My Riding History, Page 3 of 3

Well, I really liked the Moto Guzzi's, but I wanted more power for sidecar use. In 1983 I purchased a 1980 Kawasaki 1300 B-2 tourer with a Vetter sidecar. This was a left over 1980 model that I purchased new. Six cylinders, 120 HP, what a stump puller. This bike could pull the sidecar easily over 100 MPH, but more important was that it was a good heavy bike for the job. Most cruising was in the 60 to 70 MPH range, with plenty of power for passing. The sidecar could come off in about ten minutes, and I ran the bike solo about half the time. I also had a tent trailer which was pulled behind the sidecar, did really good. This rig saw service to all western USA, and my kids loved it.

My two littlest kids (Heather and Lettie) could both sit in the sidecar, or Lettie would sit behind me. At times when touring they would both be watching a small black and white portable TV while riding in the sidecar or I was setting up camp. We really rough it.

A few years later when the twins (Chrissy and Kathy) arrived on the scene (another marriage, don't ask), there was a contest to who rode where. Actually, while the Vetter sidecar was more stylish, the old Ural was a lot more practical and had more room.

Then at about 70,000 miles the Kawasaki broke and sat in my garage where it still is today. I got interested in computers and other things and went about 9 to 10 years without a personal bike. I still rode the police bike daily, so it was not like I stopped riding.

About ten years later I decided I needed another bike and found a used 1984 Yamaha Venture. I still had the Vetter sidecar, but it was never attached to the Venture. I really liked the Venture, a good comfortable touring bike for distance riding. I never liked the looks of the new six cylinder Honda's. To me they looked like a motor home coming down the road. The Venture was trim looking and handled pretty good. My experience with it's V-4 engine influence my decision to buy my next bike, a Yamaha Royal Star.

In the spring of 1998 I had decided to replace the Venture with a brand new bike, but with what. My requirements was a up right seating position, good handling, reliability, stylish looks and in about that order. I liked BMW's, but their reliability lately has been question and they are too high price for me. Harley was also too expensive and never even considered (I like riding, not wrenching). Honda's GL1500 was just too bulky for me, but it is very comfortable to ride. Yamaha no longer made the old Venture which is what I would have bought. I would have liked the Honda ST 1100 with that 7 gallon gas tank for distance riding. It has very good handling and power. But for long rides that leaning forward style of riding was not for me. I'm not the young stud I once was and I didn't know if I could take that leaning forward on my arms while riding all day. I saw a new Pacific Coast at the Honda dealer, but was turned off my the scooter look. That turned out to be an expensive mistake.

So I started looking at cruiser's. One thing I didn't like about any of the cruiser's was lack of touring range. The three models I ended up seriously looking at was the Yamaha Royal Star TD, Kawasaki Nomad, and the Honda Valkyrie Tourer.

The Royal Star and Nomad both have styling, the Royal Star the best quality and fit of any bike I looked at. The Valk was very fun to ride. I didn't especially like the looks of the engine, but the power made up for that. The Valk is a hot rod, good seating position, handles pretty good for it's size, but can easily cause one to exchange autographs with the area's law enforcement after a discussion of traffic conditions.

(By the way, I have only been stopped for traffic violations six times in my life, received three tickets each deserved, three warnings, and never showed police ID or advised I was an officer when stopped. I think it is tacky to do so.)

All three met most of my above stated requirements. Finally in August I signed papers on the Valk, a 97 red and white tourer. But the more I looked at that engine, the less I liked it. And my prior experience with the six cylinder Kaw told me this would be a hot (temperature) bike to ride, and I did not like heat. I would rather ride in 40 degree weather than 80 degrees. I waited over the weekend thinking about it, then Tuesday morning canceled the order for the Valk, drove over to Lynnwood Yamaha for the RS. (The Nomad had already been placed in 3ed.) The two tone model Royal Star TD was sold while I was undecided, so I purchased a black 1997 Royal Star Tour Deluxe in July, 1998.

The RS is a very comfortable bike to ride, with almost perfect seat and handlebar position for me. It is a very good looking bike, with probably the best fit and finish of all the bike's I've seen. But to keep all that chrome and paint looking good takes about two hours to clean and shine up. I really started to dislike riding in the rain after cleaning it up. I also missed not having more weather protection since I ride year around. I also didn't realized how much  I missed the cornering. The RS is very low slung, touches down quickly. A few times I touched down on the frame so hard I was afraid I was going to lift a tire. It has no center stand which creates problems when doing servicing. I had attempted an Iron Butt thousand mile ride in 24 hours (SS1000) trip  in October of 1998 with the RS and got stopped at 984 miles and 18 hours with a rear flat tire. I was unable to repair the tire and had to call a tow truck. The negatives began to out weigh the positives.

Then in the spring of 1999 I started reading about Honda's Pacific Coast (PC800). The more I looked, the more I liked what I saw. I looked at every web site I could find, reading what people had to say. The used price value on my RS was falling which meant I would take a beating financially if I sold it. But I started looking for PC's for sale and advertised my RS. Finally in June I heard about a used PC 60 miles away at a Tacoma dealer. Since it was so close I rode my RS down for a look. They had two PC's, a 94 and 96. The 94 had plastic damage and the prior owner had drilled holes in the fake tank to mount a radio. But the 96 PC looked like new, with only 5,050 miles. I took my first ride on a PC and was impressed, like it even more. Not near as much power has my prior bikes, but enough to get the job done. A very smooth, quiet ride and handled the curves very well. This was on a Friday, and I left the dealer and went home to think about it. That weekend I put another 300 miles on my RS while thinking. My RS only had about 11,000 miles on it and looked so beautiful. I decided. On June 15, 1999 I took my RS and title back to Tacoma, they gave me the 96 PC and some cash and they got my RS. Don't ask how much money I would have saved if I had just purchased the PC the year before.

Anyway, I've had my PC for a few months now, and as of Nov 2, 1999 the odometer now has 14,668 miles on it. The more I ride it, the better it gets. The stock Dunlop K555's tires were replaced with Metzler ME880. I replaced the stock windshield with a taller Clearview shield. I will probably replace the seat with a Russell DayLong. I also added handlebar clamps to bring the bars back a little. I would like a radio, miss listening to tunes on long rides.

What I like best, it handles fairly well, is smooth and quiet. I can lean into the corners again. The power is adequate for most needs. The luggage handling is great, that trunk is one of it's best assets. You have to experience it to believe it. It has good touring range of about 200 miles, with a very accurate gas gage. Takes only 15 minutes for a total wash job with minimal chrome to mess with. Very low maintenance required and what appears to be a very reliable engine and drive train. The engine is a 800 cc V-Twin, hydraulic lifters, shaft drive rear end. There is a center stand. Weather protection is very good.

The Pacific Coast is just a very good all around general purpose bike. I think if Honda had just made the taller windshield stock instead of the short one, and pulled the handlebars back a few inches and advertised it better it would have become a best seller. Just two cheap changes would have really changed it. I have heard some people refer to it as a baby wing. I think it more resembles a baby ST. Honda's best kept secret is the PC.

The negatives: a few. Only one after market rear shock source, headlight is a bitch to adjust, the bike will probably be expensive if it falls over (all that plastic). I would like more power for passing. Needs an additional foot rest. I am sure there are more, but just can't think of them. I probably need to go ride again..

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