The running joke in this household is every time I express an interest in some new toy, a bike upgrade, a new truck, or any other frivolous (as determined by the spousal unit) expenditure which would, beyond the shadow of a doubt, improve
And, it seems, even that is conditional. When I last won big and hauled out the new Harley ads it was somewhat patiently explained to me, accompanied by a lot of eye rolling as if it should be obvious, that the winnings had to at least cover the cost of the acquisition and $100 wasn’t going to buy much of a motorcycle. Hah – fooled her. Got this beauty for $39.99.
But I did get to thinking. If I did win the lottery and money suddenly became no object, would I keep the Dyna, upgrade to something different, or start a collection Jay Leno style? Well maybe not Jay Leno style exactly, but a modest version of same with, say, a nice even half-dozen bikes in the garage – one for every occasion.
Based on past history I expect I’d collect, and my ideal garage would house: a long distance tourer (aka Geezer Glide); an on-off-road dual-purpose bike (possibly a BMW F700GS); a modern day-tripper (for which the Dyna is perfectly suited, so I’d keep her); a sidecar rig for 3-wheeling during bad weather (a Ural comes to mind here); a vintage Brit bike (a fully restored mid-60s BSA A65 Lightning would fit the bill perfectly); and a real old classic like a mid-20s Indian or similar, just for the fun of riding it once in a while and trying to get it back home under its own power and with all the bits still attached.
And then if I still had some room in the garage I might throw in a few bikes I’d either owned or lusted after in the past: a 1974 Kawasaki Z1 900 (I wish I still had mine); a 1974 Norton Commando (ditto; or the new Commando 961 Sport – the collection wouldn’t be complete without a Norton); and a vintage Ducati café racer like the bright yellow 750 Sport (always wanted one) to represent Italy’s contribution to motorcycling – besides it would be a blast to ride.
So that’s 9. It’s only about 1/10th the size of Jay’s collection but I could live with that.
What about you? What would be in your perfect stable?
There are a lot of bikes from my past I would like back and a few new ones that would be fun to ride but I think my lottery collection would be limited to me building one bike at a time. I could keep busy and interested in that for a long time and "how many" would be less important than the fun of building unique bikes one at a time. I'm gonna buy a ticket this morning.
ReplyDeleteScott - I enjoy rebuilding stuff even though I'm not very talented at it, but after a lottery win I'd be more into instant gratification. Good luck with that ticket!
DeleteI think we all have this same lottery dream. Mine would be to search out and buy back some of the bikes I owned before, the 1984 Katana 1000 or the 87 Cavalcade, maybe even the 76 GT550A.
ReplyDeleteThen think about some exotica for those summer days... a Diavel maybe of a first model CBX1000.
So many bikes and as for cars...
Oh, I forgot the Katana. Make that 10 bikes in the garage. lol. And cars - better to just not go there.
DeleteUnfortunately to win the lottery you have to buy tickets and that is where I fail. I never buy tickets.
ReplyDeleteI always think - add it to the list. "The list" being what we'd buy given we had the money.
I am not sure what my dream garage would be, too many nice bikes out there.
I know government run lotteries are a "tax on the stupid", but I still pick one up now and again - just for the million-to-one chance. Agree there are far too many nice bikes out there to try and limit oneself, but it's an interesting exercise.
DeleteMy first thought was the same as Trobairitz's. To win the lottery you have to participate. To be perfectly honest, I can't think of any bikes or cars that would be on any list. Travel though, that's a completely different story...
ReplyDeleteRichard - True. Would be tough to balance time between travel and riding all those fantastic bikes. A problem that would be nice to have I think.
DeleteI am usually out riding and forget to buy the darn ticket! But if I did I would have a BMW RnineT & GS650,a ural & sidecar, a Triumph Bonneville and Thruxton, Ducati Monster, scrambler, Honda CRF250, Honda CB1100 and the CB500x, a vintage Vespa and new vespa and a brand new garage to put them in. But in the end for now I think I have my dream bike.
ReplyDeleteDar - Some great choices there. The RnineT is gorgeous and the Bonnie has also been a dream machine for me - especially the 60's vintage. Had to check out the CB1100 as I'm not familiar with current Honda models, but I could see owning that. Lots of great bikes out there.
DeleteTwisted mind game... I never play but if I had said million it would be less about my means of travel and more about the traveling as such. Ok, that, and I would instantly move back to Canada ;-)
ReplyDeleteSonja - Interesting that travel (experiences) have been mentioned a couple of times over a stable of bikes (more stuff). Perhaps that's a better way of enjoying the fruits of a lucky draw. As for Canada, I'm sure we'd find a nice spot for you.
DeleteGiven a Big Win I'd work less and go more. Since there are so many that I consider Fine, I'd be more inclined to try the ones I've not owned rather than revisit the ones that I have been lucky enough to ride.
ReplyDeleteCoop - Well that strategy would expose you to different bikes and perhaps another favourite or two. But isn't there at least one bike from your past that you wish you still had?
DeleteWell David, for COOL I wish I had the 900SS Ducati. As an investment it would be the clear winner and to hold my head high with my peers, the definite choice. But...my ST2 is such an improvement in ride-ability. There's no doubt the old silver blue one was more exciting. I've never been good enough with finances and the fact that the 900SS is gone is testament to the fact.
DeleteThe GS850 definitely rocked my world the most, only because of where it took me and the people it exposed me to. Quality of life was absolutely the best with that one and is the only real reason i'm still in a quandary about what I should do with dad's old one.