The Beast and the Beauty

It is a crisp May morning, and dawn is just breaking over the horizon. I just finished my morning run, and I strain to heave my heavy machine off it's center stand. The 25 year old suspension groans as the full 800 lbs settles onto the wheels. This old Goldwing has seen a lot of miles, most of them put on it by my father. He purchased the bike when I was six years old, and I remember riding home on it that day. Now, 20 years later, it has been handed off to me. Most thought it's time had come, and it was time to get something new. The local Harley riders mocked it, all the way to the bank with their monthly payments. My friends all thought I was nuts to be willing to be seen on the "old man's bike". I began to wonder myself, but every time I started it, I could not help but know that it had life left in it. beneath the cracked, duct taped, and faded fecal brown body work, was a beautiful bike. The motor was strong, always ready to answer a twist of the throttle. The 1100cc Boxer motor just begged to be run, seeming to get stronger the harder you pushed it. It would still almost seem to want to lean into the corners ahead of me, picking the best line through the next curve before my mind could process it. I knew something had to be done to bring this beast back to it's true beauty.

This cool morning is going to be my first real ride since bringing the bike from the brink of death. Gleaming in the morning sun, it seems to enjoy the stares as people pass by. The bright blue body work sparkles with each glint of light. The dark silver accents perfectly where chrome used to be. The flat back motor and pipes help keep it from screaming "Look at me!" too much. I spent a year and half painstakingly going over every detail of the bike. I made sure every small item was painted, and that the clear coat was as perfect as I could get. It was an education, teaching myself to paint, and tackling mechanical tasks that terrified me. As I roll out of the main gate of the base, and onto the German back roads, I realize why I did it. I understand now why my dad enjoyed this thing so much. As I work through the gears, each shift solid and smooth, I feel like I have been reunited with an old friend. The beast of a Goldwing given to me, has truly become a thing of beauty.

This blog will chronicle my adventures with the Goldwing as I travel around Europe and who knows where else. I may also muse about mechanical trials and triumphs, and whatever else may be going on in my world. I will try to keep it all related to the motorcycles and wandering around the world.

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