So all of my buddies ask me why I got a sportster when for the same amount of $$ I could have a wicked fast crotchrocket. I ask them...why are some cars that are not entirely performance oriented still fun to drive...the sounds..the smells, ease of driving on a daily basis, ease of ownership with routine maintenece is usually the agreed upon answer. Now I ask them if lincoln or caddilac still made a simple automobile that was fun to cruise the strip and had alot of low end torque that was almost identical to the one they made 40 years ago...don't you think it would still be fun to drive and own? Viola...at least that describes why I like harley...it is the ultimate retro motorcycle since not much on them has changed drastically. Sure improvements have been made, but a 1960s sportster and a 2005 sportster are both recognizable as sportsters. When you are riding down a country road at 60mph it makes you feel like you have gone back in time...at least for me.

Thats a great way to look at it. I couldn't agree more.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts :tour

Gary

Comparing Sportsters to crotch rockets is like comparing a '67 Chevelle SS to a Civic bumblebee car now( you know, w/ the fart can exhaust, high-rev buzz).
They are totally different.
Personally, I would rather have one of those torque-monster muscle cars than one of these new buzz-bomb cars.
That's just me. They probably outhandle the older cars, but to me, lack soul.
Is my age and prejudice showing? ;)
Sportsters are the motorcycle equivalent of the GTO Judge. They have been around a long time and were THE muscle bike of the sixties that competed with the rest (Norton, BSA, Triumph, etc.) on the streets, the strips, and everywhere else.

High tech, not really. Steeped in history and still a kick-ass ride, YOU BET!

I LOVE my Sporty! :smoke

A civic is slow though, the ultimate jap car these days to mod is the toyota supra made after 93', there are a few that are pushing 1100hp and completely streetable..besides the fact that they have traction issues below 150 mph...ha

All of the above! Here's Elvis's 56 KH which was the forerunner of the 57 Sportster. If it was good enough for Elvis, it's good enough for me!


http://home.netcom.com/~harley.davidson/presley.gif

I believe mt reply would of been why not a sportster? how fast is fast enough? I am perfectly happy with my bike . I have pegged the speedo and done it in pretty quick order in my opinion. 120mph is about twice as fast as need be ,admittedly I usually run about 70mph and have no problem passing going up hill ,down hill ,around a curve ,or just straight out haulin ass down the highway. big deal I cant and dont want to do a stoppie. nor do I have any desire t do a wheely im 45 not 25 and have nothing to prove. my step son has a yamaha crotch rocket and to me it is like running down the rail road track with a chain saw between your legs.

hey I'm 25...be nice..ha!

"going down the railroad tracks with a chainsaw between your legs"...that is priceless!!!

I'm 22 and I chose a Sportster 1200c as my firsy for the simple reason that I don't need 120+ hp between my legs. I think my bike is plenty for me anyway. Besides, when you're crusin' through the streets, a Harley to me represents pride and has the sound of my soul coming out for all to hear. I don't know about everyone else, I'd rather my soul sound like a Harley and not a chainsaw. Basically, a Harley has soul.

You show up on crotch rocket...
...You arrive on a Harley-Davidson.

Here's the story. I'm 21, and My first bike was a 1981 Suzuki DR-125 dirtbike when I was 15 years old. I wanted a crotch roacket so bad it hurt.

Then I grew up.

It's pretty much been stated here already. Harley's have a soul, much like an old car. My first car was 1991 Grand Am (H.O. QUAD-4 5 speed if anyone cares - fast as hell for a 4 cyl of that vintage). My most recent car is a 1996 Dodge Stratus, which is a huge pile of crap. But my favorite car was my 1978 Monte Carlo. The thing was absolutely mint, and with a modified Corvette small block, it moved along allright too. That car had soul. It was simple, yet refined. And the sounds was enough to make you cream your pants. I sold it to buy the bike - a 2004 xl1200r. I never looked back.

Now it's time to look a new car. I have a friend looking at the dealer auctions for me for a Cadillac - a car with soul and history. I guess you could say a Honda has history too, but then again so does a General Electric refridgerator.

My Sporty gives me the best of all worlds..

I can run gravel and dirt roads with the best of 'em.....

I do 70-80 very comfortably on the hiway.....

I have UNPARALLELED control in twisties..

I can ride 2-up or alone, with no measurable performance OR comfort issues.....

I have no problem riding as many miles as I need to.....

What else could one want?

It is the ULTIMATE sport/touring bike...

I'll jump in with more agreement. I was lucky I suppose. I grew up racing Yamahas in the dirt. My father was a Harley guy. He owns 3 and has never sold one. It took me years of growing up to understand why they mean so much to him. Now I appreciate the rich history, the heritage, the heart of the beast, and like several have said, the soul. Right at this moment, I'm listening to Hank Jr. sing "Family Tradition." He says it well. Pride is a strong force. My father always viewed my dirt bikes (and most Japanese bikes for that matter) as disposable. His desire to keep and maintain his three bikes speaks volumes about being proud of Harley and Sportster ownership. It's not just a motorcycle we chose to own. My 2.5 cents.

Sure, improvements have been made, but a 1960s sportster and a 2005 sportster are both recognizable as sportsters. When you are riding down a country road at 60mph it makes you feel like you have gone back in time.

I've ridden both a 1969 and a 2004 Sporty down a country road at 60mph,
and believe me, there is NO difference . . . .

Sportsters are truly universal bikes- you can make a chopper, cafe racer, tourer and everything in between. What modern other bike can do that? Ad to that the history, sound, looks, quality and ease of maintenance. Sporsters are eveything a motorcycle should be. And they're affordable!
I've had 13 other bikes, all metrics, and although my sportbikes were faster and handled better, none of them could hold a candle to the Sportster's character and style.

I wanted air cooling and reliability in a STANDARD STYLE motorcycle. I like to ride, not wrench. My first choice was actually a Honda Nighthawk 750, but I wanted a new bike and there weren't any more 1998 leftovers here in Phoenix. So I decided to take the plunge, spend a little more money, and buy an H-D. I honestly couldn't care less what other people think of me or my bike. I didn't need, or want the horsepower and RPM increase afforded by shim & bucket valvetrains. Bikes with hydraulic valve lash adjusters are not very common among the Asian offerings, unfortunately.

And to XL1200R, Hondas do have soul, born of a heritage racing (and winning) against the best in the world. The Honda Motor Company was started by one man, Soichiro Honda. Mr Honda was an ex-racer and mechanic that was almost killed in an accident racing his own car. He was fond of getting his hands dirty with the rank-and-file engineers up until he retired. He liked to drink sake, haul ass on his bike, and hang out with pretty women (sounds like a pretty cool dude if you ask me).

the chicks , man , the chicks

women love the milwakee viberater

My Sporty gives me the best of all worlds..

I can run gravel and dirt roads with the best of 'em.....

I do 70-80 very comfortably on the hiway.....

I have UNPARALLELED control in twisties..

I can ride 2-up or alone, with no measurable performance OR comfort issues.....

I have no problem riding as many miles as I need to.....

What else could one want?

It is the ULTIMATE sport/touring bike...

Not to mention that unlike the metrics, it's not a disposable bike. A rebuild and paint and good as new and nearly as reasaleable. Let's see that from a twenty or thirty year old Honda/ Kaw etc.

For many of the reasons already stated. I grew up with them and rode against them in my Brit bike days. They, like the Triumph Bonneville of the '60s, always looked as I thought a motorcycle should. Some neighbors of mine back in the 50s had a bunch of flathead FLs and some Duo Glides...I always thought that they looked somehow out of proportion. As a kid, I had a toy Duo Glide with a removeable rider (blue...must have been an officer of the law :) ) but even as a young child, I realized that those floorboards negatively affected my 'lean angle' :D
I always loved the sound of a Harley, as well as a 360 degree vertical twin. I, too, like a motorcycle that is more than a 'one trick pony'. The Sportster can do most anything that you have the nerve to ask it to. Plenty fast for me. I am amazed at its cornering prowess. I was also very pleasantly surprised at the build quality-I mean this is the 21st century...where is all the plastic? They did a very nice job on the bike and the price is a true bargain. I have to confess-I always chuckled at Harley owners and their 'accessorizing'. Now I'm one of them! Truth. I bought a piece of chrome that didn't (really) function any better than the plastic piece it replaced. But it shore looked purdy! Damn-what is happening to me? Yeah, the prices are high...but not really unreasonable given the fit and finish (okay, the backside of some of the chrome pieces is a little weak..). I have spent many a moment, when not riding, just sippin' a beer and looking at my Sporty and SMILING. I invent reasons to go out and turn a wrench on it. Life is good.

Kim

I wanted air cooling and reliability in a STANDARD STYLE motorcycle. I like to ride, not wrench. My first choice was actually a Honda Nighthawk 750, but I wanted a new bike and there weren't any more 1998 leftovers here in Phoenix. So I decided to take the plunge, spend a little more money, and buy an H-D. I honestly couldn't care less what other people think of me or my bike. I didn't need, or want the horsepower and RPM increase afforded by shim & bucket valvetrains. Bikes with hydraulic valve lash adjusters are not very common among the Asian offerings, unfortunately.

And to XL1200R, Hondas do have soul, born of a heritage racing (and winning) against the best in the world. The Honda Motor Company was started by one man, Soichiro Honda. Mr Honda was an ex-racer and mechanic that was almost killed in an accident racing his own car. He was fond of getting his hands dirty with the rank-and-file engineers up until he retired. He liked to drink sake, haul ass on his bike, and hang out with pretty women (sounds like a pretty cool dude if you ask me).

then if I was you I would buy one and go hang out on honda sites and while your at it holler tora! tora !tora! :eek:

In the mid-sixties, my friend and I would park the Bonnevilles next to some friends and their Harleys, at the top of Public Avenue in the small town I grew up near. We'd talk for a couple hours and check out the girls cruising by. We'd get on the Bonnevilles, kick'em down, and then wait while our friends would near bust a gut trying to get their Harleys started. Under our bikes the payment would be dry as we left, but under the Harleys would lay the drippings of about a third a quart of oil. Long rides always became longer as we would have to stop while one of the Harley riders tightened this bolt or that nut, or put the chain back on, or put in more oil................etc.


Fortunately, HD wised up and I think today's Sportster is heads above a Triumph. That's why I now own and ride a Sportster.:chop

the chicks , man , the chicks

women love the milwakee viberater
exactly. My friends wife asked if she can sit on it maybe twice a week...

I grew up with eht enotion that it's H-D or nothing. 2 of my uncles had HD's when I was growing up (and they still do). It was only natural that I get one. A crotch rocket isn't my style.

It's funny, though, the mentality of some people. I belong to another Camaro Forum, and one of the guys there has a 70 Z28 or something and totally bashes ricer cars on a daily basis, yet he has a Yamaha R1 and bashes Sportsters. When I mentioned buying the one I have now, he replied saying to turn around and not look at that bike ever again. He said to buy some king of Jap 600 or something. That made me want to buy it more!

The yamaha R1 is disgustingy fast, cycle world recently tested its top speed of 97 mph...in FIRST GEAR, and it has a 6 speed, unrestricted it could likely touch 200 mph.

Friends ask " Why a Harley?" I tell them that it's like being back in High School, only now YOU are one of the cool kids!

" When you are on a Harley you don't have to go fast to be cool. You are cool by definition. "

Donny Peterson
Heavy Duty Cycles
Toronto Canada
AMERICAN IRON MAG. MARCH 2001

To me, Harley-Davidsons in general, and specifically Sportsters are a high form of automotive art...the V Twin engine, the chrome, the classic stance & proportions....

The sound of the engine and exhaust cannot be duplicated by any other brand. The mechanical feel of the the gears shifting, the motor rocking & vibrating in the frame makes it really come to life compared to metrics.

When I'm riding, I can't help but feel like I'm being transported back in time to a simpler, better place.

I think everyone has summed it up pretty well, I'll just add, If you have to explain it to them , they won't understand anyway!

Why a Sportster?? Why Not!!! :D

Tradition, You can Hot-Rod them and you can Tour with them. It the most versitile bike ever Made!!! And it's a HARLEY-DAVIDSON!!! What else can I say!!! :D

RedRider
You got it right. Isn't it wild that every other bike manufacturer in the world tries to build a bike that sounds like a Harley, but can never achieve it!:D

It's just the most accurately NAMED bike in the world. And if all those supposed loyal crotch rocket riders were honest with themselves, they KNOW they want one! Just look at it and it screams MACHINE! You don't hear one, you FEEL it. More nimble than most people realize, quicker than it seems,(just watch the cars get smaller in yer mirror at the stop lights), Easy relaxing tone on the hiway rather than the complaining note of four screaming cylinders, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound.........

Why a Sportster?

It's a motorcycle.

But what about the yamakawazukida GSXCBR1ZX-R?? It was designed by engineers to go fast. Period. All the pieces that make that machine a motorcycle are covered up, hidden.

There's something so simple, so elemental about a Sportster. It's not trying to be something it's not, yet it can do anything anyone would ask of a motorcycle. There's no fake covers, or huge plastic fenders, or artificially large handlebars and tank to make the bike appear to be something it's not. The Sportster is the essence of motorcycling in one simple, fantastic package. It's now much more refined and evolved since the introduction of the rubber mount Evo motored Sporties, but the soul of the bike is still the same as it was 35 years ago.

Granted, HD had segmented the Sportster line a bit into a couple different sub-categories, but all that was needed to do that was a change in the front wheel and foot control locations. It's a testament of how versatile the bike is. I can park my C model next to my Dad's XL and they're 2 completely different bikes, yet almost identical, save for the tank, rear shocks, foot controls, and front wheel.

Sportsters forever!!

And to XL1200R, Hondas do have soul, born of a heritage racing (and winning) against the best in the world. The Honda Motor Company was started by one man, Soichiro Honda. Mr Honda was an ex-racer and mechanic that was almost killed in an accident racing his own car. He was fond of getting his hands dirty with the rank-and-file engineers up until he retired. He liked to drink sake, haul ass on his bike, and hang out with pretty women (sounds like a pretty cool dude if you ask me).

I don't refute Honda's racing heritage. I know it's there. But a new Honda just feels like any other bike. More of an appliance to me. They don't seem to touch on thier history, which is why they lack soul to me. And old Honda, like the 1949 model (I think that was the first one) definatley would have soul today. But a new one is just not the same.

Anyways, I was referencing more Honda cars, which do not have soul. Not even an S2000. A rich history does not equal soul.

[QUOTE= And old Honda, like the 1949 model (I think that was the first one) definatley would have soul today. But a new one is just not the same.
QUOTE]

Not trying to counter your point, I agree, but its hard for me to say that any new anything has "soul". "Soul" to me is earned by longevity. My wife's 1973 SS-350 Sprint has soul. A bike thats 31 years old, made in a factory halfway around the world, shipped to Washington State, ridden several thousand miles to who knows where, kept pretty much original, and obviously well taken care of. How many owners has it had, what roads has it ridden, how many names has it had, that kinda thing.

My '02 Sportster is working on obtaining soul, 13,000 miles, some work done to it by me, hours and days on the road, hours and nights in the garage. You get it,

I think you have to be involved with your bike for it to have soul, and for you to recognize it. If your dealer bolts on all your chrome, and changes your oil, and your bike only sees the road on sunny warm days and never sees 500+ mile long trips, you've missed out on quite an amazing experience. And what better bike to do it with than a Sportster

The definitive motorcycle.
I don't know why, but I wanted a Sportster since I can remember. It just fits me.
It is the perfect mix of part sport bike part Harley cruiser - a truly versatile machine.
Guys from 6 to 60 are always checking it out on the road. The women notice too. It’s not too big - not too small. I don’t appear to be compensating for something. (ya right)
OK so when I ride over to the biker bar to hang out I see many bikes costing three times as much, but one thing for sure, the owners are not having three times the fun. The only time you will not see a smile on my face while riding is when I’m stuck behind a dumptruck.
Everybody needs one, but not everyone is smart as we.

All of the above, plus the investment aspect of owning a Harley Davidson over any metric bike. In 20 yrs with a metric, what do you have left? With a Harley, you're investment may double or even triple. I had a chance to buy a buddies 82 Sturgis back in 83 for $3500. It was offered to me again last year for $10,000. Do the math.

I think the double or triple resale is about over , but they will hold their value
I bought my 72 for 1700 dollars with a broke trany 900 bucks to fix that and I'm at about the selling price in 72 ( $2,120 new in 72) but I guess if I sold it I'd ask about 5 , probably wouldn't get that though maybe 3500-4000

but its not for sale so don't ask, lol