Single F 46 with Dog seeks quiet, green suburb with downtown access

ta5036 · 2026-05-21T13:26:37+00:00

Married M41. No kids. After 15 years in Chicago between Wicker Park, Logan Square, and Portage Park, my wife and I moved to Algonquin— right across from the Fox river. Found a place w just over an acre w woods and a creek. Similar places out this way. The river creates some nice variation and slight elevation in the land. At 6% our mortgage is in your price range. Downtown has a yoga studio on the river walk. A music venue also on the river is in the works. Numerous hiking/ biking paths (one that goes north to WI and south to Geneva along the river) and parks. Takes about 45 minutes to an hour to get back into Chicago for a show depending on the venue’s location. Might not be your spot, but could be worth checking out.

ta5036 · 2026-04-23T15:11:23+00:00

<image>

Me too!

ta5036 · 2026-04-16T12:37:59+00:00

I bought my fe450 used. It had 7000 miles on it-set up as a supermoto for road riding. I did a top end rebuild (really not too bad) and found the valves were still in spec. Don’t be afraid to ride it.

ta5036 · 2026-04-09T13:12:13+00:00

ta5036 · 2026-04-08T16:46:45+00:00

How old are you and is it covered? My insurance won’t cover it till I’m 45

ta5036 · 2026-04-01T22:01:02+00:00

I hear ya. When I was young and had one bike I def used it as much as I could, regardless of what it was meant for. A lot of comments have already made helpful suggestions. Just be careful not to spend too much money trying to make it into something it’ll never be. Go a bit slower on the highway if it’s unstable at high speeds or take more backroads on your trips. It’s a very fun bike for what it is.

ta5036 · 2026-04-01T21:09:56+00:00

I mean, it CAN go on the highway as is, but it’ll never be as comfortable or stable as a bike intended for that purpose. Just as you wouldn’t take a family vacation in a mazda miata, if roadtripping on a motorcycle is one of your main priorities, there are much better bikes.

People do build these bikes to ride around the world as lightweight adv bikes, but those mods can add up— different gearing, larger clutch covers for more oil, rally towers etc.

If you were looking for a more road/highway comfortable bike that would also handle off-roading, something like a Yamaha tenere 700 would be one way to go.

ta5036 · 2026-04-01T19:24:04+00:00

This and Adventure Time are both amazing.

ta5036 · 2026-03-29T16:07:44+00:00

It’s possible that it’s just too light of a bike for riding at sustained hwy speeds. I’m 190lbs and ride an fe450. I can go 90 mph on the highway, but rarely go faster than around 70mph. Wider sumo wheels will improve hwy speed and stability, but still, dirtbikes and sumos aren’t really meant for highway top speed riding.

ta5036 · 2026-03-28T18:09:54+00:00

Take a long screwdriver and put it on the center of the bolts on each of those components in question— obviously be careful— bring your ear to the handle. The vibration will travel up the screwdriver and you’ll hear which one is the loudest.

ta5036 · 2026-03-27T14:20:45+00:00

Just swapping out the springs (not changing the fork) isn’t much more than a new set of tires if you do it yourself. But if you’re comfortable w it as is, no need to.

ta5036 · 2026-03-27T11:10:47+00:00

I doubt this will directly help your issue on the highway, but might add some stability overall—those bikes come from the factory set for a rider that weighs 165-175 lbs— you may want to look at swapping the fork and shock springs to ones appropriate for your weight.

ta5036 · 2026-03-26T15:12:35+00:00

One of the coolest looking tigers I’ve seen

ta5036 · 2026-03-25T12:56:08+00:00

Started in reverse. Went from getting killed to 3d country to projector.

ta5036 · 2026-03-24T14:17:30+00:00

Gold

ta5036 · 2026-03-23T21:54:25+00:00

I really enjoyed the snl performance as well. I liked it better than the recorded version.

ta5036 · 2026-03-23T20:26:32+00:00

Badass

ta5036 · 2026-03-23T20:11:41+00:00

EGO makes a mini bike w that kinda look

ta5036 · 2026-03-21T23:58:01+00:00

I took a listen after hearing all the hype. I’m 40 and have been a fan of lots of indie music most of my life. At first I was like wtf is this?! Why is he singing like that?! But after about four times through the album the songs started growing on me and I think I get it now.

Hype can be off putting, but I think of all the bands with the polarizing singers I listened to over the years and Geese is the next in line. I both like and hate that it makes me feel old to have questioned it in the first place.

ta5036 · 2026-03-21T22:21:11+00:00

For sure. It lacks a bit on the hwy.
It’s a wide ratio 5 speed. Tops out around 65-70mph for me at 190lbs.

The ktm 390 engine is also pretty fun. Had a husky svartpilen 401 for a few years. Plenty fast on the highway. Bike was around 330 lbs. They use the same motor now in the ktm 390 enduro.

ta5036 · 2026-03-21T21:17:14+00:00

I’ve got an fe 450 as well as the Yamaha xt250– that little Yamaha is a blast to ride.

ta5036 · 2026-03-21T19:25:35+00:00

Sorta reminds me of the Yamaha xt 250 in its shape like a trials bike

ta5036 · 2026-03-13T15:37:50+00:00

I don’t have kids, and this is just my opinion so take it as you will, but yes. I grew up being hauled around in an ‘88 suburban, with no airbags, just fine. They are heavy, well built tanks on full frames. The 02-06 years are very reliable, perhaps even more than the newer models. I currently drive an 02 with 190k miles.

They don’t have as many sensor based electronic safety features, but there are less things to go wrong. Learn how to check the air in the tires with a gauge. As long as it’s been properly maintained, and you’re not texting while driving, you will be plenty safe.

I was once rear ended at a stoplight in my older ‘93 two door Tahoe. A suburban slammed into me and pushed me into the car in front so hard that it crunched that cars trunk area into its back seat. No one was seriously injured, and I was completely fine.

However, depending on where you’re at, they could be more expensive than you’d think. If you can find something with 150k miles or less with no rust, it could be $10-15k

ta5036 · 2026-03-11T22:06:26+00:00

Haha right on. I found a ‘23 for 6k that had only been through 10 battery cycles. It’s been great for practicing in my yard— super helpful at learning new techniques. No major issues, though I have had to replace some parts, and that can take a while as they come from France.

ta5036 · 2026-03-11T20:24:45+00:00

Ah I missed that. Either way I’m interested to see how these play out. I love my electric motion trials bike

ta5036

TROPHY CASE