As the calendar tells us winter is here in Calgary my thoughts turn to prepping for this upcoming riding season. Damn I wish I could ride right now though as I was ripped off a several nice weeks of fall weather all because of a duckass driver.
Some of you may have learned that Suzy B has been reduced to money in my bank account by the insurance company. It is sad how easy it is to write off a bike. No, scratch that. It is
annoying how easy it is and drivers don't seem to understand that riders don't get fender benders.
Motorcycle owners usually have an attachment to their bikes sort of like a cowboy has a bond with his horse. If you don't ride you may not understand this but it is like losing someone when a bike goes down, especially one you have spent a lot of time on.
I was fortunate to have 3 good seasons on Suzy B and wracked up over 62,000km in that short time. While some of the riding conditions were less than perfect I enjoyed each and every kilometre. I have accepted that she is gone and now begins the search for a new ride.
I am a rider that likes many types of motorcycles and brands and am not set on just one type so choices are endless. Do I get another sport tourer? If so which brand? Do I switch to a dual sport? I rode a couple this year on test rides while at
The Wharf Rat Rally and was impressed at the ride quality they offered as well as the ability to head off the pave road if I should desire.
The fact that I am not sponsored by any factory rides makes choosing one even more difficult. I have a set amount of money to spend and it will not be enough to buy a new bike unless I went with some way too small.
I do have to give a shout out to my insurance company,
Blue Circle, as one that is very easy to deal with. They also have a clause in their policy that if your ride is written off by someone else within a certain period you get your purchase price back. WOW! The worst thing a rider can face, besides physical injury, is to have their beloved ride wiped out by someone else and having to take the fist in the ass, black book value, depreciation price so many insurance companies will ram in there. Not Blue Circle.
It has allowed me to search for a bike in similar condition and value of what I was riding instead of the usual victim gets robbed again value. Thank you Blue Circle.
I am off to shop!
Big news is The Planet Tour is going to be at the
Calgary Motorcycle show and the
Edmonton Motorcycle show this coming January! Who knows? Maybe my new (to me) ride will be there with me.
R.I.P. Suzy B, you were a great bike. Anyone looking for an awesome sport tourer with great bang for the buck take a look at the Suzuki Bandit. Fantastic engine with gobs of torque, very decent milage for a 1250cc and all the comfort you need to tour.
You may be asking "Why don't you go and buy another Bandit?" I thought about it but it would only compete against the memories of Suzy B and all we have endured. I think I have to have something different now.
Cheers folks
Daryl Makk
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