Boats, Bikes & Brain Damage...

Just visited my neighbor to help him get something from a high shelf. He has no left leg (hunting) and his right leg is now busted in 2 places from getting T-boned on his Sportster. Must say that the day after his hit I had some thoughts, but when I got on my ride it just felt sooooo good. Besides, if the seas haven't killed me, my wife hasn't killed me and my friends haven't gotten me killed, what chance does my little Super Glide have. Live Free or Die. Don't matter much which. One of the pleasures of passing 50 is you don't have to give a c--- since you've already outlived half the health nuts you grew up with.

Amen.
Yo, K1W1, where's the balls?
No gots, OK, no need to denigrate them who got's 'em.

Been riding/racing since I was 14, and never felt so free and alive as on me bike.

After a 35+ year hiatus, I'm back on a Triumph Bonneville and if it ended tomorrow, I'd have had the pleasure of living quite large over the past few months.

"Faster, faster, faster, until the thrill of speed overcomes the fear of death" - Hunter S. Thompson

Life without the fear and the thrill? Yer already dead, but just don't know it.

I apologize for any judgemental opinions here, but, in the long run, we're all dead anyway.

Just tell 'er to put the blame where it belongs. If it weren't for the bus and the deer .....

"Deep down I would like a T140 but want a bike I can go to the garage and get on and it goes without the need for a pile of sawdust under it and a hope it starts when I want it."


Well, fancy that. As long distance rides become more appealing, an R1200R comes closest to what's next for me.
K1W1, you'll be pleased to know that the modern Hinckley-built Triumphs don't drool oil and with the EFI, they start up quickly and with no fuss. And, by ditching the OEM pea-shooters for a set of British Customs 'Sleepers', this Bonnie sounds just like the late'60s T120s from my school days.

first bike 1969 Triumph Bonneville 650cc. Always got respect wherever she cruised.

An R1200R was my plan. Kitted out for cruising we could have it shipped over every holiday and tour the US or Oz. Because we've only got 'Asian' drivers here I decided to choose for a bit more conservative.

The Chang has been a good daily commuter. The only thing about them is that you have to sponge out the carburators after heavy rainfall.

The last few posts have been split off from the Happy B-Day thread and retitled "Bikes, Boats & Brain Damage".

I'd like to jump on this thread too. This is my 2002 Honda VTX-1800. I bought it new almost 10 years ago and have accumulated a whopping 7700 miles. I keep riding limited to short trips on back roads because YF has never made enough money for me to get health insurance. But today at 1:00 PM, that's going to change. I'm meeting with an insurance agent to submit my paperwork. Once covered, I intend to ride again...

My new(ish) ride is going to be here next week. I like a mad, arm-waveing Italian loony bike.



The Aprilia RSV1000r. Custom touches are a polished frame, underseat cans(very loud) matt black bodywork and white wheels. Very silly as I'm going to be 45 in a couple of weeks.

Suitable for a shade-tree mechanic.

Yamaha 650 road bike and 360 Enduro. Traded bikes for boats

Judy

OMG. My RT1 was a black tank with red pinstripes, 1970 I think. We'd yank the lights, load up the bikes on a trailer (buddies with a DT1 and an OSSA 250) and ride enduros at Croom, Daytona...all over. Too dammed heavy, though.

Best memories were a couple of commutes between FTL and Tallahassee--two days @ 55 mph on that tiny countershaft sprocket. Winter. 25F. Coffee stop. Pee stop. Coffee stop. Pee....you understand.

Judy, you rock!

What would a Jap dirt bike get you in the way of a boat?

Well, that was figuratively speaking, but in reality it was a 20' ski boat. And skiing on Roosevelt Lake was a great first boat ownership experience. When you see where the lake is, you can imagine how great the bike riding was too!

Judy

Geez... am I the only one here without a form of 2 wheeled transportation?

I'll side with K1W1 as far as bikes go... an R1200GS Adventure is my dream bike. Heck, any BMW GS would be nice... a used 800 would be great for my wife and I to tour on.

Loren, what year is the Triumph? Looks mid- 70's. Never saw green. Looks sharp. My '69 was burgendy, without the knee pads (or turn signals).
Current ride. '04 Super Glide. 3 owners put 3,400 miles on it in 5 years. I've got about 10k in the past year. They're not just to look at.

Ed,

Loren's Triumph is a new Hinkley built one, you can tell by the watercooling and lack of oil dripping from underneath.

Thanks Fish. Didn't look close enough. DK why it needs watercooling. A few other changes there as well. BTW, my '69 didn't leak. Now the Harleys I rode with back then were another story. Always knew when they came through.

Actually, that's an oil cooler you see ahead of the air-cooled 865 twin.

Took delivery of this brand-new T100 end of March and the clock reads ~4,000 miles.

Still getting used to her. Comfy at 80, paying very close attention at 90, briefly touched 100 for bragging rights; front end gets pretty light/too fast for this geezer.

NYCAP, your '69 T120--or, likely, it's cousin, was the hot-sh*t bike I never owned. It was very easy to walk into the dealership this Spring, point to the green one, and say "I want that one".