Pete’s Excellent Desert Adventure - Part III
As some may be aware, I also own a couple of vintage Yamaha XS650s (a 1976 Standard and a 1981 Special which is becoming a Cafe bike) and this note was originally written for the XS650.com forum.
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Well folks, Saturday, Dec. 30 really was a special day for me. My cousin and I rendezvoused on our Harleys at 8:00 AM and then hit road into Phoenix to Daniel Black’s home where we met he and Mailman at about 9:15 AM (Phoenix is a BIG spread-out city indeed).
Let me tell you all - both Daniel's and Mailman's XS650s are just as pretty in-person as they looked in the calendar nominations. They both really sparkle and sound strong and tight - with that sexy bark that only an XS650 can emit. The four of us then lit out back across town for the breakfast spot where we were joined by AZMan for breakfast. AZMan had some "lubricant containment" issues on his way from Tucson (about 2 hours south of us) but he is a very capable guy and made it OK.
Following breakfast, we rode up to Lake Sujauro (sp?) - about 30-40 min of riding on spectacular twisties through the desert mountains north-east of Phoenix. At the lake we chatted for a while, took some photos and a Boeing B-17 flew overhead (WOW!) Then Daniel, AZMan and I rode back to Phoenix in search of good BBQ and Mailman and my cousin split-off for home. The three BBQ Amigos went to the famous Little Miss BBQ in Phoenix and holy cow (get it??
) the food was awesome and we even got to meet Daniel’s wife, who joined us for lunch! After that, we parted and I went to return the Harley to Eagle Rider Rentals near Phoenix Airport.
The entire day was a total blast: buddies, bikes and BBQ!
Thank-you so much Daniel, Mailman and AZMan for making time for our visit and to all of you out there in XS650-Forum-Land - I can say that many were mentioned by name and you were missed. This is my second meet-up of XS650.com friends and while they do take a little effort, both events have been absolutely terrific.
We really are a fortunate group.
....and the final chapter on the Harley Street Glide...
The Eagle Rider rental experience was largely OK - BUT - I was pretty annoyed to run into another E-R renter on my second last day who was also on a Street Glide - but had paid much less than half of what I was paying for exactly the same rental during the same four day period.
We're talking a difference of more than $560 USD - which is big money to me.
Apparently, a few days after I booked in early November, they announced an offer called Harley for the Holidays at $100/day - and I missed it.
I called and mentioned this to them and they
eventually offered me a 10% discount on my rental - but I am still annoyed and will likely search for an alternative if I rent again. Sorry about the downer - but that is a pretty sharp (and not in a good way) business practice in my book.
Overall, I did like the bike, but found it to be ponderous. I am used to big heavy bikes (have you ever ridden a Honda ST1300?) but the Harley seemed to try hard to feel heavier than it was while other large bikes I have ridden appeared to work to disguise their weight.
Anyhow - the H-D is a cool ride and I liked it....but, not for a long-term purchase.
Cheers,
Pete