Yes, you CAN go back....

[drcollie]

A few weeks ago my pal John The Jeweler came over one evening so we could go on a motorcycle ride. He brought over his 1969 BMW R69S, a highly collectible and desirable bike that was state-of-the art 43 years ago. I roll out my mighty 2012 BMW K1600 and snapped a photo of the best that BMW has had over the years - of the two bikes together.



Off we go...and John's R69S is pretty slow - it is an old bike, after all. I'm holding back my K1600, which is a hyper-fast, 6-cylinder, computerized technical marvel, but as we're putting around on Virginia backroads my bike feels very heavy, is bucking a bit and protesting at the low speeds and I'm not getting much airflow from all the tupperware around it designed for highway blasting. When I get home I mention to my wife that it sure would be fun to have a smaller, lighter, more simple bike for evening rides like this with my pals. To my surprise she says "Well, go get one! You work hard - you deserve it". I always knew she was a great woman...lol.

Another of my BMW riding pals just made a huge investment and just opened up a Triumph motorcycle dealership in Manassas, VA. http://www.triumphmanassas.com/ I decided to go down and see Ken and his dealership and of course he was very surprised to see me - and tossed me the keys to anything I wanted to try. Long story short, he made me a buddy deal on a new 2013 Triumph Scrambler and I became his second customer and brought this home earlier this week:



There is no ABS, no linked brakes, no dynamic stability control, no windshield, no stereo system, no self-cancelling turn signals or hydraulic clutch or fancy suspension system. There is not even a fuel gauge. It's primitive and functional, and not all that fast. The high pipes on the right side get hot, and the brakes are marginal at best. And I'm having a blast on it - because it takes me right back to when I was 16 years old and hitting every backroad in Missouri on a bike I had not all that different from this one. It's a more pure essence of motorcycling and I've not owned a bike like this in 40 years. Bugs are hitting me in the face and I can actually see the front wheel and where its going. Its FANTASTIC, and the perfect therapy after a long day at work. I feel like Fonzie on Happy Days and haven't even touched my BMW motorcycle since this one came home....