I am trying to shake it off. Riding the vtx to the Ozarks this weekend. I should be able to make up my mind by Sunday.
Is it retarded to have a dozen bikes, NO. Is it retarded to have a bunch of the same bike, same experience, YES. Make sure each bike gives you a totally different experience. You are only insane if you think you can ride all your bikes at once.
I am terminal then . Have bought 8 bikes in the last 24 months. They tell me I have MAS, Motorcycle Acquistion Syndrome, I tell them No Mas!
edit: bunch of nonsense deleted. Anyway, have fun in the Ozarks! Hopefully you'll find some clarity down there and decide.
I suggest you take a look at the Yamaha FJR1300ES. I also have MBS. I'll have three when my FJR arrives. I've had as many as 5 bikes at a time.
I test rode a 2012 DL1000 a few months ago, and a new 2014/2015? a few weeks ago. You sit "in" the seat slightly more, so it's a bit shorter in effect, everything else on the new DL is 10X better. Engine doesn't lug as much, revs better, is smoother. Suspension and brakes look like they should be on a super sports and not a duel sports - speaking of the brakes, those front discs have some serious bite:eek1 never before have I been glad for ABS on a bike. I would say it makes a better sports tourer than duel sport, but I don't have any other experience with bikes like the new DL. Dad on the otherhand, recons the new 1000 is an old 650 on steroids.
i shall join you in guilt, brother. i finally had to tell the wife that i had a problem. it was cute when i used my own personal money/trades to upgrade, but i dipped into savings for the z1000 -- and yeah, it's time to stop and actually GET TO RIDING. i swear, i was way more antsy this winter and the rainy commutes made me want to REALLY cut loose on bikes this year -- does that fly as an excuse? you know, when you play out future bike conversations with friends/fam/coworkers (especially in light of prior fiscal irresponsibility, despite the improvement seen -- barely -- across 16 years of marriage) and they ALL end in either "you just wouldn't understand" or "i have a problem"... well, it's time to dial waaaaay back and remember why i started riding in the first place. please tell me it's a phase! still, $8500 OTD (before the gladius trade-in) on an NOS 2012 BURNT FUCKING ORANGE Z1000 WITH ZERO-POINT-ZERO-ZERO-CHANGE miles? son, i tell you: YES. and now, to the consequences i must deal with! (transformer haters, fuck right off. hey, this model doesn't have abs, so there's that!)
I had a nice trip to the Ozarks. I'm not sure how far I rode. I guess it was a bit over 1000 miles. The trip meters still aren't working, so the only time I had any idea how far I had gone on a tank was today when I did 138 miles non stop. I wanted to see how long it would take to get to reserve. Friday was about 360 miles. I did about 140 of that at 80+ on the interstate. The VTX handled it easily, with plenty of power in reserve. The suspension leaves a lot to be desired, though. I 40 is a major truck corridor, so the road is beat all to crap in places. there were some bone jarring bumps. The lack of wind protection on my legs was very tiring at those speeds, and when I found myself behind trucks in a section that had been grooved for repaving, the rocks their tires threw at me HURT when they hit my legs. By the time I got to Memphis I was seriously considering going to get the ST1300. I met my Uncle in Memphis and we continued on. The trip got better once we were on secondary roads and the speeds dropped to 55 - 60 mph. We spent Saturday riding around in the Ozarks. Speeds were moderate, and we stopped often. We took our time and had a really nice day. The VTX was wonderful in these conditions. The motor is really a gem. Sunday we got up early with the intention of getting home before the bad weather moved in. fifty miles out of Mountain View, we ran into the rain. And more rain. We stopped at a convenience store and found another rider there taking a break from the weather. He said he spent the night in jail after getting arrested for DUI. He was worried about the reception he was going to get from his wife, about possibly losing his job, and the example he had set for his 18 year old son. I had been wondering what my wife would say if I came home with a new bike. I guess there are worse things... I'm going to hang on to the VTX. I really like the motor, the feel of it, and the sound. I think I can increase the wind protection without spending a fortune. I can live with the suspension for the time being. I was wishing I had ABS when I locked up the rear coming to a stop at a stop light, less than two miles from home. At the end of the day, I like the VTX. It's not perfect, but what is? Best of all, I've got the title. Now if I could just pick up a good used sport tourer...
Better springs, lowers for your windshield, and better riding gear will fix everything you listed. For less than an old Connie.
^ totally. The VTX is cheap enough to get into and easy enough to farkle that it seems a shame to not give farkling a go.
yeah, I have already added a windshield and bags (Honda $stuff), a Mustang seat, Paladin bars, and Kuryakn hiway pegs. Lowers for the windshield are $180, but I will probably add them. Also I would like to see if I could find some sort of leather or vinyl cover to go on the tipover bars, like I had on the Nomad. That would also help. Suspension isn't cheap, so that will need to wait a while. Hepco-Becker actually offers mounting hardware for it. I have been toying with the idea of replacing my Honda bags with a set of their 30liter "Junior" bags. They probably would not look quite rite, but they are weather proof, lockable, and removable. I expect that would cost about $1200. Ouch!
