Interesting stuff, these Goldwing Races

[Chaharly]

Hey guys! We've had family up here for the last week for the fourth which means lots of tearing it up on my, my brother's and my dad's bikes. I was following my brother in law on my dads 2003 GL1800 and he was on my brother's 89 GL1500 with about 98000 miles. I put the 1800 in 4th gear and rode up ever so casually beside him and he had the GL1500 in 4th as well. We pulled up beside eachother at 55mph and did a 4th gear race. Now mind you, I had myself which is 30lbs more than my brother in law, and my sister in law on the back of the GL1800. We both cracked the throttle and held them til we needed to shift to 5th and I have to say, we were absolutely neck and neck in 4th gear!!! That GL1500 never backed off until we were both at about 95 to a hundred and the 1800 only started to pull away in the higher RPMS.

 

We pulled over and got to talking about how impressive it is that that 89 wing had literally the same amount of acceleration in the same gear at the same speed, and we started speculating the 1800 had longer gears etc.

 

Well one test wasn't enough apparently... We were cruising around on the same bikes later in the day, except I was by myself and he pulls up and says "So do you think, without having Sara on the back, that race would turn out any different?" And I told him I thought it would make a big difference and the only way to tell is to try it again.

 

So we did the same thing... 55mph in 4th gear and I have to tell you, those bikes were absolutely still neck and neck until he hit about 5krpms which was about 4750 on the 1800. What an absolutely impressive beast that old 89 GL is.. Its carbureted, has almost 100,000 miles and the only maintenance that's been done on it recently was new timing belts. We got talking about how underwhelming these new bikes are for the prices you pay for them and I do believe that if I was in 3rd I would have taken him, even if he was in 3rd.

 

At 55mph in 4th gear the GL1800 was at 2750RPMS and the 1500 was at 3000RPMS. So the gears are a little longer in the 1800 and the 1800 also does redline 500RPMS later.. Just interesting stuff!!!

[uncledj]

Good stuff.

I'll tell ya, I own a First gen MKII and a Second gen, and there's no way in Hades that my Second Gen could keep up with the First.

I had a buddy ride the First gen and I rode the Second gen and I was hitting the rev limiter and he only had to give it half throttle to keep up.

Second gen sure is comfy, but the First gen is funner to ride.

[cowpuc]

Cha,, to some folks what you are talking about here makes absolutely positively NO SENSE at all... Just want you to know that in this case (and probably many others) - Cha = Puc.... I get brother,, I 100% totally and forever more GET IT

 

:sign Rock On::sign Rock On::sign Rock On: = YOU DA MAN (IMHO)!!!

[Patch]

Not one to dismiss what others experience with their take in choice of Bikes;but; seems to me GW has moved from thrill to a different market class: and also that, the GL 1500 may just be the last of say our crowd?

 

Anyways for myself in touring the VR1300 was a very good fit for my style. I absolutely loved swinging the clever in 2nd after timing my entrance on to the HWs over the years and just ripping through 3rd! Of course this was after I spent the time getting her to giddy-up when I dug my spurs in! You may know I've run some modified 1100 Kats, this one time my boy and I were on an inter city HW low speed stretch of nice asphalt at a light early one morning. My boy hadn't kept up with the work I'd done on the VR. When we took off he just in front and just rolling I let it rip in 1st then quick shifted to 2nd by the time 3rd was up I slowed for the next set of lights. As he pull up he lifted his visor smiled and shook his head, thinking back he was likely wondering if I was ever going to ride like a mature fellow?

No way would I take the Kat in a fare fight on a straight run but I can take her by surprise..lol

 

Not sure if any of us here have had the opportunity to ride far on a Cavalcade? I can tell you that should you find one running on all 4 and dialed in, those bikes can really move, very much an old style ride but very comfortable! I often rode her sun up and past sun down, endless torque all gears. I'm putting an engine back together for her now, her finish 1/2 done is blue marble over black pearl. I'm cutting back the marble to a more 50/50 paint as I found the marble took too much of her old style/look away.