As I drink my adult beverage and look through photos of the last moto adventure, I’ve got about twenty tabs open on the local Craigslist.
Yep. More motorcycles. I’ve caught the disease.
A particularly nasty case too, as I came much too close to buying my exact same bike yesterday, but in yellow. Honestly... I still can’t help but think that I should go back and make an offer?! Okay fine, I admit. That would be rediculous. So how about I grab a 4th Gen and a 6th Gen VFR to compliment my 5th Gen???
Ugh... Terminally ill.
Letting reason take hold, it’s clear that if I get another bike it has to be different enough from the SPORTtourer that is my VFR800.
My first thought was an adventure bike, but there are a few problems with that.
1. Price. These are insanely popular in my area, and it’s hard to find deals when they sell in seconds. Add that to the usually-quite-high msrp and it’s hard to make the money math work, new or used.
2. I already have a 500lb bike that eats up miles with relative ease, handles a passenger without complaint, and can carry oodles of gear wwhen necessary. While I would love something that can handle trails and potentially snowy winter riding better... At this point I don’t want anything heavier than the Honda.
Which leads me to...
A dual sport!
Something cheap enough to buy new, reliable as a top, capable of taking a thrashing, and good for learning off-road riding techniques. I... Tried taking the Honda off road. Believe me, I did! But it did not feel like a willing companion, what with the clip-ons, delicate fairings, and heavy weight. Sigh. It's certainly no Miata.
I would also like being able to toss a passenger and a few nights of gear on the back. Like a cross between a dirt bike and one of the newer mid-size ADVs.
DRZ400s jump out at me, along with the Japanese crop of 250s (wr250r and the like). KLR650s are also kiiiiind of a consideration, but honestly I’d rather go with something smaller and lighter. Any thoughts? Advice? If I go this route, I’d likely buy in October hopefully scoring a killer deal on a new bike. This would mean no truck, and I would likely commute on it throughout the winter on the days when working from home isn’t an option.
The alternative is ride the Honda year round, and create more and more CL bike browsing posts until OPPO is forced to enact an emergency 2-wheels-bad shutdown on any and all moto content.
(option 3: Turbo Busa and replace all my riding gear with tank tops and flip flops)