Review of the Indian FTR1200S “Lean it like you mean it!” March 12, 2021
Posted by Chris Mark in Uncategorized.Tags: Buell, Flat Track Racer, FTR1200, Indian, motorcycle review
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I like motorcycles and I like riding fast. I have had numerous bikes and wrote a review in 2017 about my previous bike…a 2015 FZ09. Prior to that I had an XBS9R and have had Harleys and other bikes.
I attended the 2020 Sturgis Rally and Indian had a huge presence. I had a chance to see the new Indian bikes up close. WOW! Big change from the classic “Full dress” bikes. Everyone has their own style of riding. I have never been a fan of full dressers and baggers. I can appreciate the aesthetics but just not my style. I like acceleration, “leaning hard” and maybe pulling some wheelies.
After riding for 35 years (got my Motorcycle license at 15) I have learned what I like. I like V Twins…the rumble…the mid range…the torque is awesome! Love the feel when you roll on the throttle. I also like well handling bikes. I have had sport bikes. I am too old now to get down into a full tuck and have all my weight on my hands.
For those new to the FRT…it means “Flat Track Racer” and is based off of the Inidan FTR750 flat track race bike which has DOMINATED Flat Track Racing since entering in 2017..Indian Motorcycles (the First American motorcycle company) competed in flat track against Harley for years. Indian went away and was renewed in 2001..since 2017 Indians has dominated Flat track racing against the venerable Harley Davidson XR-750. Indian has 50 wins in 3 years…
Indian created the FTR1200 after the FTR750 (flat track racing is limited to 750cc). The Street version has a 1203cc, double overhead cams (DOHC), 4 valve per cylinder, liquid cooled engine. It redlines at 9000 RPM with an amazing torque curve! Pushing 12.5/1 compression that 1203 twin puts out about 123 horsepower and about 90flft of torque…stock! Plenty to raise the front end with the twist of the throttle! Power is routed through a 6 speed gear box and a final chain drive. This is a deviation from the standard belt drives common on American bikes. In addition, the bike has a slipper clutch.
The bike weighs about 497lbs dry and about 518 wet. It is not a short bike and has a seat height of 33 inches. Considering I have an inseam of about 31 inches…I am on my toes on this bike 😉 It has wide bars like a typical dirt tracker or motocross bike. It is stopped by 4 piston Brembo brakes on dual 320mm disks.
About the nannies…first the bike is electronically limited to 130MPH. I have tested this a few times and it is indeed limited! It also sports (the S version)…It allows the rider to choose between 3 Ride Modes (Sport, Standard Rain). It includes Lean Angle Sensitive ABS, Stability, Traction and Wheelie Mitigation Control, USB Fast-Charge Port, ABS, Cruise Control. Yes..the bike has cruise control! You can also hook your blue tooth devices such as a Pactalk pro intercom system, and a phone to the bike to control the media and phone functions.
After putting a couple thousand miles on the bike I have some feelings. First, the motor is awesome! That v-twin has tons of torque and amazing power. It pulls wheelies on command! It is a different style of riding than a sport bike. The wide bars give you a lot of confidence but the bike has a claimed lean angle of 43 degrees. It has a wheel base of 60 inches so is not going to carve any canyons with supersports but it is very stable and does carve pretty damn well.
When traction control is disabled, the FTR1200S will do roll on wheelies on command through 3rd gear. It has been tested to 11.77 seconds in the quarter mile at 115mph.
While all of these numbers seem cool, it does not begin to talk about how fun the damn bike is! It handles amazingly well and is very stable. The riding style is a bit different with the motocross bars and more upright position of a dirt track racer but I have come to really like the riding style. I have taken it off road a few times and it is indeed an offroad bike although I would not suggest hitting your local motocross tracks on it!
I would equate this bike to a Pony Car like a Mustange or Muscle Car like a Challenger. It is loud, it is fast. Can it handle? Hell yeah! Will it beat a 4 cylinder liter bike in top speed? No way. Will it carve through the canyons like a middleweight? No. That being said, I have never had a person roll down their window at a stop light and ask me about my sportbikes. I have had numerous people gush over the bike. Fire it up and it makes the ground shake and windows rattle.
Stock, I felt like the exhaust and DOHC made the bike sound like a sewing machine so my first upgrade was an S&S slip on exhaust. I was pretty happy with it but fell in love with the RaceFit Titanium exhaust! After the pipe arrived, I ordered the DynoJet PV3 with Ryan’s Secret Sauce from Indian of Charlotte! This is a new bike. It is not only much more responsive, but it is much louder! I tested the bike and it hit 122db at 6K rpm sitting in the parking lot. Do some research online and you will find that Ryan at Indian of Charlotte is THE MAN! for tuning the FTR! Unbelievable bike now! I have managed to shave about 40lbs off of the bike with upgrading exhaust and some other things.
The one thing all the stats and specs don’t tell you is how damn fun this bike is to ride! The torque is endless and it pulls HARD at all RPM. It also gets looks everywhere you go. Literally, I stop for gas and people want to talk about the bike. I have even had people pull up beside me at lights and take pics of the bike!
Complaints? The battery charging system sucks. Literally, it dies after 4 days with no riding. Indian says that you should plug it into a trickle charger. C’mon man!
Overall, I give a 9.5/10 for this bike. Get this bike! For $12K or so it is absolutely worth every cent!
Quantifying CyberRisks- Solving the Riddle (per AT&T CyberSecurity Blog) March 11, 2021
Posted by Chris Mark in Uncategorized.Tags: AT&T, Bayes, Chris Mark, cybersecurity, data breach, hacker, risk
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I recently published a new article on the AT&T CyberSecurity blog titled Quantifying CyberRisks- Solving the Riddle. Below is an excerpt. Click ‘read more’ to read the entire piece.
In the late 1990’s and early 2000’s there was a concept that was bandied about that was coined “Return on Security Investment” or ROSI. Borrowing from the common business term Return on Investment (ROI) where a return on a particular investment (capital investment, personnel, training etc.) could be quantified, the cybersecurity industry attempted to quantify a return on security investment.
Fundamentally, the primary failing of this concept is that it is mathematically impossible (approaches mathematical impossibility) to quantify an event “not occurring”. In short, if a company has “zero” security events that impact them deleteriously in a given year, was the $5 million security expenditure appropriate? Should it have been less since there was no security event that caused a loss? If the company experienced an event, was the return on the investment then the difference between the expenditure and the overall losses from the incident? It simply did not work, as it was mathematically flawed.
Fast forward to 2021 and companies once again are fixated on quantifying cyber risk and, more importantly, cybersecurity exposure. The question is similar and is asked: “Can companies accurately quantify cybersecurity risks today?”
This is a complex question but to attempt an answer it is first important to have a working definition of several terms.
Risk- is an artificial construct which can be easily expressed as the function of the likelihood of an adverse event occurring (often provided as a statistical probability) and the impact, should the event be realized (in business, and for the purposes of this article, it will be expressed in monetary terms.). In short R=fPI. Click Here to Read More!
Marine Reconnaissance Foundation’s fundraiser: MGySgt “Chunks” Padilla November 24, 2020
Posted by Chris Mark in Uncategorized.Tags: Chunks Padilla, Donation, MGySgt Padilla, Mountain View Fire, recon marine, USMC, Veteran
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Please consider donating! On November 18th, 2020 Master Gunnery Sergeant Charles “Chunks” Padilla and his family lost their home and all of their belongings in the Mountain View wild fire near the Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center at Bridgeport, California.
This is a call for all Recon teammates, supporters and family members and Americans who recognize the sacrifices people like MGySgt Padilla make to keep us safe to raise funds to support this great American and his family.
He has spent his entire adult life serving our Nation in peace and in war. He has also dedicated his retired life to supporting others, to include serving as an advisor to the Marine Reconnaissance Foundation Board of Directors.
Chunks is a brother, teammate and a significant figure in the Marine Reconnaissance Community. He is also a plank owner of Marine Corps SOCOM Detachment-1 (MCSOCOM DET-1), the origin of today’s Marine Raider community. For those that know him, you know that he would never ask for help….so the Marine Reconnaissance Foundation is doing so on his behalf. It is time to live the Recon Creed and support our brother and his family.
We have spoken to Chunks and he is aware of this effort and has given his reluctant approval for it. Please donate if financially able and share with your friends and family.
Never above you Never below you Always by your side
Holiday Shopping Safety! Debit or Credit? PIN or Pen? Check or Cash? November 18, 2020
Posted by Chris Mark in InfoSec & Privacy, Risk & Risk Management.Tags: Chris Mark, credit or debit, durban amendment, mark consulting group, PCI DSS, PIN
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With the holidays around the corner, it is a hot time for criminals to steal from us all! CyberCriminals are specifically after your money and cards. There is ongoing confusion about whether cards are better than checks are better than cash. While we all have our own opinions, I think the argument is pretty clear that payment cards are the most secure options for consumers. Read below!
For some background, I am a payment card security professional. I have worked at both MasterCard and with Visa, as well as the other card brands. I now work at a major telco overseeing the payment security program. 2020 marks the 15th consecutive year someone has stolen my card at least once (17 times in 15 years) BUT…I wasn’t worried…read below to find out why! (more…)
Yes, elections do have consequences September 28, 2020
Posted by Chris Mark in Uncategorized.add a comment
Could not have said it better..please read…
When Barack Obama took over as president in 2009, Democrats controlled both the House and the Senate.