Wednesday 14 May 2014

A Bit Of News

I just cant hold it in any longer!! I wanted to wait til I got the posts of the holiday all done, and then I could move on to the new stuff with a sense of having completed the job before it, but, I just cant wait to share my news!!

I got a new bike! It was something I was only half toying with for a little while now, then there was a 750 Shadow for sale on the SRA forums very cheap. I thought about it a bit more seriously, then started to plan how I could do the 19hr round trip to go look at it. Then I thought about it a bit more.

Now some of you may remember me looking at a bike in December 2012, something that I liked but knew that I would never get.

This was the one.

I'd seen this years model in the bike shop much earlier this year, then when I went back a few weeks later it was gone. I'd loved the look of this years bike, it was green and I'm a bit partial to green at the best of times. This green was pretty spectacular and coupled with that blackened look on the engine and everywhere that is normally chrome on a cruiser the bike looked pretty awesome to my eyes.

As I thought about a new second hand bike that I would have to travel for 2 days to just go and look at, I also wondered why I was even considering getting rid of a bike that I'd had from new and was only 3 years old and getting a bike that was pre loved and 9 years old. Why even say goodbye to Roxy?

Roxy has been a great friend to me but, and there's often a but isn't there, I'd done a few things on her now, the last trip (write up to come very soon I promise!) had seen me do some all weather riding in twisties as well as some hard highway miles. She just isn't quite enough anymore, she's a bit of a lug to get around tight twisties, and she just doesn't have quite enough omph to overtake with confidence on the highways. Not to mention something I'd never really noticed before, as soon as you hit 110km/h she starts vibrating like crazy.

With all these thoughts in my head I decided to put off the trip to see the second hand Shadow, go down to the local bike shop and just sit on a Vulcan. See if I could touch the ground and stuff like that. The next morning that's exactly what I did, I talked to a lovely boy at the shop and he even let me sit on a fully customised Harley Sportster that was really pretty but not what I was looking for. I went home and talked to Terry about my adventure .. it all happened pretty quickly after that.

Before I knew it I was saying my last goodbye to Roxy and hoping on my very new Kawasaki Vulcan 900 custom. We left for Newcastle for the weekend the very next morning, and after having ridden a whole 4km to get used to him, I rode 800km there and back in ecstasy!!

Here he is making friends with Terry's bike at our first stop of the trip.


Yep he's the green machine. Oh I could talk for hours about how much I loved that ride and how much I love my new toy but I wont just yet. I'll save it all for a new post, I think I'm going to have to start a new blog for the new chapter in my riding adventures.

Soon I'll finish up this blog with the last few posts about our last holiday with Roxy .. it's exciting stuff!!

Actually I'm not sure how I should do this, should I just start a new blog for the new bike or change the name of this one? The White Shadow Diary doesn't really mean anything once I've finished writing about the white shadow does it .. so something has to change. What do you think?

14 comments:

  1. Welcome to Kwaka ownership! I hope you have as much fun on yours as I have had in the last 105,000km on mine.

    Not Kwaka green but it suits the bike. My Dad had a 1500 Vulcan for a while and it was a blast to ride!

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    1. Thank you Andrew. I think I'm gonna love this club :)

      But hasn't the Kwaka green changed a bit recently, no it's not the real green, we were looking at a Ninja today, and there's more of a metalic sheen to the Vulcans color.

      Sheesh a 1500 .. and I was blown away by the power of the 900 ... I dont reckon I'd be safe on a 1500 :)

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  2. Wow Brenda you kept that on the quiet. But wow a new bike. Congratulations. You go girl. Looking forward to some posts on the new bike.

    As for the blog I think you should keep it and maybe just change the title as you already have lots of followers built up on your current blog. A new header picture and name should do it.

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    1. Thanks Steve .. did I really keep it quiet .. I felt like I was gonna burst if I didnt tell soon!!

      Yeah I'm kinda going one way then the other with the blog .. but you are right, I have built a little following .. so I'll think about it some more then make a snap decision like I do with just about everything :)

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  3. Hi Brenda, congratulations on the new arrival. Did you trade the Shadow? Like you I really loved the time I had on mine, but a time comes when you need that grunt for the hills and the overtaking. Just had the 750 Shadow out for a 400 k ride today and loved every bit of it. Hope you get a lot of enjoyment out of the Vulcan.

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    1. Thanks Theo!

      Yeah I traded the Shadow, they have her for sale out the front and I saw her today, did I have a twinge of regret .. umm .. no!! (Sorry Roxy). you are right, she did her job, she was a great bike to learn on but she's just outlived her usefulness for me, I hope someone else will have as much enjoyment out of her as I did.

      Yep I'm loving the Vulcan, cant wait to get out for a ride this weekend!!

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  4. Yay! Congratulations. I know how exciting it is to get a new bike. Enjoy it.

    There's no reason to end your blog. You can change the name, if you want, but even that isn't necessary.

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    1. Thanks Ally :) I cant wait to get back on the road again, one more day of wrok then I think I'll drag my husband somewhere.

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  5. Brenda:

    Lovely Bike. More power is safer and more relaxed when riding at higher speeds. Also the extra power is addictive.

    Don't start a new blog. Just change your title and header photo. The name of your URL means nothing

    congrats and many miles of smiles

    bob
    A weekend photographer or Riding the Wet Coast

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    1. Ta Bob :)

      Agree with all of that!

      I was kinda worried about the url, but I'm convinced now that just changing the name and header photo is the go. Just gotta go out and get a cool new photo now!

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  6. Happy Bike Day to you!! Sweet looking ride. I remember when you posted the pic of the black and whit done.

    So nice you found another bike you love.

    I'd say just keep this blog and change the name, people have done it before and this way all your old posts and pictures are still in one spot.

    If you start a new one, you need to let us all know.

    Happy riding!!

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    1. Ta Brandy!

      It's funny that that was a bike that I was taken with all that time ago and now I have one, good things come to those that wait :)

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  7. Congrats to the new family member. What an exceptional colour. I am looking forward to your new experience.
    Please keep the blog, just change the name to whatever you seem fit.

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    1. Thanks Sonja :)

      The colour was soemthing that really resonated with me I think, not to mention the fact that it was a bike that I'd seen and liked before. It seemed like fate that it all came together, right bike right colour, just when I was ready for something new.

      Yep gonna keep the blog, just gotta think of a new name now .. hmmm

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