My Lucky Day

I check FB and Craigslist daily looking for elusive Valkyrie parts and accessories in the southeastern PA, New Jersey area. I have attended the last two InZane events, found a few good deals on hard to find parts during the swap meets, I do have a chrome addition. Last Thursday night I found an OEM exhaust with the hard to find 3 pipe tips on FB. I could not believe what I was reading on this post, like new condition only $150. I was able to meet Jim, the seller the next day. Jim explained he installed a Two Brother exhaust a few weeks after he picked up his 1998 Valkyrie, new from the local Honda dealer. Jim continued, after the install he rapped the OEM pipes, placed them in the Two Brothers shipping box and stored them. After 21 years and several different motorcycles he decided to clear out some bike parts. He shared stories and pictures about his many motorcycles, bike travels with his wife, over 50 plus years of riding. The one bit of advice he had for me “ride as much as you can, the places and people you will meet will stay with you the rest of your life.” After 2 hours of stories and showing me around his workshop it was time to pay up and go. I informed Jim the asking price was too low, his reply, he knew he could get two to three times the asking price but was hoping to find someone who would appreciate them and install the exhaust on their Valkyrie. I must admit prior to meeting Jim my plan was to resale the exhaust at a profit, my exhaust is in very good shape, sounds good, why change it now. My muffler covers rusted away so I cut the piggies down to 1’ and installed 36” truck stacks. Now, after meeting Jim, spending time sharing stories I can’t let them go, Jim's exhaust will live on. I will install them on my 03 in the spring. I want to remember the man I met and his advice to ride as long and as much as you can.