James' 2013 Kawasaki Versys. After selling the last of my XS650's as well as the Honda CX650E this winter, my quest to find a Versys became more focused. After riding Michael's a few times last season, it became obvious that I wanted one in the stable & with the proceeds from the 2 bike sales & a little patience, I was recently rewarded with this little gem. A nice low km example of these great, versatile bikes. This bike rounds out my stable of vintage bikes with a modern, reliable bike that I can hop on & go & it'll be a little more gravel friendly than some of my old girls. We've already planned an overnight trip with these 2 bikes this upcoming season as well as the many miles of gravel we'll be putting on throughout the summer. Now, all we need to kick off the 2015 season is Spring....... Hopefully it comes early this year!!
James' 1979 Suzuki GS850GN. I guess you could say I like my '82 GS850 so much, I simply had to have another one! Actually, this bike sat for sale online for a number of months & I frequently looked at it but thought the price was somewhat out of line. One night, I decided to email the gentleman & set up an appointment to see the bike. As soon as I saw it, I knew it would take hours of work to even get it rideable. You could smell the old rotten gas from 10 feet away, the throttle was stuck, choke was stuck. It was a project I was not sure I wanted to tackle. But he sensed that I was the right guy to bring this bike back from the dead & therefore made me an offer I couldn't refuse, letting it go for a fraction of his asking price. After an extensive stay at my mechanics garage & many hours of labour, the bike is now rideable & a great addition to the stable of Ghost ride bikes!
James' 1978 Yamaha XS750 Triple I have always wanted an XS750 Triple even though they're somewhat prone to quirks & issues (2nd gear), so when this one came up for sale, I snagged it to add to the stable. There's been many changes this season with bikes being bought & sold. The KZ650 is no longer with us as well as a couple XS650's but I kept one in the stable as they're such a fun bike. The Triple went through a valve clearance check & carb rebuild & sync & is now ready for the rest of the season. It's a very torquey bike with lots of top end, great fun to ride & a great addition to our stable of vintage bikes.
2007 Kawasaki Versys 650cc
New to Michael's stable is this nice example of a Versys. It was a hard decision but Michael wanted to start the season off totally fresh when it came to bikes. The Yamaha XT, the GS750, the GS400 and the CB350 all found new homes this year. Michael will admit the hardest to let go was the GS750 as that was a comfortable, fast and fun ride despite its attraction to barbed wire and fence posts. Promptly after buying the Versys Michael departed on a 3000km 6 day journey that required a versatile bike. Home made luggage racks for the MEC Mountain Bike Panniers and some TLC were all that it needed. This is now Michaels main ghost ride bike until he finds that next perfect vintage bike to bring into the garage. |
James' 82 Suzuki GS850G, bought last fall. This will be the Ghost
Bike that will do the most mileage & take some pressure off some of the
other bikes. After an 1100 km test period, I'm very satisfied with the
performance, power, agility & reliability of this bike. I've already done 3 or 4 Ghost rides with the bike in every kind of terrain from riding through a fresh plowed field to dirt & mud roads to 50 miles of gravel. The bike hasn't missed a beat! So, after a new rear tire & a valve clearance check, it'll be ready for the 2014 Ghost Riding season!! Some of the features I love about this bike are the gas gauge, the gear selector display & maintenance free shaft drive. I also find that for an 850cc, the mileage is quite acceptable & the big tank allows for hours of riding before I have to start looking for a gas station. I think this bike is going to fit in very well with the other vintage bikes in the stable!!
Bike that will do the most mileage & take some pressure off some of the
other bikes. After an 1100 km test period, I'm very satisfied with the
performance, power, agility & reliability of this bike. I've already done 3 or 4 Ghost rides with the bike in every kind of terrain from riding through a fresh plowed field to dirt & mud roads to 50 miles of gravel. The bike hasn't missed a beat! So, after a new rear tire & a valve clearance check, it'll be ready for the 2014 Ghost Riding season!! Some of the features I love about this bike are the gas gauge, the gear selector display & maintenance free shaft drive. I also find that for an 850cc, the mileage is quite acceptable & the big tank allows for hours of riding before I have to start looking for a gas station. I think this bike is going to fit in very well with the other vintage bikes in the stable!!
Michael's 2007 Triumph Bonneville Black
This bike was a total surprise. Purchased as a bone stock Triumph Bonneville, it ignited the passion for bike building and vintage motorcycles within me. There are so many modifications and custumizations to this bike that I will have to do a build thread on it. For the last 3 years I have taken this bike on a 3000km 5 day ride through the mountains of south east British Columbia. It is all day comfortable as long as you are riding over 100kp/h. It runs fantastic and is downright fast. It handles very well and surprises riders when you pass them and go knee down into a corner on it. This is my favorite in my garage but not suitable for our ghost rides.
Major changes coming to this beauty. It will be ready for Ghost Rides in 2015
This bike was a total surprise. Purchased as a bone stock Triumph Bonneville, it ignited the passion for bike building and vintage motorcycles within me. There are so many modifications and custumizations to this bike that I will have to do a build thread on it. For the last 3 years I have taken this bike on a 3000km 5 day ride through the mountains of south east British Columbia. It is all day comfortable as long as you are riding over 100kp/h. It runs fantastic and is downright fast. It handles very well and surprises riders when you pass them and go knee down into a corner on it. This is my favorite in my garage but not suitable for our ghost rides.
Major changes coming to this beauty. It will be ready for Ghost Rides in 2015
Michael's 1977 GS750B - SOLD
I bought this in June this year as a bike to flip but I have say I totally fell in love with this bike as i rode. I only wanted to make sure that it ran well before I tore it down. I put mile after mile on the big GS and I just kept taking it out instead of the Bonneville. It is fast, stable, reliable and tours exceptionally well. Nothing but nothing beats the "standard" motorcycle.
The rebuild is done and after a winter of tinkering and putzing around on it it is back on the road in a roadster form. Nice low bars, cleaned up dash, lowered front end and new paint she is out on the back roads ghosting riding.
I bought this in June this year as a bike to flip but I have say I totally fell in love with this bike as i rode. I only wanted to make sure that it ran well before I tore it down. I put mile after mile on the big GS and I just kept taking it out instead of the Bonneville. It is fast, stable, reliable and tours exceptionally well. Nothing but nothing beats the "standard" motorcycle.
The rebuild is done and after a winter of tinkering and putzing around on it it is back on the road in a roadster form. Nice low bars, cleaned up dash, lowered front end and new paint she is out on the back roads ghosting riding.
James' 1983 Honda CX650E. (SOLD) I bought this bike on a whim as it's a bit of a rareity & once again, somewhat of a quirky bike. It has that Guzzi feel to it due to the odd piston configuration, along with shaft drive & liquid cooling. I have put 650 km's on this bike & still have not made my mind up whether it's going to stay or go. Very torquey at higher revs & great on fuel but on the downside, it's seating & foot position aren't that attractive to a 50 year old & the bars don't seem to fit my hands properly, leaving them numb & sore after longer rides. Still I'd give it an 8 out of 10 for fun factor with it's nimble handling & general sportiness. Stay tuned to see if it's still here next season or if it doesn't make the cut!
James Kawasaki KZ650 - Sold
This was a late purchase in 2013 for James. Normally he was on one of his venerable Yamaha XS650 when this beautiful green powerhouse came up for sale. Its has a throrough going over including a nice paint job in Kawasaki KX Green.
Everything you read about these bikes is true. They are incredibly fast machines that are made to impress. They are superbikes of the 70's with all day comfort. These bikes seems to be made for the back roads of Alberta.
This was a late purchase in 2013 for James. Normally he was on one of his venerable Yamaha XS650 when this beautiful green powerhouse came up for sale. Its has a throrough going over including a nice paint job in Kawasaki KX Green.
Everything you read about these bikes is true. They are incredibly fast machines that are made to impress. They are superbikes of the 70's with all day comfort. These bikes seems to be made for the back roads of Alberta.
James 1975 XS 650's. (Sold)
Having had an XS 650 as a kid of 21 years old in 1985, I have a soft spot for this reliable, good looking Japanese answer to the Triumphs of the day. After searching out & buying many brands of motorcycle this year (everything from Triumph to Harley Davidson) trying to find something comfortable, reliable but most importantly... A ton of fun to ride, I stumbled upon a '75 XS 650 for sale. After thinking on it for a couple days, I purchased it & the love of these old Japanese bikes was rekindled. Since then, I've bought 2 more '75's, one running & one a parts bike. These bikes are effortless to ride, easy to maintain & just the ticket for our Ghost Rides whether on pavement, gravel or even a little off roading if need be. I have no plans to Cafe, Bob, Cut, Lower, Hardtail, slice, dice any of these bikes as I love them the way they were made! These are my go to bikes when range road riding where speed & long distance is not a factor!!
Having had an XS 650 as a kid of 21 years old in 1985, I have a soft spot for this reliable, good looking Japanese answer to the Triumphs of the day. After searching out & buying many brands of motorcycle this year (everything from Triumph to Harley Davidson) trying to find something comfortable, reliable but most importantly... A ton of fun to ride, I stumbled upon a '75 XS 650 for sale. After thinking on it for a couple days, I purchased it & the love of these old Japanese bikes was rekindled. Since then, I've bought 2 more '75's, one running & one a parts bike. These bikes are effortless to ride, easy to maintain & just the ticket for our Ghost Rides whether on pavement, gravel or even a little off roading if need be. I have no plans to Cafe, Bob, Cut, Lower, Hardtail, slice, dice any of these bikes as I love them the way they were made! These are my go to bikes when range road riding where speed & long distance is not a factor!!
James 1974 Norton 850 Commando... Even though I no longer own this '74 Norton, I thought I'd include it as it was ridden on the second Ghost ride as well as other rides. This bike was great on gravel & a pleasure to ride!! During my ownership, it developed issues aka carbs & charging system problems so I sold it to a friend who was more prepared than I to sort these things out. It will be a beautiful bike when He's finished with it.
James 2005 Triumph America.... This is my '05 Triumph which I also no longer own but deserves an honourable mention as it was my go to bike for the first 5 or 6 Ghost rides. For a cruiser, it was relatively stable on gravel & I explored many dirt roads with it. At 61,000 km's, it ran strong but I thought it better to sell before any potential problems might show up. The bike served me well & I'd recommend them to anyone!!