Geez fellas! I go to lunch and come back to... Well, nothing I didn't expect.
She jokes that I'll be wearing her name on my cut when she gets a bike and seems to think I'll ride bitch with her. That's cute, I outweigh her, but I'd like to see her try. As far as the cut on a "Suzzy" no but that's irrelevant. I want her to be able to ride something she can handle and not get hurt. Everything else is secondary to that. Hence the reasons I asked you guys, you're a wealth of knowledge. All knowledge. We should have a thread about it!
I might be a little out of line here Chris but we all wish our wives shared our passion for riding like we do . The truth be told they would probably prefer we bought them a battery powered device that shakes like a Harley and a two week vacation in Hawaii and go off and do whatever it is that floats our boat.
Lou I’m soooo glad I don’t live in California because I would be in PRISON for going Postal on the woke crowds of people living there.
I have had a few adult beverages, so if none of this makes any sense, “ Never Mind “
I'll ask here since I value your opinions. Tanya (like Tucker) is taking the MSF course in a few weeks. Actually, five weeks. She's had here eye on a Sportster for years and has started actively looking recently. I would prefer a 2014 to present since they have ABS. I think a V star or something might be good too, but HD are easy to find parts for and I know them well.
Seems the market isn't offering fantastic deals on anything, but we're scouring CL and FB market. Going to a dealer doesn't seem to present much benefit I can see. If I find something this afternoon I wouldn't drop the coin, not yet. Just planning but in preparation for a purchase.
I wouldn't be surprised if sportsters turned more women off motorcycling than all the others combined because they were told sportsters are starter bikes and girl bikes. Doesn't mean someone can't learn just fine on a sportster, but they're not for the kind of people that want to ride in parking lots for a few days first. I probably would have killed myself if my first time had been on a sportster, I don't think I rode five minutes before I wanted to see how fast it would go. A little over 35...
Another factor in choosing a first bike is what will it cost when it gets dropped. Can get pretty expensive on any Harley.
...My wife had a learning curve at low speeds in parking lots or coming to a stop that resulted in several mirrors and levers having to be replaced. ....
Something I've said to a few new riders was try to do stops a bit on the firm side, get a little dip on the front end. Do it too slow and easy, and end up duckwalking, not being able to reach the brake pedal, start wobbling, and do a panic grab on the front brake with the wheel a little sideways, takes you down more often than not, heavier the bike, more likely you'll drop it. A tall 550 lb sportster - you'll probably drop it. I've seen a few people do that. New riders (hell, all of us) should try to get it stopped while still in a straight line, and should be able to full stop before putting their feet down. My daughter said they didn't say that when she took the MSF course, and some of the students dropped while trying to stop.
I wouldn't be surprised if sportsters turned more women off motorcycling than all the others combined because they were told sportsters are starter bikes and girl bikes. Doesn't mean someone can't learn just fine on a sportster, but they're not for the kind of people that want to ride in parking lots for a few days first. I probably would have killed myself if my first time had been on a sportster, I don't think I rode five minutes before I wanted to see how fast it would go. A little over 35...
Another factor in choosing a first bike is what will it cost when it gets dropped. Can get pretty expensive on any Harley.
I've never considered them a starter bike or a girls bike. They're fun, I like riding them. Definitely taking this into consideration. Engine guard is probably a good idea.
Small people can ride, too. Here's my first Grandson at 7 piloting a 750 lb rig with Mom as passenger. Ok, I know, he had a training wheel...
He was supposed to idle by me for a short video and stop. I missed getting the video, he took off too fast and they disappeared into the sunset, both laughing as I yelled, stop! Come back! Just got a shot of them leaving me to worry.
She took this photo from the sidecar. He didn't try anything silly, other than taking it for an unauthorized ride...
I've never considered them a starter bike or a girls bike. They're fun, I like riding them. Definitely taking this into consideration. Engine guard is probably a good idea.
me two. The 1200’s they have now have the tank and torque to out do any of the early harleys
Engine guard is a must....even now after 50 years of riding. I love Sportsters but they are too small for me. When I was 140lbs in the 70's I rode the crap out of my Sportster. They are well designed and reliable with the exception of the AMF years. Unfortunately that is what I had and it had issues. After that though they just run and run. The 883 Hugger for $3995 took the MoCo to new horizons. You could buy one, take it back a year later and get $3995 on a trade in. By 1988 most dealerships were sold out before the new models arrived. The rest is history.
11-02-2021, 02:11 PM
