Triumphrat

Sal Paradise

My buddy and I skipped out of work early and hit some small twisty backroads. Me on my Bonneville, he on his customized soft tail HD. His bike has a chopped front, is lowered , bored out with hot cams, 1500 cc's, open pipes and forward controls so his feet are in the air like a Las Vegas hooker. Long story short we were not racing but even so he could not keep up with the Bonneville. Vibration, clearance problems, chain lash (through belt), weight and poor steering were killing him. My Bonneville was taking great lines, just winging through the turns with no effort and happily blasting down the short straightaways. It was not even close and I was holding my speed down. On the last few sweepers I twisted the throttle and really leaned her over.

Later sitting in the bar i was kidding him about being so far back in the turns. He laughed and said next time he is bringing his sportbike. The dude kept commenting how light agile and fast the Bonneville was. I think people are too focused on quarter mile times. On a twisty backroad, Bonnie vs. HD chopper is not even close. And for a quarter of the price, thats not too shabby.

propforward

I love the way the Bonnies handle, light and agile and incredibly flickable. Couldn't argue the price either, as you say.

I like sportsbikes too, but for me the time was right to just get back to real simple bikes.

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If you ever drop your keys in molten lava, forget about them, because man, they're gone.

Soulrebel

Probably has alot to do with rider experience also. My pop rides a softail like a zx10. Sparks? what sparks?

ohiorider

Soulrebel - I have to agree with your 'skill level' comment. I've pulled away from sport bikes on my old Beemer, and other times felt like the dude on the Big Twin in front of me was pushing it as fast as I wanted to ride. There's a lot to be said for time in saddle.

Bob

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2003 T100 (790cc) Lucifer Org and Silv: 122/42 jets, TORs, 17T, UNI filter, no AI, Polaris bellmouth, Metzeler ME880 tires, Progressive 440 shocks (105/150 springs),11-1126 fork springs, gaiters, MotoTwin low bars, 6024 lamp, htd grips, 12v outlet.

propforward

True - when the experience results in increased skill. I'm sure that's what you meant though. There are certainly plenty of riders out there who can leave me for dust no matter what super sporty machine I am riding.

So I am very happy to just tool around on my Bonnie.

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If you ever drop your keys in molten lava, forget about them, because man, they're gone.

hogwylde

It's my opinion, like many who said the same, that experience and skill are key. I'm sure we've all seen that video of a GoldWing rider tossing the bike around better than a Sportbike at Deal's Gap.

And the same goes for slow speed riding as demonstrated at www.ridelikeapro.com.

With the right skill-set.......you can make any bike dance.

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The mind is like a parachute. Works best when open.

CaptGoodvibes

Depends on the rider and how they feel like riding that day. I've seen a few Bonnies disappear in my mirrors while riding my Dyna hard in the local mountains. They had no chance. But my guess is that I could trade bikes with them and have the same outcome.

Sal Paradise

Indeed, but I am not that rider. No way I could be that much better of a rider after only one month back following 20 years with no bike.

propforward

This puts it really well - I did invest is some really good rider training years ago - learned a ton about handling the bike, slow manouvering, hard braking, correct overtaking, bend planning etc etc, which made a massive amount of difference to my riding. With continued practice I'm definitely a smoother, faster rider than ever before.

But I still tool around.

Never get overtaken by cages though. That would not do at all.

Oh - except for one car that I think was being driven by the devil. I pulled over and let that nutjob go. But I digress.

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If you ever drop your keys in molten lava, forget about them, because man, they're gone.

sweatmachine

apples and oranges.

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Macgruber!


Click for a picture of my slightly modified Bonnie