Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

Cycle News 1981 06 17

Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles

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passenger" they said. We'd opt for an adjustable backrest were we in the Tour Glide market. The Tour Pak is standard only on the Classic. The saddlebags and trunk provide enough space for two-up touring of any distance or length of time. The right-side saddlebag on the Tour Glide Classic carries the excellent (best we've seen in years) tool kit which is secured by a Velcro strip in the front niche where the bag meets the la rge oil tank. The trunk has several small compartments plus the large storage area which we found useful for smaller items that we would perhaps want while traveling. The trunk is hinged. Both the bags and trunk remained water-tight in the light but steady rain we experienced once or twice during the test period. Image 10 Again. as mentioned earlier, no bike we've ever tested drew as much altention as the Tour Glide. One industry employee heard we had the bike and was ready to take a cross-town (and we mean metro Atlanta not Tucker) ride just to take a spin around the block on it. He'd never expressed that much interest in any test bike we'd had on hand before. "There are only two road vehicles I've always wanted to ride/drive and they're the Tour Glide and 18wheeler." is how he explained his enthusiasm. One staff member had been trying to get a date with a local young lovely but had only met with "I don't ride on Japanese bikes. When you get a Harley, give me a call." Need we say what happened when he pulled up with not only a Harley, but a Harley with a Wisconsin manufacturer's license plate? Service & Support 10 If the dealer from whom we picked up our test bike is typical of most, a Harley·Davidson rider is in good hands. Harley-Davidson of Atlanta employees are perhaps the most professional in appearance, altitude and function that we've ever met. No minimum wage, bubble gum chewing air· heads, but mature multi-year motorcycle industry employees are what we've come to expect when we enter a H-D shop. Touring Performance Index 9 No matter what you lhink, no person (even Bo Derek) or machine is perfect. Cycle News staff members have crisscrossed this great, big country of ours on a wide variety of bikes. No two slaff members agree on what is the ideal bike to tour on. We have big bike proponents. middleweight fans, fairing/no fairing types, etc. MOSI staff members liked the idea of just being "on the road again" only this time on a Harley-Davidson Tour Glide. *** Summing il all up, we'll admit that the Tour Glide intimidates novice motorcyclists. Things like Ooorboards, toe/heel shift levers that require much more than the effortless pressure we've become accustomed to on Japanese and European bikes, etc. all are drawbacks. But they're countered by the bulk of the Harley's weight being down low, the extremely comfortable riding position. the loafing engine, and most of all by the fact thaI you're on a Harley-Davidson, by god. And if there's one thing more American than Mom, apple pie, baseball and Chevrolets -- it's a Harley-Davidson. The Tour Glide is "more than a machine" and "you haven't ridden a motorcycle until you've ridden a Harley-Davidson." • 5131/81 Saline,LA AMA NATIONAL "REDNECK" ENDURO 1st OVERALL MIKE MELTON Husqvarna on DUNLOP front & rear. Ma................ Dua"""'~"".r ~rWe tint .. ~DUN~DP 5"""" p.o. b1109,..". NY 1G4O 31

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