For all of us with two wheels also

Wildman

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Well I just had to share. Two weekends ago my daughter and I took the Basic Motorcycle Safety course. Me to get my motorcycle endorsement back on my license after my amputation and her to get her motorcycle endorsement for the first time. Now this young lady has been riding quads since she was 7 years old and Jeepin since she was 3. So she is a motorhead almost as bad as her dad. I was real proud of her when she passed the class and her birthday was last week. So this past weekend I took her out bike shopping. I've been taking her to bike shops for the past few months once we had signed up for the class trying to show her all the different bikes available. I've been riding a Harley since she turn 5 becasue she has been my passenger. Before that I rode sport bikes.

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My CBR1000 that I had before I went to Iraq in 2004. When I came home due to being wounded in the leg I couldn't sit on a sport bike any longer so I traded it in on something a little less sporty.

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My 2005 Buell XB9SX in Hero Blue that I bought after I was able to walk again.

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When my daughter was going to be turning 5 which is the legal age to be able to ride in WA I bought this 2007 Harley Nightrain Softail.

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Picking her up from preschool on her 5th birthday.

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So then I ran into a Harley Road Glide Custom one day when I had stopped by a Harley dealer. And I fell in love with the look. So I bought this 2010 Road Glide Custom. Of course then in 2011 they came out with the Road Glide Ultra with is the full touring version.




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So two years later I ended up with one as a Christmas present.


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This is what it looks like now. I haven't been able to ride for the past 3-4 years due to my leg injury but now I am getting back into riding again.

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My first time riding my Harley since my amputation. This was on 28 April 2019.

So the really BIG news for my daughter is that today dad surprised her with her own motorcycle. She had test drove this bike this past weekend and REALLY liked it. So I went over to the dealer and picked it up today for her. Happy Birthday kid...………….

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Getting ready for her first ride on her new bike. It is a Honda CB500XA. Nice little bike that she can grow on and will be able to ride for a few years if not longer. I took it for a spin just to get an idea what it was like and how it rode. I was impressed with how peppy it was with my fat butt on it.

 
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Great story! Thank you much for giving so much of yourself for our great nation. I no longer ride, but I did have a very similar past with bikes including a couple of VFR's, a Buell S1 and M2 and an iron head Sportster. I really miss the Buell's and it is a shame they are no longer around. It is awesome that you can share this experience with your daughter as well. BTW, I went to a funeral in Baldwin Michigan last weekend- it was right in the middle of a Blessing of the Bikes- 50,000 bikes in a town of 1,000. Interesting traffic.
 
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Nice story. Thanks for sharing and thanks for your service for us all. Really like that flat black one. I used to ride and had a sportster and then a heritage softail, but that was a long time ago. I oddly miss the sportster more.
 
Oh man... I've owned just about every "cool" bike worth owning. I gave it a rest for a while since the kids are young, and moreover because I don't have anyone to ride with anymore.

However, I miss it dearly.

Thanks for the great story! It's made me nostalgic.
 
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Great story! Thank you much for giving so much of yourself for our great nation. I no longer ride, but I did have a very similar past with bikes including a couple of VFR's, a Buell S1 and M2 and an iron head Sportster. I really miss the Buell's and it is a shame they are no longer around. It is awesome that you can share this experience with your daughter as well. BTW, I went to a funeral in Baldwin Michigan last weekend- it was right in the middle of a Blessing of the Bikes- 50,000 bikes in a town of 1,000. Interesting traffic.

I looked at the S1's and M2's and almost bought a M2 at one point. I really like Buell bikes. I also had a Firebolt for a while but I really wish I had never sold my XB9SX. It was a great bike for the twisties and just fun to ride.

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Good story, and a lucky daughter.

I went behind my dads back when I bought my first bike. It was a 00 or a 01 Honda Magna that I bought off my buddy for $3200. Boy was he pissed...
He came around after awhile. I think he was just worried that I was too young and didnt have experience. Once I got my license he really felt better.

I rode that for 3 or 4 years. For a 750cc it had a massive amount of power. But stature wise I needed something bigger. I sold it to another friend of mine for $3200, so I broke even on it. My dad actually helped me find my next bike. In 2009 he was on a business trip and stopped at a dealership to kill time, found a floor model that was an 06 model and the dealer was trying to sell it to make room for the newer models. He called me up and sent me some pictures of it. I drove 250 miles up the next day right before college finals and bought it. So as of early last month it has been exactly 10 years since I have owned it.

I have tried to sell it a couple of times in the last two years, one guy came and sat on it and said he would take it but seeing someone else on my bike broke my heart. I told him sorry, but no longer for sale. I posted it up again a few months ago, but no bites. It costs me less that $250 a year to insure/register it so Im starting to think I should keep and enjoy it. Even if I dont ride it near as much as I used to.

30k miles and other than routine oil changes, routine valve adjustments, and tires it has been an absolute trouble-free bike.

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I had dirt bikes as a kid but my parents didn't ride so I am the rebel of my family. I don't have pictures of any of my earlier bikes. My first street bike was a 1992 Suzuki GSXR 1100. It was STUPID to buy that bike as my first street bike but I was young and dumb at the time.

So I let my daughter ride her NEW bike to school today and she dropped it up at the end of our road and already broke the brake lever. ;) 😟😞
But as a new rider I knew it was going to happen. She'll learn and that is part of the reason I got her the bike now. I have about 2 years to try and help her learn how to ride safely and improve her skills. She'll be heading off to college soon.
 
Oh man... I've owned just about every "cool" bike worth owning. I gave it a rest for a while since the kids are young, and moreover because I don't have anyone to ride with anymore.

However, I miss it dearly.

Thanks for the great story! It's made me nostalgic.

So give us a list of the bikes you have had and pic's if you got them.
 
Great Story, thanks for the share. Came from anti-motorcycle family. When I came back from Afghan deployment at age 20 in 2009 I bought a yz250 dirt bike and started going out to Ocotillo Wells every weekend. Never been on bike or used a clutch before that time but picked it up fast while learning some hard lessons out in the dezert sending gaps and jumps. Same time I picked up my first TJ wrangler. From that moment was hooked on off-roading in two/four wheels. Currently have three Triumphs, two dirt bikes and CT70H. Ridden a lot of places from SD to Oregon to Maine. This picture is one the best times I had on two wheels riding from SF to usfs roads above Sand Dollar beach with a girl on my 1967 T120R Bonneville.
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same triumph, different girl at Crater lake.
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last time I went to Moab 2017 in my 06 scrambler got from an old man in Portland. wow did that place change, never going back again with all the side by sides and JKs
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I've since retired to a touring bike with a windscreen and side cases. On the Mt. Washington road in NH last summer
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That is awesome and some great pictures.

I rode bikes when I was stationed in Germany in 1980 and it was a blast doing 100+ on the Autobahn. Took a break from bikes after I was first married but missed them so had to get one again. I started on mini-bikes when I was 11 and had to rebuild the 5HP Brigs & Stratton engine. My first dirt bike was a Yamaha 360. Then I had a TT 250 and a Honda 250 both dirt bikes. The bikes I rode in Germany were a buddies bike.
 
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Oh man... I've owned just about every "cool" bike worth owning. I gave it a rest for a while since the kids are young, and moreover because I don't have anyone to ride with anymore.

However, I miss it dearly.

Thanks for the great story! It's made me nostalgic.

Same here! I gave up riding when the first one came.. Now the youngest is 5, I'm thinking about getting back in. I miss it.

@Wildman that's a great rundown! That 1000F you were sitting on brings back memories of my old VFR. I LOVED that bike. Actually, I've loved all my bikes. I miss my bikes.
 
Same here! I gave up riding when the first one came.. Now the youngest is 5, I'm thinking about getting back in. I miss it.

@Wildman that's a great rundown! That 1000F you were sitting on brings back memories of my old VFR. I LOVED that bike. Actually, I've loved all my bikes. I miss my bikes.

Between Jeepin and bike rides I have built some awesome memories with my daughter. The longest bike ride we have do is to Calif. and she loved it. But got bored sitting back there with little to do. Got here one of those cheap electronic games to play.
This is at my parents house in Wofford Heights, CA which is east of Bakersfield near Kernville, CA. That is my ex's Sportster behind my bike. She had never drove a bike until she met me. I'm a bad influence.

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Okay, here's some of my past motorcycles:

My 2002 Ducati 998S

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My 2003 Aprilia RSV Mille R

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My 2005 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R:

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My 2006 Suzuki GSX-R 1000:

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My 2012 Aprilia RSV4 Factory:

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My 2013 Aprilia RSV4 Factory:

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My 2005 Ducati 999R:

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My 2017 Indian Scout ABS:

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My 2014 Harley Nightster:

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My 2017 Harley Forty Eight:

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My 2009 Yamaha R1:

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I've also owned a number of bikes not shown including a 1997 Ducati 916, a 2002 GSX-R 1000, a Triumph 675R, a 1999 Ducati 996, and many others!
 
Great story @Wildman you must be one proud dad. Thank you for your service and everything you have sacrificed for our country.

Other then riding a street legal Honda XR400 on the road a few times I don't have much of any experience riding on the street. I have however road on the dirt since I was in middle school. Started with an XR200 then moved to a XR400. Currently I own a CRF450r but I rarely ever ride it anymore. I would love to get a dual sport KTM one day to use primarily on dirt. My folks have a house up near Lake Tahoe, Ca so I always figured it would be fun to ride up there where traffic is much lighter. I've never really had the urge to ride a bike daily in the bay area because I feel it's only a matter of time before some idiot on their cell phone would plow into the side of me.
 
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...because I feel it's only a matter of time before some idiot on there cell phone would plow into the side of me.

Thats why I find myself riding less and less each year. Ive lost count the number of near misses people have had around me. Running red lights, on their phone, and some that I believe were just being dicks to people on motorcycles. Its really a chore to ride anymore.
 
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Thats why I find myself riding less and less each year. Ive lost count the number of near misses people have had around me. Running red lights, on their phone, and some that I believe were just being dicks to people on motorcycles. Its really a chore to ride anymore.
Maybe as cars get more technologically advanced and start taking the driver element out of the equation those who'd rather text then drive will have the option. Thus, making it safer for those on two wheels.
 
I sold my 2014 Indian Chieftain in January. I am never home to ride it. 5 years old, 2000 miles. I kept my trust old Moto Guzzi T5. While I love to ride, I do not love riding in Florida. Not one bit. Maybe I need to move back to Idaho. I had a Royal Enfield here in Dubai, sold that as well.
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