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Strong opinions

10K views 75 replies 54 participants last post by  redbaron 
#1 ·
It surprises me how vocal some people are about their dislike for our Road Glides. Please forgive my rant but in all of the years I have been riding, I've never met so many vocal haters of a motorcycle! Why do you folks think this is?
One other thing... I don't give a crap what people think of me, my bike, or any other thing. I love my RG custom and think its the best Harley I have ever owned.
 
#3 ·
Well it is non traditional with faring attached to the frame, it is different but exiting. People want more of the same and do not want change, for me I think is the best bike HD produces, stable and rock solid. But is catching up just see the members on this site, we reach 10000 strong and with taste for design and function. We are different just like our bikes and we love it.
 
#5 ·
Most people still cant get over the fact that the headlights dont move with the bars cuz of the fixed fairing. Hell they still complain about not being able to reach the radio. People are just close minded.
 
#7 · (Edited)
Just smile and nod, tell them how right they are.
I bought a street glide before street glides were cool, drove about 1600 miles to get it (was afraid of flying). Made many modifications to it and sold it 6 years later when I started losing it at bike night's
Bought A Road Glide because they were rare, fell in love with the ride.
Now $30k+ later I'd like to keep this one for a while before the secret gets out.
Nothing I hate more than seeing someone else on a bike just like mine. This has already happened by the way.
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Mines the good looking one
 
#9 ·
LOL ~ They will be attempting to find one in the future and get rid of the ole man look ~ I swore I would never have an RG ~ Now I promise The 10 Ultra I have for sale now will be my LAST batwing ~ The RG grew on my OVER a Long period of time and alot of miles ~ About a year or so ago I knew the RG was the next step ~ 30 hd's in to finally get it right ~ but I got there... SemperFi
 
#10 ·
I'm not gonna lie, I used to think they were the ugliest motorcycle on the road! I had a Honda and was going to get a Street Glide, but one of my best friends bought a Roadie and I sat on it and fell in love. So when the time came to get my Harley it was a Road Glide, and to remove all doubt I sat on both at the dealership, but only test rode one!
 
#37 ·
People have said to me i don't like the look of the RG, why would you buy that ugly thing but on a windy day & in heavy tranport truck traffic running 130 to 140 km a hour you see the batwing bike fading away because they handle like s@#t at high speeds & windy days.
2011 Road Glide Custom
 
#12 ·
They can talk all they want unless they have a box of twinkiies or hohos I am not listening! When I bought mine one of the uneducated salesman was making comments about how he wouldn't own that ugly shark nose not knowing that I was buying one at the time.I told him after ringing the bell and taking my picture if it's good enough for Willie G it's good enough for me! And I didn't know he was so rich he didn't need to sale 25000.00 MC .:D
 
#13 ·
Its funny how peoples opinions change over time given enough experience. I was a diehard sportbike guy, roadraced with WERA and practically LIVED at Deal's Gap. Hated Harley's and swore I would never own one. I got a job as a motorcycle officer in 2004 and proceeded to put a bunch of miles on a police Road King and realized that most of my misconceptions and prejudices were based on ignorance. I beat that bike like a rented mule and it never hiccuped. Logged nearly 30k miles on it before I made the plunge and bought a Harley for myself. New 2007 Street Glide purchased in August 2006. I hated the Roadglides and couldn't understand why anyone would want one. Well 40k miles later on my Street Glide and the opportunity has presented itself to change things up and I am going the Roadglide route. I am rebuilding a dear friends 2008 police electra glide and I am converting it to a Roadglide. I test road a CVO RG a few years back and fell instantly love with the ride. The looks have taken a bit longer to grow on me but they have and now it's all I can think about. Actually I found this site researching ideas for a paint scheme on the rebuilt sled and all this place has done is feed my addiction
 
#14 ·
The biggest thing I hear is that people are freaked out by the fixed faring. I just smirk because it tells me that they don't know how to ride a motorcycle. I tell them, "Just keep looking at the batwing faring that's directly in your face and you'll be fine. I watch the road, not my faring."
 
#30 ·
The biggest thing I hear is that people are freaked out by the fixed faring. I just smirk because it tells me that they don't know how to ride a motorcycle. I tell them, "Just keep looking at the batwing faring that's directly in your face and you'll be fine. I watch the road, not my faring."
This is what i was taught all through my training class. Could be why I was able to get on it and start riding right away after getting use to being on 2 wheels with my Suzuki. People look shocked when they find out what my first Harley is that i ride and they probably think i'm full of it.
 
#15 ·
MY previous bike was my first RG, they have grown on me over time as far as looks. Before I bought it I got two opportunities to ride a Roadie, and "Riding" the bike is what sold me on it, especially on the highway at speed. One of the rides was a friends bike, the other was my local dealer, this was the ride that really did me in. The store manager filled up a new RGU they had as a demo bike and told me to get lost and just return it with the same amount of fuel. So I went down to the upper keys and back, lol :D

Now I'm on my second Shark and wouldn't have it any other way. I have come to love the looks of the bike, as popular as they have become, in the group of guys I usually ride with I am the ONLY one with a Roadie, so it's different, and this is the way I explain the Road Glide to people. It combines the things I like best of two bikes I have previously owned (Road King & Ultra Limited), I get the light sporty handling of the King, but I get a fairing and tunes like the Limited.

I was converted to Road Glides, and don't regret it one bit. Road Glides are the HD bikes made to pile on the miles.

Just my $0.02
 
#16 ·
I really dig it when bystanders come up to the crowd of riders I'm with (mostly CVO Electraglides), and says ”wow...I REALLY like that black and white one!”
Although it's a secret, and some still say they're ugly, many unknowing non-riders still think they look better...not even knowing they ride better!
Not one person has called my scooter ugly to my face, but maybe I'm the most intimidating skinny white kid in SoCal :p
 
#17 ·
I have owned my share of bikes, everything from Hondas to Harleys and can not remember anyone ever coming up to me to discuss how ugly my bike is and how that they would never own one. It caught me off guard the first time. I guess it takes all types to make the world go round...
 
#18 ·
I am new to RG, and it's done something to me that a bunch of my others didn't. It awoke an old addiction. Some of my first bikes were like that. I could not stop upgrading and tinkering. Other ones I just rode. Just finished my stage 1 and already have more ideas buzzin my brain. Don't care about other opinions, I love my RG.
 
#21 ·
+1.

One of my best friends strongly recommended the RG when I told him I was going to a touring bike. RG hadn't even crossed my mind. I had always admired what I considered to be the "built for the road" look. Even tho I own one, I they still catch my attention. When I crossed over Monteagle, TN yesterday, I saw one on the westbound side headed down the mountain. It looked good. The bike was in its element.

RGs aren't ugly. They look great on the road like they are supposed to.
 
#23 ·
Here's a story.

I ordered a new dishwasher online. Big item, too big for UPS or FedEx, so it came by truck. Truck pulls up, guy unloads the pallet, I open the garage so I can inbox it, truck driver starts going ape shit when he sees my ride. "You ride a Road Glide, that's gonna be my next bike". He's been riding Harley's for 30 years. Finally sees the light.
 
#25 ·
Tell em you have a VROD, love the water cooling, and its the best bike HD ever built and see what happens....:confused: :D

Just saw a 110/110 anni Ultra EG at L-A Harley last Saturday in the anni colors. Beautiful motorcycle, but I gots to have a Roadie. 2nd thought I had
was I wonder who the genuis was that cut the FLTRU / C from the 110 lineup in the dark brown color scheme. (I know about the blue/gray SE you can order,salesman didnt till I showed him :rolleyes:)

I have not had anyone say anything bad to my face other than a couple close ball buster friends, but I have seen the rolled eyes and wrinkled nose from a distance from the sheep before.

baaah. baaaaaaaah :D
 
#27 ·
I've always liked the looks of the Tour Glide and Road Glide, but had never considered buying one. I had always been torn between the Road King and Electra Glide. I didn't plan on buying the Road Glide when I went to the dealer. They were advertising and end of summer used bike blowout in August. Among the used touring models, they happen to have three 2005 bikes, a Road King, Ultra Classic, and the Road Glide. All three were Black Cherry and within a couple thousand miles of each other on the odometer. I rode all three, and knew after 2 blocks on the Roadie I was going to buy it, and did. They had it all summer and I was only the 2nd person to test ride it. I took it home for 4K less than either of the other two. The ride and handling sold me. Like the rest of you, I could care less what someone else thinks of my ride. It's freedom of choice, and I made the right one. The others that passed on this bike while the dealer had it for sale made the wrong one.
 
#32 ·
I agree with pretty much everything that's been said here. Seeing this site reach the 10,000 member milestone this week is a double edged sword in my mind. It's terrific that we have that many people to learn from, or to help. But the obvious down side is that the once ugly Shark is now fast becoming THE HD to own. Soon they'll be as common as Road Kings were in '90s and that Street Glides were in the 2000s. Not all bad but you loose some of the uniqueness and individualism that many on here enjoy. C'est la vie! Ride hard, ride safe.
 
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