Kevin

It has a few scratches on the rear fender and tank. Other than that, it looks almost new.

I picked up the 2007 Sportster 1200 today.

Wrong Kevin. However, if you want to ride…

I have committed to buying this bike. I am planning to pick it up Saturday. It is a 2007 H-D Sportster 1200 Low with just over 10,000 miles. It is very clean and mostly stock. It has Screaming Eagle slip on pipes, mini ape bars, all LED lighting, and a spoked rear wheel. I don't think the mirrors are stock. He bought it from the original owner in June 2023. He said he doesn't have time to ride, no one to ride with, and storage isn't ideal. It runs and rides great. I liked the bars better than I thought I would. He has receipts from the bar install and full service from Boswell's H-D. Inluced is an easy release sissy bar, a nice leather riding jacket, and a couple nice helmets. I really liked the guy and we have a mutual friend who says he's a great guy.

What do you think about this motorcycle? It's a 2004 Harley-Davidson Sportster 883. It has 21,000 miles on the frame. The engine is a 2012 Sportster 1200 Evo with a big bore kit. He said it is now a 1250. It has new tires, paint, and forward controls. The exhaust is a Basani two into one. He also has a solo seat, sissy bars, a set of straight pipes, and other misc parts that go with it. I rode it and it runs great. It's quick for a Sportster and sounds pretty rowdy. He is asking $4000 down from $6000. He sounds negotiable. I really liked it.

I think those bikes are just too big. I wouldn't mind an Africa Twin. My riding buddy's Africa Twin didn't seem as heavy as I'd heard they were. I might check into used Africa Twins because I just don't want to spend $17,000 on a bike. I saw a Super Tenere this past Friday and they look huge like a GS 1250. The H-D Dirt Glide is expensive and I've heard they are unreliable. I was riding my Versys-x 300 yesterday and it hit me that it does exactly what I need it to do. I am not going to hit hard trails with a motorcycle. I might eventually end up with a dual sport, but the little Kawasaki is adequate. I think I let a moment of bike envy make me think I needed something more capable. Now, I did look at a Suzuki DR 650 Friday. They had a little H-D Sportster 48. That's a really good looking bike. I might be tempted to pick up a Sportster 1200. I've always liked the looks of Harley-Davidsons and thought I would enjoy one. Again, I don't want a huge bagger. I'd rather have more nimble bike. Either way, I'm going to hang onto my Kawasaki.

I do not regret buying my current motorcycle. If I had to do it over, I would buy it again. It has been a great bike to learn on. I'd recommend a light, low horsepower motorcycle that you can flat foot to anybody who is a beginner. It's actually pretty capable and I really don't need anything better. My issue with it is the high rpms on the highway. It can do 80 mph, but it isn't fun going too much over 55mph due to the buzzy engine and vibrations.

Well, the salesman texted me this morning, as I thought he would. I asked him for the $7995 OTD plus they throw in a Honda bash guard and charge port. That's around $550 worth of parts retail. I told him he could hand them to me in a box. I'm not sure what the invoice price is on parts. We are at "I'll see what I can do tomorrow morning and get back to you".

I didn't think I would at first, but I knew I would outgrow it sooner or later. It just happened soomer than I thought.

I almost bought a new motorcycle today. I have kinda outgrown my Kawasaki Versys-x 300. It is slow and kinda inadequate on the rougher back roads. I've been looking at midsize adventure bikes. I've seen a Suzuki V-strom 800DE, Aprillia Tuareg 660, and a Yamaha Tenere 700. I've sat on all 3, but haven't ridden them. I've also been looking at the new Honda 750XL Transalp. I heard that they had 2 of them at Columbia Powersports, so my riding buddy and I rode over to see them. I really liked the riding position and the overall look. The salesman asked me if I wanted to test ride it. SURE! I rode it around the old mall loop and love it. The engine is a parallel twin and I love it. The transmission shifts smooth especially with the quick shifter. It's a great bike. The sticker price is $9999, which makes it the cheapest of the 4 bikes. It has my favorite riding position, but it is less capable off road than the others. For the kind of riding I do (dirt/chert/gravel), I think it will be a huge upgrade over what I have. I'm not going to single track it or ride over boulders. I hate the look of the Suzuki. The Aprillia is the most expensive, but offers the most. However, it's an Italian motorcycle and less reliable. The Yamaha is awesome and probably the most capable off road. It's top heavy and tall. It's probably the best bang for the buck with the 4 bikes. I'm not a fan of the riding position. It's only $500 more than the Honda. It was in the lead, but I think it is probably too much bike. I would never push it near its limits. Back to the Honda. Reliability? It's a Honda...duh. It has the least ground clearance of the 4 bikes, but a skid plate would probably help and keep the oil pan and exhaust from being damaged. The salesman asked me if I'd buy it for a good deal. Well, tell me what you got. He offered me $3000 for my Kawasaki, which is twice what I was expecting him to offer. He shot me an OTD price of $8500. After a little back and forth in text messages, he knocked it down to $7995. He waived the delivery and setup fees! My wife said she is cool with it, so I almost jumped on it. I told her that I would buy a bike next year, so I really don't want to spend the money right now. We've just spent a lot of money on house upgrades and a new bedroom suit this year. I would have no problem paying cash, but feel kinda guilty spending the money, I guess.

Why does anyone mess with Israel?

As covered up as we are, I will try to help people out, especially if they are nice. There was a woman who worked in the Clarksville construction office who I could not stand. She retired a little while back, thank the Lord. One day, she asked me to help her with something, that wasn't my job, and was less than kind to me when asking. I would have helped her if she'd have been nice about it. So, I pretty much ignored her for a few weeks. Finally she came to Nashville and she looked me up. She asked me why I hadn't answered her. I looked at her and asked her if I could explain something to her. With a surprised look, she said, "sure". I then asked her if she knew what a totem pole was. She replied with "yes". I proceded to tell her that the people I answer to or REALLY care about were the head at the top. That head would include my supervisor, my wife, and my children. I also told her that the people are less important to me as you go down the totem pole. I then asked her if she knew where she was on my totem pole. She said "no". I then said, "you are the feet". She looked at me with this incredulous look and stomped off. I never did help her, nor did she ask me to. Now that I think about it, I don't recollect her ever speaking to me again.

Morale is lower than I've ever seen it. Almost everybody I talk to is upset. I wake up every morning DREADING to go to work. I wake up Sunday mornings DREADING Monday morning. I'm losing staff positions and they add more work. I have guys getting tons of overtime to run the mobile reflectometer (test reflectivity of pavement marking) and now they are harping on overtime. They've added research garbage that I'm having to do most of it myself because I have nobody to do it. They gave all the directors huge raises. People are quitting left and right. 30+ year people are all talking retirement. They promised nobody is losing money or employment a while back, but I'm not hearing that lately. They call meetings to talk about EPIC, the new agenda (I call it Every Person Immensely Confused) and all we hear is "I don't know". Everybody leaves the meetings even more confused and upset. I think they have a big mess they've created that they have no real plan for. They are just shooting from the hip. They recently put GPS on all of the vehicles and the safety guy gets in your face for doing 1 mph over the limit. They are always changing everything and coming up with something new to waste time on. I sat in a meeting the other day for an hour and a half about cubicles. They tell us we have to conduct meetings even if there's nothing to say. I had more fun when I made $40k less. I tell the old retired people that they wouldn't recognize the place if they came back. I'm still pissed about the garbage they put me thought 8 years ago with that stupid employee I had. I'm done, but I can't leave yet.

I've been tired of my job since 2009. It's gotten progressively worse since then. The stupidity has grown exponentially the last two. Our leadership is a bunch of imbeciles. They are reorganizing the department of transportation again. I will have to re-apply for my job for the 2nd time in 8 years. I talked to the retirement board about 3 months ago. They told me that you can apply your sick time and it is as good as time served. I have 26 years and almost 4 months. I have almost 2.5 years of sick. If it gets worse (I'm betting it will), I will be leaving this place in early June 2025 and going to work for a consultant/contractor. It benefits you to retire just after your anniversary date. I am going to save all my sick and annual I can and hopefully, I can leave in Feb. 2025 and retire officially in June. They will let you use annual time for "terminal" leave like that. Imagine getting nearly half of your salary to retire and then adding 25%-40% to your current salary working for someone else, who isn't as idiotic as your current employer. That's what I plan to do. I'm telling every contractor and consultant about my plans. I've had a few tell me they want to talk to me.

I don't even try wheelies on a bicycle anymore.