This reminds me of a demo ride I took 17 years ago. On an unseasonably warm day in January of 2001, I rode my '98 Valkyrie to a dealer in Colorado Springs. They had a new yellow GL1800 with dealer plates sitting out front. As I was looking it over a salesman asked me if I'd like to ride it. I replied that with a Valkyrie less than 3 years old I wasn't in the market, but he insisted, telling me I really needed to try it out anyway. How could I refuse?

I took it for a ride, including a brief stretch on the Interstate, and was amazed at how well it handled for such a large bike. At the time, it was the most impressive bike I'd ever ridden. My old Valkyrie is a wonderful bike (I still have it with 174,000 miles) but it felt heavy and ponderous compared to that Wing.

I fully expect the new Goldwing to surpass the current version by a similar amount. If I get a chance to ride one I definitely will!