Tim103

I’m on my third Gold Wing and decided to trike this last one with a Roadsmith kit. Had some lower back and leg issues that made an 800 lb bike a problem at times, especially with a passenger. Haven’t dropped a bike in 46 years but decided not to push the envelope after well over 1/2 million miles. Did get knocked off one of my Harley’s by a crazy driver in a Honda Civic. Once is a plenty.

rmorrison1116 Loc: Near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

I'm not sure how to respond to this. First, cattle do not see red like humans do so to a bull, there is no such thing as red, more like shades of yellow and blue.
I don't know what the police are like where you live but around here, the police don't single out people on motorcycles unless, like any other motorist, they are breaking the law.
Also, as I am not a youngster on a crotch rocket, but an older person on a large expensive motorcycle, I tend to be nothing more than traffic to the police.

Wingpilot Loc: Wasilla. Ak

Congratulations on your new Wing. Gold Wings are wonderful motorcycle. I've 2 GL1500s and 2 GL1800s. The last one was a brand new yellow '05. When we moved back to Alaska in '12, it had over 85,000 miles on it. My wife had an '01 Wing until she decided, finally, that it was getting too heavy for her. I finally gave up riding a couple years ago, after 44 years. That new Wing is a nice-looking bike, and I understand that it handles even better than the previdous editions of the 1800, and that's saying a lot! I always regarded the GL1800 as a sport bike on steroids. Enjoy that new ride, and ride the backroads with lots of curves. Your bike is red, but I'm looking a little green. LOL.

lautenk2

I've been riding since 1969, got my M/C license (at Trevose State Trooper Barracks, but I'm in Colorado now) before I had a car license. Currently have a BMW K1200S, and as a sport bike guy I tend to like smaller bikes better (900 - 1,000cc is about right, a little more to ride two-up), but there's no denying your new Wing is really pretty. And, of course, anything with just two wheels is automatically very cool.

I especially like the way your photo really shows off that bright, bold metallic paint & chrome, so whatever lighting you had available was great. Let's say the background is "busy" which is the kindest description it deserves. You should go ride, take a camera, and find a better background. For your spiritual support, I'm putting on boots, gauntlets, etc. right this minute and going out with a goal of 150 miles before lunch. Turning off the computer now.

rmorrison1116 Loc: Near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

The photo was taken in the parking lot of the local Wegmans grocery store which is why the background is so busy. One of these days I will go somewhere to photograph the bike with a nicer background.
Keep on riding and enjoy...

rmorrison1116 Loc: Near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

Thank you. My first 'wing was a 98 GL1500SE I bought used. Wing number two was a 2013 GL1800B and the one in the picture is 'wing number three. When I feel it's time to give up riding two wheels I'll have what ever 'wing I have at the time turned into a trike and keep going for a while longer. My wife started riding on a Honda Rebel and in 2006 I got her Kawasaki Vulcan 500 LTD. She had some issues with balance making it hard to ride so, I installed outrigger wheels on her bike. It looks like a trike but is still driven by the bikes rear wheel. She took to that like a beaver in water.
The 2018 Goldwing is a total redesign. Goldwing's were always sport touring bikes but most of the emphasis was on touring. The new 'wing is much sportier than all previous models. Honda isn't totally crazy and left a good amount of the bikes character as a touring bike, but, as you can see from the photo, have made it much sportier. Mine is the GL1800D, the touring version. There are a few versions of the new Goldwing. The sport version is basically the same bike without the rear trunk plus for some reason they come standard with a 7 speed manually shiftable automatic transmission. Mine is a 6 speed manual transmission. The owner of the dealership I bought mine at said the gearing on the 7 speed automatic is more aligned towards twisty winedy roads and the 6 speed, the top gear is overdrive for better gas mileage at highway speeds.
Whatever the differences between the models, the new bike is definitely different from my previous, definitely more sport. What I need to do now is put on a set of comfy grips like I had on the previous bike and maybe floor boards and a luggage rack and it will be all set.

Wingpilot Loc: Wasilla. Ak

We were always in love with twisty roads. We always said "the twistier the better.". Riding in the Pacific NW was dream riding, with lots of interesting roads to ride. We liked mountain riding the best, and avoided freeways and interstates if at all possible. To get an idea of what we liked to ride, go on google maps and check out Hwy 21 in Idaho, that runs from the East end of Boise through Idaho City and up to Stanley, ID. The 7-speed is what I would get if I ever got back into riding. I've had a love affair with the Gold Wing since 1992 when I got my first one, a '92 Aspencade, to which I added the CB radio and some chrome. Second one was a '94 SE that was the dealership's demo. I got that one in 2000 with 12K on the odometer. When we moved to Idaho in '02, I sold the 1500 and got an '01 1800 after riding my friend's 1800 and was bitten by the bug. Big difference between the two. The 1500, I think, was designed to be a freeway tourer. Handled pretty well, but was at home on the slab. The 1800, however, was designed for sportier touring. We both loved our 1800's. After we moved back to Alaska in '12 we both gave up riding. Seems pretty boring riding up here with a limited road system and all the tourist traffic filling up the one main road (Glenn Hwy) that comes into Anchorage. Lots of traffic and inconsiderate, crazy drivers led us both to decide to quit while we were still winning.

Just a tip, regarding trikes. My friend in Idaho had a GL1500 trike, and when she went to trade it in, no one would offer her much for it. The bike was a '98 model, and the trike conversion was about 5 years old, and it had some issues, but no one would work on it. Seems no dealers and very few shops will work on trike converted bikes. She ended up getting a new Spyder, and she loves it. It's different, she says, but lots of fun. Meantime, the new Wing is a really good looking one, and I like the fact that they've given it a significan weight loss and more power. I imagine it's a total blast to ride. Have fun on that new Wing.

rmorrison1116 Loc: Near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

It is definitely fun to ride. I'm still getting use to the new one; my body has muscle memory from the previous one so I have some adjusting to do.
Goldwing trikes are actually fairly common in this part of the country. We went on a charity ride back in September, sponsored by a local church. There were over 400 bikes and I'd guess, just from walking around the lots before the ride started, checking out the other bikes, there were easily 75 Goldwing trikes. Some of them were your basic conversions and some were elaborate works of functional art. There was one that belonged to a retired custom motorcycle shop owner and it was ridiculously cool. We had done extensive modifications on the engine. The rear section was huge; three people could ride this bike. The driver up front and two passenger side by side. It even had a small refrigerator built in for cool refreshing beverages. I wouldn't be surprised if the paint job alone cost as much as my new bike. The thing was absolutely gorgeous. The owner driver was an older gentleman, maybe a little older than me, I'd guess late 60's, plus his wife and their daughter, a young lady in her mid 30's. Real nice family, very sociable, and he appeared to know a whole, whole lot about motorcycles.
Anyway, my wife and I are talking about getting her a Spyder. She'll never ride two wheeler again because of health issues but she has zero problem with three.
I looked at the map of your area in Alaska and you're so right about the lack of roads. I'd think 4 wheelers would be quite popular.
I use to work with a guy who has a cabin near Barrow, or Utqiagvik as it's locally known. Talk about a neighborhood with few roads, and virtually no roads go there, at least in the summer, or so he says. He showed me pictures of the place and it was actually quite nice for being literally in the middle, or more accurately, top of no where. Haven't seen him in several years. I wonder if he ever moved up there permanently.
When I saw your handle I thought it was a reference to aircraft but I see now it's a reference to motorcycles.
I broke my right leg a couple of times when I was a kid and my mother was afraid to let me ride a bicycle so I didn't learn to ride bicycle until I was 13. I got my first motorcycle when I was 15 and I've been on two wheels as often as possible ever since. Just love to ride.

Wingpilot Loc: Wasilla. Ak

Well I didn't start riding until I was 25. I'd just gotten out of the army and bought a bike and taught myself to ride on a 350 Jawa. I just quit riding two years ago. Had we not left Idaho 6 years ago, I'd have kept my '05 and would likely have triked it out by now. Maybe. For 10 years, about all we did was ride, and we put on probably 200,000 miles on our bikes. And my wife was one heck of a rider, too. She regularly drug her pegs on sharp corner!! Made a lot of other guys jealous. I'm not sure I'd want to ride now. I'm undergoing treatment for prostate cancer, and it's had some side effects, one of which apparently is my sense of balance. I guess I'm a good candidate for a trike or a spyder.

Actually, my handle is a two part. One part for the Gold Wing, and the other part for the fact that I'm a pilot, both helicopter and fixed wing planes. So I combined the two and "pilot" refers to both.

rmorrison1116 Loc: Near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

How cool is that. I've been in several airplanes, from a little Cessna 130 to Lockheed L-1011. I've never flown on a 747 but I have been inside a C5 Galaxy on the ground. A buddy of mine many years ago was part owner of a Twin Otter floatplane and he was licensed to fly it. His father bought into the plane as an investment and when he died, he willed his ownership to his only son, my friend Tom.
Tom and, I believe, four or five others, owned the aircraft and they leased it to a sight seeing company that also did corporate flights to New York City. As an owner and licensed pilot, Tom could reserve the plane when it was not in use. He could also get discount tickets for sight seeing flights when all the seats were not sold out. I went on several sight seeing flights on that plane. It flew from the Delaware river, Philadelphia PA. Tom also spent a lot of time at a local small airport and since we were good friend, I went there with him fairly often. This airport had a pretty good size runway but it didn't have a tower and aircraft over a specific size were prohibited from landing there. I remember one day a plane owned by a well known local race team landed there. The plane was too big for that airport but it landed anyway. All three occupants of the plane went inside, used the facilities, got something from the vending machines and then left.
Tom said I should learn to fly as in get licensed but it was kind of expensive. He did teach me how to fly in a Cessna 130 but I never took lesson from a licensed instructor.
The only time I was in an airborne helecopter was an unwanted ride to U of PA hospital after a motorcycle accident, several years ago. But that's a story for another time.

Wingpilot Loc: Wasilla. Ak

Well, you've had an interesting past with airplanes, that's for sure. I flew in a lot of planes when I was a kid in Alaska, then when I joined the army in '67 I went to the helicopter training program and then had a tour in Vietnam. When I returned stateside I was a military instructor pilot, then got another all expenses paid vacation to sunny southeast Asia, courtesy of Uncle Sam. Second tour I flew CH-47 Chinooks. In between tours I got my civilian fixed wing rating and a commercial pilot's license. Took my training in a Cessna 150. Before I returned to Vietnam for the second time, I got a floatplane rating. That was a lot of fun. After I got out of the Army, I didn't do much flying, but riding motorcycles was about as close as it got to the feeling of flying. The last time I flew was in 1988, but my friend, Bill, has a Cessna 180 and I go flying with him and he lets me fly his plane. He said the other day that he wants to get me fully checked out in his plane. Currently it's on floats, but pretty soon he'll be putting on his wheel skiis for winter flying, then next summer it'll go back on floats. Should be a lot of fun.

DJphoto Loc: SF Bay Area

My first car weighed 1,230 pounds and held 4 adults. It had an 848cc inline 4 cylinder with 37.5 HP and was a hoot to drive, especially going downhill. It was a 1960 850 Mini- a Morris Mini Minor. The original Mini.

rmorrison1116 Loc: Near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

Then my new motorcycle is about 400 pounds lighter, seats 2 less people, has 3 times the power and no doubt cost about $25,000 more than your first car, and is a hoot to drive up hill, down hill, on straight or on twisty roads, main, secondary and tertiary roads and super highways and, has a top speed over 130 mph. My first car was less impressive than my new motorcycle but more impressive than your first car. It was a 1963 Plymouth Valiant with a 225 cubic inch inline slant 6 with a Chrysler slant 6 hyper pack installed, producing around 200 horsepower.

DJphoto Loc: SF Bay Area

I beg to differ. Can you do hand brake U-turns at 45-50 MPH on your bike? Can you put it sideways with the handbrake and then power out of a corner? Can you autocross your bike? Of course I suspect your bike spends a lot less time down for repairs than a 1960's British car, but I seriously doubt your bike is as much fun to toss around. Maybe a BMW S 1000 RR: 199 HP, 459 lb and probably 60 MPH faster than your Honda and it would be more fun.

A 1963 Valiant with a slant 6? Sort of a cousin to my second car, though not in performance or looks: a 1967 Plymouth Barracuda Formula S fastback, 273 4 barrel V-8 with a 4 speed manual and quick ratio manual steering. It was comfortable cruising at 105 (back when there no speed limits in Nevada) and has several thousand miles on it at above 100. It handled very well (for the time), especially after I put Koni adjustable shocks on it. It topped out at 132 and it is currently sitting in my garage awaiting restoration.

rmorrison1116 Loc: Near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

Please, no begging. Why would you compare a 4 wheel vehicle to a 2 wheel vehicle?! It's like comparing apples to pomegranets. Sure, they are both fruit, but that's about it. Your questions about what can my motorcycle do vs a small car are ridiculous bordering on offensive. You're also comparing a $27,000 motorcycle to a $500 car and no, you don't "toss around" something like a Goldwing.
If you're going to compare a Goldwing to a BMW, it should be the 1600, not a high end sport bike, that's just ridiculous. By the way, what motorcycle do you ride? I actually ride a real motorcycle, a 2018 Goldwing Touring model. Before that I rode a 2013 GL1800B Goldwing. Before that I rode a 1998 GL1500SE Goldwing. Also, I've been riding motorcycles for well over 40 years, have ridden from the Atlantic ocean to the Pacific ocean and back, have ridden from Pennsylvania to Florida and back several times, have ridden in 42 of the 50 states. From the age of 15 to present day I've owned at least 14 motorcycles and years ago I could tear them down and did almost all maintenance work myself.
My second car was a 1964 Chevy Monza Spyder convertible, red with a white top. While still driving the corvair my friends and I built my "next" car, a 1966 Chevy Malibu SS.
Gotta go now, going for a ride on my motorcycle tomorrow so I need to get some sleep.
By the way, only a person with limited knowledge of motorcycles would choose a BMW sport bike over a Goldwing to ride cross country. I believe in riding in style and comfort and touring bikes don't need excess horsepower, they need proper gearing, suspension, tunes and a comfortable seat. I'm not "old" but I'm not a kid anymore either.