Do you remember that EXACT moment when you realized you HAD to have a Valkyrie?

[humshark]

I got into Motorcycling in '01.  I had ridden 20 years prior, but never owned my own bike until then.  I started on an ACE 1100.  My brother-in-law had owned a Valkyrie from the very start, and he would often talk about how smooth and powerful, and well mannered the Valk was.  While he had me convinced, I NEVER felt I could ride a Valkyrie due to me being only 5'7" while my brother was more like 5'11".

Cut to the spring of 2003.  I'm talking shop with an installer for Siemens.  He's from South Africa and only about 5'4".  We start on motorcycles and i ask him what he rides.  He reply's "I ride a Valkyrie, you ever heard of them?"  I about fell over!  I asked him how he handled the bike, it was so BIG.  He smiled and simply stated the obvious, "you've never ridden one, have you!"  We talked for a couple more hours while he ran through his history of ownership.  He had me convinced that I could handle the "fat lady".

The next day I went to the stealer and through a leg over a standard sitting on the floor.  As I lifted her up, my coworker shook his head in disbelief, but I knew that I would own a Valkyrie.

It's now August of 2003 and I had been doing my homework!  I was constantly "tracking" valkyries on Ebay comparing and sorting.  I was also in Florida on business and during a break, pulled up one particular bike I had been eyeing for some time and knew that the auction was about to end.  I had never done anything on Ebay at that time except look at bikes, so I was a little surprised when i refreshed the screen in front of my peers to see the announcment that I was the HIGH BIDDER with less than 2 minutes left.

I FREAKED out!  I thought that I had somehow hit a wrong button, and that i was now on the hook to purchase the bike!  I watched in "EXCITED HORROR" while the timer ran out and the auction declared me the "winner!"  What was my wife going to do?!

I quickly ran out of the room while a few people commented about what had happened.  I made a call to my wife and was greeted by laughter!  My wife had bid and won the bike for ME!  My peers really were jealous, stating that their wives had never bought them a motorcycle!   
I finished my time in Florida and re-arranged for my flight to take me to Akron Ohio, where I picked up my beautiful Black and Chrome Standard!  I put 20k on her before purchasing my second I/S model and eventually I let her go.   :'(

It is a moment and a friend I will NEVER forget!

My FIRST Valkyrie

[Printer Mike]

In the fall of 2005 I was living alone at Lake Sinclair in Milledgeville, GA. I was there preparing to rebuild the boat dock when the lake was lowered the month of December. One night while surfing the internet, I ran across Daniel Meyer's wonderful account of his trek to Alaska and back on his trusty Valk.

That was when I knew I had to have a Valk...but it took 4 years to make it happen...just last week!

[Tundra]

I had ridden for 27 years, ...Then lost two friends in two years and another fellow I knew by aquaintance. All Motorcycle deaths. Sold my bike at 42 years old and thought I would settle down.
  Andrea and I were on a "stay at home and get some work done" vacation. We were exhausted and sunburned from putting a roof on the house. She said to me, we need to get out, all we've done is work. Well we went to our local bike night and I saw two Valkyrie's, heavily modified. I talked to the man for nearly an hour, I knew I had to have one. Then as we were walking away, he started it. That did it. I owned my first Valkyrie the very next week. He has become a good friend. The bike I have learned and gone over every inch of with the help from this board and other Valkyrie riders.
 

[Hoser]

I bought the first valk I ever rode, still got it, and an interstate!  Hoser 

[junior]

the first time i saw a valk was in the downstairs showroom of a local honda shop tucked way in the corner it was green and cream and chrome, at the time i had a 84 goldwing standard 1200 and wanted a bigger bike. i week later i was riding it home and have been loving it ever sence

[SteveL]

It was 2000 and I had just re-entered the motorcycle rider category after being off bikes for almost 20 years. I had gone out and bought an 82 750 Nighthawk as a "starter" bike so I could get back into things at a low cost while I decided what to buy. I was thinking HD RoadKing at the time.

I live in a very small town in rural Massachusetts and one cold wet fall day, I was riding through the center on my Honda 750 and there in the middle of town was an "invasion" of about 30 Valkyries. I had never seen such a huge and impressive motorcycle. The fact that there were 30 of them, or more was even more incredible. Come to find out one of the early particpants on this board had passed away and his fellow VRCC brethren from all over New England had ridden to his  funeral. They were sharing a round at the local VFW before departing and heading their separate ways with their individual thoughts of dying a too young death.

That was in October. After that I didn't sleep at night until in February 01 I pulled the trigger on a 98 Valk leftover in a crate in a small dealer in western Ma. $9.5K brandnew and $500 "Honda custom bucks" thrown in.

89K miles later she is still my favorite ride.

[Puffs Daddy]

It was late 2002, as I recall. I'd never owned a "cruiser" of any sort. Was riding a BMW K1200RS that I loved. But I'd recently purchased a Honda Shadow Sabre 1100 for my wife and found to my surprise that I enjoyed riding it. Hmmm...Maybe a cruiser wasn't a bad idea. My local Honda dealer had just taken a virtually new VTX in trade and I took it out for a spin.

Very impressive, but at 80 mph on the highway (when my BMW was just settling in), the VTX couldn't compare. Why, I thought, would I want such a huge bike when I already had a much superior bike for long distance touring. Returned to the dealer and by chance a fellow I had encountered at the dealer a couple of times before pulled up on his Valk. He asked how I liked the VTX. Not that impressed, I said, especially compared to my BMW. "Try my Valk," he said, and tossed me the keys.

An hour later I returned to the dealer and told the salesman to find me a Valk. Had to settle for a black standard. (I've since spent endless hours cleaning the damn thing.) But in the seven years since I've never found a cruiser I prefer.  Put quite a few miles on a Triumph Rocket III and last weekend I put a few miles on a Triumph Thunderbird 1600. Both nice bikes. Neither, however, compares to the Valk. Likewise the 2 litre Kawasaki and the Yamaha RoadLiner. In fact, the closest competitor for me has been the Yamaha Royal Star Tour Deluxe, a much ignored but truly great (imo) touring cruiser.

About a year ago I got rid of the Beemer and a much loved Triumph T-Bird Sport for a Moto Guzzi Breva V1100. But I couldn't bring myself to part with the Valkyrie.

[hubcapsc]

I can't resist joining in on the story telling...

When my mom was sick with Cancer, I used to stop by the Harley shop as I was doing my rounds at the hospitals and
pharmacies each week picking up the medicines she needed. I'd dream about being care-free and drifting down
country roads on a big shiny Harley. I picked out the coolest one in the shop, it more of less looked like the ones in
the old pictures of my father:





After the inevitable conclusion of my weekly stops at the Harley shop, I kept thinking about the Harley,
and I brought one home. It was a really cool bike, and I really put the miles on it (3,000) that first year.
After that, though, it hardly got 1,000 miles a year, trips to work, to Laurens for SCV work days
on some Saturdays.

A few years ago (about three years now, I think) me and one of my SCV buddies trailered our Harleys
all the way down to Charleston (200 miles) for a SCV sponsored poker run. We got to the meeting place
early, and were one of the last groups to leave out. I wandered around in the sea of Harleys that were there
thinking about how they were all kind of different, but all pretty much the same. I'm sure mine was the only
one there with the original pipes on it. Finally we left out, our group was the last one to leave. I'd forgotten
to gas up, what with trailering down and all, but I had ridden about 70 or 80 miles to meet my buddy with
the trailer, so I didn't have a full tank. The group waited at the corner while I grabbed some gas, and when
I got back there was an extra rider there with a giant red motorcycle with a chrome car engine in it, and
everyone was looking at it. Then we left, I was near the end of the pack, and the giant red motorcycle
was behind me (though I couldn't hear it)... all of a sudden it zoomed by silently, and the rider had his
hands over his head (turns out Frank was testing out his new cruise control)...

The ride continued, we stopped at some place near Moncks Corner and ate some BBQ, and I talked
to the car engine guy, he seemed to really like his bike, and I felt like it was pretty cool too.

Later we were out in the swamp on some flat straight road barely wide enough for two cars to pass
(there weren't any cars or anything else out there) doing about 80mph, and all of a sudden, there
goes Frank zooming past everyone, drinking a cup of coffee and reading the paper (OK, slight
exaggeration). Man that's a cool motorcycle.

So... when it was over and I got home, I couldn't get that motorcycle out of my mind. I called my
buddy (he was the SCV state adjutant and knew everyone's name and number), and got Frank's
name and number.

"Frank Smoak? I'm Mike Marshall, that guy from the poker run who was riding a springer" "What's
a springer, they all look alike to me." "I'm the guy who was talking to you next to the wood model
of the Confederate submarine at the BBQ place." "Oh, yeah." "Do you want to sell your motorcycle?"
"How'd you get my number?"...

Anyhow, Frank knew what it was like to be smitten by a Valkyrie, he told me about the VRCC,
and soon the Harley was sold to a neighbor, and I was driving to Philadelphia to pick up
my Red and White eBay Valkyrie...



As for trailering the Harley 200 miles - I rode the Valkyrie 200 miles after Church on Sunday
to get a taco. 

-Mike

[Varmintmist]

I dont know if their was a "exact" moment, more like it grew on me and took over.

I had ridden 20 ish years ago and high sided hard. Started to slide on gravel and held it through. Almost made it through the turn when I caught pavement and Newton took over. Decided then that I was to young and stupid to own a bike, kept the 69 vette convertable though.

FF till gas hit 3+ bucks a gal. The inlaws rode and had just bought a Aero and a VTX. They asked if I wanted the old cb350. I said no, then gas hit 3.25 and I said yes. Put some time into it and got it road worthy and rode it. I looked like a circus bear on a unicycle though. Got a "free" 550K in boxes, put that together and rode it for a season. Pushed it home a few times and decided that I really didnt need to get aggravated every time I rode. Found a 05 Aero leftover and bought it. All this time I have seen Valks, never really thought about owning one though. I put a bunch of miles on the Aero and was pretty happy with it. The wife was running the 350. I got tired of fixing the 350 so I started looking for a bigger one for me and let the wife have the Aero. She hymmed and hawwed about it for a while, until a buddy said that he would buy it then she said she would ride it.
Now I have a rule about toys. Toys are payed for in cash. When my bud was going to buy the Aero, that and a stock fund was going to be a IS. Well when the market tanked and the wife decided to ride the Aero, my looking went to standards.
I had posted on HSN (shadow board) and PTGB said he was going to sell one, that was while the amount I had to spend was in limbo. When I finally got the cash in hand I posted back to the board. He replied, we set up a look at date. I rode my first Valk that day and wrote the check.

[Wetrudgeon]

In the early summer of '98, a riding friend of ours purchased a '98 Standard new off a showroom floor.  Very soon it was all he wanted to talk about, and he repeatedly urged us to take it for a ride.  We resisted at first, somehow sensing that a big impressive looking motorbike like the Valk might well be equally impressive (and irresistible) once ridden.  At length, we succumbed to our friend's friendly invitations and rode the thing. 

What struck us was the way the big bike answered when called upon.  We remember still running about 40mph, we dropped her down into 4th gear and twisted hard on the throttle.  At around 5K rpm, we shifted to 5th.  In a matter of a few seconds, we were at 100mph and a complete convert. All of you well know what we are talking about... 

It was not until 2006 that we were able to find a pristine '99 Standard with a bit over 20K miles for the right price.  Our riding buddy owns his '98 still; and we ride together often. 

As we have often observed on this and some other forums, we feel strongly that very few cruisers of any make can equal a copy of Honda's mighty F-6 Valkyrie.  And we have yet to ride anything that can surpass it.  It is quite simply a terrific motorcycle.


We trudge on.

[f6john]

I first saw the Valkyrie in the power slide commercial. I knew then that if I were to get back on a bike that the Valkyrie was it for me. However I was not even considering a motorcycle at the time. My best buddy got the urge to buy a bike and since I'm the most hardcore gearhead he knows, he asked for my advise. I told him if I were going to buy a motorcycle it would be a Valkyrie. He said, "whats that?". In September of 1999 he bought a 99 blk std and proceeded to add the windshield and leather bags then the chrome addiction started. He kept hounding me to buy a bike too so we could ride together. In October of 99 I went into the hospital for the first time in my life at age 47 and had a stint put in one of my veins which was a minor procedure. But in December  I was back for heart bypass surgery. 30 days later the doc says I can drive again( I already had been ) he didn't say what I could or could not drive! My buddy says your not working, come and get the bike when you feel like it. On January 21 2000 I rode a Valkyrie for the first time and I was hooked. I could not afford a Valkyrie at that time but something about having your chest cracked open changes your outlook on some things. I bought my Valkyrie over 2 years after seeing the power slide commercial but I believe that was the moment I knew it was the one for me, never even considered another choice.

I now know I have to have an Interstate too but that is on down the line for me, still waiting on my "bailout"

[Doc Moose]

A fellow professional was into Harleys bigtime and started talking to me about MC.  I had owned a CB350 and then a CB750 some 20 years before.  It got me thinking about riding in the air again.  I lucked out and found a Chevy dealership that took in a 750 ACE on trade and they only wanted $4K for it, a steal.  So I bought it and had a great time accessorizing it.  The H-D crowd tolerated my "beginner" bike, cuz they were working on me to get a H-D.  Back in 1998 or so, there was a waiting list of nearly 12 months locally to get a H-D, and you took what they had after they loaded it up with about $4-5K of accessories.  Kinda irked me.

So, I was looking at all kinds of possibilities, used and new H-D.  Well, in the summer of '99, the family went on vacation to Asheville, NC and it just happened to be the same week as the Honda Hoot.  There were MC all over the place at the hotel.  I was in 7th heaven drooling over all the MC in the hotel parking lot.  Talked with a lot of the attendees of the Hoot.
 

Then I saw a Valkyrie.

One of the attendees told me it was a Valkyrie.  He said that IT was a HOTROD!  I was intrigued by it.

I went home and started reading EVERYTHING I could about the Valkyrie.  Wow, there was a model with a fairing and radio and CB and........I started craving for one.  Then I found the VRCC website in September, '99.  I joined up and got  member number 506 on 9/19/1999.  But I still didn't own one yet.  I was jonesing bad for one.  The riding season closed and I continued to read everything I could about the bike.
Finally, the following spring, I told the SO I was in the market for a new bike and she did one of those "Yeah, okay" responses as she was reading her magazine.  That was YES for me and I got a loan for the bike lined up.  I then rode over to an Indy dealership one Saturday morning on my trusty 750 ACE, check in hand.
I test rode a Valk Std and an Interstate.  There was NO question in my mind.  I NEEDED that Interstate!
A beautiful Blue/Silver 2000 Interstate.  When I came back from riding the Interstate, the salesman looked at my ear to ear grin and knew to start the paperwork.  My trusty 750 ACE was sold and ridden off the lot before I did on the I/S!
I rode it home in a 30 mph headwind, grinning from ear to ear.  Pulled into the drive, ecstatic from the 50 mile ride home.

Lady Di was stunned ("What do ya mean, I said okay?" LOL! That's another story.) But she got over it.

Loved the Blue Babe ever since!

[FryeVRCCDS0067]

My valk (Little Martha) is the first valk I ever saw. I bought a new V65 magna in 1986 and loved the bike. Although I’d had street bikes before I’d never had a fast one and I was hooked and in love with the V65. Had it several years (long enough to pay it off) and wound up in a tight financial spot, out of work with a new baby and broken central air and sold it to repair the air conditioning.

I had several street bikes after that but they all bored me with their slowness so I quit riding street bikes.

Fast forward to 2004 and I had the street bike itch again. I didn’t watch much TV, had never seen a valk commercial and was looking for an old V65 or another muscle bike to rebuild and ride the tires off of.

Then I saw Little Martha in the trader. When I went to look at her she was the first valk I had ever seen and the wife and I both knew we had to buy her. What a great decision.

[sheets]

I live in a very small town in rural Massachusetts and one cold wet fall day, I was riding through the center on my Honda 750 and there in the middle of town was an "invasion" of about 30 Valkyries. I had never seen such a huge and impressive motorcycle. The fact that there were 30 of them, or more was even more incredible. Come to find out one of the early participants on this board had passed away and his fellow VRCC brethren from all over New England had ridden to his  funeral. They were sharing a round at the local VFW before departing and heading their separate ways with their individual thoughts of dying a too young death.

I don't remember the guys name at the moment, but I clearly remember that event.  He sent me a VCR tape back in December of '03 of some kind of Valk event .  I'm not sure how I ended up on his mailing list, but I have the tape, still sealed in a Post Office mailing box, never been opened.  I don't have a VCR, so I have no way of seeing what was on the tape.  It came from Waterbury, Connecticut. Wish I could remember the guys name/handle (it will come to me eventually), but his business was Wedding World.  I recall he passed from a slow agonizing ailment.  It was perty tuff to follow his posts for several months till he finally went to the other side. 

[Huey]

I'd been permanently stung by the bee.          

Wow some great stories!  Oh yes, "Permanently stung by the bee" pretty much sums it up for all of us!!

Jim
 
 
 
More like bite by a very beautiful Dragon Lady.... I know I was. LOL

[RoadKill]

 After owning many Kawasaki,honda,suzuki, ect... products. I had bought my 1st Harley...built it to be fast,( still not impressive bang for the buck!) and after MANY rebuilds from racing friends on real bikes and expensive repairs from pushing for the win, I headed for Sturgis SD. One day into the Sturgis rally the Hardly let me down again valve guide slipped and hit the valve,pieces floated acrossed the intake and killed both cylinders...AGAIN ! !  This was the 4th time it had happened and after rebuilding it myself in hotel parking lot (1st vacation since my honeymoon! ) I found the Local machinist I had doing the work was a LIAR and a THIEF!
 
I rode the wife"s Suzuki all over the black hills trying to find parts and ended up at the Rapid City HD dealer as a last resort. after 3 hrs in line I was told we have leather,T-shirts and alot of chrome accessories! people behind you are wanting to pay us money ...So GO AWAY! All the machine shops were booked 3 weeks out and I had no parts! I found a local independent shop that took mercy and sent me to a friend for valve guides and valves and let me use their equipment to do the machine work myself( after business hrs),they had the gskts and were AWESOME help.

I brought the hardley back to life(4 days later)in hotel parking lot with a fan club watching and received an applause but told the wife I was leary about the 800 miles home. She said "trade it for a newer (STOCK) bike" so back to Rapid City HD we went. Found a 1 yr old bike and a sales man. The bike was traded by a "rent a harley attitude for a day" company and was priced at new MSRP! I told the sales man "a little high,dont ya think?"  His response was " Son...lemme tell ya sumptin! this is a Harley Davidson! Its worth that new,its worth that NOW and it will be worth that 10 yrs from now! "  I said I liked that attitude and let's look at my trade in!  

That sales man followed me to my bike,he said it was a beautiful custom and we could go inside to talk..."but what yr is it? " I said its a 92.."9yrs old?" he asked. Duh...thats the math I was taught !  He told me he couldnt have anything that old on the lot but he would make me a great cash deal and I could ride them both home!    My response was F*$%& YOU ! I'll ride a HONDA HOME FIRST !I used Honda like a bad word for the 1st time and had NO idea it was for the LAST time!

I went looking for a Yamaha V-max in anger. Thank god I couldnt find one (in hind sight)...'cause i was riding home tomorrow...PERIOD!
Got to the honda dealer and asked about the 1800VTX. it was the 1st one they had and I was gonna own it. There was no windshield available,no accessories of any kind and that made me stop...1st year avail,and no reviews,no accessories ECT....I obviously had second thoughts. The salesman IMMEDIATELY showed me the 3 used black standard Valk's I had walked by on the way in.

Brian AKA "Gunslinger" had been Sold after the " Sliding thru the desert commercial " and then we each saw one in person. he was sold but I bought a harley . Brian and Kerri were highschool friends and nextdoor neighbors by then, so Gunslinger always used the Valk to discredit my Harley no matter how fast it would run. I knew It took thousands to make it as fast as 20 yr old hondas and A TON more maintenance,So I wasn't giving in that easily because I have my pride ! ! ! We went on to sturgis and found that the HD stealer there did NOT sell motorcycles (WTF?)... only  chrome,accessories, and apparel !  Luckily There was 1 dealer in Sturgis S.D. that sold bikes, a Suzuki/BMW/Kawa dealer. He had 2 Valks on trade and 1 would be back in an hour. He suggested I go for a dinner break and come back in an hour.

For an hour I sat and thought about how I could face my friend if I rode home on the bike of his dreams. I decided that my search was not over and after I see what was to offer it will be on to the next dealer even if it took ANOTHER 300 miles. We returned to see the valk,check book in hand, and saw a beautiful Blue 98 tourer with purple ghost stripes. he said "we just picked it up from the paint shop so dont touch the paint",it was still soft.  I told him it was very attractive and I liked the customization but we would be back. He instantly acted offended that I was not gonna ride it..he said "just dont leave finger prints in the paint untill the paperwork is done." I thought "What a pushy salesman!,but I'll ride anything and this Oldmans bagger is kinda BEAUTIFULL! so why not? "  

I didnt even get out of sight and turned around. told the dealer the metzlers were kinda noisy and I'm gonna put my finger in that paint so ya better get on the paperwork FAST!  10grand and 1 harley later I rode off thinking when ya get screwed ....this is the smile you were lookin for!
Just had to head home and stick it in Brian's face! LOL

Sorry it was long winded but I had to share how fortunate I was to see the light despite all my efforts. I am stubborn (or so they tell me ) but the Great Dragon gods won and I will be forever thankfull,

                                  VALKYRIE MOTORCYCLES ! 'TILL DEATH DO WE PART!

 




 

[woefman]

Maybe 8 years ago My Buddies Dad had bought a Black Tourer that was a Trade in at a car dealer.

I took one look at this thing and was Like WOW. He then also bought a wrecked 98 standard.
Fixed it up and sold it to our Matco Tool Salesman buddy of ours.

The Tool Guy rode it a bit and decided he did not like it. SO he decided he wanted the Black Tourer.

So Chuck the owner of the two Bikes let him ( Brit)  buy the Black Tourer instead.

My 72 now 73 year old riding buddy (Chuck)  let me ride his Valk Standard, I think it was on its third wreck, all not Chucks Fault, Group Rides in Sturgis keep him getting run over by harleys from behind.

Not once but many times. He gave me the go ahead to race some Harley's. I won every Battle even against
those S&S Souped up Jobs. I said wow this is some bike.

Then started researching the Valkyrie , seen a Nickel test, and exhaust mods and etc I was hooked.

I was anal about the one I wanted , I wanted a Hard Bag Tourer. Then Fell in Love with the Interstate.

I sat on an Interstate and said wow this Bike is Gigantic, and since owned a wing, I re settled in for looking for a Tourer.

I took my time I wanted a near new Condition Bike.

I took so long , Chuck wound up buying a new Goldwing ( used, new to him) 2003 GL1800 for 13k

He begged me to ride the Goldwing. He would even jockey it facing the street ( was parked at his sons house and gravel driveway that has easement rights so a hard to work with spot). Now he says
it is pointed towards the street, try it out.

I rode the goldwing way less then the Valk, only turned right went straight around the block.

Pulled back into the drive , Jumped off and said I got to have one of these things.

2 weeks later I got a lower mileage GL1800 Goldwing and newer (2006 with 20k miles and tons chrome addons) the color I wanted,for cheaper then chuck bought his. I was so excited.

Chuck learned more about me then he ever knew ( known him like 12 years) when I say I am going to do something I do it. Now we ride together like crazy. All Over Arizona and Colorado Yearly.

Chuck goes to Colorado each Summer , He got the call from his son that I bought a Valkyrie.

I talked to him on the phone he said " you had to do it huh "?  I said yes, I told you I wanted a Valkyrie
and was waiting for the best deal around.  I wound up with a Tourer with 5k miles and so far
3k in add on's and I'm not done adding them up. Chuck once again was shocked.

Can't wait to see him in October this year In Colorado.

[JimL]

After owning many Kawasaki,honda,suzuki, ect... products. I had bought my 1st Harley...built it to be fast,( still not impressive bang for the buck!) and after MANY rebuilds from racing friends on real bikes and expensive repairs from pushing for the win, I headed for Sturgis SD. One day into the Sturgis rally the Hardly let me down again valve guide slipped and hit the valve,pieces floated acrossed the intake and killed both cylinders...AGAIN ! !  This was the 4th time it had happened and after rebuilding it myself in hotel parking lot (1st vacation since my honeymoon! ) I found the Local machinist I had doing the work was a LIAR and a THIEF!
 
I rode the wife"s Suzuki all over the black hills trying to find parts and ended up at the Rapid City HD dealer as a last resort. after 3 hrs in line I was told we have leather,T-shirts and alot of chrome accessories! people behind you are wanting to pay us money ...So GO AWAY! All the machine shops were booked 3 weeks out and I had no parts! I found a local independent shop that took mercy and sent me to a friend for valve guides and valves and let me use their equipment to do the machine work myself( after business hrs),they had the gskts and were AWESOME help.

I brought the hardley back to life(4 days later)in hotel parking lot with a fan club watching and received an applause but told the wife I was leary about the 800 miles home. She said "trade it for a newer (STOCK) bike" so back to Rapid City HD we went. Found a 1 yr old bike and a sales man. The bike was traded by a "rent a harley attitude for a day" company and was priced at new MSRP! I told the sales man "a little high,dont ya think?"  His response was " Son...lemme tell ya sumptin! this is a Harley Davidson! Its worth that new,its worth that NOW and it will be worth that 10 yrs from now! "  I said I liked that attitude and let's look at my trade in!  

That sales man followed me to my bike,he said it was a beautiful custom and we could go inside to talk..."but what yr is it? " I said its a 92.."9yrs old?" he asked. Duh...thats the math I was taught !  He told me he couldnt have anything that old on the lot but he would make me a great cash deal and I could ride them both home!    My response was F*$%& YOU ! I'll ride a HONDA HOME FIRST !I used Honda like a bad word for the 1st time and had NO idea it was for the LAST time!

I went looking for a Yamaha V-max in anger. Thank god I couldnt find one (in hind sight)...'cause i was riding home tomorrow...PERIOD!
Got to the honda dealer and asked about the 1800VTX. it was the 1st one they had and I was gonna own it. There was no windshield available,no accessories of any kind and that made me stop...1st year avail,and no reviews,no accessories ECT....I obviously had second thoughts. The salesman IMMEDIATELY showed me the 3 used black standard Valk's I had walked by on the way in.

Brian AKA "Gunslinger" had been Sold after the " Sliding thru the desert commercial " and then we each saw one in person. he was sold but I bought a harley . Brian and Kerri were highschool friends and nextdoor neighbors by then, so Gunslinger always used the Valk to discredit my Harley no matter how fast it would run. I knew It took thousands to make it as fast as 20 yr old hondas and A TON more maintenance,So I wasn't giving in that easily because I have my pride ! ! ! We went on to sturgis and found that the HD stealer there did NOT sell motorcycles (WTF?)... only  chrome,accessories, and apparel !  Luckily There was 1 dealer in Sturgis S.D. that sold bikes, a Suzuki/BMW/Kawa dealer. He had 2 Valks on trade and 1 would be back in an hour. He suggested I go for a dinner break and come back in an hour.

For an hour I sat and thought about how I could face my friend if I rode home on the bike of his dreams. I decided that my search was not over and after I see what was to offer it will be on to the next dealer even if it took ANOTHER 300 miles. We returned to see the valk,check book in hand, and saw a beautiful Blue 98 tourer with purple ghost stripes. he said "we just picked it up from the paint shop so dont touch the paint",it was still soft.  I told him it was very attractive and I liked the customization but we would be back. He instantly acted offended that I was not gonna ride it..he said "just dont leave finger prints in the paint untill the paperwork is done." I thought "What a pushy salesman!,but I'll ride anything and this Oldmans bagger is kinda BEAUTIFULL! so why not? "  

I didnt even get out of sight and turned around. told the dealer the metzlers were kinda noisy and I'm gonna put my finger in that paint so ya better get on the paperwork FAST!  10grand and 1 harley later I rode off thinking when ya get screwed ....this is the smile you were lookin for!
Just had to head home and stick it in Brian's face! LOL

Sorry it was long winded but I had to share how fortunate I was to see the light despite all my efforts. I am stubborn (or so they tell me ) but the Great Dragon gods won and I will be forever thankfull,

                                  VALKYRIE MOTORCYCLES ! 'TILL DEATH DO WE PART!

 




 

Thanks for being long winded....it is a great story!!

[sheets]

Looking at the dates in your post, the event you speak of must be different than the event I recall.  I do have a vague recollection of the event you speak of early on, which would coincide with your time line.  If anybody on the New England board recalls the one I speak of, I'd be happy to send the VCR tape to someone who knew the guy who made it.  It is post marked Dec 19, '03.  He went to the other side in  '04.     


I live in a very small town in rural Massachusetts and one cold wet fall day, I was riding through the center on my Honda 750 and there in the middle of town was an "invasion" of about 30 Valkyries. I had never seen such a huge and impressive motorcycle. The fact that there were 30 of them, or more was even more incredible. Come to find out one of the early participants on this board had passed away and his fellow VRCC brethren from all over New England had ridden to his  funeral. They were sharing a round at the local VFW before departing and heading their separate ways with their individual thoughts of dying a too young death.

That was in October. After that I didn't sleep at night until in February 01 I pulled the trigger on a 98 Valk leftover in a crate in a small dealer in western Ma. $9.5K brand new and $500 "Honda custom bucks" thrown in.

[DFragn]

Too clearly.
Winter of '98. I had just ordered a "Fatboy" and plopped down a good size deposit. Then they tell me it would be a 14 month wait [or more].
Disenchanted I stopped by a used bike only dealer with a friend and spotted a Red/White Valkyrie on the floor. Asked the owner what the hell that was. Then turned to my buddy and said "where's the nearest Honda dealer/" (unfamiliar area to me Chicago Burb's). I quickly coughed up another deposit that cold snowy day and took delivery of a new '97 Green/Cream Tourer in March of '99.
Needless to say it took Harley over 2 months to return my $3k deposit. H.D. Jerks

After committing to purchase the Valkyrie my buddy and I stopped for a sandwich, beer & Bears game. That's when I saw the sliding Valk commercial [ESPN] for the first time and knew I had done the right thing...

The only way I'll ever part with it now is when I part from this world.

[REDTIM]

I first relized that the world revolved around the Valkyrie Interstate at the 2001 Sturgis South Motorcycle Rally in Sturgis, Ms. The bike games were going on and they were being held in the Rodeo Style. The event was pole bending that is where you race to the end of a row of poles and then weave your way down and back up in the figure 8 fashion then race to the finish line. Well there she was weaving back and forth kicking up grass with the saddle bags on every turn. I thought that if a bike that size could do that on grass just think what she will do on blacktop. After two months of research and some shopping I found Lake city cycles had them on a inventory clearence for 12,899. The best I could find before that was 16,000 so I jumped on it. The love for the Valk has never ended.

[JimL]

Too clearly.
Winter of '98. I had just ordered a "Fatboy" and plopped down a good size deposit. Then they tell me it would be a 14 month wait [or more].

It find it interesting how many of the stories in this thread have a common denominator.  It appears that quality was not necessarily the only issue, it was the arrogance of the Harley Davidson network which made it extremely easy for folks to make the switch to Honda and the Valkyrie.

[stormrider]

April of 06 I stopped by on a Sunday afternoon at friend's house that is a used car dealer. He had a custom paint '03 Kawa Mean Streak. I bought it on Tuesday. Hadn't owned a bike in 30 years and not ridden much either. Only paid $4600 for it with 3300 miles. I put 5k miles on it in a few months and knew I needed something bigger. A couple guys I rode with had Valks and I was pretty impressed. I looked at Wings, Nomads, H-D (way over priced), for a new bike. Then I found this site. After reading many posts about your love affair with the fat lady, I knew that I had to have one.

I did a search and found three that fit my criteria. I/S, color?, location, milage, etc. Wish I would have known about aftermarket accessory costs, that would have been a criteria. But I found a black 01 I/S in Rome, GA. Made the call and in a few days had her in my stable. Still had the Mean Streak. Sold it a couple months later and bought a 97 Purple and White. Sold the 97 in 07 to a buddy that blew the motor in his bike.

The wooooohooooo factor is still way up there and the grin want go away. She gets lots of looks and attention.

[hubcapsc]

It find it interesting how many of the stories in this thread have a common denominator.  It appears that quality was not necessarily the only issue, it was the arrogance of the Harley Davidson network which made it extremely easy for folks to make the switch to Honda and the Valkyrie.

To be fair, I'll have to give a shout out to Harley Davidson of Greenville, SC ,most of the guys (and gals, once when I went there
the service manager was a lady...) there are first rate. I didn't work on my Harley, they did, and when I got it back
from a service, it "felt" serviced... cables lubed, controls working slickly, they even polished it up... When I looked back in
the service bay, it looked like a motorcycle mechanic school commercial...

-Mike "and they charged full price  "

[Demo]

As soon as I heard one, like nothing else.  My neighbor and riding buddy got one of the very first ones in Atlanta.  As soon as I heard his and took it for a ride I had to have one.  Had to get rid of two other bikes and it took  me another couple of years but I still get a stupid grin every time I crank her up.

[lonewolf/va]

when my brother brought home that jade & black tourer  he got from some guy in Tenn. , thanks jim

[JimL]

when my brother brought home that jade & black tourer  he got from some guy in Tenn. , thanks jim

Wow...good to hear from you!  That was one sweet bike....I still look at the pictures of it from time to time, I am glad you are enjoying it!

[woody]

When I first saw the Valk I remarked to my mate, what a horrible looking bike.....its all motor......wh would ride that thing?
A few years later I had an opportunity to buy one at a reasonable price, (only a year old with less tha 10000klm on the clock)
So I bought it (no chance for a test ride)
When I rode it home I was of the opinion that I had bought the worst sort of dog bike immaginable, it wouldnt corner, felt loose and I was afraid to hit the brakes hard.
I got home and lamented my purchase. 
The next morning I went over the bike, the tyres were underinflated (15 in the front and 20 in the back), I also found the tyres were worn to the fabric on the rear and pretty close on the front.
I filled the tyres with the recommended pressue and rode to the bike shop for a new set of tyres.
The correct air pressure made the world of difference and when I had the new tyres fitted my smile just got bigger and bigger.
In the last 10 years that I have owned the bike I have never ever regretted my purchase, I have loved this great ugly SOB and it has never let me down .
Just goes to show, first impressions are not always right.
GO VALK

[2 Valks]

It was in the spring of 2000 and my wife and I were visiting my father in Florida.  At the time we were riding a very comfortable 96 Kawasaki Voyager 1200.  As we were passing a Honda dealership in Lakeland I told my dad to pull in as I wanted to look at the competition.  As soon as my wife spotted the red & black Interstate she was hooked and said the Voyager was an old persons bike.
We got back to NC and the Kawy was in the front yard FOR SALE.  We picked up our 2000 red & black Interstate on July 16, 2000 and have been in all 48 lower states and across Canada.  I liked it so much that I had to get a Standard to keep it company.