I currently ride a Royal Enfield Classic 350. It suits the lanes I enjoy riding around in Oxfordshire and the Chiltern Hills. I had a Ducati Monster until recently as well, but thatās gone to pastures new. I do fancy a Triumph Bonneville in the garage as wellā¦Iāve never ridden either a Harley or an Indian, but Iām a fan of all bikes regardless of brand, so I must put that right one day.
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My office at work has bookshelves that are loaded with guitar, motorcycle, aircraft, ballooning & lighthouse booksā¦ the things I love to look at & read about! Royal Enfield is a brand that has produced some great cycles - I think theyāre the oldest brand in the world, right? The Classic 350 is a sweet little bikeā¦ youāre pretty lucky to have one! Thereās an old-timer in Albuquerque who rides a Royal Enfield with a sidecar in rallies, Iāve never talked to him about his bike, but it inspired me to add a sidecar to my Indian when I canāt hold it up anymore! As far as Iām concerned, 2 wheels beats 4 most any (good weather) day!!!
Have fun shopping for your new guitar (& maybe your new Triumph too)!!!
Tod
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Take care on those UK roads David. Its the one thing I donāt miss since moving to France in 2011. Sold my stable of 4 bikes before the move and currently have just the Dyna Low Rider, having initially bought a new Yam FZ8 in 2012. Roads are unbelievable and the weather is none to shabby. Keep the shinny side up !
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Youāre not wrong Toby. We donāt so much ride on the left of the road here anymore, but on whatās left of the road. These Harleys seem popular on this forum - I need to have a go on one to see what itās all about. I did have a Yam MT09 Tracer for a while. Cracking bike, with a peachy triple engine.
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Talking of motorcycling books, if youāve not already come across it, Iād recommend āThe Vincent in the Barnā by Tom Cotter. I seem to remember there were plenty of chapters on old Harleys and Indians. Values of the older bikes seem to be falling quite significantly at the moment. Whether thatās down to older riders not being able to kick them over any more/hanging up the leathers/helmet for the last time or just the general cost of living problems, I donāt know. Who knows, if they fall far enough, I might be able to afford a Vincentā¦fat chance!
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Staying off topic for a bitā¦
Iād never heard of Vincent bikes before which surprised me, Iām going to look up the book you mentionā¦
I love to read about old motorcyclesā¦ my āwin the lotteryā bike purchase would be a circa 1920 Ace or a 1926 Cleveland. Both were 4 cylinder jobs that were essentially bicycles with a ābigā motor! At around six figures when they rarely come to auction, thoughā¦ itās never to be!
Have you ever heard of Crocker bikes? They were around for a short time in the 1930s-1940sā¦ they were the ultimate speed machine back thenā¦ they were all custom manufactured to the prospective ownerās specsā¦ some of the V-Twin engines were 100 cubic inches - 1n 1940 this was unheard of & they were arguably the best performance street bike of the day! Apparently, the CEO, Albert Crocker, offered a money-back guarantee if you were ever beaten in a race!!! A 1939 Crocker sold at auction in February 2024 for around a million dollarsā¦ imagine that!!! Love to get out on the road & rideā¦ my first original song was conceived while riding a long desolate stretch of highway through the desert! Itās called āTears on Highway 47āā¦ still a work in progress, but thatās where the idea was born!
Tod
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There be a few peeps from over the pond, is why ! In the UK before I left I had a 77 CB125S non runner, a TS250R that was used from green laning when I was still around Middlesex and Herts and then abused on the sands around Southport. When I ended in Wakefield my main road bike hierarchy moved from a GS550 to a Bandit 12S and then added a VN1500 Meanstreak a couple of years later. The GSF12 was a hoot and as a MAG member organised monthly ride outs into Yorks, Lancs, Lincs and the Lakes but I really ragged the VN and often forgot it was a ācruiserā - there are some old vids on my YT channel on a run we did to Lord Stone Cafe and I used one of Justin tracks as a BT !! - pegs and sparks were normal. But it all had to go. Not only lengthy storage but also re-registering over here would have been a monumental PITA !! But within 9 months had the FZ8 !!
With tarmac like a snooker table and some stupendous roads I was like a dog with two tails but in my early 60s was still riding like a late teen muppet. Hitting around 150 kph on one of our more agricultural back roads and sweepers to die for, figurative and literally I knew I had to calm down and dial out the red mist. And after my mother passed in 2018 (last time I was back in YUK) I picked up the 2017 Harley in October 2019. It was the last year Low Riders was made as a Dyna, as they became Softails after that. But one thing is for sure I might give it the beans now and then but donāt abuse it like the old Kwacka !!
You only get one life, try and make it last as long as you can.
But shoot get some adrenaline on board while you are doing it !!
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THIS 
My boss at work, Gunny, āinheritedā a Kawasaki Ninja a while back when his son got the wife āin the family wayā (okay to say it that way @roger_holland or do I have to go stand in the corner again & listen to Year of the Cat 100 times???) & she made him give up motorcycling. So Gunny had a couple of hard-core bike buds with the big BMW tour bikes who mentioned they were going to go for a āshortā road trip - Albuquerque NM to Phoenix AZ by way of Tuscon & Tombstone - they wanted to visit the infamous OK Corral. Gunny thought he was up for the tripā¦ saddled up & was following his friends - all was good until they hit a newly-paved stretch of rural highway out in the boondocksā¦ the leader started slowly accelerating, & acceleratingā¦ & accelerating! Gunny was getting a bit freaked out, even with bike goggles on, there was enough wind getting through the gaps that his eyes were tearing up really bad. About that time, he noticed that they were going so fast (his buds later said they were going around 135 mph/215 kph that the striped line had become a solid line!!! He backed off to āonlyā 100 mph while the other two disappeared in the distanceā¦ when he finally caught up, they were having their second round of cold beers!!!
Adrenaline is good, but there is such a thing as ātoo muchā!!!
Tod
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Glad you got both of these statements in the same story 
And yeah I can relate. I was with a club on the outskirts of London before I moved north and we did a āCountry Pub Runā every month, normally about 60-70 miles early evening start. Arrive pretty much for enough time for one drink then back to home base. There was a slow run for new riders and those who liked a more leisurely pace and a āenthusiastic runā. The latter was a longer and more scenic ride but pretty much on the edge from the get go. Learnt a lot about riding back then and what my limits were but had a shed load of fun !
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I wasnāt familiar with either Ace or Cleveland, but Iāve looked at both. Theyāre similar, but the Ace is a thing of absolute beauty. What a lovely bike, I can see why youād lust after one of those. The history of the marque looks interesting too, and I see thereās an Indian connection. Every dayās a school day, as they say.
Now Crocker rings a bell. I canāt be certain, but Iām fairly sure the book I mentioned has a chapter devoted to a Crocker. The histories of these old bike brands are fascinating.
Weāll await the completion of āTears on Highway 47ā!
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And before I bow out Iāll offer this post I dropped in the old forum 9 years ago.
Justin challenged the ācommunityā (not a term we used back then) to remix his band, We Came As Strangers album track Adrenaline. We all had a stab and if I recall @Digger72 came up trumps but its been a while.
Back then my mixing and mastering skills were a little basic but hey in for a penny and all that.
Man there were some great versions of the @JustinGuitar original (Iād like to think he remembers the challenge). So I had a stab but it was not long after the ride I mentioned in that earlier post and the two fit hand and glove.
So sorry Mark, when it comes to old dogs, old guitarists, old bikers and very old Justin Guitar community challenges, they are an integral inertia that will never stop. And long may it be so.
Guess Minnesota aint biking or band country ? 
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Coooooool!!!
I love itā¦although my heart was in my throat watching you guys riding your [unmentionable word] on the āwrongā side of the roadā¦ until the first car passed & I remembered how backwards other parts of the world are!!! 
Rock on Friends!!! 
Tod
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Guess that is what it is all about. That was a great ride on the VN1500 and the camera mount was shite and shook to buggery but you get the feel of the ride. Not a promo but I have had a better set up since I moved to France and there are a few more local vids but most are sans BT.
We better move on though ā¦ old dogs learn new tricks (some donāt ride or like bikes)
Yeah bit weird for me now in France as we are RHD like you peeps! Going back to the UK after 7 years was an experience but I survived !
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Just done deep dive into my channel and this was the same track but the ride out was over here on the right side of the road and one of my favourite roads.
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Me thinks you were probably on your way to/from Devils Bridge, in which case you probably passed me on the road! Somewhere near the village of Qā¦ā¦ā¦. !
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Back then we were all over the place
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They still are! But some who try to ride through this valley never make it. 
David,
Thereās a āchallengingā ride here in the US called āThe Tail of the Dragonāā¦ around 250,000 bikers ride this every year through the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee. At the end of the run is a bar that boasts the āTree of Shameā - itās covered with parts from wrecks along the routeā¦ 
Just goes to show that aside from rare instances of:
!!!FOUR LETTER WORD ALERT!!! DO NOT HIT PLAY IF YOU ARE OFFENDED BY 
guitar is a fairly āsafeā hobby!!!
Tod
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I ride out that way frequently - well not in the depths of winter like now but in slightly warmer times