Last Sunday, met up with a pal with a hopped up Harley Dyna, we traded bikes and went riding. My pal has a touch of the crazy wheel spinning in his brain but rides safe. The first thing I did was find an exit ramp onto the highway and cranked the guts out of his bike. Because of the power / weight ratio the bike hauled really nicely. I thought it had a tad more torque than my hopped up 108 Big Bore Road Star, but the bike seemed small vs the RS.

Pulled up at a gas station, and he did not want to return my bike, was having too much fun on it. He took lead position and off we went. I could tell when cranked on the Road Star as it would accelerate and I would open up his bike to keep up. Found a 1/4 mile patch of deserted road in somewhat good shape and he tore down it on my bike.

I opened up his bike, the Dyna, and not being used to the lack of being planted on the road, as my Road Star always is, the bike felt squirrely. Like a squirrel just having a monster energy drink. The bike was fun to torque out but it was bouncy and more like an overpowered mini bike compared to the Road Star.

My Road Star has no flies on it and I could tell my pal was having a hoot hammering it, as I did stomping on the Dyna's throttle.

After an afternoon of him cranking on my bike, and I cranking on his, was like a crazy go cart ride all afternoon. The fun factor got long in the tooth, and I was thinking, this is getting a bit silly. Ended up in a coffee shop bragging how much I liked his bike, and him mine. I am not a fruit so this is meant in a man to man type bro respect attitude, not a mutual fairyland roasting marshmallow in pink land bro rap session.

After all that high speed kidney shaking, bike abuse and tearing around like fools, I really appreciated my heavy torquey 108 Big bore more so. No it is not nutty fast like a V Max but not a turd neither. Got to thinking, (as much as I want a Valkyrie), I am satisfied enough to cease and assist my chasing torque and the all-encompassing arm pulling hole shot crazy off the line drag bike adventure.

When I was a teen I had a 2 stroke that was great for hole shots, and somehow in my mid life world of wanting to recapturing those magic moments, kept trying with a 800 pound bike ment for cruising.

After spending a day blasting around with my partially nut job speedster pal, starting thinking.. I had enough. Riding down the highway, and passing the odd car, or blasting off an exit ramp as I fear getting rear ended merging on a highway is more than enough of a thrill, and that is good enough. The 108 Big Bore is all I will ever need.

If the bike has good power to pass on the highway, and it does, even my stock 2006 1700 is all I will ever need so I decided to quit chasing torque. I have no desire to crank the bike to 100 mph, but 80 feels great thus I am done, satisfied and finished.

It is like I ate too much candy and got an upset stomach, thus one bag of chicken bones or gummy bears is it, no more gummy bears in excess! It is like something inside my brain snapped and telling me I am headed towards losing my license or perhaps worst.

I think next season I will be chilling a lot more and taking in the cites and smells versus blasting past them. I do not think it is my age, but something I had to get out of my system. Like sowing wild oats, then settling down. When I play music on my drums, I rather play powerfully, dynamically and tastefully than blazingly fast. I can shread on my drums, but it doesn't serve the song, unless required.

Took 4 seasons to get to this point with regards to my attitude about riding. From here on in I am going to taste and chew my food before swallowing it metaphorically speaking. I got a cruiser so time has come to take a chill pill and cruise.

Another purposeless rant, or maybe not as I got it off my chest much to the chagrin of the patient reader. I appreciate all of you!

I'm sure there are more than 2 of us who share your "Need for Speed" reversal. Every now and then I feel the need to get back to my 100hp 350lb roots, but I know after a rip down the highway, I'm good with smelling the roses for the rest of the riding season.

Love the elegant linguistics regarding you & your friend's bromance; and instant classic!

I'm sure each of us has our own story. We ride for what it brings us. Some need speed, some commodore, others just to escape. But I'm sure finding "why" for each of us is a similar feeling. Hats off to you.

Brad

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