Motorcycle Groups in the San Francisco Bay Area

Posted on February 6, 2012 by Dave

With the beautiful weather we are having in the San Francisco Bay Area, motorcycle riding season has begun. If you’re looking for a partner to ride with or an entire group of people to hit the road with, there are two great motorcycle clubs that you should check out.

The first is the Gold Wing Road Riders Association (GWRRA) Delta chapter. The majority of the group owns either a standard Honda Gold wing or a Gold wing trike.  They have chapter meetings the 2nd Saturday of each month at Hometown Buffet in Concord. During the riding season they go on at least one ride per month with some overnight rides during the year. They are always looking for new Gold Wing riders so feel free to contact them if you own a Wing or trike.

Another great group is the Star Touring and Riding Association (Contra Costa Chapter).  The members of this active group have all different kinds of motorcycles (Yamaha, Honda, Suzuki, Kawasaki, Victory, etc).  While the group is sponsored by Yamaha, and many members own Yamaha’s, it is not required that you own a Yamaha. The group meets the 3rd Wednesday of each month at Fudruckers in Concord. They have several rides throughout the riding season in addition to a standing ride the 2nd Saturday of each month. The chapter is sponsoring a cool mileage contest this year that just started. Some people refer to it as an “Iron Butt” contest. Basically each member of the chapter tracks their mileage throught the year on STAR rides and there are several prizes based on high mileage, low mileage, etc at the end of the year. It sounds like a totally fun contest and those interested are encouraged to contact the chapter.

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Increasing the life of your motorcycle battery

Posted on January 29, 2012 by Dave

Picture this scenario: It’s saturday morning and you flip on the morning news. Today’s forecast, sunny and mild with a high of 75 degrees. You finish up breakfast, put on your riding gear and head out to the garage to hop on your motorcycle and carve the canyons. You insert the key, turn it to on, pull in the clutch, push the electric start and then you hear it….. the dreaded click-click-click. You have a dead battery.

The frustrating part is that this can be avoided with some basic maintenance on your battery.

Motorcycle batteries are much smaller than car batteries in order to minimize their weight. While you are riding your motorcycle, the battery is being charged by the bikes charging system. The problem comes when you let your bike sit for a while. Due to their natural drain, motorcycle batteries can lose up to 1% of their life per day when not used/recharged.

The easy way to eliminate this problem is with a battery charger such as the “Battery Tender”. The Battery tender has two cables, one that plugs into an electrical socket and the other that attaches to the terminals of your battery. When plugged in, the Battery tender will apply a small current to your battery based upon how much charge it has remaining.  Once it becaomes fully charged, the tender switches modes and dleivers less current to maintan the battery at full charge.   This one accessory can allow your battery to last for up to five or more years.

The Battery Tender can be purchase at Contra Costa Powersports or any other store that carries powersports accessories. There are several different models of the Battery Tender available starting at $39.95.

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Honda Dirt Bikes on Sale

Posted on December 11, 2011 by Dave

Just in time for Christmas, Honda has brought back their famous Bonus Bucks on all off road (dirt bike) mototrycles.  Whether its the CRF50, CRF70 or CRF80 whch are meant for the young riders, the CRF100 or CRF150 for the older kids or the CRF230 which is for the adult rider, they have Bonus Bucks ranging from $100 to $300.

The Bonus Bucks can be used for riding gear, exhaust systems, helmets, golves or anything else in the store. They can also be used to extend the factory warranty or as a down payment toewards the price of the motorcycle. The Bonus Bucks are good thru December 31, 2011.  Contra Costa Powersports stocks the comnplete line of Honda off road motorcyles and dirt bikes.

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International Motorcycle Show – San Francisco

Posted on November 13, 2011 by Dave

The International Motorcycle Show is back again in the bay area next weekend Nov 18th-20th.  Once again it will be held at the San Mateo fairgrounds. All the major manufacturers such as Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha, etc will be there to show off their new 2012 models.

Test drives are usually offered depending on the weather. If you’re thinking of getting a new bike or just want to see what is out there, this is a great way to do it. Make sure to check out the newest edition to Honda’s sport bikes, the 2012 CBR250r.  You won’t be disappointed.

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Helmet Cameras take HD videos

Posted on October 27, 2011 by Dave

Technology has reached the video camera world when it comes to motorcycle riding and racing in the form of the GoPro hero camera.


 

The camera is very compact weighing in at just over 3 ounces and measuring 1.6” x 2.4” x 1.2”. The HD version sells for $299 and can hold up to 2.5 hours of video on a single charge and up to 9.0 hours with an optional 32 GB SD card. If you don’t need HD, the basic GoPro Hero sells for $179.  It can shoot the same amount of video as the HD model, just at a lower quality. If you’re not sure what to get that special someone for Christmas, this may be just the ticket.

The GoPro camera is available at Contra Costa Powersports and other motorcycle dealers.

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2012 Suzuki RMZ250 and RMZ450

Posted on October 17, 2011 by Dave

The new supercross bikes from Suzuki have been released and are ready for viewing at Contra Costa Powersports.  They have made some nice improvements from the 2011 which are talked about in the following press relaease video.

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International Motorcycle Show

Posted on October 10, 2011 by Dave

The 2011 International Motorcycle Show will be making it’s bay area appearance in just over a month. The event will once again be held at the San Mateo Convention Center November 18-20.

This is a great place to check out the new Japanese models or take a second look at an existing bike you’re interested in.  discount admission tickets will be available at Contra Costa Powersports.

Have fun !!

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Chinese Scooters – Beware of Japanese imitators

Posted on September 12, 2011 by Dave

Over the last 6 or 7 years, there have been literally hundreds of chinese, taiwanese and other asian country brands flooding the US market with inferior scooters and other powersport products. These scooters can sell for up to 50% of the japanese competitor but there is a reason. They typically use inferior metals and other components which allow them to be manufactured at a lower price and thus sold at a lower price.

We have investigated several of these brands and have decided that we cannot, in good faith, sell them to our customers.  These inferior products are typically sold over the internet, out of someones garage or from a retail business that also sells other products. There is a lot of information on the internet regarding problems with Chinese scooters such as this one from a Dealer in Cleveland.

Unfortunately we have had several of these scooters show up at our service department in need or repair, some being only 30 or 60 days old.  Consumers are being told by these companys that they are just like Honda’s or that Honda replacement parts can be used. This is not correct.

The profit on these off-brand scooters is substantially more than we make on the Japanese couter parts so if they were a good product, we would definitely be selling them.  We just don’t feel they are a good deal for our customers.

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Honda Motorcycle Racers on your Computer

Posted on August 29, 2011 by Dave

For those who can’t get to the racetrack but want to bring the racetrack to your computer, Honda has free Wallpapers of the current race team that you can download and save to the desktop on your computer. Check it out and have fun !!

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Motorcycle Helmet – How to choose the right one

Posted on July 30, 2011 by Dave

You may not realize it but the purchase of a motorcycle helmet may be one of the most important decisions you make when it comes to riding a motorcycle.  When it comes to motorcycle helmets, as the old saying goes, YOU GET WHAY YOU PAY FOR.

HJC CL-16 Rubbertone

If you go into a well stocked dealer such as Contra Costa Powersports, you will see a wide assortment of helmets. These helmets will typically range in price from $69 to over $600 and often times higher.

At the low end of the price spectrum, you will have polycarbonate (better known) as plastic helmets. These will be DOT approved so you are legal but thats about it.  Some of these brands include Fulmer, AFX, Helmet City and many more.  These are typically heavier than most helmets, have little or no venting and will have less choices when it comes to color and/or patterns.

In the middle of the pack, you start moving up to more well known brands such as HJC, Icon, Scorpion and more.  These helmets will have more/better venting, a combination of polycarbonate and epoxy resin for the shell and typically a face shield that is easier to remove.  Several color options will be available along with an assortment of graphics to match your riding gear and motorcycle. Helmets in this segment range in price from around $160 to $250.

Shoei RF-1100 Conqueror

The last segment of helmets is what we call the premium helmets.  This type of helmet is worn by every member of our staff and will be safest on the market. With the premium helmets you get superior venting, one hand simple switch out of the face shield, removable liners, cool graphics and the lightest helmets on the market. Brands in this class include Shoei and Arai. We feel Shoei is a better helmet which is why we carry it in our store. To see first hand all that goes into the making of a Shoei Helmet check out this video on the Shoei RF1100. Shoei helmets range in price from $300 to over $600.  This may seem like a lot for a helmet but if you ever get in an accident, you’ll thank god that you were wearing a good strong helmet.  If you have any questions about helmet choices, feel free to contact one of our Helmet experts at Contra Costa Powersports.

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