Who could beat Osamma... er... Obamma in 2012

[CptKelly]

Hmmmm.... pilots that ride bikes... a positive correlation? I reckon.
I ride a 850 Norton Commando ES. Does good for a Brit.

Mike

[jc pacquin]

used to (in the old days) ride an R67 BMW. Later in life got hooked on Honda, started with a small one (500cc?) then progressed , in 1987 to a ZL1000 Kawasaki. Drive shaft, 100 hp, built to compete with BMW. Great bike! That was my last. Sailed on Lake Chautauqua when young, lightnings and E Scow. E Scow is a real blast, like a chinese fire drill! They are for the young but lots of fun! VERY Fast! Hold the record for monohull sailboat I Think. jcp

[MikeB]

I have a 1979 Honda CX 500. Kind of a cheap ride but basically gets me back and forth to the airport unless the weather is bad (or cold). Bought it for $800 a couple of years ago and put another $200 or so in it (tires, etc.). It gets around 50-55 miles to the gallon. I also took the motorcycle safety class to get my endorsement although I have a license to drive anything from 18 wheelers to school buses. Class was well worth the time and money. I think I was 67 when I bought this bike. The last one I owned was in 1958 while I was 19 and in the air force.....a 1950 Matchless 500 twin. Those were the days when you were industructable, no helmet and tried to see how fast you could take the corner. Now, it's helmet time and I don't ride at night.

Mike Berg

[jc pacquin]

Mike, E Scows are built (by Melges Boats) in Lake Geneva, Wisc. Are you near there?

[WWhunter]

My first bike was a Bridgestone!! Anyone remember those? Then a Yamaha , Stepped up to a HArley Sports that was HEAVILY modified. Guess the Harley bug bit me. After that it was a Wide-Glide and then my favorite....A Heritage Springer because it had the looks of an old classic. Sold it because we were supposed to be transfered to Alaska. As soon as I sold it our orders were changed to Hawaii!!! Needed to quit riding anyways due to a bad back injury.
But had to rekindle the old flame. Found a 1972 Yamaha DS7 with 7300 miles on it this summer that looked like it had just driven out of the showroom. The old guy had bought it new and hadn't rode it for over 16 years. It was quite dirty and needed the carbs cleaned and had some dried up seals but for $150 and some elbow grease it purrs like a kitten.

[CptKelly]

Mike Berg, I too had a 500cc Matchless G9 twin. I think I must have been around 19 or so. I hot rodded it up, and broke the crank. I replaced the crank, and broke another one. That old Matchless ended up in our family landfill, and is still there. I had a buddy who owned a G15 Matchess. It had a Norton 750cc engine, and was very red. A really pretty bike that would run off and leave the Triumphs and Beemers. I think that G15 got me started on the Norton's. Have you ever seen a Marusho ? I saw what appeared to be a Japanese BMW copy at Al Rodi's Cycle shop in Atlanta, it was called a Marusho (sp?). Ah, the good old days... Has anybody checked on the current prices for a new Vespa?

Mike

[MikeB]

The Vincent Black Shadow was the bike to own when I was 19-20 years old (never could afford one). Also, the Ariel Square Four (ditto). Air Force in those days paid me about $225 per month as a E-3 if I remember correctly.

Mike Berg

[Jerry Eichenberger]

Price of a new Vespa is absurd, but is affected adversely by the fall of the dollar vs. the Euro.

Last year, when I got the hots to ride again, I was first looking at maxi scooters, like the Honda Silverwing and Suzuki Burgman. They are nearly $10K, out the dealer's door.

Actually, I still would like to consider a Silverwing - I love all of the storage space. You can actually put 2 helmets and jackets under the seat.

[Roger Anderson]

The Vincent Black Shadow was the bike to own when I was 19-20 years old (never could afford one).
Mike Berg

The Vincents are super expensinve collector bikes now , Jay Leno collection type prices. The Del Mccoury band has a great blue grass version of "1952 Vincent Black Lighting".

[jc pacquin]

Yeaaaah Mike! Forgot about the Vincent Black Shadow.! I was too poor to have one but that WAS the bike back then! Triumph was also big news but the English never seemed to be able to overcome wet weather and ignition problems. Norton was also very large. After the 500 cc Honda I had a 1986 Honda Shadow...GREAT BIKE! Bought them ALL used. They all ran perfectly. Now have a Forester Subaru with a turbo. (Poor Mans Porsche) and it will really Boogie! I also like the altime 4 wheel drive. Its like a cat, and good in snow in Western N.Y. State. Lots of Subarus in that area. JCP

[joea]

Friend of mine here in town has a Black Shadow sitting in his living room. He rides it from time to time but not often, its a showpiece.

In my dreams...

[CptKelly]

Did you guys ever see the photos of Rollie Free laying flat over the seat of a Vincent at over 150mph at the Bonneville Salt Flats? He wore nothing but a short bathing suit. Boy, did he have marbles.
When I was growing up, Vincent's were extremely rare, kinda like the G50 Matchless and Norton Manx. I couldn't have afforded any of them anyway.

Mike

[MikeB]

OK! If we want to go way back, I owned a Cushman motor scooter (1947 4 horse 'step through') and a Whizzer Motor bike (unsure of the year but I believe it was a 1948). This would be in about 1955 when I was in high school. Neither had a legal title so I drove them with a license plate that you used to get in a Wheaties box!!

I learned about installing head gaskets on the Cushman and connecting rod bolts on the Whizzer. Think I paid $40 for the Cushman and $25 for the Whizzer. (Both from money earned working on the family farm:no free ride at our house). They sell a Whizzer replica now for around $2000.

So now I fly a 1946 Champ................................ !!!!

Mike Berg

[Jerry Eichenberger]

My first bike was a 50cc Itom. That's a fairly rare Italian bike of the 1960s, and they are out of business now. It was a true motorcycle, though, not a motorized bicycle.

Then I had a string of Hondas - 50, 90, 150, and 305 Dream.

Then, no bike for 40 years until this past April when I got a Suzuki S40 (Savage, for you OFs).