2004 Harley Davidson 883 Custom
May 2004 - Time was precious and projects were piling up. I couldnt even move in the shop and the decision was made to sell the VW Thing projects. At the same time I was driving the Suburban daily and gas prices were none too friendly. I wanted a fun car with a better gas mileage to drive to work. So with the sale of the VWs and some money in my pocket I started looking at my options. Fiats, Alfas and brit sports cars were quickly overlooked as I already had the Scorpion and I just didnt deem any of these toys suitable for a daily commute. I wanted reliability, but fun. BMWs were considered. I found a few nice late 80s 3 series cars at the Red Cross lot. They even had a beautiful 73 2002 show up one day while I was looking. Proabably one of the nicest 2002s Ive ever seen on the east coast. Had they been willing to sell it at their usual bargain prices you would probably be reading a different page right now.
Anywho, the search was going nowhere, nothing just seemed to fit the bill. The things that would be fun to drive just weren't reliable enough and the reliable ones were transportation appliances. I still had enough projects, I just wanted something fun and turn key. Then one night while dear wifey was out there was an ad for Harleys on the TV. Now I generally don't even pay attention but my ears just happend to catch the price and I was amazed that a new sportster was actually quite affordable. On her arrival home I told wifey I had found the answer to my problem, fun to drive, brand new, warrantee and affordable. Her immediate answer, without even hearing my proposal, was "as long as its not a motorcycle" Arrrrghhh...shot down. However I'm persistent and eventually I got the answer down to...."well, it would have to be a Harley...no crotch rockets" Ummm....ok dear, if thats your criteria. Eventually she has warmed to the idea and even took one ride on it with me, although she wants a sissy bar before she tries it again, she also got me the very useful saddlebags shown in the photos below for my birthday.
Now most people look at the Sportster as a starter bike, and having not ridden in many years Im ok with that. But to me the Sportster is the Harley Ive always wanted and with the 2004 models vast improvements and Custom option it was pretty much everything I wanted right out of the box. I'll admit red was not my first choice but I wasn't waiting for a custom order and this had everything I wanted. Those who know me know I will just pull out the spray gun when the moment strikes and it will be red no more, although the color has grown on me considerably.
So I got my bike from the good folks at Camden County Harley Davidson who gave me a very fair deal and even delivered it to my house as I did not have my license yet. I did eventually get booked into the MSF class which I would recommend to any rider. I put 2000 miles on her last year and it would have been more if not for the rainy season. Its now Spring of 05 and she is ready to roll again. It truly makes the commute alot more interesting :)