Just a pre-face. I love bikes. I grew up on them. I rode for about 35 years. Had two pretty bad accidents in a span of 6 months, and decided to hang up the leather until my kids are out of the house.

So my wife and I are killing time. We go to a local dealer, just looking around. I pointed to a bike, and said that's the bike I'm going to buy when I retire. This is nothing that just happened, I've been eyeing this bikes as long as I've been riding. They aren't for everybody, but it will probably be the last bike I will every own. My wife kind of looked at me funny, and said something like, "Seriously? You'd want that bike???" Then she asked why I would wait until I retired to buy it. I can't believe she is trying to talk me into it. She liked that it is something they we could do together. I think she thought I was interested in a sport bike.

I actually talked myself out of it. I'm not ready to retire, the kids are still in the house, and with all the idiots using their cell phones and driving, I'm not sure I'm ready to be back on the road on two wheels.

The bike? A NIB 2016 Honda Goldwing priced to steal. As much as I want to steal it, I'm not ready...

If you're not "ready" then you made the right choice.

This ain't your first rodeo as you have been on bikes before and know the inherent risks. There can be no hesitation when you're on it so the choice is clear.

They make thousands of bikes every year. One will be waiting for you when the time is right.

Cheers~

Tell us more about how she wants you to up your life insurance as well.

Just kidding. Life is short, do the things you want to do.

I don't know about the rest of you youngsters but I'm in my early 70's and have ridden moderately most of my life. As we get older, many of us get slower and we're not as tough as we used to be. I live in a very rural area with a lot of paved back roads and I could still go out and ride 20 miles and not see many cars (though it only takes one). A smart friend of mine said with the medications he is on there wouldn't be any way to stop the leaks if he ever had a problem. We all take risks but I am not willing to ride on roads with traffic and am doing much less riding on our little back roads. In fact I really haven't ridden at all for the last two years. Certainly to each his own! We've had two car to car head-ons in the last two weeks in our county and out of nine people, at least three of them are dead. They were both crossovers and if they had involved bikes, all nine would probably be dead.

The Honda Gold Wing is big and heavy and most motorists know it's among them in traffic.

On the highway, it's a joy to ride, cross country if you wish, like I did several times.

But in stop n' go traffic it's a heavy bike. Say around 900lbs, wet.

It may not be a good choice for your first motorcycle.

Then, there's the brain dead motorists on cell phones or scratch their asses that you will have to contend with.

IMO, better reconsider getting a motorcycle.

quote:

Originally posted by Gene Hillman:
I don't know about the rest of you youngsters but I'm in my early 70's and have ridden moderately most of my life. As we get older, many of us get slower and we're not as tough as we used to be. I live in a very rural area with a lot of paved back roads and I could still go out and ride 20 miles and not see many cars (though it only takes one). A smart friend of mine said with the medications he is on there wouldn't be any way to stop the leaks if he ever had a problem. We all take risks but I am not willing to ride on roads with traffic and am doing much less riding on our little back roads. In fact I really haven't ridden at all for the last two years. Certainly to each his own! We've had two car to car head-ons in the last two weeks in our county and out of nine people, at least three of them are dead. They were both crossovers and if they had involved bikes, all nine would probably be dead.

I can relate to this. I turn 70 in a few months and I decided to give up 2 wheels for a cage only. I know that my reaction time is a lot slower and after fighting cancer for all of 2016 my strength isn't near what it should be.

I haven't sold the bike yet but it's time. I will miss the rides in the evenings and weekends with friends, but it is the right thing to do.

Now getting to the OP's post, if I were younger and thinking of getting a new bike, the Wing would be very high on the list. I know a few guys that have them and they absolutely love them. If you think you'll give up agility, go to YouTube and plug in 'Yellow Wolf on the Dragon' and that thought will go away.

Jim

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Jimbo54, August 11, 2017 06:45 PM

I just about don't need a bike, but I ride some. I've been on & off since 12 years old. My 1st was a DT-100 Enduro.

My current ride is a few year old CB-1100, with just a little bling.

I donno man. A goldwing is a lot of bike and pretty powerful. Having not ridden in a while it might be better to ease back into riding (when you are comfortable of course) with something more tame and docile like say the new GSX-R1000R or BMW S1000RR.

Look at something Sport Touring in the 500# range.

BMW perhaps?

I think I will rent a Harley big twin to see if I want to buy one as a retirement scooter. At present I am very happy with a 781cc Honda Interceptor with 14k miles on it. It's 15 years young, but performs as good as I need.

A friend of mine was riding one day, coming home, and stopped on a major highway for a church parking lot to empty one fine Sunday, you know, where the off-duty officers control traffic to avoid crashes? My friend stopped as the first vehicle that the officer waved to a stop, but the young lady behind him did not, hit him at 50 mph, and he ended up about 100 feet downrange. Bike totaled. Every protective bit of clothing he had was shredded. He recovered in a month, and determined that ain't nobody taking his retirement away from him no how. So, he sold it all.

I had a 2001 GW, loved that bike, yes it's heavy but it has reverse, handled great in the twisties and was a joy to tour with(wish it had a power windshield). I now have a 2017 Indian Roadmaster also very heavy in the 900lb range. I would not recommend these bikes to a new rider. There are plenty of lighter bikes out there that would do the job of touring or just day rides.

quote:

Originally posted by Snapping Twig:
Look at something Sport Touring in the 500# range.

BMW perhaps?

Second this.

My '16 Yamaha FJ-09 weighs in at 465 pounds dry, has a nice comfy upright/touring riding position, and the engine is a freakin' miracle. 100+ horsepower, so in a 465 pound bike it flat GOES, but plenty of low-end grunt to donk around town at 25mph. You can tour sedately, or let your inner hooligan have a little fun.

In fact, I need to run into town and pick up a few odds and ends...

2016 BMW S1000XR. I too am approaching on ancient. My vision and reflexes are not what they used to be. I ride accordingly and do my best to get out into low traffic areas.
But not willing to give it up just yet. Possibly my last bike. Time will tell.

quote:

Originally posted by MikeGLI:
Tell us more about how she wants you to up your life insurance as well.

Just kidding. Life is short, do the things you want to do.

Actually that was my choice back in 96. The Itch was strong and I figured you might only go around once. So after sharpening my pencil and doing some research on what it would take to replace my income if I should go early I purchased a term insurance policy to cover same. The policy has since lapsed, the kids are on their own. And me,I'm still in the wind.

PS I am indeed fortunate that my retirement $ will continue unabated for the rest of my wife's life if I die first, whatever the reason of my demise.

Not my first bike. My retirement bike. My last bike was a Suzuki Bandit 1200 I had done some work to. It had the old air cooled GSXR 1100 engine in it. Not fast by today's standards, but it was around 140hp and 90ft/lbs due to some Dale Walker modifications.

Not sure what I will do. I told my wife if the bike is still there in a month or two, I'll make an offer. I have a dirt bike I can trade in. If it doesn't happen, it doesn't happen.

But I did see some guys buzzing around the parking lot on Kawasaki Z125 Pro Z's, and that looked fun as hell. A pure hooligan bike in a pocket bike size. LOL. And I live around a lot of backroads...

As far as insurance, I've made sure my family is covered after my last wreck. I joke with my wife, I'm worth more dead than alive. But it's true...