Greetings KBers,
Long time subscribers will recall two things, namely:
In August, some blind bint in a 4WD decided to make my (and Boris, my GSX1400's) day a bit worse sending us for a slide down West Coast Road of a morning; and
A few years ago, Mr jrandom loaned me his (at the time) GSX1400, which (eventually) led me to buying one...
Well, jrandom has come through again, this time leaving his Harley XL1200N in my care for a tootle. This being my first time aboard two wheels since The Day (tm), the Wife was a bit nervous about it, but I was keen given that I'd never swung a leg over one of "Milwaukee's Finest".
Thankfully, the Weather Gods smiled (a bit) so I was able to pull on the Teknic stuff (still bearing scars from my bit of Road Surfing (tm)) and slot my delicate tootsies into the Gaernes once again.
With the Wife insisting on regular text updates, I climbed aboard (climbed being a bit misleading – she’s a low beast), and thumbed the starter. After retrieving my eyeballs which had been shaken out onto the driveway (Holy Jeebus, they shake, these things), I flicked into first and into the fray.
First challenge – where are the damn footpegs? Unfamiliarity meaning I had to look down from time to time to actually see where to put my hooves – having never ridden a “forward controlled” bike before. Also, a special place in hell awaits the sadist who invented that indicator system.
After a quick detour to the local servo to top up the tank (no, not with diesel, you little scamps), onwards to Westgate, getting back into the “groove” of leaning into corners and second guessing cagers (made easier by the pipes on this one – louder than a Green Party MP whinging about some imagined unjustice in OuterRoa…)
Quick text to the Wife to let her know I hadn’t exploded from being back on two wheels and onwards to Kumeu – leaving the thing in 3rd gear most of the time and rolling on and off the gas as required, letting the torque do the work (jrandom, I found the problem; it’s only running on two cylinders).
Arriving in Kumeu (another Wife check-in text) and having a scowl at the approaching weather, I decided conservatism was the order of the day, and I should head towards base, rather than carry on up 16 as per my original plan. Decided to head back home the back way (via Taupaki and Waitakere). All in all, I probably only got about 90 minutes in, but a nice shakedown on a very rider-friendly piece of equipment.
As always, hat-tip to jrandom for the lend of the Harley.
Originally Posted by rachprice
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