I have ridden the sled 6 days in a row. I’m racking miles quickly. This means I need to really keep an eye on the mileage as it will accumulate rapidly and require more frequent oil changes.
Rode to work 6 days straight
First ride of the year 2025!
I took the Goldwing Bagger to work this morning. In the past I would go for a ride the first day of the year. The last few years I haven’t been able to carry on that tradition due to participating in an annual Lowrider event held at Sacramento California. It’s an all day event so there’s not a chance for me to ride when I get home, unload the CaDually.
It was a very nice ride home. I have all the gear to ride in most weather conditions I will encounter in during my short 110 mile daily commute.
One of my favorite views coming home. Most of the leaves have fallen from the trees located around the shop. I had to blow off the leaves daily for about a month. As nice as the leaves look on the ground it acts as a slippery surface when moist or wet. The sled doesn’t have any issues, it’s when I plant my foot down.
Last ride of 2024.
Another year has come and gone. I must have set a personal riding record for consecutive days ridden.
I heard a report on the radio stating 2024 was the hottest year ever recorded for our area. I do remember stretches of 100 plus degrees temperatures.
I can say after riding the sled for about 3000 miles, almost every day of the week.i have a good idea on the positives and negatives.
It definitely got interesting the last few months of year. was in a bad wreck and I spent weeks visiting the doctor’s office for wound repair. In a nutshell I had to counter steer off the side of the road to avoid a head on collision.
Winter Solstice
The days have definitely gotten shorter. When I leave for work it’s completely dark. When I get home from work it’s the same.
I’m still trying to gage if I am riding drier on the Goldwing Bagger or the 5th Generation Goldwing tourer model. Even though I’ve ridden in the rain on the Goldwing Bagger I don’t think I have hit the extreme storm levels I experienced on the 2015 Goldwing.
Both bikes have the Klokwerks flared windshield. In the baggers case the windshield is adjustable to varying heights.
Winter riding
It doesn’t matter what the weather is I’ll be out riding. The one thing that is not so fun is washing the bike afterwards.
It seems the front of the engine area takes a lot of road grime from the front wheel. This is also why you can purchase a front fender extension kit. I’ll be looking into the Show Chrome product, I haven’t seen anyone else that offers the same kit.
After a bit more research I discovered there are rear fender side fillers too. I am aware of these for the Harley Davidson baggers but never heard of them made for a Goldwing.
Harley Tour Pack
I’m gathering the bits and pieces for a Goldwing tour pack project. I’ve seen a few on the internet but all of the one I looked at are permanent solutions. I’m looking for a quick disconnect setup.
Part of the big appeal to having the non-touring Goldwing is the bagger look. I know baggers can have a tour pack but I’m talking about saddlebags only.
The mounting bracket is HD OEM that is configured to be used as the rear sissy bar mounting points. Since the tour packs will normally have a backrest, a sissy bar is not necessary.
Side by side baggers
I have to say these are a couple bad ass baggers. A 2002 Harley Davidson Softail Fatboy and a 2022 Honda Goldwing DCT.
If you know anything about old school Harley baggers and 6 generation Goldwing’s you would know these two sleds are so different in every way imaginable.
The only way you can ever know the difference and enjoy it, you need to own it. Reading about someone’s opinion online is not going to cut it.
I sometimes reads these guys on the forums responding to a post and they offer an opinion based on no experience. Yes, there are a few that do own several sleds but these guys are like me and just sort of lurk and be entertained.
The lighter material seat cover really stands out in this photo even though it’s not a focus point.
Klock Werk Wind Screen
The Klock Werk 18” tinted wind screen arrived today. This will replace the 2021 Goldwing Tour windshield I recently purchased.
The installation was very quick since I recently replaced the stock shorty shield with a tour model. Due to the adjustable height configuration, the wind screen is very simple to remove. It’s a matter of removing a couple screw covers held in with push pins and 4 hex screws.
I’ll update this post after I have put on some meaningful miles. As far as the cosmetic benefits, this wind shield in my opinion the best looking 3rd party option.
EDIT:
Update –
OG Ryda
The personalized license plate came in.
I had to severe the license plates lighting wires to remove the plate. This would normally be a no issue since this type of wiring installation is typically one time event and not something that would be undone. Since I ordered a personalized plate this changed.
Schuberth and Siena 20S
I’ve been using the Sena 20S communication system for about 5 years. I used this hardware in all weather conditions and not just the occasional rain or blistering heat. I’m talking about weeks at a time straight. I’m a super commuter on a bike.
When these systems are dialed in they work flawlessly. The only time I’ve had issues in the past was due to heavy onslaught of rain.