I realize that this a question that most everyone hates,but none the less it is a question some of us are forced to confront. You can only afford to purchase and maintain only one bike for the next 10-30 years. What bike would you choose. BTW,I have made my choice.
I think I'd try to give up the car instead. Actually, If we were having a really bad patch, I'd sell the Ural. Even though it is my favorite, it would bring in more money than the Concours. I would then get another Ural when things turned around. If I were permanently going to have one bike, I'd get rid of both the Ural and the Concours and get something like a Wee Strom as my one, do-it-all bike.
I DID give up my car... 13 years ago back in 1998. Haven't really missed it. ------------------------- If I could only own ONE bike for the next 30 years, it would have to be an Airhead BMW. For the combination of reliability, performance, comfort, ease of maintenance, worldwide availablility of parts, and "soul". I have already owned at least one Airhead continuously since December of 1989, that is 21.5 years now... ------------------------- Had an Airhead based sidecar rig from 1992-2008, and my current R1200RT based rig since December of 2008. The Airhead rigs started out as a 1974 R75/6 with a Vetter fairing and an old HitchHiker sidecar bolted to the side without a subframe. I rode that thing year-round up around Appleton/Green Bay Wisconsin commuting 45min to work every day, all year. The so-called front brake was horrible, the mounts were flimsy and flexed, and I LOVED it!!! {If you look carefully at the thermometer mounted on the garage behind the bike, you can see that it is reading 0-deg F. The bike started up just fine that morning like it always did!} I then briefly transisioned to a 1977 R75/7 to get a dual-disk front end. That was a beat up bike with over 100,000 miles when I got ahold of it. Sold it to a friend with another 8,000 on the clock after cleaning up the wiring a little bit, and they continued to ride the wheels off of it. We affectionately named it the "rat bike" due to the hacked up wiring and rattle-can black paint job some previous owner had 'lovingly' given it. Finally I upgraded to a 1982 R100RT to get the superior fairing, torque/power, and Dual-Brembo front brakes. I had that rig for 10 happy and trouble-free years from 1998-2008. And the only reason that I actually "upgraded" was for the extra power and fully enclosed cockpit for my then passenger, who rode with me in the winter months as well. Riding two-up and fully loaded on trips with her was a bit of a strain on the R100 rig. (neither of us would qualify for entry on "The Biggest Loser", but we ain't twiggy either...) And the fact that creature comforts were slim for winter riding, along with the hassle of having to fully unsnap the canopy from the windshield and resnap it every time you got in/out with the previous chair. So quick errands across town with a passenger became longer with every stop. That bike had over 97,000 miles on it when I sold it, well over half of those miles pulling a sidecar with my well-known heavy wrist. The motor was still tight and not burning oil, had good compression, and there was adjustment left on the valve tappets, and it still had the original clutch in it!!!! How is THAT for reliability??? And I DO still miss the reverse-gear transmission that I had built for that bike...
Hey Zenrider I used to live on Pecan st. on the east side about a 1/2 mile from the mall,from june thru the end of dec 1985. I loved the summer. I hated the winters.
The first 20 years it was an Hond Hawk 400 for the next 40 year it be the 2008 Ural for me at whick time I be 100 some thing.
That is a tough one...and I'm not sure I could pare the fleet down to just one. If I absolutely had to, though, it would come down to a coin toss between the KLR (no sidecar ) and the Gear Up. The Connie and Stella would be gone without (too much) remorse.
I can live with what I have.2 Airheads & 03 GSA/Ural.But I won't give up my truck for nothing.I give those credit due that ride year round in cheese land,but my job doesn't it doesn't work.Plowing snow at the Madison AirportI must be able to get there.I do run around in the winter but not for my only transportion....
As I get older my objective is to simplfy my life as much as possible. Discarding those things(objects) not absolutely necessary.
If I had to choose 1 bike for eveyrday use for a long time I would go back to a late 70's Suzuki GS850(with kickstart).Shaft drive,simple aircooled inline 4,kick and electric start ( I used the kickstarter on one for 5 years and 50,000 miles).They just fit me and there's alot of them around here.I think one with a simple car would be the bee's knee's !!.When the Vstrom is done I will ethier get a used Ural OR a 850 !!.
Yes, there are quite a few Brand-"J" bikes which are very reliable as well. I owned a 1981 Yamaha XS400 during my college days that I threw knobbies on during the winter months and drove all over the campus of UW-Madison. Had the motorcycle parking sections all to myself! The kick-start on that bike got used quite frequently as well, since the tiny battery never had the juice to turn the engine over once the temps got below freezing. (It might have helped if I had replaced it, but with a kicker, why bother???) I also threw some Vetter saddlebags on that bike and used it for a 6,000+ mile tour out West the summer before I graduated. Just kept to the two-laners like I prefer anyway and had a GRAND time... Of course, I did have the issue with losing over 1/4 of the rear wheel spokes coming down out of the Rockies towards Co.Springs.... :eek1 My own fault for never checking spoke tension... I blame youth and inexperienced. For me, the only real problem with some of the older Japanese bikes is parts availability as they age. The manufacturers no longer support those bikes with new parts, so if you break or wear something out you are stuck looking to the used market which will dry up eventually. BMW Motorrad has a separate "Heritage" group which was formed specifically to support the owners of the older bikes with brand new parts to keep their bikes running. You can even contact them with a VIN number for a bike you are thinking about purchasing and get a rapid reply as to the exact date that it rolled off of the assembly line, original color, and any special options/features originally installed.
If I learned I could only have one bike for the next 10-30 years, I'd make a better career choice to allow for more bikes.
When one is in the vicinity of retirement age the range of "career choice" is much more narrow. I gave up my car in '99, and have been trying various mounts out for Harold Lloyd grip-status* so far this Century. Currently, its a Burgman Exec for solo riding, but I'd like to investigate whether it can be made into a Leaner Outfit. (Still, may be some surprise in store from BMW; Concept C.) *That's the one to hold-on to.
Sometimes the next 30 isn't as imaginable as a concept as the last 30 was... you know... more miles behind the horse than in front of it. The last 30... Yammie XT500/the next 30... Ural Gear Up.
Tough question. If I had to choose between the ones I have now, My 1973 CB750 would win. I'd hate to give up the old Trumpets, but that Honda has never given me a blip of trouble. If I had the power to go buy anything, it would be probably be a Ural Gear-Up. Hell, if I had that, I wouldn't even need my car.
Hey Zippy;I am 52 now. I have alreadyt made it thru a heart attack,stroke and some other near death accidents and close calls. It is time to try to enjoy whats left.
Youngster! If we're lucky... life is a near-death experience. Years ago I read a funny article about handing people a collection of just joke punchlines... they made up the joke in their mind. Some people thought the jokes were really dirty. Some "didn't get it." It is kinda' like asking guys the question "Who is the hero in the movie "Pulp Fiction?" The answer says more about your mindset than it does about the movie. Anyhow, I was reminded of an old Skillet and LeRoy punchline from a bit entitled "Two Or Three Times A Day" Doctor: Sir, with all of that going on in your life... my advice to you is that you best take yourself in hand. Patient: Oh, Doctor, I do... Two or three times a day.
