Thursday, October 30, 2008

Getting More Comfortable


O.K. I was feeling kinda guilty about not putting a pic of the Honda up, so here it is...my 2004 Honda Shadow Aero 750. A mighty fine bike if I do say so myself. Of course, I’ll be selling it in the near future as I already find myself riding the Harley more and more. Interested? Shoot me an email.

That brings me to the topic for this entry...after riding both for a month plus, I’d like to share my thoughts about both of them...pluses and minuses. Keep in mind, I’m a VERY new rider and I got the Honda as a “training bike”.


Harley Davidson 2009 Road King Classic:
http://www.harley-davidson.com/wcm/Content/Pages/2009_Motorcycles/2009_Motorcycles.jsp?locale=en_US#/model/flhrc

This bike rocks! Being in Harley’s Touring Line, it’s a great bike for rider’s who want get out on the road. Even though I haven’t actually taken a road trip yet, I really think that’s the type of riding I’m going to prefer. The idea of getting out of town and riding to an interesting little town or some hole-in-the-wall restaurant and then coming back, all in a day, is really appealing to me. As a matter of fact, Kim and I are going out this Saturday to do just that.

But enough about that.
As stated in my first entry, this bike is heavy. 810 lbs Running Weight (liquids, etc) to be exact. When you consider the weight plus a seat height just a tad under 27” with a rider, it can be quite a challenge for this lady biker to handle at a stop or situations where my feet are on the ground if the bike is anything less than perfectly upright. Now, with all that in mind, I did have the bike lowered 1” and I changed the stock seat out for a lower profile seat (less comfy, but not bad) which gets my feet more flat on the ground. As a newbie, especially a girl, feet on the ground is a good thing for obvious reasons. Much better control. Now, all that weight is not a bad thing. Where I have really come to appreciate it is in the ride. The Harley hugs the road like a dream. Cracks, little bumps, expansion joints, squirrels (I ran one over on my maiden run!), wind, what-have-you are barely noticed. With the Honda, my butt jumps off the seat quite often and wind definitely affects the handling. That’s rather disconcerting for this new rider. Also, I find myself more comfortable leaning into my turns on the Harley vs. the Honda. If you’d have asked me before I’d had a chance to ride both, I would have thought I’d have been more comfortable leaning on the Honda. Go figure.

So, for rides where I don’t anticipate much maneuvering or stops & starts, the Harley wins.
Another great plus for the Harley is it’s “visibility”. I upgraded the headlights to High-Intensity, changed out the side mirrors to ones that have amber running lights on the backside and blink when my turn signal is engaged and changed out the tail lights to LED. http://www.harley-davidson.com/dwp/gma/dwp_gma_product.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524448769825&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374309290383&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=2534374309290383&dwp_dealerid=51156&bmUID=1225425873228&bmLocale=en_US I also got a louder horn. And, I’m not afraid to use it! Of course, we can’t forget the pipes. Harley’s are loud and if you can’t “see me” perhaps you can hear me. The Coolness Factor...not to be bragadocious, but the Harley is just HOT! Kim and I pulled into Stroker’s http://www.strokersdallas.com/content.php?p=icehouse and numerous guys came up to check out our bikes. Of course, two women riding their own bikes, especially a RKC and a Fatboy, seem to be somewhat of an anomaly here in Dallas, TX. We/our bikes draw a lot of attention. If we were inclined to have a beer, we wouldn’t need our wallets if you catch my drift. (But, our policy is no drinking while riding.) Of course, don’t ask me a question about what’s “under the hood”. My eyes glaze over if you talk about a Dyno, fuel-mapping, cc’s and such. I confess, I’m more into the physical appearance. Call me shallow!

2004 Honda Shadow Aero VT750:
http://www.ridermagazine.com/output.cfm?id=773857

Weight is almost 300 lbs less than the Harley which makes it easier to handle at low speeds or at a stop. It’s nice and low to the ground, so both feet are planted nicely with no alterations for my 5’9” frame. The bike is very well-built. It’s a Honda after all. I don’t anticipate any mechanical problems and it always starts like a dream. While some of the forums recommended a smaller, less powerful bike for new riders http://www.calsci.com/motorcycleinfo/MotorcycleIntroA.html , I have found it to be a great training bike. It’s a cruiser, which was important to me since the Harley is a cruiser. I wanted a similar style bike to the one I knew I’d be riding. It’s 750cc, which has some get up and go, but it’s not so powerful that it will get away from you. For around town and quick trips, I prefer the Honda. At this early stage in my riding career, I feel more able to respond safely in an emergency situation due to the Honda’s lighter weight and maneuverability.

Bottom line, the Honda has been a great confidence builder, but will probably be sold very soon. Being an ’04, I hope to get out of it for what I paid for it...or very close to it. All in all, I’d do it again. The only thing I’d do different would be to get the training bike first...get used to it...sell it...THEN go buy a Harley.
Ride safe!

Sunday, October 19, 2008

New Rider



This is my new Harley - a 2009 Road King Classic. Isn’t she great looking?! I haven’t put many miles on it since I decided buy a ’04 Honda Shadow as a “training bike” and have been getting most of my saddle time in on that one. Kinda like buying a Lexus, parking it, and driving your old Honda Civic around town. Of course, I’m not knocking Honda Civics or Honda Shadows, they’re both really great...but c’mon...you know what I’m talking about.

You may be asking yourself, “why did Mary get 2 motorcycles?”. Well I’ll tell ‘ya, after saddling up, holding up and cranking up the throttle of the 810 lb chrome monster, known as the Road King Classic, I realized that my Rider Coaches (I took the Rider’s Edge New Rider Course) were onto something when they recommended us newbies buy a used, lighter weight bike to learn on while we get used to braking, using the clutch and maneuvering a motorcycle out in the real world. Then, they advised, after gaining competence and confidence, sell the bike (hopefully, for an amount close to what we’d paid for it) and go out and get our “dream” bike. Of course, I’d already put a deposit on this baby. Add to that the advice of the people who felt it was best to learn on the bike you would eventually ride (namely Harley Dealership employees) and after hearing countless stories of people who started small, and “outgrew” their bikes within 6 months, I threw all my good sense to the wind and pulled the trigger on this Bad Boy (or Girl). While I love my Harley, that was a bonehead move.

I confess, the weight and balance of the Harley scared the “bejesus” out of me. I found myself hesitant to get it out, even to practice in parking lots. Popping a clutch on the Harley is not a good thing. There’s not a chance I could hold it up once that bike starts tipping over. The good news is, my better judgement prevailed really early on and nobody (namely me) got hurt. With the speedometer reading only 30 miles, I set aside my ego and admitted I should have listened to the sage advice of the MSF Instructors. I decided to park the Harley and went out and found a nice, used, motorcycle, appropriate for a new rider. Enter, the 2004 Honda Shadow Aero. It is half as powerful as the Road King and weighs around 530 lbs. It feels like a Vespa in comparison to the Harley. It’s WAY easier to park, backup, etc. It’s a great beginner bike and has inspired a lot of confidence already. Because of its weight, the Honda is much easier to maneuver, so I feel a lot more comfortable driving around town and in traffic during this learning phase. Stopping, swerving and turning a motorcycle, for you non-riders, is not as easy as you would think. It takes practice. Add to the mix oblivious drivers who “don’t see” motorcycles, and it’s extremely important to master these skills.

I have ridden the Harley since, and am MUCH more comfortable on it, even after 100 miles on the Shadow. Kim and I got away from traffic on two separate evenings and that’s where it shines. The weight is a big plus in wind and on bumps and cracks in the road. It is a touring bike after all. Whereas the Honda is kinda squirrely and my butt comes off the seat at the mere suggestion of a bump. Forget wind! BUT, I will continue to hone my skills on the Honda Shadow for the next few months, or however long it takes.

I do want to take this opportunity to encourage anyone who rides or is thinking of riding a motorcycle to take the MSF Course http://www.msf-usa.org/index_new.cfm or the Rider’s Edge New Rider’s Course (Harley version of the MSF). http://www.ridersedge.com/ Not only will you get your motorcycle endorsement when you pass, you will be a much better, safer rider. I feel very strongly about the course and believe seasoned riders would benefit from it. Of course, they offer advanced courses as well. Actually, I took the MSF in 2003 when I got a Vespa and needed my Motorcycle Endorsement. Not even thinking “motorcycle”, I really enjoyed the course and looked at & considered getting a Harley. But, I never pulled the trigger. 5 years later, Kim was talking Harley and that sounded intriguing. The old interest started resurfacing, even more so with the thought of having a riding partner. Because I’d not ridden a Motorcycle since the first course (my Vespa doesn’t count!) Kim asked me to take the class with her in Dallas in AUGUST!!! Can you say HOT!!!??? No Thanks!! I remembered my class & knew we’d be sizzling like bacon in a frying pan out in a parking lot with our jeans, gloves, helmets and long sleeves. (Kim and her daughter gutted it out). As for myself, I went to Santa Fe,NM to escape the Texas heat and ended up taking the Rider’s Edge course through Santa Fe Harley-Davidson this September. We had two great instructors...Thank you Bill Kennedy and Katherine Pond...and was hooked.

Oh, and just in case you’re wondering, you won’t recognize me (or Kim) out there as we are covered up in protective gear. We both have AND wear, full-face Arai Helmets, gloves, jackets with armor, riding boots, chaps, etc. The thought of skin grafts, facial reconstruction, or a head-injury does not appeal to either one of us. I read something that says it best in response to people who ride w/o protective gear saying “it’s too hot”...”would you rather sit in a hot room or have a belt-sander driven across your forearm”? As for me, I’ll take the hot room thank you very much! SO, next time you’re out in your “cage”, that’s a car in motorcycle-speak, pay attention to those bikers out there and give us plenty of room.