A good friend of mine came out here from Chicago 2 summers ago and he rented one for a day so we could go riding. I decided to show him a "real road" so I took him up Mt. Hamilton to the Lick Observatory. The ride up was uneventful, but we did run into a road construction crew that was one laning the road so I knew we would encounter them on the way down.
I was on my 93 750 Nighthawk ahead of him and he was actually coasting down to save fuel (can you say cheapskate??
) so I was about 1000 feet ahead of him. I came up to the road crew (flagger) and pulled the clutch and dropped the kickstand and killed the bike and leaned over on the stand. 20 seconds later my friend pulls up next to me on my right side and went to put his feet down and well...the road was canted to the left and his foot found nothing but air. Over the bike went, but not before he got his bare hand on the end of the bars to try and stop it. He slowed it significantly, but couldn't stop it so he ended up resting his hand on the side of my hot engine while his bare forearm rested on the fins on my cylinder head. I didn't dare get off for fear my bike would fall over, and we couldn't lift the bike from the positions we were in. All the while the flagger is just standing there watching up until I yelled at him for some help. Then he SLOWLY started walking over until I yelled again and then he finally picked up the pace. He then proceeded to pull off the right mirror before finally grabbing onto the bars and helping lift the bike up.
My friend had blisters on the back of his hand and 6 new stripes on his forearm, but all in all in the end he is no worse for wear, He told me he almost cant see the burns on his forearm any more.
It's still a good idea to wear some sort of jacket and gloves, but I have been known not to.