I went from a Yamaha V-star 650, which I sold in 2004, to a 2002 RKC that I bought in July. Slow speed takes some practice, but it all comes back. Take it easy, take a rider's course and enjoy. I decided that when I jumped back in that I didn't want to go thru multiple bikes to get where I wanted, which was the RKC, so I jumped right in.

 

Maybe check back in 2016, there might be flying cars and a whole lot of other cool stuff by then.

 

This was the biggest difference for me as well. In fact, I could even manage my 02 RKC around the garage easier than my 09 SG.

Once you get it moving, I think you will be impressed by how easy the big bike is to handle. You just have to plan ahead more because they are big heavy bikes with no reverse. And if you use too much front brake with the wheel turned at a stop, it WILL go down. It's not like the 750 that tells you that you screwed up but doesn't punish you. There is no holding Harley up.

On the other hand, you will love the weight once you get going because it barely notices the wind. You will find that even though it is bigger and heavier, it's less work and you won't be as tired at the end of the day like the 750. 750s are fair whether bikes here in Oklahoma because we have a lot of 30 to 40 mph windy days.

Beary

 

And as Beary said, when it starts to go, it WILL go down. Once it gets past that point of yanking it back up, best to just clear your feet and prepare to lift.

 

One of my tenants bought a 883 Sportster L. She rode it a few times, and got scared of it. I couldn't believe what a "tank" of a bike it was. Anyhow, she kept it in my garage, and said "Hey, if you ever want to take it out for a ride, you are welcome anytime". So, i looked at it parked there for probably close to a year. Never having riden a street bike i thought "i don't want to take this out, dump it and be responsible for it". After a while i couldn't deal with not tying it out, so i did and i was sold. I rode it a bunch of times after that, and put more miles on it than she did so i offered to pay for the service on it. She ended up selling it because she could never find anyone to ride with and she was afraid to ride alone. I rode several bikes after that. I rented a Softail Deuce which was my favorite bike looks-wise. I borrowed my buddy's Yamaha V-Star 650 (a little weak but still fun), my other buddy's CBR-600 (totally amazed by the power, handling and speed) then he later bought a GSXR 600 which was even more amazing. I could not get over the handling and speed! Then i went and rented a Road King Classic about a week before I bought one. I wasn't planning on buying one so soon but i managed to find a heck of a deal and couldn't pass it up. I had no problem with any of them and I am short, 5'8" about 170lbs. So, if you have any more height, that will certainly be an advantage. The safety course also helps tremendously. I often think back to some of the lessons, especially slow parking lot maneuvers, and making tight turns. I might go back and take the advanced course at some point. Good luck!

 

Two hints about parking lots. Try to keep your feet on the floorboards. The balance is better. And, when doing low speed maneuvers in a parking lot, use the rear brake and leave the front brake alone. Parking lot tip overs are common when the front brake is used.
If you want to see how well a great rider on a Road King can do in handling, watch this video of a motor officer competition.

 

It's mainly intimidation.

The new touring bikes are ridiculously well designed. The first couple of intersections will be daunting, but ultimately uneventful.

The hardest part is tucking her in for the night.

Enjoy.

GM

 

I went from a 1200 sportster straight to my 2011 ultra limited, only took a week to get used to the batwing and weight. Practice slow speed ALOT, keep it in the friction zone while going slow, look where you wanna go (where ever you look, the bike is going to follow) You mentioned that you are not getting it until 2016, asking kinda early aint we? I suggest that you go out and rent one for a weekend so you can see what you are in store for. Its not really that big of a deal though.

 

To me a bike is a bike, once you learn how to ride one, they are all the same with the exception of weight. I've had many sizes of bikes but my Ultra is by far the biggest. My first Harley and I love it, just have to get use to the weight in slower speeds. The worst is when my wife is on the back and I come to a stop or real slow speeds when my feet are down, those damn passenger floor boards always catch my calves.

 

Pssst! all the weight is on the wheels. dont tell anyone.