Well it finally happened!!
Im an actual Harley owner…. Well I have owned a Harley for the entire time Ive been here in Crestone but it shad various issues with staying on the road.
Now I have a proper running, “newer than my truck” type motorcycle. Within the first 30 minutes of riding this one it eclipsed any other motorcycle Ive ever ridden.
The immediate performance I experienced, the power and smoothness was true and clean. I was impressed to say the least and was ready to ride on forever without stopping.
Prior to this motorcycle I had a 2001 Kawasaki Vulcan Drifter, which I still have, but I needed / wanted something newer. Something more “technologically advanced”. And I say that with inverted commas because before the Drifter I had /have a 1982 Harley Shovelhead.
I love the Shovelhead but I decided to let it go to make room for the newest one. A 2012 Street Glide.
As far as technological advancements go the Shovelhead was at the bottom of the ladder but at the top of its class for the year it was born. It had both electric and kick start as well as a dual belt drive.
This was top tech at the time. After that I had the Kawasaki and it had “new technology” as far as I was concerned. It has a kickstand switch which will kill the motor if you put it in gear and try to ride away with the kickstand down.
Not only that but it was liquid cooled with a radiator, shaft driven, and fuel injected.
I had added a few accentuating details to it including hard bags, colored windshield, highway bars and pegs with 18” bars.
It was set up for comfort and long distance riding, which I did often, but it was missing something. I wasn’t 100% comfortable with it.
It was constant and true. I learned a lot while riding it and overcame quite a few fears…. But there was something lacking and I couldn’t put my finger on it.
Im still riding it, although it needs quite a bit of maintenance.
The problem with having one motorcycle and enjoying the ride is that you can either wrench or ride. Not both.
I wasnt interested in “Not Riding”. So instead of replacing damaged parts, I kept riding because the damage didn’t keep me from riding. I did that Kong enough to generate a lengthy list of needed repairs.
The final straw for it all was 2 days before I picked up the Street Glide I was riding the Drifter and hit a bump too fast and it threw a spoke through the internal rubber seal and gave me a flat. I rode it home and parked it to wait for service.
In addition to the other road worthy items that needed fixes, I put it in the corner to await a lift, a wrench, and a good idea of what we’re looking for.
