Riding a bike in T.O..realistically? | GTAMotorcycle.com

Riding a bike in T.O..realistically?

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boywonder

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Hey peoples. I have a question for you. Living in Toronto how do you find riding in general?
How much enjoyment do you get from riding your bike in the gta?
Do you still feel the cost of owning a bike outweighs the bad e.g. horrible/ dangerous drivers, construction, traffic jams all summer.etc.etc

I ask becus I have ridden ss bikes on the street from 1988- 2002 and I loved it but back then there wasn't a gazillion cars, endless amount of bad drivers, construction everywhere in the summer like there is now. I drive to work everyday which takes me 1hr each way and this summer since I was planning on buying a sport bike I realistically studied the roads for 1 week to see if being on a motorcycle in the gta would be worth it.

Honestly, is it really frustrating riding here?

Thanks
 
1 word...yes. If we could only lane share and lane filter to the front on a red things would be much better. I'd ride a scooter in aheartbeat
 
I've gotten used to it. I ride an SS as well. My first four years were spent riding in NL, where there's very little traffic. My only complaint about riding here is that my clutch hand cramps up when stuck in traffic.
 
I really love it. I live in Scarborough and I commute everyday to downtown to for my school and work. Sometimes it can be annoying riding during rush hour with bad drivers. But it is far better than taking the ttc.
I am just lot more cautious on the road when I am riding my bike and just hope for the best. I also love the fact that I can park anywhere for free! I ride a 97 Yamaha yzf 600r and its a great bike for commuting. Really cheap on gas.
 
Even in the worst traffic it beats driving a car in the city. And at night when the traffic subsides it can be a real joy. I prefer city riding to any other environment save for the track.
 
Even if you have to ask the question I know for sure, you will not enjoy it.

Being on a bike is a pleasure regardless of conditions.
 
I started riding in downtown TO ages ago. Doesn't seem too different now. Riding to work sure beats transit. Besides, I'm in the burbs now, so transit is a pain anyways.
 
I got my ZX11 before I moved to where I am now (East York). I probably would have got a lighter bike for around here, most of what it does right now is convert gas into heat in traffic. I imagine something like my old Radian would be pure bliss to ride around the city (if it wasn't air cooled :p).
 
I cant stand riding in the city, unless its at like 3 am. There are too many retarded people trying to kill you on a daily basis. I do all my riding out of the city and on the track
 
I enjoy riding than caging;) you go through the same traffic, but on the bike you have more possibilities. Usually, riding vs driving (from Concord to T.O. for ex.) saves about 5-15min.
 
I live downtown and ride the streets around here all the time. I don't mind it, really. I've grown pretty use to it. Obviously riding outside the city is more fun, but you can still have a good time if you know the streets well enough and are defensive enough. Gotta watch out for everything though; cagers, cabbies, cyclists, pedestrians, scoots, people getting in and out of parked cars, etc.

I don't lane split or anything like that, I'm pretty conservative. But I will head to the front of a red light using the lanes with parked cars. That can melt away the frustration, as you pass a bunch of cagers:D
 
It's fine to ride to work or other places on a daily basis but realistically because of the snow in winter, you are really only riding for 8 months max. It is a breeze to ride during the night especially on the highway with very few traffic and cops I can go up to speed on my SS. During the day you will get sweaty then it's not so fun when you imagine you can sit in a car with a/c. There are the cons and pros. It's really up to you to decide, some people give up the hobby for a year, then they come back the next year, very common.
 
I live to ride. I live downtown and work uptown so I get to hit the DVP daily. I also have a scooter for when I'm running errands downtown.
 
i live downtown - and recently moved up town for work - but there's no free parking at my new location. if it wasnt for this, i would ride to work daily. ya, getting out of toronto might be a pain with trafffic, pedestrians, etc, but being able to ride daily would be more than worth it.
cant believe there is no free parking - and no, there isnt even side street parking - the neighbourhood is less then desireable.
maybe i am just cheap - :)
 
I've always lived downtown and still ride to my destinations as long as streets are salt free. I try not to think about other drivers but am always alert because I've already been in an accident last year.

I ride SS but am getting rid of it next season for comfort reasons mostly. I try to not to ride during the day just because the west end where I live is so poorly planned in terms of infrastructure(I really wish the 400 ran all the way down to the gardiner) that getting out of the city is only doable at night.
 
define living in toronto, i live out in the east end in scarberia, my bike is great for city riding, but if i lived closer downtown, i'd probably get a scooter...when i ride into work, which is downtown t.o, timing when i leave is rather important, too late and traffic is a pain, too early and i ain't paid to be at work...and now getting my bike serviced and new chain, i'm going down 1 on the front sprocket and up 3-4 in the rear, so this will definitely liven up the ride...
 
Worth it if only for fall mornings after 10am when you can take Rosedale Valley rd to Bayview and the DVP (which is empty going north at that time), or just up the Bayview extension. You can almost scrape a peg on University near Queen's Park.

Police everywhere though, so don't do the ton or anything (limit is 50-60 in town), but the DVP north mid-day is pleasant.

Also, when you get into the office after riding in the city, there is not a lot that can phase you since you've cheated death at least three times before your boss has even checked his morning emails. Most office workers' idea of an adrenaline rush is waiting in line 15 minutes for a double-****ing-machiatto. When you ride a motorcycle, it kicks you into a higher mental gear where you're already so hyper aware, everything around you seems slow and easy. You can be sympathetic to the neurotic gibbering of your co-workers because for most of them, this is it, this as fast as life gets. You've got all the laser focused intensity of a nine yr old on his first hit of ritalin and you're a goddamn Jedi.

Just try not to get fired. Nobody wants to work with some ******* who thinks he's Yoda.

:)
 
Ok thanks guys. I want to pickup a brand new Honda CB 1000RA in March and it will be my daily all around street bike. I have riddin a 98 gixxer 750 for 5 years and before that my first bike was a Ninja ZX6 wayyy back in 1987 which I rode for 4 years til it got stolen.:sad5: Now I'd rather have something more comfortable (up rightish) but still have Jam when I feel the need to twist the grip. I really love the looks of the CB and every review I've read says that it's a blast to ride and very agile... Plus its a Honda.

The reason I sold my gixxer 750 was becus at the time I got a job working at a bank downtown Bay st. and I had to wear (Gulp) a suit to work:crybaby:and we all know sportbikes and suits dont mix well. So I took the subway into work and only rode to work on casual Friday's. Anyways cus of my job (10 hour days) I hardly had the time to ride and parking around where I worked was $20. a day, yuck. So for some stupid reason I sold my bike and for the last 6 years I havent felt the need to get another one UNTIL this past summer when the passion kicked in BIGTIME. I no longer have to wear a (Gulp) suit to work so I'm gettin a friggin:headbang: bike 1Liter.
F corporate head office. I'm a biker goddammit.

I cant wait to install a Akrapovic can on it like this one..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_E0X9ZDPWBs&feature=related
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