Well, finally did it Saturday: I rode a Harley. Dealer had an open house, wife was curious, so we went. She wanted to try one, the dealer invited me to ride one. I wound up on a Sportster, largely by default...most of the other people wanted to ride the big touring bikes. Well, worth a try, I suppose. It was a black 2013 with 3300 miles, and I put about 25 miles on it...it's a standard (1200 Custom, I think) model with the regular height seat, black cast wheels...had a solo seat with backrest (the "Signature" seat), a windshield, soft saddlebags, aftermarket foam grips, and Screaming Eagle slip-ons. Impressions follow...
First, the single most notable feature: the noise. The racket the pipes made was absolutely obnoxious, right from idle. It was far and away the loudest of the dozen or so bikes (one 883 Super Low and ~10 big twins), most of which had aftermarket pipes. (Even the others seemed surprised how loud it was at idle, one suggesting that whoever put the pipes on it punched out the baffles.)
Handling was better than I expected, though I didn't push an unfamiliar bike much. Ride wasn't anything impressive. One odd thing: a bump the front swallowed often sent a jolt through the back. (Rear travel is WAY too short.) Might have been the tires on this particular bike, but it seemed to like to follow grooves.
Brakes were...not bad. I was never in danger of doing a "stoppie", but also never felt any urge to pull a Fred Flintstone. (I do not recall if it had ABS.) I'm still not happy with a single front rotor (especially on a 550+lb bike), but it seemed adequate for the weight.
Power I'm honestly not sure about. Around-town was fine, but I didn't go much past 1/3 throttle, because that was about where the racket went from obnoxious to intolerable. (I honestly felt bad for anyone behind me.) Engine shook like it had Parkinson's, though it wasn't bad through the bars.
Controls were lousy. Mostly: forward controls. Don't understand the appeal, don't like them at all! (The only mid-control bike available had ape hangers.) Also, the forward controls had my knee and the air cleaner trying to occupy the same real estate pretty much the whole ride. Bars were OK, though I wished for a small (~2") pullback. Wind protection was pretty good, though I suspect weather protection in rain would be nil below the waist.
Heat from the engine was very noticeable; anytime I stopped, I was bathed in it. Not a problem when moving, but would be brutal in traffic!
First, the single most notable feature: the noise. The racket the pipes made was absolutely obnoxious, right from idle. It was far and away the loudest of the dozen or so bikes (one 883 Super Low and ~10 big twins), most of which had aftermarket pipes. (Even the others seemed surprised how loud it was at idle, one suggesting that whoever put the pipes on it punched out the baffles.)
Handling was better than I expected, though I didn't push an unfamiliar bike much. Ride wasn't anything impressive. One odd thing: a bump the front swallowed often sent a jolt through the back. (Rear travel is WAY too short.) Might have been the tires on this particular bike, but it seemed to like to follow grooves.
Brakes were...not bad. I was never in danger of doing a "stoppie", but also never felt any urge to pull a Fred Flintstone. (I do not recall if it had ABS.) I'm still not happy with a single front rotor (especially on a 550+lb bike), but it seemed adequate for the weight.
Power I'm honestly not sure about. Around-town was fine, but I didn't go much past 1/3 throttle, because that was about where the racket went from obnoxious to intolerable. (I honestly felt bad for anyone behind me.) Engine shook like it had Parkinson's, though it wasn't bad through the bars.
Controls were lousy. Mostly: forward controls. Don't understand the appeal, don't like them at all! (The only mid-control bike available had ape hangers.) Also, the forward controls had my knee and the air cleaner trying to occupy the same real estate pretty much the whole ride. Bars were OK, though I wished for a small (~2") pullback. Wind protection was pretty good, though I suspect weather protection in rain would be nil below the waist.
Heat from the engine was very noticeable; anytime I stopped, I was bathed in it. Not a problem when moving, but would be brutal in traffic!
