My newest ride. This is a 2002 Honda Valkyrie that I purchased in May, 2004 with just 1100 miles.
I traded in my Honda CBR1100 XX, which is pictured below. The XX was always tempting
me to go faster, which can be fun, but it's also risky. With this bike, there is less temptation to
go like hell, and I can be content just cruising at a modest pace. It's also more comfortable
than the XX.
 This bike is flawless and runs as smooth as silk - strong, too. It has a horizontally opposed 1520cc six
cylinder engine with six carburetors, water cooling, five speed tranny, and shaft drive. It's a big bike,
weighing 680 pounds dry, but handles surprisingly well for it's size. I think it's a work of art!
 
 

 Here's a close up shot of that beautiful engine. I love the way Honda dressed it up with so much
chrome. It has a very pleasant exhaust note, too - not loud, but it lets you know that this engine
isn't all show....
 
 

 The motorcycle pictured above is my 1985 Honda V65 Magna. I bought this bike from a
friend in the late 80s, rode it for a few years, sold it, then bought it back a few years later.
It has a water cooled V4 1098 cc engine with four over head cams, four valves per cylinder,
10.5:1 compression, a 10,000 rpm redline, and puts out over 100 rear wheel horse power.
It also has shaft drive with a six speed transmission. What all that means is that the bike is a
blast to ride. In fourth gear, it will pull hard from 25 mph @ 2000 rpm to 125 mph @ 10,000
rpm, and I love the classic lines. It's in excellent condition with only 11,000 miles, and everything
looks and works pretty much like it did when it was new.
 
 

 I get a kick out of the gear indicator LCD. The first five gears are indicated by their
number, but when the transmission is shifted into 6th gear, the display reads "OD".
Fifth gear is also an overdrive ratio, so I wonder if the engineers used "OD" as a
joke - as in over dose of speed.
 
 

 Yeah, it's a just the gas tank, but it's 18 years old, and doesn't have a nick, dent,  or
scratch anywhere. I'll try to keep it that way.
 
 
 

. This one is a 1997 Honda CBR1100XX, which is a "Sport/Touring" bike. Nothing out of the
ordinary here except for the polished rims. They were painted black from the factory, but I
nicked the paint on the rear wheel while changing the tire so I stripped the paint and polished the
aluminum.  I think it looks much better this way. Although I don't go there, this bike can reach a top
speed of almost 180 mph. I am able to enjoy the incredible acceleration at lower speeds though, which
is nothing short of phenomenal. In first gear, it will manage 0-60 mph in under 3 seconds with the front
wheel hovering a few inches off the road. I'm somewhat surprised that machines this fast are legal on
public roads, but I'm not complaining - the simple pleasures in life help make it worth living. ;-)
 
 

 The bike above is Honda's "Rune". They only made them for one year,
2003. The styling is controversial, but after riding it, the bike grew on me.
It has a potent 1800cc flat six cylinder engine, with a single sided swingarm
and shaft drive. A friend of mine recently bought this bike, which is the only
one our local Honda dealer would get. He was nice enough to let me take it
for a about an hour's ride, provided he could ride along on my XX.
I was more than willing to oblige. This bike is huge, and weighs about 800
pounds, but out on the road, it has plenty of power, handles much better
than I thought it would, and even has very good brakes. I was impressed,
and didn't want to give it up.
 
 

 Notice the suspension geometry. Those big tubes up front that look like forks don't move when
the suspension moves. The linkage behind it moves instead.
 
 

 You can get an idea how of big this bike is with me sitting on it.
 

  Link to entertaining motorcycle videos.