Goldwing Trike

[kerrfunk]

About a year ago a friend of mine and I traded bikes for 5-6 weeks. He had just gotten a Goldwing, and he hadn't ridden for 30 years or so, so I let him use my 550 to find his ride again. Naturally that meant I had to use his wheels for the interim.

Well he and his wife like to do some touring, but they just weren't quite comfortable on two wheels, so he got the trike kit, which adds a wheel on the left and right, connected to his trailer hitch. Ten minutes or so to put it on or take it off.

Yesterday another buddy of mine and I went over to see the Goldwing buddy's newly acquired trailer (so the wife can haul even more stuff around). And the four of us went out for a little loop: The GW guy on his trike, the GW's wife on my other friend's HD ElectraGlide, me on my 1100.

After that brief ride the GW wife asked if I wanted to try the trike, and I did, so I took the trike out for a spin.

Man was that different. No lean, no countersteer. Actual steering. The synapses in my brain were saying "What's going on here?!" On two wheels, you push on the left, you lean left, you go left. On three wheels (four, actually) you push on the left, there's no lean, and you turn right.

And cornering at an intersection? You gotta fight to turn that thing. I could imagine it wouldn't be too tough to flip it if you came into a tight corner too fast.

It was kinda cool to watch him back up with both feet up and one hand on the bars. And it was kinda cool to come to a stop and magically stay upright. It would take some getting used to, that's for sure.

Now I want to try the CanAm Spyder!

 

[Dogma]

I think, because a trike would feel so strange, I'd rather ride a 'Wing with the landing gear (retractable wheels in place of the center stand), instead of the trike. Really, if it's not going to behave like a bike, I think I'd rather be in a little convertible. Say, a Miata pulling a little trailer. Scratch that. I only like a windshield if it's cold out.

 

[Kerry]

Hey, kerrfunk, how did you find going from the 550 to the 1100? I'm starting to get a little hankering to "move up", but I like the lightness of the 550 (not a big strong guy; well, not strong anyway!)

How much getting used to (if any) was the extra weight?

 

[kerrfunk]

Hey, kerrfunk, how did you find going from the 550 to the 1100? I'm starting to get a little hankering to "move up", but I like the lightness of the 550 (not a big strong guy; well, not strong anyway!)

How much getting used to (if any) was the extra weight?

At my level of experience (a year and a half of riding, maybe 7000 miles) the transition from 550 to 1100 was big enough that I wanted to take another class.

I took the MSF BRC in April 09 on the state bike.
I took the MSF ERC in October 09 on my 550.

I didn't really want to just repeat the ERC right away, and instead I took a Ride Like A Pro class for $150.

I really liked the RLAP, and I would take it again in a year or two. Highly recommended for fine slow-speed maneuvering. I can now do several consecutive 24-foot circles or figure eights!


The 1100 feels heavier, maybe an inch or two taller, and maybe an inch or two longer. It does not have the agility that the 550 had (and I occasionally miss that agility. The 550 was so easy to fall in love with!). But I feel much more confident on the 1100, like I could go all day on it and it'd be fine. Plus when I'm on the on-ramp to the highway, it's a quick twist of the throttle and I've gone from 40 to 70 just like that. The 550 didn't have that.


I'd like to try an 850, see what that's like.

If money weren't an option and I had the space, I might like to have a 550, an 850, and maybe an 1100GK. If I were sticking to GSs

 

[850 Combat]

An '83 550 is about as quick as a GS850. I think an E or ES is quicker than a GS850. (I have a test of one at home, I think it ran low 12'2 or high 11's, with the 16 valve engine - I'll check). L's always tested a little slower.

The even power delivery of the bigger bikes is probably at least as easy to deal with as the top end rush of the 4 valve 550.

Don't forget that a GS 850 is no lighter than a GS1000 or GS1100, nor is it any more compact. Body parts interchange on the G models '79-'81 for thousands, and '82 on for 1100's as far as I know.

 

[Guest]

what kind of stuff does the experienced rider course consist of? My dad and I were thinking about taking it, I took the beginner course about 5 years ago.

 

[kerrfunk]

I found the ERC to be a condensed BRC on your own machine. For the most part it's the same riding stuff, you just go through it quicker.

I took the ERC just 6 months after the BRC. It was worthwhile because it was my bike and not a state bike, and because it's free in PA.

If yours is free, go for it, you'll get good stuff out of it.

If you have to pay for it, I'd suggest finding something like a Ride Like A Pro class if there's one nearby (there's one in Greensboro, NC...)