the ride in was okay... of course i had to contend with the wobble that i was getting repaired. i didn't think i would have to deal with traffic because i had decided to take the bike in after lunch, instead of first thing in the morning, like i normally do. i was right in that i didn't have to face morning rush hour traffic. i did, however, have to deal with heavy traffic. i don't know what was going on, accident, road work, whatever, it sure was making traffic heavy and slowing things down. which might have been, in some sort of cosmic way, to keep the speed of the bike down and help prevent the wobble.
it was so nice to get to the dealership. no problems getting there - thankfully. first order of business, get the rental. i wasn't dropping off the bike without a rental - not that i was really contemplating riding my bike back home. no problem picking up the rental. they didn't really have much to choose from - so i'm glad i called ahead and made reservations. i was hoping to get a touring model, at least something with bags... all they had was a wide glide, a buell blast and a vrod. pretty much no brainer - give me the vrod. i've been wanting to ride of one these. can't say that i'd want to own one of these, but definitely wanted to take one for a spin... so i fill out all the paper work and finish up and head over to the service department.
i tell the service-dood that i'm dropping off the bike to have the wheel replaced. of course, me being the customer and him being the service-dood, my diagnosis of needing a new wheel couldn't be right. he replies with a comment about needing a new tire. i clarified that i needed a new wheel and not a new tire. he asks how i know - i tell him that the spokes are loose and i can move the wheel back and forth, causing a wobble when i ride. he agrees that something is wrong, but again, my diagnosis of the spokes being loose isn't correct. he tells me it's probably the hub or bearings. no, i tell him, it's the spokes. i've had the bike up on the lift, i can move the wheel back and forth and watch the spokes move. i offer to get the bike up on the lift and i'll show him. he declines my offer. i tell him it will take less than thirty seconds if we can get the bike up on the lift. again, he declines saying they'll take a look at it. i told him i was expecting a new wheel since i didn't know what damage to the spokes or rim might have happened as a result of the loose spokes. he didn't say much - but i figured i'd wait until they gave me the diagnosis before pressing the issue of replacing the whole wheel. i get checked out (or is it checked in??) and service-dood tells me he'll give me a call tomorrow afternoon about the bike... good with me...
i head over to the awaiting vrod. rental-dood checks me out on the bike. reinforces that this will be different than my road king - something about a little more power and speed. stresses being careful - not getting too aggressive until the tires have warmed up. excellent!!
so i head home on the vrod. i'm not really sure i like the position of the foot controls. not sure if it's because i'm used to my bike or if they are just awkward on this bike. it does have a lot of power - although i can't really push it since i'm in traffic on crowded roads. once i get closer to home, out of all the traffic, i start pushing the bike a little. while i just want to open it up and see what it will do, i don't want a traffic ticket even more - so i keep myself in check.
the ride home was fun. nice bike, but i don't know that i'd really want one. by the time i got home, my ass was sore - and it's only a twenty-five mile ride. a new seat would be the first investment for the bike. foot controls never really did start feeling right. fun to ride - but i'll let someone else purchase it...
btw, i would definitely remove the bag and the sissy bar - if you can call it that!!!
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