Intake
Intake
KICKSTART THE CONVERSATION
JAMIE'S CLOSE SHAVE -> VIRAGO XV920 -> PETER WHO?
EVEN IF 11111 THE MAGAZINE 16 DEGREES COUNTERCLOCI(WISE TO COMPENSATE FOR THE PHOTOGRAPHER'S ARTSY-FARTSY CAMERA ANGLE, THAT STREET GLIDE IS STILL ACHIEVING A REASONABLY RESPECTABLE LEAN ANGLE FOR A HARLEY, WITH A BIT OF ROOM FOR MORE. CARL BEST EUGENE, OR
RUSHMORE
Just finished the article on the Harley Street Glide Special (November 2013). I have been looking for a new bike to replace my Low Rider Sport, which I have had since it was new (26 years), and am torn between the new Indian Chieftain and the Harley Street Glide Special. Both are close to the same price. Jamie Elvidge is a very pretty woman, but looking over the photos, I noticed she really needs a shave.
If Jamie rode the bike, how come there are no photos of her riding it?
STEVE BROUGHTON
CANOGA PARK, CA
Jamie rode the bike all over Colorado for a few days; then we got one here in California for further testing (note the complete spec chart) and photography by Jeff Allen. Our Senior Editor, Blake Conner, needs a shave about every 15 minutes.
NOBODY SAW THIS LETTER COMING...
I’m writing to address the disparaging comments Mike Turner made in his letter (“Bolt vs. Sportster,” November 2013) about old Yamaha Viragos. Saying the new Bolt is “slightly better than the Viragos of old” is quite wrong. I own an original Virago XV920. Its 1982 quarter-mile times as tested by Cycle and Motorcyclist were 13.1 and 13.3 seconds, respectively, and its wet curb weight was 538 pounds. Compared to the Bolt, at 13.78 seconds and 531 pounds dry, my bike is lighter, quicker, and has many features the “minimalist” Bolt lacks: dual front discs, six-way adjustable handlebars, DeCarbon monoshock rear suspension, selfcanceling turn signals, and Cycom (Cycle Computer) with the motorcycle world’s first all-digital LCD dash. This bike was designed to compete with BMW and the European sporting twins, and the American market turned it into the Harley clone wannabe it later became. Beauty is subjective. I like the Bolt a lot because of what it isn’t, namely a plastic-bodied sportbike or mega V-twin cruiser. It may be newer, but it's not better.
DON FINCH NATRONA HEIGHTS, PA
SPATULA
Regarding Kevin Cameron’s TDC column in October: What’s his address? It’s time someone sent him a new spatula. At least that would be some progress.
RANDY GLEASON MISSOURI CITY, TX
Bronze spatulas are hard to find these days.
CONCURS WITH CONCOURS
I leafed through November to see what might catch my eye. I flipped right past the “Rolling Concours” article—boooring—in spite of the photo of the sweet Hi Mach III. After reading every other article, I went back to it and could barely believe my eyes. A Kawasaki two-stroke triple won Best of Show and an RZ350 won something, too!? Maybe there’s hope. I have three words for you, Cycle World: Renew my subscription!
BRIAN MCCAVITT WHITE SALMON, WA
And maybe we’re all getting old enough that our childhood bikes are now vintage.
BACKSHIFTING
I think Nick Ienatsch needs to take Downshifting 102 (“Ridecraft,” November 2013). Steps 4 and 5 need to be reversed.
You blip the throttle before the downshift, not after, matching speeds for the engine, rear wheel, and transmission.
KARLDOENCES BURLINGTON, NE
EGAN AGAIN
Why not cut a deal with Peter to feature “Classic Egan,” rerunning Leanings columns from 25 years ago? I’m 65 and won’t remember I read them before, anyway. Do something!
LORNENADIGER COOUITLAM, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA
That, or we could just plagiarize; PE won’t remember he wrote them, either.
GOOD TIMES
As a longtime reader and rider since 1976, I’ve had a very good life: great job, great kids (all four), and a wonderful wife.
She didn’t ride but loved bikes and would hop on the back now and again. In 2002,
I had to have both my hips replaced, then a rod and some screws in my back five years later, and she was there for me.
A year later, we found out she had breast cancer and underwent chemo, surgery, and radiation—only to have it spread.
Last year, when things were grimmest, she went on the Internet and picked out a 2012 Suzuki GSX-R1000, said she wanted me to have it because she didn’t want what was coming to be all negative. She is missed every moment of every day by all of us, and every time I take the bike out for a ride, the kids and I will take time to talk about the wonderful wife and mother we miss.
I know this might sound strange, but every issue that arrives at my door renews all the really great times she and I had and pushes back the memories of the years of pain. While it’s not possible to erase the moments in time that give one grief, having things that trigger the really good times is the best.
Thanks for a great magazine.
DANHOMA HAMDEN, CT
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