I recently received a press release from Harley Davidson detailing their 2009 line up. For me there are 3 bikes that really stand out and I am sure that most people won't agree with me. I come a background of sports bike racing so the big tourers don't appeal to me. I looked at the 2009 FXCW Rocker and I initially thought wow, but after a while that feeling wore off and there is something that I don't like about it. The strange thing is I can't put my finger on the reason.
So I am left with 3 bikes that I really like. When choosing I've gone for cost, practicality and user friendliness. I've also chosen one bike that really "floats my boat" so let's get down to business.
My first choice is the cheapest model in the range the XL Sportster 883 coming in at under $7000 for the low model. At just around 25 inches high this is the perfect bike if you lack height. The lower ride height is achieved by lowering the front and rear suspensions. I love everything the 883 sportster stands for. It's a cheap entry level model allowing anyone to sample the Harley Lifestyle. It's easy to increase the engine size to 1200 cc. It's the perfect bike if you lack confidence, strength height or are a new rider.
I love the sportster range and in particular the 883 but there is one bike that jumped out at me when going through the press release The Cross Bones. Or to give the cross bones it's full name, The Harley-Davidson Softail Cross Bones FLSTSB I think I'll stick with cross bones!
I am a sucker for retro bobber styling and this bike really grabs the essence of post war bobbers just looking at it makes me want to start building my own in the garage. There is something just so very right about it. I could see myself riding down long roads and doing hundreds of miles in a day on one of these. It's the type of bike that you just want to jump on and ride off into the distance on. This is something I have no desire to do on full dress cruisers!
The final bike in the 2009 line up worth mentioning is the Harley-Davidson XL 1200N Sportster 1200 Nightster. Once again there is just something about nightster that looks just right again. It's a sportster with attitude and I would happily walk past most of the rest of the range and jump on it for a test ride.
.jpg "2009 harley davidson sportster 883")
