Buying the Beast

We've already covered buying our Team Bi-Polar Suzuki, but here's a bit of background on the decision. Early in the process we thought about all the great motorcycles that would fit the bill—fine sportbikes ranging from the Suzuki GSX-R600 to the implacable Yamaha R1. Then we started getting some smack from the other teams, suggestions that they—against all odds, we thought—had even the slightest chance of winning. This only strengthened our resolve to find just the right bike. Read that as: Something that will kick some ass.

Another factor joined the equation: We needed to buy the vast majority of our hop-up parts on eBay, so choosing a popular, well-supported bike seemed essential. No Bimotas, in other words.

Boil it down and you inevitably come to the GSX-R1000. As an added bonus, this is a bike capable of quarter-mile times—dead stock, on standard-issue tires running street pressures—that, on paper at least, ought to vanquish anything our competing Primedia teams might stumble upon.

The pickings seem, at first, generous. There was one supposedly pristine example of an '02 GSX-R somewhere in Florida, but when we checked the VIN (vehicle identification number) against Carfax, it came up as being on a salvage title. Hmmm. So much for truth in advertising. There was another GSX-R in the northeast advertised as perfect, adult-owned; but it, too, came up as having been in a couple of accidents. Still other potentials failed the sniff test.

And we came up against two or three bald-faced scams, including one R1 up for grabs with a reserve met at about half the vehicle's value. What's more, the photos listed on eBay were clearly of two different motorcycles, neither one the actual bike claimed to be listed. We informed eBay of this, and the auction was promptly closed. Fact is there are liars and cheats everywhere in the world, but they seem to thrive on the pseudo-anonymity of the electronic landscape. When buying something as valuable as a motorcycle by what is essentially remote control, you need a mix of resourcefulness and hopeful skepticism. And do your research.

For us, we lucked out—pure and simple. An '02 GSX-R was listed for sale and it was a local bike, which gave us a chance to drive over and inspect the thing, just like a conventional sale. The seller, a recently transplanted University of Michigan grad, had brought the bike out but didn't have the time to ride it. The bike was clean, as advertised, and clearly uncrashed—the overall condition of the bike (and chain and tires, specifically) all agreed with the indicated mileage. The VIN checked. We had a deal.

PHASE TWO: Cleaning up our donor machine, and sending it to the gym and cosmetic surgeon to get it ready for the Challenge...