Learning from your Rides- KDs Motorcycle Diary

After a lot of Harley riding over the past 4 years, I have had some hard introspecting to do.
I graduated in bikes from the SuperLow to the Super Glide to the FatBoy where my liking for torqueand economics finally seem to have peaked.
I am more driven now by marquee rides. Signature rides- unique locations. Sequencing locations like no one has done before.
Riding to Dhule ten times a year or riding to Vapi five times a quarter to just add 5-700km a weekend- is just useless commuter riding to me now.
I restrict my riding to Igatpuri, Lonavala and then to Palasdari in the north. That's it.
After completing the Leh ride by car and then by bike- I see no charm in rides that I call pedestrian now.
Yes- so where is my problem? It is that I make new friends and they are where I was in India 4 years ago. Wanting to pound the streets and I looked at them- 'what boss? no vision, no dream.'
So wrong on my part.
Probably my peers also questioned my quick change of bikes equally, branding me as whimsical- at its most police. Probably my neighbours wondered- where does he go for five hours every weekend morning.
Over the past few weeks I have been thinking and all I have made peace with is- destinations and goals of other riders and mine will not match.
Rajmachi in the rains does not attract me. As much as the best road in India- Hyderabad to Bangalore, does not beckon me either.
The border roads of india- be it the 'no pillar zone' in the Kutch, the long forgotten Munnabao railway station, the Israeli grass and snakes in the sands of Longewala  sector, the wheat fields and the brave punjabis who live around BOP Khakian.
All the way to the riverine plains around Dhubri in Assam. I learnt- these may not turn on other riders. I learnt not to demand- and yet I learnt.
To let them sell their bikes till their economics and riding senses were filled.
To let them ride where they learnt to enjoy themselves- remembering good times with their fathers and friends on the road.
Not many have been machine gunned at on the LC while having a younger Officer say- 'park your bike this side, so those fools won't get a stray round into your paint.' But yet a samosa-chai stop in a torrential downpour in Bijapur with friends you have not seen in ten years, could hold more thrill.
I promise not to cringe or wince at the topic of an upgrade. I promise not to chew my lips at the sound of a destination.
I will learn to smile that I did all that.
Just a few months ago. 

New Super Glide Custom- Jan 2013.

After 9 months of flawless running with the Sportster, I upgraded to a more long-distance runner kind of bike, the Super Glide Custom. I have a much detailed departure report on the 883 story that I had written on my buying the bike- more like a closure story. 

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/superb...ml#post3050300

fter a few pictures of the bike arriving into the house at dusk- I think these will be used as templates to see if the bike was cleaned properly or not, in subsequent months.

The first 4000Km on the 883 went by learning to explore its power, lean and its stability. Fuel average settled in at 22-24 on highways, and about 16 in the city. Pillions added to rear weight stability and almost invariably increased the ability to consistently hammer over 140 far more easy than when one-up.

Then after 4500, the Screamin' Eagles Exhausts and Stage 1 Air Cleaners came- and they were like th bad boys coming in for a party that had just settled down... and then the hell rising started all over again. We started to hit the rev-limiter all the way till 3rd and then we found the top speed we could do with my riding gear @165 and the fun in riding all became the hum and roar and effects- so from serious riding, it just went downhill for me

In an effort to stem the rot, I asked around the Harley Owners and found that I had hit a wall on the bike, something to do with having ridden bigger bikes earlier in college days in the US- something I could not deny. So a friend Manish came along immediately- and on a Monday morning at 0600, we went for a city ride, from Powai to Dadar and south.

The 1584cc Super Glide Custom, from the Dyna family- a 6-speed, 92 ft-lbs@3000rpm... came along. 

The first thing that suprised me, was not the weight, but having pulled off from a level patch on the road, was the balance and stability in 1st gear... and then how it hauled from 0-110- when Manish tapped me and pointed upward- to indicate a 6th... and that took me till abut 125... and being on it for the first time I let it stay there on the Eastern Express Highway... When we rolled up and down, what suprised me from the very highly strung Sportster was that I could come down to 75 in 6th and even 60 in 5th. Something the 883 never did.

So from a riding a psychotic red-lined Sportster, here I was having a wonderful, relaxed time, and enjoying the speed range from 0-130 without the stress, drama and anger that went about the earlier bike.

So the decision was made- a buyer was found for the Sportster in a day, sold, and a Super Glide booked. To make a point, I did have a preference at the time for the Street Bob, but its stock handle and mini-apes made it rather difficult for my height and riding style to be accomodated together. So the dealership and HDI worked over night to get my bike to me within a record time of 6 days- and got a few days of local riding before hitting the National Harley Owners Group Rally in Goa, putting in about 1800Km on the trip... 

The average settled in about 22 on the highway- average speeds for the Pune-Nipani stretch climbed from 85 (on the 883) to about 97 on the way to Goa and the return averages were about 115, with the added support of my friends Yeti, and my Scorpio creating an envelope from a low of 70 to 155... for our team of 11 riders- here a bunch of 48s and 883s also made it with averages of about 95-105. 

Here is what was different- the ease with which one cruised and stayed in a power band- that reduced the stress on the rider by a huge amount. Between the tolls on that part of the highway, i would stay in 5th or 6th- and mostly 6th that too... Chasing down the Yeti to 165 and then re-grouping every so 15-20km, I would let the speed bleed to about 95... and it made overtaking anything a breeze. The increased stability of the bike showed its benefits and even two-up, the bike felt rock steady- in fact at one point the sun got to a pillion and she wanted to get down to stretch her legs while at 160... Some credit can be given to NHAI for making it probably the better highway in Maharashtra... Extras on the bike- crash guard, sissy bar (back rest in Harley terminology) as of now. SE Air Cleaner, and Exhausts with a Super Tuner is probably next. 

From my experience, I can only suggest that you try and visualise your personality bracket for the Harley that you want to get- the 48 has been suprisingly the most loyal owners bike, from my experience and I cannot wax eloquent enough about how the 1200cc stormer runs- its absolutely brilliant, having kept with me till 165 and it fantastic aggressive stance and demeanour, and also its reputation for being a trouble free performer. Budget owners should rather look at used bikes and then service histories are available if you are serious enough from Service Centers to ensure you have a good piece.

Accessories and Gear cost a pretty penny, but then you need to factor that in before buying a bike and not after. Research saves you money, and a lot of grief. Feel free to ask around, am sure there are many HOGs out there who will help you.

Many hate the Harley, I dont know for what? Nothing is perfect- whats a Yezdi for one is an ashtray for another, and you need to be happy with a ride, the kind of people that the bike brings together, the rides that are organised, the support given. Some Italian crotch-rockets have clutch levers at 18000 a pair- minimum, but with waitlisting of 4+ months- damn! - then the Harley levers are atleast accessible at 1/5th, and available...on ebay as well. So, I really have nothing to say about people who hate the Harley. i am neutral to all bikes, but I hate plastics,

-KD.