Loving the bike so far. Went for a decent ride today, I’ve Been a little worried my old ass wouldn’t hold up to a more sporting position, but I got home and I wasn’t sore. Surprisingly, I used to always be a little sore and worn out after a day on the Harley, and some days just completely wiped out physically.. I’ve long suspected the feet forward controls where all the weight in on my ass and spine, was a huge contributor, looking more and more like I was right.

New bike is sporty, but risers in the bars and not the usual clip on, and the rear sets don’t feel as hight and set back. All in all, I felt great. Ordered a ton of new riding gear, as all my shit from sport bike past comes nowhere close to fitting anymore. New jacket with CE 2 armor and ordered a CE2 back protector, pants with inserts for armor and got CE2 for the hips and knees. New boots that aren’t as aggressive as the boot I’m currently wearing from my sport bike day, current boot is a few notches down from a race boot.

Bike rode well. Looking forward to getting past the break in and getting new oil in it. Brakes are great. Suspension is good, but I still need to set the sag . Factory had about half the preload dialed in, I added a few clicks to stiffen it up in a seat of the pant adjustment. Remote preload knob which is awesome.
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2019 SGS IGD
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Anyone have a second gen. Connie 10? (Kawasaki Concours 1000)
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Pulled the trigger on a new ride today. Pics from former owner, but it's going to be fun.





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nice.

I like the sound of the Rhineharts at the 103.

what were you riding before?...I can't remember.
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You mean 30 years ago (other same some loaners from friends)? :-)

Well those were V45 Sabre, followed by a V65 Sabre, then a Yamaha 650 Special.

So I'm just getting back into it and this bike was from one of my fellow Divemaster's SO who just upgraded to a Tri Glide. So he was looking to sell, I have been looking to buy, and they cut me a deal.

It's a lot different than anything I ever had, it's a heck of a lot heavier, but I have friends (more connections actually) out of both the Gails and Yeager's, so I think I'll be doing a class as soon as I can. The fundamentals haven't changed, and it's not like the V65 Sabre was a scooter, I always kept my 'M' endorsement, but I'd prefer to make sure I've been through a class with people who understand an 850lb bike.
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Was able to sneak into an appointment at the DOR office near the Plaza, so the Title/TAX/Tags got done. So things are going well..
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Oh! Dang. Lol. I thought I had seen you post about your bike before. My bad.

My street glide was heavy, but it’s got a low CG. I could bang a u turn in my drive standard two car driveway. She’ll turn. Use those same fundamentals you learned on the other bikes and you’ll be good.

She’ll lean and turn at higher speeds just fine, will be a little slow to turn in, but once in, shell hold the line nicely because it the wheelbase length and rake. Likely drag hard parts before the tires are ever ready to give up so trust the tires despite its weight, .

You’ll love it. Mile eater.

When I get a HD again later on, it’ll likely be an Ultra. Even though I love Dynas ...the touring models are just so convenient and do damn an near everything.
Next time I’ll stick with stock bars I think and likely stock pipes....I’ve got tinnitus like a MF from loud pipes over the years.

:-)
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If you’re local to KC, I’ve seen a few in cycle trader. I think Freedom has one. Which sucks...because Freedom sucks ,( even though I bought three bikes there since 2003...but it’s always a big song and dance to just arrive at a fair price. they use all the bullshit car dealer shit)

And I think Shawnee Cycle. At least, when I was looking at a used Ninja three weeks ago they had one inside.
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A couple from the dive shop and I did the Lee's Summit (east) -> MO-50/MO-131 -> Odessa -> 470 -> Lee's Summit loop last evening. Wow, just WOW!

I'll be honest, the 850lbs of bike had me doing some white-knuckling through the curves on 131 , especially because it was in the evening, a road I'm not all that familiar with, wondering if somebody cut grass into the street, and this bike is new to me), but it was completely fun once I started to get more acclimated to it. But I don't lie, when the signs said 40 for the curve, I was doing 39.

That being said, the couple I was with, she was on an Indian, and he was on a Triumph. Wow, this is what you get when one is a Veterinarian and the other a human doctor. Oh, and their other bikes are BMWs... I was hoping they'd consider adopting me!

The best news was they let me lead so that I could set the pace with what I was comfortable with, and when we stopped at a QT for coffee and to chat, they both said it looked like I had been riding that bike for at least a few years. They knew I was being cautious, but they get it, they're safe people. Just like when we dive, we do things with risk, but we never approach stupid. Those were my Navy days, and they are behind me...

Anyway, I'm loving it...
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Right on.

read up on trail braking technique; and practice ; it'll become 2nd nature / muscle memory.
good video / visualization


Ketih Code's Twist of the Wrist is a good source of information too. Suspension / sag etc is also a commonly overlooked aspect of what makes a motorcycle perform correctly. Now that you've been out of the saddle for a bit, might be the perfect time to read up / practice on technique / visualize concepts etc before you develop any bad habits. (we all have bad habits etc). It's easy to fall into a trap on all this stuff that this stuff doesn't apply to harleys, and it's only for sport riders, but it really does apply. I fell into that trap and got into some bad habits.


even though a lot of these vids / reference materials are sport related, they are absolutely applicable to a big 'ol cruiser. Once I started practicing trail braking and got it to where I wasn't even thinking about it...holy shit. my life improved :-). So much more confidence in the corners, and in particular, making mid-corner adjustments due to unexpected shit (sand, granvel, road kill etc). having that muscle memory to make braking adjustments in the corner....blew my mind. lol. I used to, for about 20 years, subscribe to 'do all the braking before your turn" etc. while not "wrong" per se....trail braking is just so much better and the muscle memory reduces the panic grab of levers and throttle etc in an emergency.

in fact, since I too have been out of the saddle for a good 1.5 yrs., at some point this weekend I'm going to find a secluded parking lot that's in good shape and simply practice quick/agrgessive stops; get to know my bike a little more. even though the new bike has ABS, I want to get a feel for how it responds to increasing levels of break pressure.
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Solid post. Thank you... And with it raining today, well there's nothing that should stop me from watching these videos.

Thank you...
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hard stops are the first thing I practice on a new bike...that and figure eights both directions, and then practice those as slow as possible. My gold wing was so heavy I had to counter steer in every corner to keep it from running us off the road.

My tank, new coils and wires showed up today.

Progress
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Charging up my battery right now. I am ready to just get out for awhile.
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Agree. Today's rain sucks.
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