Great Weekend Riding and Upcoming Projects

Quick report on my busy weekend, about 350 miles of riding, and some projects I have coming up on the  bikes.

Saturday I was at the Long Beach International Motorcycle Show (IMS) almost all day.  After meeting my CMA chapter for breakfast, four of us rode up there on our bikes while a few others "caged" there.  Only one wrong turn as the "trying to get fired Road Captain" and we made it in plenty of time to get the Helmet and Gear check going.  Only problem was we had less space than last year and no where near enough.  We had to shut the check down for about half an hour in the mid-afternoon, re-organize the helmets and consolidate a rack or three of jackets and then re-open.  Bummer, but the other option would have been to have gear tags out of order-a true recipe for disaster!

Sunday I participated in the El Cajon Harley Owners Group (HOG) Toys for Tots run.  Great event, great guys running it with lots of volunteers and a great cause.  Fun part for me was it was a "controlled ride" meaning we stayed as a group and had police escort.  However there were more intersections than Road Captains from HOG, so I started helping out.  Fun to do that every now and then as we "quickly" rode from intersection to intersection alongside the nearly 200 bike group.  Ride ended at Del Mar Racetrack where we rode in (quietly to not spook the non-iron horses) and had our own area.  Best part?  Nearly 2300 toys for Toys for Tots, and over $8000 that will also go for toys and gifts! 

After my annual pre-Thanksgiving Dinner ride before joining family at the in-laws, I have a number of projects on the two Connies.  The restoration bike (94, aka Belle) needs an oil change and general check-up, plus I may test fit the sanded and repaired bodywork. Belle's tank was going to go on the old 86 (Miss Swail) but the petcock leaks and trying to get it off one of the mounting nuts came loose from inside the tank.  UGH.  So I'm going to see what can be done with the old parts bike tank I've had sitting around.  It's nasty but if it holds gas it may have to do to get the bike sold and I'll let the new owner decide to use some gas tank sealant on it or buy a replacement on eBay.

Could you help me out and click this link for some metric T-handle wrenches?  Testing out the Amazon Affiliate program and would like to see how a sale or two works.  Thank you!

Demo ride on a Harley-Davidson Street 750

Yesterday I was able to test ride a Harley-Davidson Street 750.  San Diego Harley-Davidson was hosting Demo Days ’16.  They had a great variety of bikes-everything from Sportsters and Streets to V-Rods and Dynas up to full dressers.  As expected, the demand for test rides tended toward the larger bikes.  Since I have written on the Streets before, I actually went to the demo rides to try out a Street.  I have owned a Sportster and a Fat Boy clone, so re-riding one of those bikes wouldn’t have been a demo ride anyway.

So after a short wait, we got a short ride brief from the instructor coaches and HOG road captains, we went to our bikes.  First impression was that these are definitely smaller bikes and marketed well as in-town and commuter bikes.  Everything seemed kind of compact and close.  I’m 5’10”, about average for a guy.  The reach to the handlebars and pegs was easy but probably would have felt cramped on longer rides.  The grips and pegs are very basic, bottom of the line rubber. The bike fired right up and idles easily.  Of special note, the clutch lever is much lighter than I remember my Sportster being.  This is a big improvement for a commuter bike, as I recall lots of “clutch cramp” when stuck in rush hour traffic and not able to lane split.  There is also a lot of engagement “sweep” as you let out the clutch lever and the friction zone engages.  With the torque this bike makes, this is an improvement from trying to learn or commute on a Sporty.

One reason Harley makes both a 500 and 750 Street model is the 500 is the bike used for their new riders class.  The coach I spoke with said it was a great bike for the course.  I can see this-the bike just felt well laid out and basic without extras to confuse or scare a new rider.  I’m not sure I would want a 500 somewhere like San Diego, where you almost have to get on the freeway to get anywhere.  While the 750 was able to cruise with the big bikes the short time we were on the freeway, a 500 would probably struggle to quickly accelerate on shorter ramps or to get out of tight spots with a larger rider onboard.  I remember some commutes and rides on my Yamaha V-Star 650 Classic when I was looking for another gear as I was topping out the power band in 5^th.

Of interest, there are few accessories for the Street as a first year model, but both NY Mike and the employees at SD Harley said more were coming, including bags.  This will be interesting to see, and an improvement in my mind.  As a motorcycle computer who doesn’t like riding with a backpack, saddlebags or hard bags are a must.  Hopefully they will be functional as the rear fender area behind the shocks isn’t very large-maybe even shorter than Sportsters.

At $8,000 the Street 750 isn’t cheap, but it is a solidly built, well-laid out basic cruiser by an iconic motorcycle company.  I think it’s a better first bike than a Sportster, and depending on your long-range riding plans probably a better commuter.  For longer rides a 1200 Sportster with highway pegs and a larger screen would be a better bike, but for reasonable days and commuting I’d recommend checking the Harley-Davidson Street out!

Good visit to Pike's Peak H-D and Frontier Cycles yesterday

Got out and played tourist yesterday. Found two indy shops on the same street, so GPS in hand (well on dash) of I went.

Frontier Cycles was the first one visited. A small shop in the old school, bikes parked everywhere/catalogs and parts on the counter style, the owner and a mechanic were hard at work on a bike in the back as I entered. Good friendly guys from the few minutes I got to spend there. The other shop was closed so couldn't visit, but the old custom panhead hanging from their sign was pretty cool to look at.

After a quick lunch and a trip most the way up Pike's Peak, a friend and I stopped by Pike's Peak Harley-Davidson. The lot was full, as they were having the drawing for a Sportster and other prizes. There was even a bike or two, despite the approaching snow. We got there just as the last chili was given out, but everyone was friendly. Big shop in the new Harley style, plus they also are a BMW dealership. We enjoyed looking around and I used some Chrome Cash for a t-shirt and a shifter peg I needed. The buzz from the crowd'and the service makes me think the HOG chapter and riders here would be good to hang with.