Posted on 02/15/2023 7:32:13 AM PST by Red Badger
**They’re like two wheeled cars...**
I had an 82 Honda cm450e. It looked like a road bike, but was nimble enough to be used on the farm (checking cattle, mending fence, etc). I was a good commuter, and would get about 56 mpg.
In most of IL corn only is tall enough to hide standing deer from view for about 3 months (mid-June to mid-Sept, where I lived for over 62 years). Then harvest hits full swing and visibility returns.
**Hmm? I didn’t know that they could build electric motors in an 1,868cc, V-twin configuration?**
Lol. No, that’s where reserve batteries are cleverly hidden. You know, like having the fuel tank valve with the reserve position? The electric motor and more batteries are hidden in the saddlebags. /s
The data does not support your assertion. You made the right decision to quit riding, but it was fear or something else. The motorcycle industry would not be a billion dollar business if all riders went down.
Yes, in city traffic, or the open road, bikes are at an enormous disadvantage. World famous aerobatic pilot Leo Loudenslager didn’t die from overstressing the structures of his plane. He died in a Nashville hospital in 97, after a car crossed the centerline on a two lane highway, while he was on his motorcycle.
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And the reason I prefaced my comments with this;
>>Not entirely true, as some get lucky and some have enough skills and luck to avoid going under the wheels.<<
** My wife sent 3 of her officers to drive a herd east away from I-15 so they wouldn’t get hit on the 80 MPH segments they were approaching.**
That’s one thing that never bothered me when trucking. I hit 5 deer in my career OTR (couldn’t begin to count the near-misses), but was never at risk of getting injured.
I'll be in Idaho this June/July riding between Going-to-the-Sun road and the Grand Canyon.
I've got a lot of stops planned before those and afterwards as well. Gonna go see the Western US--minus CA.
Swiss-Built Harley-Davidson Road Glide...................is full of holes................
That’s why I’ve always had a liken for the older Triumph, T-120 Bonneville etc...Set up right they look and sound like a motorcycle should. Not too small, not too big. Btw, the last Harley I had was a 1941 80” ULH flathead side valve. Nickname stump puller...Neat bike when I wasn’t working on it. At freeway speeds it was barely turning over.
I sold the Harley because the wife was finished riding with me. So I bought an airplane and got my pilots certificate. 500 hours plus later I’m still flying, now in an air cooled 4 cylinder craft that cruises at 200mph. Not fear that stopped me from riding. Good news when flying is no idiot is going to turn in front of me.
I love Indian Bikes and we always stop at the Indian dealerships in Pensacola and Panama City Beach. Both of which are either across the street or down the street from the HD Dealers...............
But they are a bit ‘pricey’ for me. I have a Ferrari mind but a Chevy wallet...................
**Neat bike when I wasn’t working on it.**
My late cousin had a 57 or 58 hardtail HD with leather fringe saddlebags, back around 79. He hated it leaking oil everywhere. He took it apart in the mid 80s, reassembled it in his living room (never married), minus the oil. He said his back couldn’t stand riding it anymore.
He died 2 1/2 years ago from a spill, while riding a vespa knockoff, on a county road only a couple miles from his house (helmet would have saved him). People at a county park he was driving by heard the crash but saw no other traffic. They suspect he tried to miss a deer, which were known to frequent the park.
Well, I hope the values of ICE Harleys go up. Right now I’m thinking of selling the Sportster, because I’m not getting any younger and there are more insane drivers on the streets every day. Trouble is, there are lots of other old codgers selling their bikes too.
I couldn’t stand it anymore. I went out and got the Pan America Special GI Enthusiast Edition. Its sitting at The House waiting for the weather to break. Wife was pissed!
I’d say that goes for the people that start riding on their retirement more than anything else. If you ride like a sane person for decades, you’ll probably be OK. Such as myself.
I ride like people can’t see me, or may be out to get me.
I like it!
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