Racer Bike

theman

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Aug 25, 2008
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Where can I buy a bike (racer) in the Perto Plata area? Or is it better to go in SD to buy it? What I'm looking for is not a scooter, but a racer.
 

Mr. Lu

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Mar 26, 2007
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...

Where can I buy a bike (racer) in the Perto Plata area? Or is it better to go in SD to buy it? What I'm looking for is not a scooter, but a racer.

Are you looking for something like an R1, CBR, Zook, something like that? They are real popular here. But very dangerous. I bet you can get one in SD or even Santiago, for less than US$10,000, depends on make/model. But before you buy anything be careful. A lot of those bikes are chopped up and re assemble here.

The vins and numbers scrapped and the parts are different. That's a danger when riding at high speeds. Even "reputable" places buy and sell chopped bikes. It's easier to get those through customs since they are chopped, but mind you a lot of those are stolen in the US. The papers are also fake here. So I suggest you do your homework before you hop on one here.

By the way the most common racer you will get here is the CBR, R6, R1 etc. A few Suzuki and Kawasaki. Rarely will you get any high end like Duke 996. I've only seen two Dukes here, a 748 and a 916. Never seen a Hayabusa here.




Mr. Lu
 

leehall

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Oct 24, 2006
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There's a nice looking R1 for sale at the Coastal petrol station between Cabarete & Sosua. I haven't had a close enough look to tell the condition.
 

cobraboy

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Jul 24, 2004
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One real game in town: Moto Butler. Call and ask for George Butler: 809-688-3049 or 809-221-8469.

Moto Butler Is Number One !

I've got 12 V-Stroms up here in Jarabacoa if you wanna come up and carve some of the mountain roads for a day: MotoCaribe

BTW and FWIW, unless you're wanting to ride on a track, a sportbike has a short lifespan in the DR. We've got over 12,000 miles riding all over the DR and can speak from authority. There are better, equally as fun options.
 

socuban

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Nov 24, 2002
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I was going to ship my M109R over there

but from what I hear and read, it's not the best bike to be cruising around the DR in.

Searching for a street/off road combo now.

IMG_0574.jpg
 

cobraboy

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but from what I hear and read, it's not the best bike to be cruising around the DR in.

Searching for a street/off road combo now.

IMG_0574.jpg
Noice bike, and you're correct. I'd have brought my VTX1800C here, but it is definitely the wrong tool for the job.

Consider dual sport bikes like the V-Strom 650, Versys, or Transalp (which are the new AMET/PN bikes. Right combo of street and off road, with plenty of power. If you don't get away from home much, think about a Motard.

But whatever you do, gear up.

We have 12 V-Stroms, come check them out.
 

Chip

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Jul 25, 2007
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Do yourself and your future prodigy a favor and don't get a dizque "racer bike".

The young guys who ride them here in the DR are dropping them and killing themselves left and right. The only one's who halfway know how to ride them are the older riders who know the potential of these bikes.

It doesn't take much to drop a bike at high speeds, a little bump or hole in the road, a little sand or gravel or some car pulling into traffic w/o looking or locking up the front brake (been there done that).
 

cobraboy

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Chip provides the correct advice on crotch rockets, especially on the poor roads here in the DR. Young people are "invincible" and will do as they please. I call it genetic engineering.
I call them "organ donors".

And Chip is 100% correct...AND I might add he was the first person to suggest the Suzuki V-Strom 650 (aka Dl650) as the bike MotoCaribe consider for our fleet. And he was 100% correct. Dual Sport bikes, a sportbike/offroad bike hybrid that are gaining huge market acceptance, are the perfect bike for the road and weather conditions in the DR.

A cruiser will get you beaten to death and you'll be bottoming that sucker out all the time. A sport bike will put you down due to the poor roads and potholes. A dirt bike is at home on dirt, but tires and gearing aren't meant for the paved roads.

Dual Sport bikes are taller, have greater and more forgiving suspension play, are geared and cammed for a lower usable powerband, have hybrid street/dirt tires, and have more straight-up ergos. They are NOT short in power, however. Our 650's have 66hp, and it's all there above 3500rpm's. They will go 220kmh, so cruising the autopista at 60-65 is a piece of cake.

I will forever appreciate Chip's suggestion of bikes. I wasn't aware much of that class of bikes, and when I first saw them I thought they looked kinda funny. But function over form prevailed, and I'm now a total convert to Dual Sprot riding, especially in the DR.
 

cobraboy

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One comment about motorcycles in the DR: you will be able to get ~some~ liability insurance, but you will not be able to get theft/collision insurance. We did, but it was expensive, and we had to meet some tough criteria about security and how the bikes will be used (always physically secured together or under a guards' eye when not in use, and only riden in a group lead by an experienced rider/employee).

It's best to have something unique, because there would not be much of a market for parts or use. We have 12 of 14 V-Stroms on the island. If one is gone, it'll stick out like a sore thumb.
 

socuban

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Nov 24, 2002
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Noice bike, and you're correct. I'd have brought my VTX1800C here, but it is definitely the wrong tool for the job.

Consider dual sport bikes like the V-Strom 650, Versys, or Transalp (which are the new AMET/PN bikes. Right combo of street and off road, with plenty of power. If you don't get away from home much, think about a Motard.

But whatever you do, gear up.

We have 12 V-Stroms, come check them out.

Thanks for the great advice. I'd love to see the island on bike instead of the "cage".