I’ve been riding on and off for the better part of 25 years which makes me a decidedly mediocre rider. I don’t fall neatly into a category of motorcyclist. Nerd biker? Is that a thing?
1994 Suzuki Katana 600 (GSX-600FR) #
My first motorcycle was a 1994 Suzuki Katana 600, my squid bike. I purchased it from my best friend in 1997. I had been eyeing a Katana 750 at a local used motorcycle dealership, but being twenty-three and a highly questionable credit risk, I was denied. I sat dejected on my friend’s sofa, wearing the new Shoei RF-700 and TourMaster gloves I had purchased in anticipation of throwing a leg over that 750.
Eager to ditch his Katana so he could get a new Kawasaki ZX-7R, we came to a financial agreement. And just like that, I was a rider…
…that immediately dropped his bike during a training session. Early on I had learned the pain of purchasing replacement parts. In this case, a mirror.
My first long distance ride was to ferry it from Sacramento to Los Angeles where I was living at the time. I decided that traveling by way of CA Hwy 1 / US 101 was the proper route now that I was a motorcyclist. For a newbie, it was a grueling ride, riddled with detours. What was normally a 6 hour drive via I-5 turned into an 11 hour marathon for me.
In the middle of the night, somewhere between San Luis Obispo and Ventura I stopped at a nothing little rest stop that was a restroom and a single picnic table. My hands and butt were numb, unaccustomed to the vibrations of the motorcycle. I lay down on the picnic table for a rest and stared up into the night sky. Comet Hale–Bopp was brilliantly visible – just past its perihelion passage. I took it to be an auspicious sign and continued my way home.
I rode that Katana everywhere. To work. To the canyons. Back and forth between LA and Sacramento (this time via I-5). Even through the Del Taco drive thru. I rode on it A-roads like Mullholland Hwy and Angeles Crest Hwy, visiting motorcycle riding fixtures like the Rock Store and Newcomb’s Ranch. In the late 90’s, those road weren’t trafficked nearly as much as they are today with a camera crew at every turn and CHP working overtime. It was a great time to be riding. I’m amazed I didn’t kill myself.
Well, I almost did once. It was on Decker Rd and I went into a right-hander kind of hot, going wide. I saw an oncoming large SUV in the other lane. All I could think was “Oh shit, I’m going to crash! Lean…LEAN!” It’s all fuzzy, but I popped out of that turn and then into the next, unscathed. I’m not unconvinced that I died, and I’m just having a lifetime-spanning, Jacob’s Ladder type of death dream.
What started the Katana’s demise was it popping out of 2nd gear under acceleration. Since putting down $1k to get it fixed was beyond my financial means, I ordered the parts and went to work on it. Six months later, it was fixed! But now with a leaky case. Honestly, there were numerous other operations on this poor bike performed by me, and it cumulatively made for ever worsening reliability and rideability. Eventually, I sold it for $1,300 after I purchased an SV650.
2001 Suzuki SV650 (naked) #
I honestly can’t remember when I purchased the SV650. It had to have been sometime in 2003 or 2004. It was a 2001 carbureted model. That said, the SV was hands down my favorite motorcycle of all time. I never did the journey up and down the state with it, but I did make routine rides out to Stewarts Point via CA Hwy 1 and then back along Stewarts Point-Skaggs Springs Rd (“Skaggs”). I remember tucking the front tire on Skaggs once which prompted a purchase of some Racetech fork springs and a Penske rear shock. The Penske was such a screaming deal purchase off of eBay. A friend from work, who also had an SV650, spent the weekend with me in my garage upgrading our forks.
I had a lovely backroads commute to work and took every chance to ride the SV. It was 35 miles each way. Being younger and on a motorcycle, it really didn’t feel that far, in contrast to how I feel now about a commute of any length.
Nothing scary ever really happened on that bike other once I got run off the road by a pickup truck coming down the middle of some backroad in Marin. Bent my rear brake pedal and some scuffs on the tail fairing, but very minimal damage. The driver was nice enough to wave as he drove away without stopping. Help did come from another motorcyclist who helped me push the SV out of the ditch it fell in.
It was also the bike that I felt the most comfortable wheelieing. Plenty of lunchtime rides with co-workers. Overall, lots of warm feelings and good memories with this motorcycle. I kept it for about 7 years and then sold it to friend of a friend for $2000. I’ve regretted it since.
1999 Ducati 900SS (half faired) #
The SV left me with the itch for more power. But I loved the v-twin grunt. Naturally, when a Craigslist ad for a 1999 Ducati 900SS came up, I went a-lookin’. It wasn’t the slab-sided 900SS from the mid to late 90s that I mooned over, but this one held the promise of low maintenance with its fuel injection (my first!).
It was owned by an attorney living in Castro Valley. Well taken care of and being sold for $2900! Only later would I realize that motorcycles get sold for cheap when they are coming up on their major maintenance interval.
I was enthralled with owning a Ducati. I thought it would bequeath a riding prowess previously unknown to me. It was definitely fun to ride, in short bursts. It wanted to be ridden aggressively – always on the boil. Toodling around town was not its strong suit. It forced me into a crouch, and it made my wrists and back ache. I never thought I would die riding it, but I rarely felt tuned into it.
The 900SS did scare me one day when I was riding on the freeway, in traffic – this was somewhere on the I-580. It just up and died at speed. Not wanting a Buick enema, I made my way over to the right hand lanes until I could get the Duc restarted. Turned out to be a failing fuel pump relay.
I never really rode the 900SS as much as I should have. It often felt like a chore, and more importantly, I became a parent around this time. True to the conventional wisdom, it’s the motorcycle that gets cut out of the picture. I had to sell it in a hurry due to our move to New England, and a pretty nice guy took ownership of it.
1977 Honda CB400F #
What can I say about this bike? Again, I purchased a motorcycle from a attorney who was living on a boat in the Berkeley Marina. It came with a spare motor, wheel and a bin of random parts. I thought for sure I was going to restore this classic to its former glory. I was in love with the waterfall exhaust and eager to get back on an inline four. Yet, I rode it only a handful of times in all the time I owned it: first to get it to my friend’s house from the marina, then to the garage I rented to store my motorcycles. Gave my then girlfriend (now wife) a ride on the back, and then rode it to our new house that had a garage. That CB400F was dangerous to ride, and the trip home was sketchy. The brakes would give you the faintest hint of slowing down, and there was a steep hill on my route home with a stop sign at the bottom. Fortunately, there was no cross traffic at the time. It would randomly die while running (this seems to be a feature with yellow motorcycles).
It was a basketcase and an albatross around my neck. I never worked on with any seriousness, and ultimately it, too, was sold to the nice man who bought my Ducati.
The Current Stable #
1969 Honda CL350 (Scrambler) #
Clearly, I had developed an itch for classic Honda motorcycles. The CL350 would be my first motorcycle in New England. Funnily enough, I didn’t really want a CL scrambler. I was on the hunt for a CB again, primarily a CB350F…possibly a 400F. I hadn’t learned my lesson. But living in a rural town with unpaved roads, I thought I might need something more “dirt-friendly”. I know most would not consider the CL an offroad motorcycle in the least, but I am of the firm opinion that any motorcycle is “offroad” if you take it offroad – more on this in a bit.
I did my research and decided I did want the CL, and it being a complete and running motorcycle did aid that decision. I hitched a trailer to our CR-V to some town in New Hampshire that started with an “A”, haggled a bit, and returned with a my “new bad decision”.
Curious about how offroad capable it was I took a poorly planned trip down a Class IV road. It was rocky, muddy, watery, grassy, and I was sure I was lost a few times. Slow, plodding progress was made to the end of that five mile stretch with me stalling it, almost dropping it, huffing and puffing the entire way. But I emerged onto paved road and made my way home to recount my ill-advised adventure to anyone who’d listen.
With a few rides on the CL, I noticed it wasn’t really running right. Rightly suspecting a fueling issue, off came the exhaust, airboxes, and carburetors for some maintenance. And off they stayed for over a year. I was about to go down the path that I went with the CB400F.
Fortunately, the urge to ride finally overcame my fear and inertia. This time, I had more resources and the patience that comes with age. The carburetors were carefully rebuilt. Unfortunately, gas was left in the tank necessitating a full flush and clean and new petcock. Gave it a tune up and then it was ready to ride.
It ran great! It runs great. Not fussy about cold starts, it almost always fires up with a single press of the starter button. I’ve been riding the CL as much as possible. I adore riding it. It is light, responsive, looks cool, sounds amazing and gets all sorts of compliments. It is my favorite motorcycle right now. I squee when I see it.
2016 Triumph Thruxton 900 #
I’m still forming an opinion about this motorcycle that I purchased this summer. I’ve never thought of myself as a Triumph owner. I was initially looking for another SV650, but wasn’t having much luck finding one locally. I knew I wanted a standard motorcycle. I wanted to be able to take longish trips. I wanted fuel injection. A few inquiries into available SVs yielded nothing. This popped up on Facebook Marketplace for a fair price. Another New Hampshire motorcycle.
One thing about the Thruxton 900 is that it is a top heavy motorcycle. If it gets beyond its balance point, it is difficult to right using your legs and hips. I find myself wrenching on the bars to get it upright. Which, by the way, is how I torqued my wrist. After trailering it home, I was unloading it off of one of those front wheel chocks with the cradle that pivots. I pulled on the bars to get it out, and it started to tip. “NOT TODAY SATAN!” I thought and pushed with all my might to prevent a drop on the first day of ownership. I saved it. But not my wrist. I thought maybe I broke it, but all the bits were able to move. For about two months, my wrist required a brace and some Advil. It’s about 90% back, but holding cast iron pans is still dicey.
On the positive side, it is a comfortable ride despite its slightly rear set pegs and lower handlebars. Short as I am, it can be flat footed from the saddle. It sounds great and is plenty fast for what I need. Low speed maneuverability is decent, although from full lock to full lock on the bars feels like a short throw. I’ve ridden it out to the Lakes Region and other long rides. It’s certainly not the fastest motorcycle I’ve even owned, nor the best handling, but I have no illusions about my skill or comfort level ever approaching the Thruxton’s limit. I do feel like it is the motorcycle that old sportbike riders buy.
I’ve again learned that bikes are cheap when they are coming up on a major service. It’s really only a valve clearance check, but what a pain!
I am considering selling the Thruxton when next summer comes around. I hate feeling like I made a bad decision. It’s so cool looking.