Wouldn’t say vBulleting is a relic. The new version really sucks though. The local forum uses vB 5.1 “connect”. Really should be called vB 5.1 BETA. Facebook did a number on forums.

Will this help get it back? Dunno. Many of the bike forums I’m on pretty much died. Cycleforums, eSportbike, Chicagolandsportbike and Madisonsportbikes pretty much dead other than a few. Wisconsinsportbikes is gone. Some I just got tired of dealing with morons (Insane Speed, Cycleworld, R1-forum). Cycleforums was unfortunately the victim of Vertical Scope panic. Now its just a couple members left and spammers constantly signing up.

FB wont last forever. Remember they said MySpace will last forever and where is it now? Forums do have their advantages over sites like FB. Easier to search for posts, you can read at your leisure, far easier to post photos and what not.

Our local newspaper implemented a new policy for using real names in the comment sections (along with having to pay to comment). Didn’t stop the nasty comments. Same with the local TV station websites. They started requiring facebook logins for the comments. Didn’t change a thing. Some people really just don’t care if you know who they are.

A different approach to moderation I don’t think would had mattered. Facebook did sign the “death warrant” on a bunch of forums, although Verticalscope did flatline a bunch after they bought them. Will forums come back? Possibly, but it would need facebook to go the way of myspace. And with the number of people I know deactivating their facebook accounts and how much facebook is ticking people off, I wouldn’t be surprised if facebook disappears in 5 yrs. Even then it doesn’t mean the resurrection of forums.

At the end of the 2024 season I retired from motorcycle road racing. 25 yrs involved with the sport. 17yrs in comp, 8 yrs safety crew/crash truck.

Couple reasons. Last 3 yrs of racing was just becoming a chore. Missed a few weekends from just not wanting.

Also the new owners of CCS/ASRA (now just ASRA) are idiots. Final straw was them announcing that 1000cc v-twins would be allowed in Thunderbike if they were rated at under 125hp by the factory. So that included the non R and SPS ducs up to the base 999. No rules prevented racers of those bikes from building the engine up to 175hp. This would affect me in Lightweight Formula 40 since one of the 2 classes rules used for LWF40 is Thunderbike. No fucking way in hell is a 900-1000cc duck (or any other 1000cc vtwin) a fucking lightweight bike. It was bad enough that 140hp 749R’s were allowed in LWF40. Had 1 show up once. He was half a lap ahead after the 1st lap. Even the great Ed Key (RIP) couldnt keep up with his famed 100hp SV650.

@murphomatic

Thats coming out of your pay.

@murphomatic said in It's been almost 20 years:

@tlfreek I’m still around too - check in from time to time.

I think social media has largely made forum sites like this obsolete … which is unfortunate. I hate social-media, and I don’t do Facebook.

Maybe someday the new-car luster will wear off of the Facebooks of the world, and people will swing back to the old forums? Hard to tell … I’ll keep running this site as long as I can. It’s ready for the return … if and when that ever happens.

FB is dying, just not fast enough. Kids left for Instagram, nowFB is for “old people”

I pop in from time to time.

@Jet Still working here. Our shop is considered essential since we make tooling for a number of medical and military suppliers. Still in southern WI.

@Jet said in So, who is still around?:

@Spyral it’s been a long long time. I miss those days myself. Good to see some names I recognize.
Me, I’ve been on a hell of a ride, I live in Colombia now where I’m building a resort, I’m partially paralyzed but not from riding, I’m actually looking to get back on after 3yrs of being off 2 wheels.
@Rob still got that Avatar I made you in the SBN days?
Hope to catch up with you guys in person some day.

Damn Jet, long time no hear. Hows things going? No idea on that avatar, the pc I used back then took a big dump. CF has a FB group for the CF OG’s called CF OGs. About 130 of us there.

FB wont last forever. Remember they said MySpace will last forever and where is it now? Forums do have their advantages over sites like FB. Easier to search for posts, you can read at your leisure, far easier to post photos and what not.

Maybe this year I’ll get my streetbike running again.

Our local newspaper implemented a new policy for using real names in the comment sections (along with having to pay to comment). Didn’t stop the nasty comments. Same with the local TV station websites. They started requiring facebook logins for the comments. Didn’t change a thing. Some people really just don’t care if you know who they are.

A different approach to moderation I don’t think would had mattered. Facebook did sign the “death warrant” on a bunch of forums, although Verticalscope did flatline a bunch after they bought them. Will forums come back? Possibly, but it would need facebook to go the way of myspace. And with the number of people I know deactivating their facebook accounts and how much facebook is ticking people off, I wouldn’t be surprised if facebook disappears in 5 yrs. Even then it doesn’t mean the resurrection of forums.

http://www.motorcyclenews.com/sport/2017/may/nicky-hayden-has-died/

Was hit by a car on his bicycle last week in Italy.