Well, not really. See, after 35 years away from motorcycles, I bought a Kawasaki Vulcan 900 Classic LT last August. It was a good way to get back into two wheels for $9100.
This is a good value in motorcycles, enough power but not really geared for comfort above 65mph. Around town and on country roads, it was an awesome ride; and SO economical to buy and insure.
Full two year warranty as well. It looks like a motorcycle to me: Windscreen, bags, backrest - that's it. No sound system, no intercom, etc.

I named it "Sasha" after my adopted granddaughter who encouraged me to get a bike - and told me of a 2005 Vulcan 900 for sale - which I test rode, then bought this.





But it had no Tach, so $66 on Amazon and 1/2 hour to build a "single fire" adapter and off I went....



But, it was just too small - that is, it vibrated too much over 65mph, as the engine is turning 4100 rpm at 70mph.
So I sold it at 4400 miles.


But Vulcans are wonderful rides. So, I found the bike I wanted - built from 2004 to 2010 (the Crossfire years) the Vulcan 2000 came in several variants. I wanted a Classic LT like the '900 was.
I found one in Pennsylvania - 989 miles from home. With 19,000 miles, they wanted $4500. It had sat since October 2020 being run only a few times since then, but it DID run. (Owner's health went to hell. )

So, off I went on a 1800 mile drive to trailer it home.

This thing is so awesome. 2053cc /125 CID V Twin with torque like a steam engine! The biggest V-Twin cycle engine in a production motorcycle and with the Cobra pipes and tuner, it sounds awesome from idle to 3000 rpm. (Redline is 4900.)




Gotta drain that old gas. Then an oil change.


And they left the tach off again, so I fixed that...



It took some detailing, but it sure looks nice. No female name works with this bike, it's such and animal.
So, it's name is "Animal".

 

I think of it as the "Crossfire's Cousin" because:

1) It was made during the Crossfire years.
2) It was marginally successful - both the 900 and 1700 versions are still made to this day, but the 2000 just didn't sell.
3) It is kind of a unicorn these days, parts are not easy to find other than oil filters, tires, fluids and belts.
4) No one seems to know what it is, but it sure gets a LOT of attention. Every time I sit on the curb at DQ eating my ice cream, I get comments and questions - just like the Crossfire.
5) Its resale value is not what it should be. I bought an awesome toy for (not a lot of) cash and people act like it's something special, which it is - just like a Crossfire.

 

When I Iived in England, Harleys we’re looked down on, we preferred our Triumphs, BSAs, Nortons etc. You could always tell where a UK bike had been parked as it left it’s mark, just like a tom cat. The finest bikes came from Italy, they had beautifully made castings and great finishes. Buying a Japanese bike was tantamount to treason, they were crap actually at that time.
My motorcycling days coincided with the Japanese racing beginnings. At the Isle of Man TT races the first year they had mixed results, fast bikes but too many Japanese riders were killed, the Italian teams won the big bike races. The next year the Japanese put European riders on their bikes and won most of the smaller engine races by wide margins. They then started to build bigger engined bikes and we know how that went.
My biking days ended soon after a car ran into the side of my bike just missing my leg. But driving that Austin was not the same as driving down unlit country roads with all the light that the 6 volt Lucas, prince of darkness headlight could put out.
Those were the days my friend we thought they’d never end ……..

 

I remember the Harley's of the 70s. If more then five bikes went out on a ride, a van followed them so when one or more broke down, they had a way of getting the bike home. Then AMF bought H-D and things, if possible, got worse. H-D was junk but guys still liked them and bought them.

H-D has come a LONG way, as have the Japanese. I test drove a 2011 Kawasaki 1700 Voyager a few weeks ago - the most comfortable ride on two wheels I've ever experienced, tons of power, not a hint of vibration, good sound system, full instruments. But I still wanted a Vulcan 2000 - its just an epic bike, its "me". Hell, Im not going across country on a bike anyway.

 

I got my first bike in 1969 and have never been without one since then. Lots of changes and improvements over the years.
Sold my sport bike of 21 years and now have a "cruiser". Neighbour says it is more age appropriate. Still getting used to high handle bars after clip on bars. Still scraping the floor boards occasionally. It is a lot more comfortable to ride (for this aging body),
Still, what to take out of the garage on a nice day? Bike or Crossfire?
Jim

 

So this bike sat for over 18 months. Worst part is that it got tainted-corrosion on almost all chrome and the cylinder fins got a bit tainted/stained/filthy. I did a half-baked detail effort before but today, having three days off in a row and no girlfriend, wife, kids or other plans - I spent 5 hours on it. I'm not done, but I got it looking way better. Even cleaned and polished the DOZENS of cylinder fins. (This bike has air-cooled cylinders with water cooled heads. My '900 was all water cooled with fake cooling fins that were only about 1/4" deep! These are real and are going to be hard to clean.



The hiking chair saved my back!



Sixteen year old chrome sure can look good.



Before



After



The cooling fins are better, but I have a LOT more work to do on them. Got the oil lines looking good. (Yea, those are not fake, each cylinder has an oil feed line and an oil return line to lubricate the valve parts, they are inside the chrome tubes. Lifters are in tubes on the other side.)

 

Nice!

 

That is a lot of nice looking machinery, do not drop it as you might need a small crane. There is so much to polish you may never find time to ride it.

 

Yea, ti weights 796 pounds according to the service manual. And I DO spend a lot of time on cosmetics, but I was like that about the car (still am).

 

I still love my SE, but this bike is a lot of fun. This side of the engine was actually looking pretty good when the bike came home.
But the pushrod tubes were filthy - I cleaned them up and now things look good. Still work to do but it's coming along.
The Crossfires in the Ozarks meet is June 12-18 so I've got to work on the CAR now.....

 

I still have my motorcycle certification but haven't ridden a bike for over 3 years since the wife of "my buddy with a bike" guilted him into selling his new-to-him motorcycle after almost getting killed on his former bike 18 months prior. Not kidding BTW. After an entire lifetime of using 2-wheels as daily transport whenever weather allowed and never being in an accident some idiot pulled right in front of him and sent him flying 170ft through the air. He had to be life-flighted via helicopter to save his life and be reassembled like Humpty-Dumpty.

 

This is the first spring in over 50 years that I am not getting a motorcycle ready for the road after winter storage.
Sold the last of my motorcycles last summer.
Insurance is way too much in Canada for our short riding season.
And as the previous poster indicates. There are way more idiot drivers out there.
I do miss it though. I have been sneaking looks at new and used bikes online but so far that is as far as it has gone.
Weather not cooperating for getting Crossfire out of garage. Looks like it will be another week or so.