My soon to be first motorcycle

I started learning to ride out here in Santa Fe with my moms husband a few months ago. He's been riding for 41 years and has been a great teacher. Well, last time I was out, he offered to sell my his first Harley, a 1987 Sportster. Naturally, I said I'd love to buy it. I never imagined my first bike would be a Harley, and I'm very happy it will be.

On this trip, we have ridden every day. So far the most was 70 miles, but tomorrow we are thinking of riding up to Los Alamos. I also got my own leather jacket (had been borrowing one of his) and chaps (borrowed a set last time I was out, because we rode in January).

I will be taking a motorcycle safety class back home the first weekend in May, and then we will ship the bike back to me in NY.

Heres a photo of the Sportster and his 100th anniversary Dyna in the background.

Always nice to see a new rider! +1 on the MSF, I learned quite a bit when I took it.

+2 on MSF, huge value and great learning experience (the price isn't bad either!). Congrats on the classic sportster, we should take a ride once the weather warms up.

Those safety classes are great, but I'll tell you, all the "training" they give you goes right out the window when something happens or a car pulls out in front of you and you have to put your bike in the ditch or eat the ass end of a BMW. Ask me how I know.

Congrats on the Harley though. I love those smaller v-twins. They are a blast to cruise around town on.

Motorcycles.... yeah, the only driving machines in US that is still manual, love it! :)

Got 90 miles from 1.5 gallons. Brunch was an excuse to take a 50 mile ride. Needed the chaps today; it was in the low 50s.

Great stuff,I used to ride,until I ended up with a large TI plate in my head:( wife says we are not going thru that crap again
Been ridin some friends bikes of late,sorta on the side:)

Enjoy it & be safe.
I miss my bike, maybe someday I'll get another.

As a good friend of mine once told me, there are two kinds of people who ride, those who have had accidents and those who will have them. He's now dead from a motorcycle accident.

I'm not trying to be a wet blanket.

Enjoy riding and be aware and be safe.

Congratulations Dylan.
Until I had kids, riding motorcycles were a big part of my life. I now prefer four wheels :)
Hope you have room on board for your razor roll, for your trips to our meets.
Eric.

Getting saddle bags with the bike. And there is a backpack type thing on the passenger backrest that you can't see in the photo.

congrats .. i had a sporty , bored out , cms , bigger carb, sampson straight pipes , a little raked out with drag bars ect ect ect ....it was always nice to come home from work and ride all night in the hot summer nights ... a buddy of mine was on my left side and turned right infront of me clipping my front end and i laid the bike down ..:shrug:

i alsmost bought an old pan head last summer but i had to pay bills instead ...lol

have fun and be safe , i noticed most the time its the other guy you gotta watch out for on the road ...

Great ride, enyoy it and drive safe.
Use a helmet. ;)

I used to ride but stopped after going down on my 2002 Honda VTX1800R on my way to work a year ago. Luckily I had full gear on including chaps and gauntlet gloves. No road rash because of the gear and only broke my left ankle which now has two titanium screws in it. If I hadn't had a full face helmet I would be missing an ear now. I decided not to ride any longer especially when so many idiots are texting while they drive.

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Originally Posted by holli4pirating

Got 90 miles from 1.5 gallons. Brunch was an excuse to take a 50 mile ride. Needed the chaps today; it was in the low 50s.

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This is completely unscientific but my observations have led me to believe that most guys don't ride with the temp less than their age.:)

If you're going to Los Alamos and the roads are clear, continue out on Highway 4 to Jemez Springs. The road past Valles Caldera is just breathtaking. Take it slow as it's twisty and will be cool. Get soak to warm up at Jemez Springs hot springs and head back.

That's a ride.

Nice Dylan. Just be careful and watch out for the other guy. Nice to buy from someone you can trust. :gl:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DGilloon

If you're going to Los Alamos and the roads are clear, continue out on Highway 4 to Jemez Springs. The road past Valles Caldera is just breathtaking. Take it slow as it's twisty and will be cool. Get soak to warm up at Jemez Springs hot springs and head back.

That's a ride.

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We didn't have time to keep riding out, but we did take 4 back the other way. It is indeed a beautiful road.

Now I'm back in NY and it's supposed to rain every day this coming week. I'll take the safety course the first weekend in May, head to the DMV for my license, and have the bike shipped to arrive as soon after as possible. It's going to be a long month...

+3 on the MSF-- "looking towards where you want the bike to go", "using both brakes", and "braking before the turn" are key things I took away from that course. I'll always remember my Sportster as being fun around town. I ride a KLR650 now and couldn't be happier. Always be aware of your oil level and tire pressure before you set out to ride--that goes for any motorcycle!