Five days in Paradise!!!

[Delmar]

Was bored so started surfing eBay, and spotted a five-day rental certificate. Considering I was contemplating a move up from my Sportster I figured I’d lowball a bid. Actually got it for $51!!!

Mancuso Harley-Davidson Gift Certificate - Houston - eBay (item 130264193565 end time Oct-29-08 19:25:23 PDT)

I was most interested in renting a V-Rod because it was the likely candidate for my next bike. However the dealer reported “We no longer rent V-Rods, as they were continually wrecked”. What the heck? I figured a Buell would be a much more wreckable bike.

Oh well...looks like I will be stuck with a new tourer or Dyna.

Rental inventory: Motorcycle Rentals - Houston, Texas

 

[USMCCWO5]

Cool deal. I have one for a rental at Quaid HD in Temecula, California. It came with my last purchase of the '09 Street Glide.:bigsmiley8:

 

[Delmar]

Finally my schedule and the weather cooperated and I rented a bike. Due to the cold I wanted a full fairing, so picked a 2009 Ultra Classic Electraglide.

While the bike was moving it was Gods’ greatest gift to motorcycling. The six-speed loafed along doing 2500 RPM at 75MPH, the twin Brembo front discs are so powerful they spooked me the first time I pulled the brake lever, and the bike is surprisingly light and nimble through the turns. The clutch lever felt like it was not even connected to anything.

The seats and floorboards were extremely comfortable so made the weekend of 550 miles seem as a short trip. The tour pack was like HD took a mould of my wife’s backside (sorry for that visual image) and formed the rear seating area around her.

However once the bike was stopped the sheer mass and high center of gravity reared its ugly head. I never became scared of the bike, nor had any near-drop experiences, but just never felt comfortable walking the bike in & out of garages and parking spots. It seemed like I needed to maintain extreme concentration or the bike would attempt to get away from me. Not my idea of a good time. I’m sure everyone seeing the wife climb up and over the tour pack to get on & off thought they were watching a circus act.

The most shocking thing was, that even with the big 96 inch engine, the Ultra definitely felt slower than my 883. Don’t know how well my buttamometer is calibrated however my Sportster pulls harder. Maybe the Ultra had not been fully broke-in, maybe the Stage 1 SE kit added HP to my Sportster, or maybe my Sportster had been upgraded to a 1200 by an earlier owner.

After the rental I figured I couldn’t ever go back to my old bike, but instead gained a newfound respect for my lowly Sportster. She is a keeper. Don’t let anyone tell you the Sportster is too small and underpowered.

For the next rental I’m planning on taking out the Street Glide. It should be much more pleasurable to handle stopped, while still having most of the space & comfort of the Ultra.

 

[glider]

my 09 ultra runs strong and does not feel underpowered, if anything i was surprised at how quick it is for the weight

Don't forget that different size rear sprocket too. It makes a big difference.

 

[Delmar]

Learning to turn the bike tighter under it's own power and other little things would make it more enjoyabe.

Once the bike was moving, even at slow parking lot speeds, it was as light & nimble as my Sportster. It was only under foot power, like backing up, when the “ultraheft” was oppressive.

Would it be possible that they de-tune demos and rentals?

I’ll confirm in a couple of weeks, there is a rental Street Glide with my name on it.

my 09 ultra runs strong and does not feel underpowered,

I never said the Ultra was underpowered, I said it did not pull harder than my Sportster which also runs strong. This only disproves the fallacy that Sportsters are underpowered.

 

[gs34]

That's a pretty good and objective report Delmar. I'll be interested in reading your assessments of your next rental rides.
Thanks

 

[Delmar]

Went to rent the Street Glide today but they were closed, all the shop guys were at the Lone Star Rally in Galveston.

Attached is a pic of me on the Ultra. As you can see I have no problem being big enough to reach the ground or handle the heft.