34nineteen
Well-known member
PSA: Buells — Now rare and interesting
Apr 7, 2014 · 2 min read
I have owned 4 Buells.
This is the sort of phrase typically whispered to a member of the clergy through the privacy of metal mesh, or perhaps painfully shared with the similarly afflicted in a church basement after pouring stale coffee and before re-counting your days of sobriety.
Unique motorcycles to the last, Buells have always offered something that no other bike from any manufacturer has: The pity of sportbike riders and cruiser enthusiasts alike.
They are a motorcycle for the motorcyclist who does not like to wave. It’s ok. Nobody would acknowledge you anyway.
Do not worry. I will not try to convince you these are overlooked gems. That ship has sailed. Even I can scarcely recommend them. Every major accident I’ve had has happened on a Buell. How I managed to keep them running long enough to crash them I’ve never determined.
But learning from one’s mistakes is for the decent and reasonable, things we owners of the sole American Sportbike are are rarely accused of.
And so I found myself in LA this week buying yet another Buell. This, while perhaps deserving of an intervention, is not surprising. What is worthy of note is the reaction I’ve been getting.
Everyone is downright enamored of the damn thing. I’ve been stopped more times than I can count on the ride back by people who are breathless to ask about it. Bike people. Car people. Stroller people.
Parked outside a Starbucks earlier (natch, it is a Harley) I overheard someone walk buy and tell his family how “That bike is so much better than mine.” Let me remind you, he was referring to a Buell. On purpose.
Apparently all Buell needed to do to finally get respect was have his company killed.
So be aware: They’re still the same bikes everyone reviled 5 years ago. But if you would like to ride something stupid you can now do so while eliciting confused respect rather than confused condescension. And they’re cheap.
Future collector’s item? Well, the engine was a classic in the 1950s. Maybe the rest of the bike will catch up.
Apr 7, 2014 · 2 min read
I have owned 4 Buells.
This is the sort of phrase typically whispered to a member of the clergy through the privacy of metal mesh, or perhaps painfully shared with the similarly afflicted in a church basement after pouring stale coffee and before re-counting your days of sobriety.
Unique motorcycles to the last, Buells have always offered something that no other bike from any manufacturer has: The pity of sportbike riders and cruiser enthusiasts alike.
They are a motorcycle for the motorcyclist who does not like to wave. It’s ok. Nobody would acknowledge you anyway.
Do not worry. I will not try to convince you these are overlooked gems. That ship has sailed. Even I can scarcely recommend them. Every major accident I’ve had has happened on a Buell. How I managed to keep them running long enough to crash them I’ve never determined.
But learning from one’s mistakes is for the decent and reasonable, things we owners of the sole American Sportbike are are rarely accused of.
And so I found myself in LA this week buying yet another Buell. This, while perhaps deserving of an intervention, is not surprising. What is worthy of note is the reaction I’ve been getting.
Everyone is downright enamored of the damn thing. I’ve been stopped more times than I can count on the ride back by people who are breathless to ask about it. Bike people. Car people. Stroller people.
Parked outside a Starbucks earlier (natch, it is a Harley) I overheard someone walk buy and tell his family how “That bike is so much better than mine.” Let me remind you, he was referring to a Buell. On purpose.
Apparently all Buell needed to do to finally get respect was have his company killed.
So be aware: They’re still the same bikes everyone reviled 5 years ago. But if you would like to ride something stupid you can now do so while eliciting confused respect rather than confused condescension. And they’re cheap.
Future collector’s item? Well, the engine was a classic in the 1950s. Maybe the rest of the bike will catch up.
