Thanks for the advice many gave me on my first Harley. I decided on a 2005 Sportster 1200 Custom. Plans were to complete the motorcycle safety course on Friday night, wake up early Sat, and drive about 170 miles from State College, PA to Allentown, PA to get the bike and trailer it home. Things started off interesting to say the least...

Thurs Evening - I'm sitting at my computer at 10:30 and had a strange (but somewhat familiar) feeleing in my chest. I have occasional bouts w/arythmia, and my ticker decided to act up just before I fulfill one of my top 5 "things I gotta do before I die". No sleep, off to the hospital at 4:30 am. I'm seriously bummed and figure that my new license and Harley will need to wait another week.

Friday - My doctor meets me at the emergency room around 8am. We've been through this before, so we decide to call my cardiologist and arrange for me to be shocked back into rhythm. I beg him to try and arrange this asap. When I tell him why, he looks at me like I've lost my mind, but agrees to try to move things along.

Cardiologist shows up at 9am and tells me we'll be done and I'll be out of the hospital by noon. I'm elated. Sure enough, three hours later I check out and head home for some rest before I try and earn my license. Off to the safety course at 5:30 pm w/basically no sleep. 2 people in the group fail the test. I'm not one of them. License in hand, I'm off to home for some sleep...

Saturday - Leave at 4am for the drive to Allentown. Meet the seller and take my first ride on a public road .... in a Sportster. At first I feel like I'm hanging on for dear life, but I quickly adjust. Bike is fine. I hand the seller $6,500 and head to a tag place to register the bike. No problems except PA says the bike is worth $9,500, not the $6,500 I paid. I ask how a 3 year old bike only depreciates $300. The clerk doesn't know and doesn't care. I assume the taxman will be asking me to make up the difference at some point. I don't care. I'm far too excited and far too tired. I trailer the bike and away we go. We arrive home about 3pm. I take a 15 mile ride and call it a day.

Sunday - Family is in town for a picnic. I walk by the bike sitting in my garage, stop, stare and salivate at least 6 times. No riding today with the family in town. I do find an excuse to start it a few times so the kids can hear the racket (or music). I can't wait for this day to be over so the family goes home. Tomorrow, we ride...

Monday - I'm up at 5:30 and fire up the beast around 5:45. I'm 48, work for a university and am - by most accounts - pretty responsible. However, I smile as I think about waking up half the neighborhood. Life is good...

We're off on the first ride. At first, I'm very tentative and sometimes feel like I'm just hanging on. After 10 miles, I'm getting the hang of it and start to relax. Up a large, twisting mountain road toward Huntington, PA. I figure I'll go 15 miles or so and turn around. 35 miles later, I arrive in Huntington. Tired, *** hurting, smile a mile wide. The ride back is even better. After 70 miles, I pull into the garage and wonder why I didn't do this 20 years earlier.

Tuesday - Off to the Harley Dealer early for a 5,000 service and state inspection. There's a chance of rain, but there's none around this morning. I leave an hour earlier than I have to and have no problem amusing myself by riding well beyond the dealer just to try out a road with a 65 mile speed limit and sweeping curves through the mountains.

I pull up to the dealer and kill the engine. As I dismount I notice a small tear in the seat. ****! I kicked the seat when I got off the bike

 

You are soooooooo hooked now!

Congrats on the new ride, and thanks for the entertaining post!

 

Welcome to the family! I hope you get to enjoy your bike as much as a lot of the guys here do.

Greg

 

Congrats and welcome from Georgia.

 

Congratulations! Glad everything worked out for you. I bought a 05 1200 custom as well a couple months ago. Nothing but good thigs to say about my choice as I am sure you will have the same thoughts about yours.

 

Great story, now hide all your credit cards cuz you've been bitten!

 

I am 48 also. Went about 24 years of no ownership until about 2 years ago when I got mine. Hard to get me off it. The wind will become less and less of a factor in time. At least it has for me.

 

Great story. Welcome from So Cal.

You get used to the wind after a while. I didn't like it at first either feels like your going to fly right off.



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Excellent story...the bug done bit you, no point in closing that wallet now, lol.

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congrats