1 Just clicked Buy It Now Sun Jul 07, 2013 7:11 pm
xpc316e
Gold member
I have rather scarily just clicked 'Buy It Now' on a 1991 K100LT ex-Police bike.
I am a 56 year old arthritic, overweight, chap who up until this week had not ridden a motorcycle in nearly 15 years. Even then, it was a Kawasaki ER500 that I hired for a week. I was very keen on bikes as a young man, buying a new Suzuki GT 750 when I was 18. I had a gap of a few years and then returned to bikes with a MZ 250 to get to work on. That was upgraded to a Kawasaki GT 750 when I transferred into the Traffic Patrol section of the Metropolitan Police.
I mostly rode BMW R80RTs in the Force, with some time spent on K75RTs towards the end of my service. I can remember riding a couple of test bikes we had on approval: one was an early ST1100 Honda, and the other a Harley Davidson Electraglide. The Pan European was most impressive, but the Harley was awful unless you spent all your time looking at your reflection in shop windows.
I never lost touch with bikes during my gap years. Every month would see bike magazines eagerly bought and devoured, but I honestly never thought that I would own a bike again. The itch would not go away though, and demanded to be scratched. I work for a County Council and they have a motorcycle which is used for enhanced rider training by a close colleague, so I gradually accumulated a helmet and clothing. This week I got around to borrowing the bike, a Suzuki Bandit GSF 650, and enjoyed it very much. I wanted to see whether my creaky old joints would manage a bike and was pleasantly surprised that I had no ill effects after a 140 trip.
That ride sealed it for me, but my ideas about a K100RS were dropped after finding that my shoulders did not agree with having to hang on at speed despite the bike's fairing. So, it had to be a bike with a barn door fairing, and a K100RT certainly fits that bill.
I found a suitable bike near to me: it is 1991, 63,000 miles, long tax and MOT, Goodridge hoses, new battery, good tyres, and converted to a dual seat. It has panniers and topbox, so just what I need really.
All I need to do now is arrange for insurance and go and collect it. What is left of the British summer might prove quite enjoyable!
I am a 56 year old arthritic, overweight, chap who up until this week had not ridden a motorcycle in nearly 15 years. Even then, it was a Kawasaki ER500 that I hired for a week. I was very keen on bikes as a young man, buying a new Suzuki GT 750 when I was 18. I had a gap of a few years and then returned to bikes with a MZ 250 to get to work on. That was upgraded to a Kawasaki GT 750 when I transferred into the Traffic Patrol section of the Metropolitan Police.
I mostly rode BMW R80RTs in the Force, with some time spent on K75RTs towards the end of my service. I can remember riding a couple of test bikes we had on approval: one was an early ST1100 Honda, and the other a Harley Davidson Electraglide. The Pan European was most impressive, but the Harley was awful unless you spent all your time looking at your reflection in shop windows.
I never lost touch with bikes during my gap years. Every month would see bike magazines eagerly bought and devoured, but I honestly never thought that I would own a bike again. The itch would not go away though, and demanded to be scratched. I work for a County Council and they have a motorcycle which is used for enhanced rider training by a close colleague, so I gradually accumulated a helmet and clothing. This week I got around to borrowing the bike, a Suzuki Bandit GSF 650, and enjoyed it very much. I wanted to see whether my creaky old joints would manage a bike and was pleasantly surprised that I had no ill effects after a 140 trip.
That ride sealed it for me, but my ideas about a K100RS were dropped after finding that my shoulders did not agree with having to hang on at speed despite the bike's fairing. So, it had to be a bike with a barn door fairing, and a K100RT certainly fits that bill.
I found a suitable bike near to me: it is 1991, 63,000 miles, long tax and MOT, Goodridge hoses, new battery, good tyres, and converted to a dual seat. It has panniers and topbox, so just what I need really.
All I need to do now is arrange for insurance and go and collect it. What is left of the British summer might prove quite enjoyable!