Go up and over on nice days. Head north, then east, then south. North and south legs could be ok. East leg pretty much sucks.
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Launch points for distant rides?
- Thread starter mimico_polak
- Start date
@shanekingsley doesn't approve of this thread 
Whatever gets people out there riding is fine by me. Arriving to the riding destination well rested and happy is worth it. If I had a bigger garage and driveway, I'd probably own a trailer and trailer to far away places every now and then too. Or have a dirt bike or a small dual sport for trails.
I suffered the same HD infatuation as you, so I got one back in 2012. It wasn't a sportster, but a Dyna Glide so at least it's similar.
My observations:
Looked great from any angle with a vintage vibe
Excellent real-world engine (mid range sweet spot)
Good, but limited handling
Only comfy for short rides (mid mount pegs with Hwy pegs = sore lower back/arse, aching knee, worn out from wind blast)
Poor (charitable description) suspension for secondary roads at speed limit
Brakes - for such a heavy bike they were a disgrace. Not as good as my 1987 BMW and only marginally better than my 1974 Norton.
HEAVY, HEAVY , HEAVY for what it was
Too social for me - cruisers & HD people always wanted to talk and seemed to think I wanted to listen.
I owned it for 6 months and moved on. Not because it was a bad bike, but just the WRONG bike for the roads and pace I like to ride.
Perhaps a sportster would be the right bike for you. You live in an urban area and your roads are in better shape than the ones out here. With your restricted availability to go for rides leaving you with only a couple hours at a time maybe a sharp looking little paint shaker would be a good choice.
I have a 10' x 10' shed at the cottage and the bike spends a good part of the season there. I'm a few minutes away from Northey's Bay Road and have 3 - 4 loops I ride on a regular basis that are 250 - 300 km long, so lots of fairly decent riding compared to roads in the GTA.
The Sportster is good for a 30 - 40 ride that ends up at a Timmies where you can talk to other HD owners who don't actually ride that much, but spend most of their time talking as if they're just back from a cross country tour.
My ex-roomate got into motorcycles a few years back with her husband.
She got one of the entry level japanese cruisers and foudn them cool looking and what not.
Eventually she was not feeling comfortable, but she didnt want to give up on it. Her hubby has a VFR and loves it so she converted over to a Ninja.
She couldnt believe how much better it felt to ride. It wasn't the style she was into, but it felt much better. So maybe you'll like the look of the HD but you'll miss how easy the 500x is to throw into corners and to handle in general.
She got one of the entry level japanese cruisers and foudn them cool looking and what not.
Eventually she was not feeling comfortable, but she didnt want to give up on it. Her hubby has a VFR and loves it so she converted over to a Ninja.
She couldnt believe how much better it felt to ride. It wasn't the style she was into, but it felt much better. So maybe you'll like the look of the HD but you'll miss how easy the 500x is to throw into corners and to handle in general.
Relax
Well-known member
@mimico_polak The funny thing is, in some respects, your Trailer In A Bag was perfect for driving to a lunch point. Disassemble it, stow it in the trunk, and it's one less thing to worry about getting stolen.
I agree 100% with you @Relax but the $ and space didn't justify 2 trailers. And this folding trailer I have now has already paid itself off with the amount of use it's had in a single year.
The TIAB was great for what it was...a single use trailer for a single purpose.
I have a feeling this could also be the case here...hence why I don't want to sell the X until I get any seat time on the Sportster. The Rebel 500 was the closest thing to it in terms of size, and the other option is the Honda Shadow RS...but not sure if I want ANOTHER Honda.
pretty sure harley has this whole subculture of test rides and such since theyre all about "the experience"
Might be just what you need to know whether to investigate it further
Mad Mike
Well-known member
That's how my wife's motorcycling experience went. Her first bike was an S40, factory pink and creme-colored. She rode it for a while, then decided to go with my kid's ninja. Sadly she became too frightened to continue with motorcycles and went back to bicycles.
There's a dealer in Whitby and in Cambridge so will see if I can just rent one for a day for a feeler. Don't want to buy and then regret it.
Somewhere I have a pic from the Sport Bike Rally (anyone remember Foley Fairgrounds up Parry Sound way?).
In the background is a sportbike being loaded up in a pick up for a ride back to the GTA while in the foreground are two guys on a pair MotoGuzzi Le Man's getting ready to ride home with their Missouri plates clearly visible.
In the background is a sportbike being loaded up in a pick up for a ride back to the GTA while in the foreground are two guys on a pair MotoGuzzi Le Man's getting ready to ride home with their Missouri plates clearly visible.
If you like the look of the Sportster buy a poster. No licence plates, insurance, oil changes.
I had a 1200 Sportie and it was fun but I thought of it as a 50/50 bike
Over 50 MPH vision was blurry and after 50 miles of riding the small tank had you looking for a gas station.
Mine had the ridgid mount engine with the associated characteristics. I did 500 mile days but the wind buffeting was a literal pain in the neck.
I ended up a Goldwing fan because it suits long rides. No bike should come home without having to fill the tank at least once.
Go ahead and do a Timmies run. I prefer the apple fritters at the Amish Door Bakery in Wilmot Ohio.
On my Connie I pulled into a restaurant parking lot for lunch in Coudersort PA as a Harley guy and his GF came out. They had Ontario plates as well so we chatted. They were from Burlington and had been on the road for two days.
She asked when I had left Toronto and I said 8:00 AM.
Her eyes about popped "Wow"
Someone referred to the Sportster as a jackhammer with a saddle. Same ride and top heavy balance.
Whew.
The hair on the back of my neck can settle......was hoping for this prior to purchase.
I rode one from milton, to the hd dealer in kitchener and back for a friend. She was too terrified to ride it that far. I didn't find it scary at all. Just horrible and annoying.
There's also Claire's for a demo ride.
So it's kinda like having a poster of Pam Anderson on your wall instead of the real thing.
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