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| NEWSLETTERSeptember 2001www.NewForestHOG.org |
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| NEWSLETTERSeptember 2001www.NewForestHOG.org |
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When is a Harley not a Harley? |
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| It is amazing where window cleaning can get you! On my return home from a good weekend at the Swanage rally, I receive a phone call from one of my clients. It is Tiff Needell from the TV motoring program, Top Gear, asking me if I would like to take the new bike from Harley Davidson, the V Rod, for a test ride and give him my opinion on it. "Yes, sure I would. And while I am there would you like me to test-fly the space shuttle?" I reply. "No, there are only two V Rods in Europe and I've got one here at home with me. I thought Lance is a Harley boy. I'll ring him and see if he would like to test-ride the new bike." Tiff retorts. Well, after picking myself off the floor and with the phone shaking in my hand, I say, "When can I come round then?" "Come round after the Grand Prix", Tiff replies. "OK. I will see you after the Grand Prix" and I say my farewells. I can't believe it. The Harley V Rod! Most people have not even seen the bike in the flesh yet and I was going to be riding it. No, I think, I must be dreaming. Ouch! No, I am not dreaming. Roll on the Grand Prix. It has just started and is going to last about two hours. | |||
| Oh no! It's a restart! Add on another half-hour at least. The Grand Prix comes and goes and I find myself standing in Tiffs' garage looking at a chromed and aluminum metal, silver painted bike. What automatically springs to mind is a cross between the custom BMW bike and a Yamaha V Max. Tiff gives me the keys; I start her up with anticipation. Hello! Where's the shaking and where's that familiar thump from the Harley exhaust? |  |
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| Time to get on and back the bike out of the garage. I swing my leg over and kick up the side stand and take the weight of the bike, it's as light as a feather. It's lighter than my Sportster. The bike has a low centre of gravity helped by the fuel tank being under the seat. Right, the bikes pointing in the right direction, so off we go. She rolls up the drive and down the lane. The gearbox is lovely. It clicks into gear, not clunking. Don't get me wrong! It is not as sweet as a Japanese gearbox but a big improvement on the Harley boxes | |||
| On to open roads now. We lean into a series of sharp bends going up and over the South Downs. She handles like a dream. The road widens and straightens with a number of long sweeping curves ahead. I open the throttle. Wow! She's off like a rocket. I cannot believe the punch she gives. We go down the straight towards the bends. I lean the bike into the first bend and then flick her over for the next and the next and the next. She did not move an inch off line. |  |
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| I could have been on rails and not got a smoother, more stable ride. I slow down for the last bend, knowing that there is a side road after it. Yes, there it is - the obligatory car pulling out of the side road in time to test my brakes! The brakes work perfectly, slowing me down with plenty of control. No worries, they are powerful with plenty of feel. I wonder if the showroom bike comes with braided brake lines as standard. I turn around and head for home, giving the bike a free head. She loves it! The engine fires into life and catapults the bike down the road with me hanging on, . I turn into Tiffs drive. That was the shortest hour I've ever known. The V Rod is so easy to ride, I could have ridden the bike all day. I felt I'd been riding the bike for years. The bike is lightweight, giving you plenty of feel from a 115bhp engine that has no hint of vibration, even up to the red line at nine thousand revs. The handling is superb, filling you full of confidence in the bike's ability to handle anything you can throw at it with ease. The styling of the bike! It grows on you, I promise. However, Joe public may not recognise the bike as a Harley, or associate the sound of the V Rod with a Harley. | |||
| Who will buy the
bike? I don't know, but DG20 have already sold seven of the ten V Rods they are
getting! The V Rod is a sports bike with forward controls. P.S. Do not forget to check the coolant level! 'A Harley that is made by Harley but not a Harley!' Lancee Hog No.153 |
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| NEW FOREST HOG BRANCH - September 2001 Newsletter | ||||
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| Created 20 October 2001, last updated 1 November 2001 | ||||