On Monday, May 15th, 2006 I purchased the 1983 Honda Nighthawk 650 pictured to the left off of eBay. I had been wanting to get a motorcycle for years as I’m sure most red blooded American males want to get a motorcycle. I have heard many a tale of a motorcycle accident in and around the family, and some of those accidents were terrible ones. Damn the consequences? No. Here’s the story;
Coming home late one Saturday night, I was subjected to the Sunday morning talk portion of the FM radio stations driving home in my car. This particular Sunday morning, the guests were from the Delaware Valley A.B.A.T.E. … (A.B.A.T.E. = Alliance of Bikers Aimed Toward Education) … What they were basically talking about was the safety associated around motorcycle driving and bringing awareness to those who don’t ride motorcycles to be aware that there are motorcycles sharing the roads with them … They said many more people were purchasing motorcycles due to the gas price increase.
This got me thinking again about purchasng a motorcycle. Simply mentioning to my wife, “Hey, I was thinking about getting a motorcycle.” gets a simple response of “No you’re not!” … But I had made a pact with her many years ago about getting one, and I was determined to hold her to it … There were other reasons I had for getting one. The major reason was that I drove the car on weekends to get to the truck to do the Octane shows. I told her if I had the motorcycle that she wouldn’t be left without a car and outings that she would be on would no longer be stopped short because she had to get the car to me so I could take it to the truck …
So off we go looking for a motorcycle. I packed the wife and two kids in the car and we took a ride to find a cheap used motorcycle. I have never owned a motorcycle, nor have I really driven one except for a friend letting me ride his once before I was even out of high school. The first place we went was East Coast Cycle Center … I had seen a used bike listed on their web site that was going for just under $3000.00 … I would never get that, but I recall a long time ago going to this particular bike shop and finding a 750 for $750, and that’s what I was looking for. All the bikes here had price tags hanging from them, and they were all very expensive … No one really talked to us there, so we left …
Just down the road a little south is Philly Fun Center … They didn’t have anything used either, but I was entertaining a scooter … They had them new for $1500ish … He didn’t suggest I ride something like that on the highway … Again the cheapest used was over $3000.00 … He said that people were buying up everything cheaper. He suggested a Kawasaki Dealer up the road … So off to Bucks County Kawasaki at 230C Route 13, Bristol, PA 19007 … Same thing there … Used $5,500 but why buy used when a new one was $6,900? Ha! You crazy?!
We then drove around, exploring areas we never drove and looking for motorcycle places … We stopped where we saw a lot of motorcycles, but they seemed to be a service place … They suggested an accessories store where they might know about someone selling used bikes … We drove there and I asked the guy behind the counter and he said he’d get back to me if he heard anything … I still haven’t heard from him … Again it was reiterated to me that bikes were selling like hotcakes … Not only was it the beginning of the summer, but the gas prices were converting a lot of people who had been thinking about buying a motorcycle before to finally get one since the mileage is so great on a 4 stroke two wheeled beast … I don’t know exactly what my mileage is yet, but I would estimate it’s about 50-60 miles to the gallon.
So, that weekend I drove Alex to the show in the truck, and on the way up I told him about our excursion and how I came up empty … He mentioned he had a 250 Ninja that didn’t run … Said I could fix it and use that … So we left it at that … Monday morning (5/15) I look at my iMac and in the IRC room I see that Alex posted a link to an eBay item Sunday night … It was to the bike pictured in this post … I sent a message at 12:48pm about coming by and checking the motorcycle out … I got a response from the guy’s wife with his phone number … I called and had to leave a message … The whole time I’m worried because there’s a Buy It Now on the auction … It could end any second! I tried to pass the time, went shopping with the wife and was rushing her to get home … So at 3:45pm I sent all the questions I wanted answered … Was it inspected, was he currently riding it, did it need anything, etc … She replied again at 5:30ish and that was all I needed … I clicked the Buy It Now and the phone rang … It was her to schedule me coming by to check it out, and then she says, “Oh, you bought it, I guess we’re scheduling when you’re coming by to pick it up.”
You see, I have been burned before on the eBay Buy It Now stuff … Something I’m interested in disappears right before your eyes … There’s nothing you can do once it’s gone … It was listed for a starting bid of $899.99 and a Buy It Now of $1000.00 … So, risk losing it waiting til the end for $100? The counter on it was well over 400+ and it was only listed about a day … It was also listed on Craig’s List with his phone number … I had already been around to the dealers and there was nothing like this available … Bam! I met the seller at 7:00pm … He had contacted a Mobile Notary who came out to the sale and did the title transfer (most tag places close at 7pm) … Alex met me at the seller’s and my wife dropped me off. Alex drove it to a local parking lot and I started messing with it there … Alex lent me a helmet and I drove it home …
I have my permit, my insurance ($95 for the year) and I am signed up for the free motorcycle class given by the state … I have driven about 300 miles and have stopped for gas 3 times putting $5.00 in each time … I saw another bike for sale on State Road … I stopped to check it out … It’s a 1982 Honda CB750 for $999.00 … It’s rusty, it has black pipes and doesn’t look as nearly well kept as the bike I got on eBay … I got a great deal … The eBay seller told me that he had tons of emails and his phone was ringing off the hook from the Craig’s List ad … Good thing I came with the cash and made it mine when I did … He was kicking himself … He knew he could have sold it for twice what he actually sold it for … and when I decide to buy a bigger newer bike, I will be able to sell it for that amount …
I’ve read the owner’s manual several times and I have beefed up the suspension for my big butt … It’s pretty damn cool … I was worried about what my parents would say, and thankfully they’re supportive and telling me to be careful … Always wear my helmet, etc … My older brother had a motorcycle and had a solo accident where he drove his leg into his pelvis … he was out of commission for a while because of it … I don’t think he ever took the class or had the ability to do as much reading as I have on the ‘net about riding … The key is to start out really slow and work your way into more advanced riding … I’ve taken it on the highway twice … I prefer not being on the highway …
Welp, this post is getting too long … There are some experiences I would like to share, but I will leave them for another time …