2009 BMW F800GS
When BMW announced this bike in November of 2007, and the first pictures appeared on the web, I put a deposit down with my local dealer right away. If I had the capability to design a motorcycle for the kind of riding I like to do, this is what I’d design for myself. It took almost a year for BMW to start shipping the bikes to the U.S., but in October of 2008 I finally took delivery of it. And it hasn’t disappointed.
I’ve already ridden it down the ridge of the Continental Divide, and it has shown itself to be the best all-around motorcycle that I’ve ever ridden or seen. Light, powerful, comfortable and (so far) reliable. I’m hoping for many adventures in the years ahead.
2006 Suzuki VStrom 650
I bought this 2006 Suzuki VStrom off of eBay in April of 2007 from a guy in Tucson, and rode it home from there. I had never ridden one before then, but had read enough about them to conclude that it would be a decent replacement for my dear, departed BMW R1100 GS. Boy, was I in for a pleasant surprise! It's was a versatile and powerful little beastie, had a range of about 220 miles, and would carry all the crap I could desire. There's nowhere I used to go with the GS that I was afraid to take this bike. But when the F800GS came along, the VStrom ended up on ebay again.
1997 Royal Enfield Classic 500
Lordy, this motorcycle was a mistake. But I was in love. I mean, look at it! It’s a beauty! Unfortunately, it’s metallurgy was definitely third-world—like cheddar cheese. I got real good with helicoils because of all of the screws and bolts that I stripped. I made the mistake of modifying the carburetor and exhaust before running the engine in, and no matter how many times I tried, I just couldn’t get the mixture right. After struggling endlessly to make it at least a reliable piece of transportation, I finally sold it back to the dealer after trying to unload it unsuccessfully on ebay. Never again!
1998 BMW R1100GS
I rode the GS for almost eight years, and it took me from the Pacific to the Atlantic, down into the Copper Canyon in Mexico and up to Prudhoe Bay in Alaska among many, many other long and wonderful rides. I took Jimmy Lewis' off-road riding course on it in 2002, where I pushed the heavy beast to its (and my) limits. And though I got myself into many situations where other bikes would have left me stranded, it always managed to get me home. It was a great bike for most of those eight years. But after about 60,000 miles it was beginning to show a lot of wear and tear, the final (shaft) drive was starting to go, and when the transmission died at 72,000 miles, I sold it.
