Well the weekend started with disappointment, I was supposed to take a BRC 2 course, but it was raining hard, 40 degrees, with 25mph wind gusts. Not exactly how I want to spend 7 hours on my bike, including the 2 hr round trip. So Sat was hosed.

But Sunday, a local HD dealer had the Harley tractor trailer and about 17 2017 models ready to ride. I've been riding a little over a year. I have 13K miles under my belt, all of which are on my Sporty, except for a little 8 mile test ride I had on a 2016 Low Rider last summer.

This morning it was still 40 degrees and windy, but at least the sun was shining! I ended up taking out a Softail Deluxe, which I'd been wanting to try for a while. And then a pair of M8 bikes: a Street Glide, and an Ultra Limited.

So I now know what it feels like to ride a touring bike. It was a lot easier to handle than I imagined. The Ultra is 300 pounds heavier than my Sporty, but I never noticed. Otherwise, the difference was night & day. The M8's were amazing. Very powerful, smooth as can be. HD has a winner with these for sure.

When I got back on my bike and started it, not only was the rumble 4x louder, I could FEEL it. Along with every bump on the round. Those big bikes are smooth as butter.

So that was my adventure. I'll have to take that BRC 2 next spring.

 

yep, when I got my first road king, it took my wife 6 months before she would ride it. after she did, she realized that the road king, even though it's a bigger bike, was actually easier to ride than her sporty. it didn't take too long after that before her sporty was sold and a 2007 road king custom was sitting next to mine

 

Did you countersteer?

On a serious note...I rode an M8 Ultra Classic (FLHTCU), air cooled, comparable to mine, at the Georgia HOG Rally. I was impressed. I didn't think the difference between my '14 and the '17 would be substantial. I was wrong. I'm not trading anytime soon, but that engine/tranny combo is nice.

 

I test rode the M8 Street Glide yesterday. Very comfortable bike to ride, felt like I could ride it all day without getting tired, except for my left hand. That hydraulic clutch lever was much stiffer than my cabled clutch. Snappy down low, but each gear topped out on torque and power quickly. A little to civilized (and expensive) for my taste. I think I would get bored with an M8 bike in fairly short order...

 

You picked up an itch that will need scratching within the next 2 yrs.

 

^^^
Probably, lol.

 

No, that is much too dangerous for the street! The new M8 bikes are very sophisticated. They reviewed a Wikipedia diagram first, and then they took us on to a closed course, where we did perfect circles for 15 minutes. I was a little dizzy afterward.


OMG, it's gonna take some time to recover...(from that thread).

 

That's the closest dealer to my house. 80 to 209. Looks like you did have a great day!

 

I've only good things from anyone who has ridden an M8! JR