Old Man Crotch Rocket

Last weekend Laurie and I went out on an afternoon date to the local Camping World. On the way we stopped at the Honda motorcycle place in Garner to visit with an old friend of Laurie's. Big mistake. I sat on a GL 1800 Goldwing.

I have had a handful of motorcycles over the years. A mini bike as a kid, a Suzuki 125 as a teenager, then a Honda CB 550 as a young man, a Honda 750 Nighthawk a decade ago and now a Suzuki 650 Executive Burgman. I always thought I might want a Goldwing sometime before I die but never gave it a lot of thought. Laurie has a lot of experience with Goldwings and always wanted one of her own. Then I sat on that Goldwing.

Wow! The thing weights almost 900 pounds but it feels like a much lighter motorcycle when you sit on it. And that seat! And all those buttons!

I looked on Craigslist and there were several for sale but one in Winston Salem caught my eye. It was a 2006 at a fair price. Honda made several improvements in the 2006 model and the only differences between the 2006 and a brand new Goldwing are XM radio, tire pressure monitoring system and more colors. I could get the 2006 model which is essentially the same as the 2013 model for half the price of a new one. It was time for a road trip.

Laurie met me at work at 3:00 PM and we headed to Winston Salem with a plan to meet the owner at 5:00PM. I already knew UPS stores have a Notary and they close at 6:30 PM because we used one when Bradley bought his 1981 Honda Silverwing GL500 Interstate in February. I am not saying I was going there to purchase that Goldwing that night, but I wanted to keep my options open. I used my iPad to confirm there was UPS store within a few miles of the owner.

We found the place and while chatting about the bike, diesel trucks, guns, RVs and life in general discovered we had a lot in common. Then came time for the test ride. I had never ridden anything bigger than my 750 Nighthawk in my life.

The owner got it out of the basement and pointed it downwind. I threw my leg over and settled into the seat. I though something that big would take some skill and clutch slipping to get it moving. I was wrong. It was extremely easy to take off. I am still skittish in tight slow speed turns but that thing handled like a bike weighing half as much. It was amazing. I made a circle around the neighborhood then grabbed Laurie and did another loop.

We stopped in a parking lot and discussed our options. Laurie wanted to wait until I could ride another one for comparison. But I was already sold and she told me later she knew I was sold when I saw the bike on Craigslist. The price was right, the color was right and the owner had added a few options that I would want anyway and he was including two helmets with full electronics we could swap to our helmets. He had not added a bunch of other accessories that we would not care for and he had a complete maintenance history. It was a perfect match for what I thought we wanted.

We went back to the owner's house and talked price. He had replaced the OEM muffler with a straight pipe muffler which was too loud for our taste. So he reduced the price a little because we would have to buy replacement mufflers. We came to terms and then I said, "I did not bring a bag full of money with me. I can come back in a day or two with a bag of money or I can write you a check tonight. The check will be no good tonight but will be in the morning when I can transfer some funds. It is up to you."

He looked at his wife and some non verbal communication took place. Then he looked back and said something to the effect of "I'm a little funny but I am from Virginia and that is good enough for me." I said I was from Kentucky and where I grew up a handshake was just as good as a piece of paper. So he and his wife grabbed the title and off to UPS we went to get the title notarized while I wrote a personal check for the agreed price.

Laurie and I grabbed some bad Mexican food for dinner while they returned home to remove their personal stuff from the bike. After dinner we returned to their house, chatted some more and then we were off.

Wow! The day had been dark with threatening clouds. By the time we got to the bypass around Greensboro it was what photographers call "The magic hour" just before dark. The sky was a rich, dark blue with scattered white clouds. The sun was behind me, low on the horizon and a soft golden glow in the side mirror. I had the cruise control set on about 75, the radio playing loud country music, the back rest adjusted to let me recline and my legs were stretched out with my feet on the highway pegs. The temperature was perfect, the flat six cylinder 1800 CC engine was purring and I was grinning from ear to ear. I grinned during entire ride home. All I needed to make it perfect was my blond female on the seat behind me but she was stuck driving the family car back to Apex.

Anyway, I love the thing. It has taken me a week to figure out what all the buttons do. Laurie's friend had a set of Honda OEM mufflers we purchased for a fair price so the Goldwing is now super quiet. I have been told it will do a wheelie in the first three gears but I can't confirm that, yet.

It is an amazing machine. I should have purchased one years ago. The title is in Laurie's name only because I did not want to have to wait in the DMV line to get it registered. I tell everyone that I have people that handle things like that for me. So it is Laurie's bike but she lets me ride it any time I want.

Now we just need a name. I call my Suzuki "Burgie". Bradley calls his bike "Bluebell". The Goldwing is Dark Red, or sometimes referred to as Cabernet Red Metallic. Since we like our wine we are thinking a name related to wine would be good.

I Really Like My Suzuki Burgman 650 AKA "Burgie"		Labor Day Weekend Motorcycle Rides

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