Posted by spunky hussein tuna on September 20, 2008, 12:18 am
OK, I did it today.
Went down to Destination Daytona to kick tires and ended up riding a gnu
FLHX home. Not much in the way of bells and whistles, no ABS, no nav
system, just the basic bike, security, and LoJack. Oh, and a chopped
tourpack on order.
I'm in love. Took it out in an empty parking lot near the dealership and
rode donuts and eights until I was comfortable with how the weight shift
feels as it leans and how far it would go over before thing dragged. I
never really did find the answer to the last part, it leans over as far
as I'll need it to under normal circumstances without dragging anything.
Rode a lap of the Loop, which is the best of the local low speed
twisties. Damn, this bike handles nicely. Everything TL said,
everything Banker Bob said is absolutely dead on. The gnu frame is a
really stable platform, but it doesn't fight when you bend it into a
corner and it doesn't seem to have any interest in standing up when
braking in a corner.
And the brakes are the best HD brakes I've felt. No more spongy,
squashy front brake lever. Nice and firm, very linear, easy to modulate.
Of course I wasn't going to get away with riding a gnu bike ninety miles
to home and stay dry. Not in Florida. No way. Got caught in a typical
Florida frog stranger complete with light show and percussion. And
where was my rain gear? I'd taken it out of the bags on the Duc before
I rode it down and traded it on the gnu bike, so my FrogToggs were
sitting in their little pouch on the workbench in my garage. Perfectly
safe. Of course I got soaked to the bone. It's Florida.
But before I got completely soaked I was impressed with how much
protection the old style rhino (or I guess bat wing is the current term)
fairing gives. Excellent wind protection (probably will get a slightly
taller windshield for trips, though), even to my hands.
Rode well and was completely stable in the rain on some fairly deep
water running across the road. I like these tires.
As I was riding down the coast road in and out of downpours I realized
that this bike (which now has like 90 miles on it) is so comfortable, so
competent, so outright accommodating that it seems to almost disappear
under me. That's the best way I can describe it. Ever ridden a really
good horse, or a bicycle that was really fit to you? They have a way of
being so competent but so unobtrusive that they become as much an
extension of your body as your arm or your leg. This bike feels that
way. I think this is going to be a long and satisfying relationship.
Oh, yeah, it's not black. I got a gray one.
Like my hair.
--
spunky hussein MyFeetAreStillWet tuna
Posted by Ryder Rick on September 20, 2008, 1:01 am
On 2008-09-19 21:18:03 -0700, spunky hussein tuna
> OK, I did it today.
>
> Went down to Destination Daytona to kick tires and ended up riding a
> gnu FLHX home. Not much in the way of bells and whistles, no ABS, no
> nav system, just the basic bike, security, and LoJack. Oh, and a
> chopped tourpack on order.
>
> I'm in love. Took it out in an empty parking lot near the dealership
> and rode donuts and eights until I was comfortable with how the weight
> shift feels as it leans and how far it would go over before thing
> dragged. I never really did find the answer to the last part, it leans
> over as far as I'll need it to under normal circumstances without
> dragging anything.
>
> Rode a lap of the Loop, which is the best of the local low speed
> twisties. Damn, this bike handles nicely. Everything TL said,
> everything Banker Bob said is absolutely dead on. The gnu frame is a
> really stable platform, but it doesn't fight when you bend it into a
> corner and it doesn't seem to have any interest in standing up when
> braking in a corner.
>
> And the brakes are the best HD brakes I've felt. No more spongy,
> squashy front brake lever. Nice and firm, very linear, easy to
> modulate.
>
> Of course I wasn't going to get away with riding a gnu bike ninety
> miles to home and stay dry. Not in Florida. No way. Got caught in a
> typical Florida frog stranger complete with light show and percussion.
> And where was my rain gear? I'd taken it out of the bags on the Duc
> before I rode it down and traded it on the gnu bike, so my FrogToggs
> were sitting in their little pouch on the workbench in my garage.
> Perfectly safe. Of course I got soaked to the bone. It's Florida.
>
> But before I got completely soaked I was impressed with how much
> protection the old style rhino (or I guess bat wing is the current
> term) fairing gives. Excellent wind protection (probably will get a
> slightly taller windshield for trips, though), even to my hands.
>
> Rode well and was completely stable in the rain on some fairly deep
> water running across the road. I like these tires.
>
> As I was riding down the coast road in and out of downpours I realized
> that this bike (which now has like 90 miles on it) is so comfortable,
> so competent, so outright accommodating that it seems to almost
> disappear under me. That's the best way I can describe it. Ever
> ridden a really good horse, or a bicycle that was really fit to you?
> They have a way of being so competent but so unobtrusive that they
> become as much an extension of your body as your arm or your leg. This
> bike feels that way. I think this is going to be a long and satisfying
> relationship.
>
> Oh, yeah, it's not black. I got a gray one.
>
> Like my hair.
Don't do it.
Must resist..
Must not test drive...
Don't even look at one.....
First year is never good........
Can't be that good...........
Remember payments?..............
--
Ryder Rick
< it's not working >
Posted by spunky hussein tuna on September 20, 2008, 1:43 am
Ryder Rick wrote:
> First year is never good........
The funny thing is, I really went to see if they were offering some
serious discounts on unsold 2008s for exactly that reason. They had a
ton of unsold 2008s. Selling for list.
No shit? sez I.
No shit, sez the salesdood.
And the list price difference is what?
(OK, I don't really remember the actual price difference between list on
an unsold 2008 and a gnu 2009, but I remember thinking 'Better frame,
better engine mounting, better exhaust, better swingarm for a negligible
difference in price. Fuck yeah!")
Got a seriously good price for the Duc trade in sight unseen.
Runs completely contrary to what I thought I knew about things like
floorplanning, dealer incentives, and that sort of thing. But I got
what I think of as a good deal. A better deal on the gnu one than on the
exact same bike in the older version. Doesn't make sense to me, but
fuck it, I've got a gnu bike and a warranty. I'm happy.
> Can't be that good...........
Hell, it may not be given time. For all I know the frame will twist
into a pretzel in the rain and the gnu exhaust may crack in fifteen
unreachable places and the thing may throw me off, run me over and kill
my considerable ass. Only time will tell.
> Remember payments?..............
I don't do that with bikes. Way too easy to satisfy myself with
something I can afford without having to do that to want to get into
that. I'm lucky; I've got that option. Not everybody does. But hell,
with all the fooferaw in the economy at the moment, if you take out a
loan you lender may go toes up so quick that nobody ever figures out
that you owe any money, let alone who it really is you owe it to.
--
spunky hussein IfYouDon'tWantToBuyOneI'dSeriouslySuggestYouNotTestOne tuna
Posted by Nathan W. Collier on September 20, 2008, 1:45 am
> I really went to see if they were offering some serious discounts on
> unsold 2008s for exactly that reason. They had a ton of unsold 2008s.
> Selling for list.
i did just the opposite...went in looking for an '09 but couldnt resist the
deals they were offering on the '08s.
congratulations on your new bike.
--
Nathan In Montana
http://ConcealedCarryForum.com
http://1911talk.com
http://HiPowerTalk.com
http://GlockCarry.com
http://P7talk.com
http://PPStalk.com
Posted by Chilly on September 20, 2008, 8:07 am
>> I really went to see if they were offering some serious discounts on
>> unsold 2008s for exactly that reason. They had a ton of unsold
>> 2008s. Selling for list.
>
> i did just the opposite...went in looking for an '09 but couldnt
> resist the deals they were offering on the '08s.
Its a shame you didn't find a group of knowledgable riders, all too
familiar with the quirks of the 08 and earlier touring frames, who might
have suggested going for the 09 instead ... Course, you'd have had to show
them some respect first <shrug>
--
Chilly BS#226
Urbi et Orbi
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>
> Went down to Destination Daytona to kick tires and ended up riding a
> gnu FLHX home. Not much in the way of bells and whistles, no ABS, no
> nav system, just the basic bike, security, and LoJack. Oh, and a
> chopped tourpack on order.
>
> I'm in love. Took it out in an empty parking lot near the dealership
> and rode donuts and eights until I was comfortable with how the weight
> shift feels as it leans and how far it would go over before thing
> dragged. I never really did find the answer to the last part, it leans
> over as far as I'll need it to under normal circumstances without
> dragging anything.
>
> Rode a lap of the Loop, which is the best of the local low speed
> twisties. Damn, this bike handles nicely. Everything TL said,
> everything Banker Bob said is absolutely dead on. The gnu frame is a
> really stable platform, but it doesn't fight when you bend it into a
> corner and it doesn't seem to have any interest in standing up when
> braking in a corner.
>
> And the brakes are the best HD brakes I've felt. No more spongy,
> squashy front brake lever. Nice and firm, very linear, easy to
> modulate.
>
> Of course I wasn't going to get away with riding a gnu bike ninety
> miles to home and stay dry. Not in Florida. No way. Got caught in a
> typical Florida frog stranger complete with light show and percussion.
> And where was my rain gear? I'd taken it out of the bags on the Duc
> before I rode it down and traded it on the gnu bike, so my FrogToggs
> were sitting in their little pouch on the workbench in my garage.
> Perfectly safe. Of course I got soaked to the bone. It's Florida.
>
> But before I got completely soaked I was impressed with how much
> protection the old style rhino (or I guess bat wing is the current
> term) fairing gives. Excellent wind protection (probably will get a
> slightly taller windshield for trips, though), even to my hands.
>
> Rode well and was completely stable in the rain on some fairly deep
> water running across the road. I like these tires.
>
> As I was riding down the coast road in and out of downpours I realized
> that this bike (which now has like 90 miles on it) is so comfortable,
> so competent, so outright accommodating that it seems to almost
> disappear under me. That's the best way I can describe it. Ever
> ridden a really good horse, or a bicycle that was really fit to you?
> They have a way of being so competent but so unobtrusive that they
> become as much an extension of your body as your arm or your leg. This
> bike feels that way. I think this is going to be a long and satisfying
> relationship.
>
> Oh, yeah, it's not black. I got a gray one.
>
> Like my hair.