nyc riders?

Hi,

So, I've been considering moving to NYC from San Francisco, and I'm curious if there's any decent riding remotely accessible. I have the luxury of some of the best riding in the country within an hour from my house, and Mexico only a day away. I know how spoiled we are, but I have to imagine that there's some decent riding within an hour or two of NYC.

Any help or advice, or pointers to local riders would be fantastic.

best,
brett

Brett,
You do have a bit of motorcycle heaven over there, but trust that there is some nice riding around New York as well. If you cross the George Washington Bridge and head north on the Palisades Parkway you'll find yourself in prime riding territory. Harriman State Park is about 30 minutes north and has some great roads. Of note is Seven Lakes Drive which winds and bends through the forest along seven lakes. It's a wonderful place to explore by yourself on weekdays or with the other bikers that are always there during weekends. If you have more than an hour there's an abundance of great destinations. The Adirondack Mountains are about 4 hours north and provide an amazing place to lose yourself either in the euphoria of excellent riding or simply the fire trails snaking their way through the mountains. A beautiful ride is up the Taconic State Parkway towards the Berkshire Mountains in Massachusetts and it gets even better in Vermont. West 'by god' Virginia is only 6 to 7 hours south and is a destination all bikers should have once in their lives. Further south North Carolina is another type of heaven with the famed Deals gap among hundreds of miles of other wonderful twisties. There is plenty to keep you busy over here. The only thing you may miss is the four to five months of riding during the winter. Other than that, you'll have a ball checking out this portion of the country. I could go on and on about the beauty of New England and the very near Atlantic provences of Canada, but I'm sure you'll figure it out. Good luck!

Curtis

Thanks Curtis. That sounds very promising. Is there anything odd about owning bikes in NYC that i should be aware of?

b

I dont keep my bike in the city, but I've never had any trouble, so far, when I do go, and I like to take the bikes partly because parking is so much easier. Canal Street and the BQE are like the Road of Bones. You could lose fillings.

I'm living up in the foothills of the Catskills, which are like foothills to most folks, but I've got a Ton of good riding. Get in touch if you'ld like to get out some...I 'm always up for a ride. I'm an hour and a half out of Manhattan at mortal speeds. My friends with real (fast) bikes get here from the city in an hour, and from here, everything Sitnon said is true. Plus the pyschos from Albany and Max's BMW keep things interesting, if you like DualSporting. Maine and Canada and the Scotias are a days drive, also.

There's some excellent riding less than an hour from NYC in NJ- hundreds of miles. You'll be plesantly suprised. Keep an eye on the East forum at this site. Rides appropriate for both the KTM and the Aprilia ('specially if you like track days!)

Brett,
Parking is not a problem at all here in Manhattan. Bikes are stolen, but it's usually the smaller, lighter crotch rockets that can be thrown in a van by a couple of determined guys. I've also been told by parking cops that they rarely even write bikes tickets. Don't hold me to this as I've gotten plenty of tickets, but I've gotten away with it much more often than not. At night I'll just throw a cover over my bike, and sometimes a kryptonite lock on the rear wheel. The only time I've ever heard of a problem was with my friend's GS who lives up on 157 and Broadway. It's not too bad, but it's definitely not the nicest part of town. After having a bike up there for four years always parked on the street someone tried to crack the ignition with a screwdriver or something. The biggest problem with riding a bike on te street are the cabbies or just the people that are pissed off they can do what you're doing through traffic. I have to say I have so much fun cruising the streets of the city. It's an adventure itself.

Curtis

I found it harder to ride on the garden state pkwy than NYC. People in Joisey are fucking nuts! I never had to kick so many doors in my life!

Thanks, Stagehand. If I do end up moving there, I'll be sure to try to instigate a a little east-west advrider action My KTM950 will be even more ridiculous in NYC than it is in SF, but I think it will be a good excuse to motard-up a 450EXC for shorter city jaunts.

I'm guessing I'll have to find a garage in brooklyn, or somewhere else close, to store my bikes + work on them. Is that a lot harder there, even 30min from Manhattan? While I've lived in NYC before, I didn't have bikes at the time so I never really thought about it.

brett

Good idea. I was out today on mine. 67 degrees here in the NY Metro area. Some very nice roads out in Hunterdon County, NJ.

There are two motorcycle only garages in the city - Rising Wolf (212-475-5858) and my friend Peter (212-674-5362). They both have waiting lists and you should call now if you want a space. Other garages will take bikes but you won't be able to work on them. Finding your own garage in Manhattan is a myth - don't bother. Finding one in Brooklyn is far harder than finding an apartment but with a few guys you can find something. Jersey is much better but can be a hassle to commute.

We have had spaces in all of them and now are in Jersey. Every couple of years gentrification punts us out but it's nice for the time being. Don't leave a nice bike overnight on the street - especially uncovered.

Feel free to email me with questions. Oh, and your 950 will be right at home - mine loves the city.

Gregor

Thanks Gregor, that's extremely helpful. I'll give them both a call soon, and i'm glad i'll see at least one 950 roaming the streets

b

head north to CT, great riding all over here once you get past New Haven. 10 min. for me and theres a 27000 arce state park that you can trail ride in. and lets not forget the white mountains of NH/VT thats only 6 hours or so from NYC

There NO good riding in Jersey and NY. Too many of those curve things on the hi-ways and the off-road is even worse, I mean when was the last time they grew TREES around trails. SHEESH, it's a forkin' nightmare around here.
Nope, no good riding around here.

deerslayR

Riding around the NYC is just great...short season is bitching thats all about We call 40's balmy, go figure...

All in all, I'm happy here; and wouldn't change boring seasons and horrible traffic of "freeways" in CA to East Coast, from Maine to SC at all... We have intellectual and satisfying things to do in off season too.

Where is the legal trail riding in CT? Very limited - Pachaug needs a street plate to connect a limited amount of trails (so OK for Adventure/dualsport riders), and Thomaston Dam is overcrowded and dangerous on weekends.

There is zero legal riding in CT for quads, though that is off topic to this forum.

There are many legislative battles going on even as we now speak, to get more legal riding opportunities in CT.

from my own experiences, i'd say nyc motorcycle ownership is less than ideal. if you love your bike, you can't park it outside, even with a cover (homeless people love 'em!). if you park on the sidewalk, you'll probably get tickets unless its hidden in an alley. don't be surprised if mirrors, signals are bent, removed, etc. by hooligans.
if you're bike is light, someone will try to throw it into a van.
garages are expensive and inconvenient, but necessary.

there are a lot of great trips you can take once you leave the city, but if you leave when other people finish work (mon-fri from 3pm on) expect heavy traffic. same thing on the way back in.

on the bright side: you'll be happy if you have dual sport because the roads in NYC suck so hard. not sure where my taxes are going.

Where do you think the money comes from to pay the people who give you tickets? It's what's known as a closed loop system

I don't know what all you guys are saying -not to keep your bike outside/need a garage?. I've had bikes outside in the city for years. You just have to know where to keep em. First thing you MUST do is put magnets/or velcro on the lic plate, and remove it each time you park it. Second, you must always park it on a sidewalk, preferably locked to a street light, tree guard, etctetc. Then a cover helps, with a lock on the cover. Dowco makes a great cover, make sure you get one with the heat proof shields (bmw covers SUCK). You will have to live with dog piss, but it beats picking up your bike due to some phuktard's parallel parking job.
Then here's the nxt thing - forget about what it looks like, forget cleaning it, just clean it twice a year. Anything shiny and pretty will look like shit after 2 days in manhattan, so there's no point in cleaning it.
Here's the most important thing - put the LOUDEST pipe you can get on it, if you don't I can virtually guarantee you will hit a dumbasss pedestrian, and get sideswiped by a cab once a week. This is FACT- anyone who says different, doesn't commute here everyday like me, they're a wknd warrior, and they know not the survival tactics of nyc riding. When they hear you, they MOVE, plain and simple, and you will become an expert lane splitter. The traffic here is a hundred times more caustic then SF/Cali, I've ridden both, I promise.
Actually, are you sure you want to leave SF, the riding there is about a million light years better then here, as are the roads. good luck!
See you at the ear inn on tuesdays.

i guess if you're parking in really good areas than you don't need to worry. not that i live in the boogie down bronx, but in many parts of the city you do need to worry if you're bike is at all accessible to the public.
most places i've traveled people respect a parked bike (even with unsecured luggage). in nyc people: park on top of them (usually by accident), sit on them, play on them, steal or bend parts, etc.
loud pipes in nyc - any idea how many pedestrians get hit every year by fire trucks, ambulances, and police cars in nyc??!!
the money from the parking tickets goes to pay the lawsuits the city settles with those pedestians.

hey, can i switch cities with that guy from San Fran?

ride safe guys!

I dunno, I've been parking bikes (mostly bimmers) here since the mid eighties, I've had to pick up my bike once from a parallel parker hit (so as I suggested, park it on sidewalk sans plate), and had to once tell some hot girl who was posing for her boyfriends camera to either get off my bike, or get with me (she got off the bike!). Sure, if it's really flashy and clean it might attract crackies, but that's pretty difficult if it's living outside a garage here in city.
My bike's have always had the luggage attached, and I've never once had anyone break in - I used to park everyday in Bedstuy, and other unsavory parts of crooklyn so, take it for what it's worth.
Now, as for these people who get hit by fire trucks, etc??? I've never even heard of that? Sounds like another urban myth. I've heard of cage drivers getting hit by firetrucks/cops, blowing through intersections and such, maybe a little kid or a british tourist once in a blue moon but that's to be expected in a city of 8 million. I cannot imagine a healthy/ non deaf individual who actually lives here, walking into a speeding ambulance - unless they're on a cellphone, in which case they get what's comin.

If you don't agree that loud pipes will save your ass while riding through thick city traffic, you just plain and simple DON'T ride in thick city traffic everyday as a commuter.. There's a BIG difference between commuting everyday on a packed 4 lane nyc street, and riding the BQE (which does indeed have it's own excitement), or LIE. I can't express how many times I've had a cage/truck, pedestrian, or cab lurch out in front of me as I'm splittin lanes, only to stop dead when they hear my 2brothers pipe echoing off the bldg's. There's no argument. It saves MY life everyday. And I don't give a rats ass about these legions of bmw riders who all live out in the freaking sticks, who tell me that loud pipes are obnoxious, and they love the sound of their sewing machines - great, good for them. Last I checked, sports/muscle cars, and practically every cruiser has a loud pipe, as do 18 wheelers, and everything else that creates a noise out on the street. Why should WE, be the ones to quiet down? We're already taking up less than half the space of a car, using half the fuel, making less pollution, so I think I'll take a pass on being quiet and respectable. I can do that on my couch, and my bike's not designed to be a couch

Whew, sorry, had to rant!