It was a really fun bike for running around town and short day trips, but the engine vibrated so bad at road speeds it just was't comfortable on long hauls. The seats were terrible as it wasn't designed for long distance riding.

So after nearly 25 years being away from bikes, I bought this 1999 Yamaha Road Star. It is in near mint condition and is what I've always wanted in a big bike. At 720 pounds, it's heavy ! That makes for a comfortable ride but bad if you have to pick it up. It is belt driven, which means a smoothe transition of power. This was Yamaha's first belt driven motorcycle. And they got it right.

Thus far, I've riden it to Myrtle Beach, SC Bike week. That is 500 miles from us here in Corbin, Ky. The ride was a dream. I rode down at night with two other guys. I like riding at night because I felt I was more visible with my lights and reflectors. Plus the traffic was light. And there is something serene about riding at night I think.

The 1600 cc engine is awsome ! It has lots of power and at 70 MPH it just seems to idle along. The bike has Bub pipes on it and they are loud. I like a loud bike. That seems to make one more visible. But when accelerating, it can be noisy. However, a sensible, gradual acceleration minimizes noise.

Motorcycle riding is great therapy.

I considered riding to Sturgis, SD to the big bike rally in '05 but decided at 1400 miles, it was a bit more than I wanted to ride. All my camping gear fits neatly on the seat behind me. (See picture).