:mattLandia:

This is a photo of my uncle Jimbo circa early 70's. My earliest memory of Jimbo is in San Diego. He rode up with some biker buddies, "borrowed" me from the grip of his sister (my mom) and took me for a ride around the block. I don't think I was older than 4 or 5 at the time, but that one trip around the block, pipes growling, with the wind in my young face was enough to hook me for life.

It wasn't until 87 that I would get my first bike, a little Yamaha or Suzuki 250 I think. Dad let me whip around the base we were living on at the time. I pushed that little 250 for every little piece of speed I could get. If the wind was right, I could get it all the way up to 60 I think.

My second bike was a 1979 Yamaha 750 Special II. I bought it in 92 and it was my primary means to get around Utah Valley. It wasn't the nicest bike, but it was black, old, and loud enough to make me feel one rung higher on the transportation food chain. I ran that Yamaha up Provo canyon more times than I can remember. I had the clutch cable break on me while going 65. I pulled over on the shoulder of a dirt road up the canyon to let a truck pass, and the shoulder gave out beneath the bike, sending my bike sliding down about 10 ft into a gulley. Eventually, I traded it in for my first car, a 1977 Canary Yellow Datsun 280 Z. Turns out that is was more a Lemon than a Canary, but that's a story for another day.

I've wanted a new bike every since, but life has a way of conspiring against oneself, so year after year has passed by with no bike. I have wandered in and out of showrooms, swap meets, bike shows and such for over a decade, but could never get enough scratch together to buy anything worthwhile. It shouldn't surprise you then, when I tell you that I 'window' shop at dealerships at least every 4 or 5 months, just for fun. And it shouldn't surprise you that I took Zoe with me to go look at bikes for fun this past saturday. We ended up at our nearest Harley dealership, and started talking to Nathan (a totally likeable, very helpful salesguy). It will surprise you, as much as it did me, that both my credit score and my 'fun-money' savings finally got into agreement, and I realized I had the means to get a bike.

So I did. I got my first Harley Davidson. Me. Myself. and I. Got a Harley. I couldn't be more excited! The power. The sound. It feels as good as I thought it would.

To be precise, I got a used 2002 H-D® XLH Sportster® 1200, but it was a good deal for a bike big enough to take Zoe and I on a long afternoon ride. And it's under 2 yr. warranty, so I can sleep better at night. It's not on par with that righteous chopper in the photo with Jimbo, BUT, it's a huge step forward for me. I had an itch I finally get to scratch. Can I get a "HELL YEAH!"

PS - Yep, I know that riding a motorcycle has it's dangers. I've laid down a motorcyle before. So if you're reading this and feeling nervous, just know that I'll be as safe as I know how. I promise.