Notes from the Road: Selling a Harley

Selling a Motorcycle can be Stressful. Selling Off Your Harley-Riding Memories is Even More of a Mind-Bender

Selling a motorcycle is a bitter sweet moment. On one hand you are hopefully getting a new two-wheeled chariot. The flip side of that though is you are selling your faithful steel horse that is full of memories, moments that will never be duplicated, the known issues and idiosyncrasies that make it your own.

These almost deep musings came about during a conversation I was having just yesterday. One of my good friends and I are getting older and apparently more responsible. We both own apex motorcycles. Those bikes that are the top dog in their respective categories and for that reason alone we were justifying keeping them. The issue at hand is neither of us use them in the manner they were intended. Time, responsibilities, time, all conspire against us.

With that in mind we were discussing buying motorcycles that offered more practical riding which would equate into more fun. My friend rides a brash Italian naked bike that makes almost 200 HP, I ride a full-size bagger. We both know that somewhere in between these two motorcycles is a better solution.

His issue is versatility. While the naked bike is extremely fast, handles impeccably, and is a surgical instrument in a sea of hammers it isn’t exactly useful. Try carrying a laptop, or one of the many RC cars we mess with to the coffee shop. (Our local coffee shop has some great RC terrain for creating havoc.)

My issue stems from a desire to ride a motorcycle like his with the versatility of my current bagged ride. Plenty of power, low end torque, comfort for days, weather protection, capacity make it amazing. Dragging floor boards is not amazing. I have ridden all types of motorcycles and I love cruisers, they just don’t have the handing I need in life.

It goes back to the issue I mentioned above: Apex motorcycles at the pinnacle of their respective categories. The only way to go is backwards.

Have you ever had this conundrum? What did you do?