I got to ride a Harley today...

[Edwin]

LOL!

I passed by our competitors shop on it, and they nearly shit themselves. Everyone knows me as a "Japan" bike rider, so when they saw me on the Harley, it freaked them out.

I had fun. The bike was a customized soft tail. Them open pipes are LOUD.

It was the most fun I have had going straight in a long time. Do I want one? HELL NO....but they are fun to ride.

[horkn]

i just dont get them. i live in HD city. but i dont think i ever would want one. maybe a victory vegas, but no HD.

[Edwin]

I'd probably crash it if I got one. LOL!

I can't see spending so much on them like the guys do here. I asked my friend how much he paid for his Jesse James exhaust pipes (which by the way are just hollow pipes with a "slash" cut on the end.) and he told me $1000.00...A GRAND?!?! At least an Akropovic for my bike comes with mufflers! LOL! Geez...

Can you imagine if one of us spent $30K on one of our TL's? Geez...I'd imagine it would be hard to find stuff for the TL that would add up to that much.

Even with full Carbon Fiber bodywork, Ohlin's everything, Carbon Fiber rims, totally reworked (streetable) engine and every bolt on accessory available it would be hard to spend that much.

[bobpeckham]

At the price of a harley could you imagine how much it would cost to make perform like a stock TLR. I dont think you could buy a stealth bomber with the cost of the upgrades.


I respect the harley as an american Icon but I cannot see how people will blindly drop the cash for an outdated piece of machinery.

[Jimmy_uk_tlr]

I have never ridden a Harley,- the only bikes i have ever riden are sport bikes - but i have nothing against Harleys and Cruisers.

It is a completely different thing. We ride sportbikes because of the thrill of thrashing round bends hanging off the bike etc, the crazy acceleration, and the pure adrenalin rush that it gives.

People ride cruisers for a completely different reason - it is all about the look, the sound and being seen etc....just relaxing on a sunny day with your shades and pisspot helmet, with the wind wafting up your t-shirt.

I think sportbike riders give cruiser riders too much of a hardtime.....hey, at least they still only have two wheels!!

Just my opinion

[Edwin]

I hear you Jimmy.

There is another side to this though. The Harley riders here have an attitude problem when it comes down to Sport riders. They think they are better than we are. Part of this delusion comes from the money they dump into their rides.

I have always ridden Sportbikes. I have never owned a Harley, and can count on one hand the amount of times I have ridden n a cruiser type of motorcycle. People here know this. I get remarks like:

"So when are you going to step up and get a Harley?"

"Business looks like it's going well. Maybe you'll be able to get a Harley soon".

"Haven't you outgrown that crotch rocket yet?"

These Harley riders speak of the prestige of Harley ownership, and talk about "American Craftmanship" whenever talking shop with me. Harley riders here are notorious for NOT waving at anyone with a Sportbike as if it was some kind of crime. They act like I don't deserve to be waved at.

Screw them.

I had fun today on the Hog. This bike is owned by one of the very few open minded Harley owners here. But sadly, his kind are a rare find here.

I don't have anything against Harleys or cruisers. I do however have a problem with some of their owners who think they are above waving at a fellow motorcyclist because he or she isn't riding on an overpriced over weight bike like theirs.

I quietly laugh under my breath at the whole lot of them when I over hear them talking of "high performance" Cam shafts and fitting on the biggest Webber sidedraft carbuerator they can get their hands on. My point? Why even bother. If you want to go fast, get a sportbike.

[EvilTwin v2]

It's gotten alot better around here as far as the HD rider vs the Jap rider goes. Now it seems like most people wave regardless of sportbike or cruiser. The only exception are the couple gangs that float around (Barbarians and Banditos...small time thugs), and then the sportbike punk kids that think they're too cool to wave at a cruiser (not too many of them either, though).

I ride a cuiser, too. And though it's great fun to throw the wife on the back, and cuise the back roads, enjoy the scenery, etc, I'm not really into riding it much when I'm by myself. For some reason it feels like the front is ready to wash on me in most turns... a bit unnerving.

Or am I just pushing it too hard?

That's why most times I go out for solo riding, I look at both bikes sitting in the garage, and I jump on the TL.

[bx-459]

Just put the wife on the back of the TL and the problem is solved!...

[EvilTwin v2]

Originally posted by bx-459
Just put the wife on the back of the TL and the problem is solved!...

No thank you! She's not comfortable on the back of it, and it's noticeable. Besides, I don't like the handling when riding 2-up on sportbikes. Hell the cruiser handles the same regardless of how much weight you throw on it.

The TL is my world, and I'm not letting her into it.

[Crusher]

Well, being a former Harley owner, I'll throw in my 2 cents.....

Most of them are great bikes, overpriced? Definately, but keep in mind that people are paying what the market will bear. Don't hate on Harley for being expensive. Would I buy another one? You bet, if the price was right. Would I buy a brand new one for 20K? Nope! Would I buy a used one for 20K? Nope! Would I ever buy a Sportster? Nope!

I plan on touring in a few years, will I do that on the TLR? Nope! A cruiser with saddlebags will be needed. Will it be a Harley? Maybe. In the meantime, I will research.

[dsly1]

IF i wanted a Truck..... I'd buy a truck...... nuf said about HD...

[freakinheat]

Ego is the part of Harley owners that I hate. They act as though there dating a supermodel. I think the funniest is when they get the gas tank airbrushed. It reminds me of those airbrushed license plates. Now thats white trash.

[HandJuice]

The only HD I would consider "owning" is the V-Rod. (Their copy of a Japan cruiser) But at that point I would get the more affordable, white trash crasher V-Max. (Then I would have to grow a mullet) To be serious, I would consider a BMW as a cruiser. They have not forgotten the most important factor on a "cruiser" motorcycle: SUSPENSION Maybe somthing like this.
But who needs a "cruiser" when we have Sport Touring bikes to choose from?

[KBOlsen]

Most of you already know that I'm a fairly recent "convert" to the sportbike world. I like to tell my Harley-riding friends that "Yeah, after all these years I figured I was ready for some REAL power and performance". I still have my Harleys and will most likely always have them. For 800-mile days there is nothing like my Electra Glide. It serves a purpose (I can carry a week's worth of groceries in the tour pak). (Admittedly, I have yet to determine what purpose my V-Rod serves - other than to be a source of constant aggravation to my boyfriend - but it sure does look cool).

I didn't have a problem with Harley people until the bike became a "fashion accessory" for every Yuppie with a mid-life crisis. Listening to these "wanna-be's" drone on endlessly about their bolt-on this and chrome that ("I spent $$$$$$$$ thousand and it makes nearly 90 horsepower!!"), while never actually RIDING anywhere ("Omigosh - what if it RAINS?") was making me nuts. Guys would spend an entire Saturday hanging out at the local Harley dealership, showing off their latest trinkets, trying to outspend their buddies. I became very jaded with HOG and the whole "lifestyle package" that HD Marketing has successfully jammed down the collective throat. When I first started riding, I didn't do it because it was "popular" or "cool" - I rode my motorcycle because I loved to ride. Not because I wanted to play dress-up in black leather and chaps and be a "bad-ass chick". I'd wave to whomever - was nice if they waved back but never got my panties in a bunch if they didn't.

The other reason I drifted away from the H-D crowd was the alcohol-centric riding most of my peers were doing. Guess I finally outgrew the whole scene.

I figure there are a certain percentage of idiots who ride motorcycles, period. They are evenly distributed among the cruiser crowd, the sportbike crowd and the touring crowd. Unfortunately, as with so many things, the 'lunatic fringe' is oftentimes the most visible - which ultimately hurts all of us.

Rant off... I'm done rambling now. Time to for me to shut up and RIDE!

Well, I will... just as soon as Friday gets here. Sorry if I'm being overly negative.

[Jokertlr]

I rode a Harley once . In its defense it was only a sportster . The whole sportster thing confuses me because when they run the motors in regular harley's everyone says they are crap but when they are in buells everyone .

There are several things that would stop me from buying one. The first is the price and I doubt I need to explain myself there. The second is the look of the bike. I think they look like shit. The Vrod is ok but otherwise they just don't do it for me. I don't like the looks of Japanese cruisers either and it upsets me that they chose to copy the ugliness of Harleys. Another reason deals with the attitude of the riders. I want to make sure I do say that for every five assholes there are drunk on a Harley, there is at least one guy like Crusher who is cool. Its the five to his one that really piss me off though. I don't let it bother me because in the long run they are getting screwed over not me. I always felt that if I rode around on a harley all day long, took a big shit in a box and marked it as a Genuine Harley accessory that people would line up to buy it. But of course thats just my humble opionion.