Hi all,

Thought I'd pop in and introduce myself. I currently don't own a HD (or any bike for that matter), but expect to be an owner in the near future.

The last bike I owned was a 500cc Honda back in the early 90's. It was my weekend toy, while stationed in Tampa, FL. I sold that bike in '93, and haven't owned one since. There were multiple reasons ('excuses') that I won't go into here, but suffice it to say I didn't have a lot of time in the US to enjoy a bike.

Fast-forward to 2011. I've been hinting to my wife for a while that, I'd like to get back into a motorcycle. Up until about 2-3 months ago, she was pretty much against it. Mainly because a)we've seen a lot of bike wrecks, and it tends to reinforce her notion that they are too dangerous, and b)she's afraid she wouldn't be a good passenger (afraid she'd try to fight against me and the bike in turns, etc).

In the past 2-3 months, she's started to have other thoughts. Last month she stated that, if I were serious about getting a bike, she'd want to take the rider's course with me. (I figure, 20 years out of the saddle = a refresher course is mandatory for me). The earliest we can get into a course is late August, in our area. So in the next couple of nights, we'll be signing up.

The order in which I plan on taking this is:
1. Take (and pass) the course.
2. Get my license updated
3. Rent a few bikes
4. Go to a few bike events (Carlisle, bike expositions to see all the models, etc)
5. Rent a few more bikes
6. Make a purchase

Meanwhile, I've decided to hang out in here and read up on others' experiences, get tips and pointers on 'must-have' mods, and pretty much enjoy myself

The only thing I know for sure at this point, bike-wise, is that I'll be picking up one of the Touring models. Other than that, I haven't narrowed down the bikes. (That's what test rides and rentals are for, right?) I just know that, I can't wait to get back on and ride.

Thanks for reading!
-Jim

 

That sounds like a very reasonable plan, it is good to have the wife's tacity approval. Hope it all goes as planned, enjoy.

 

Welcome to the forum from Kansas

 

A big welcome to you from sunny Southern California. Glad to have you on board.

 

Welcome aboard, I hope you end up with two bikes one for each of you.. Keep us posted. And don't be afraid to ask questions the HDF These folks are great
Don Enlow (FlyLow)

 

Welcome aboard from New York and thanks for your service.

Sounds like a great plan.

 

Funny you'd mention the idea of 2 bikes. We have 2 greyhounds, and try to go up to Gettysburg, PA each year for an event called 'Greyhounds in Gettysburg'. The local HD dealer, Battlefield, always throws a party for GiG folks. So last year, my wife and I were looking at the bikes and she sat down on an 883. Talk about a perfect fit for her. Just sitting on it, she was grinning from ear to ear

[Side note: Due to Easter being on the weekend they typically hold GiG this year, they moved the event to the last weekend of April. Which conflicted with our annual trip to Fontana Village and the Dragon ]

 

 

Welcome from Vancouver, Canada

 

Welcome

Get an F'n Road King ... don't mess around with all the other junk