Ok, so I'm not actually that old (mid 30's), but some days I sure do.
If you didn't figure out my name, it's Dan. I live in the great state of Nebraska (cough). Figured I would join up because I just put in a pre-order for a Hawk 250 Enduro, which I will hopefully get in about a month or so. I have already been reading my rear end off on upgrades, fixes, and changes. Already have a few goodies on order for when the bike arrives (Mikuni clone, jets, exhaust, sprockets, tach/digital gauge cluster). I am sure there are more things I will find as I sit here waiting for it.
I am not new to bikes. My other rider/daily is actually a 1975 GL1000 K0 Honda Goldwing (Serial number 1726). Been a process of restoration and upgrading on that one as well since I bought it. Has a whopping 28k miles on it. Been torn down to a rolling chassis, completely rebuilt the carbs, has a Suzuki "Sunlight Copper Pearl Metallic" paint job, Corbin 2 up seat, trimmed rear fender, CNC rear plate bracket, High Tech Speed X-Arc Run/Brake/Turn rear and run/turn fronts. Trucklite LED headlight. EBC clutch and spring upgrade, Hydraulic clutch conversion, "Superbike" Handlebars. and a full Delkevic stainless steel exhaust. Racetech gold valves, Progressive 412 rear shocks and front springs, fork brace, Rick's Motorsports mosfet Reg/Rec conversion and Bikemaster lithium battery. Still tying up a few odds and ends, but it should be back on the road here in a couple of weeks.
Is it obvious that I don't leave things stock? I tossed in a shot during some mock up (aka ignore the zip ties holding the cans on) and picture of my rear lights, which btw, that's NOT the brake lights lol.
Anyway, I was wanting something alternate to my big girl for scooting around town and short trips as well as a little light off-road fun. I couldn't justify spending 6k+ on the standard run of the mill Japanese dirt bikes, and have read and seen a lot of good reviews on the Hawk, especially after doing the appropriate mods. I figure if I can get it to do 60mph without popping a blood vessel, then it's perfect for going anywhere I need to go locally, and I can use it to commute to work. Should be a rather interesting change from my 570lb Battleship for sure! Thank's for having me.
P.S. Don't judge the mess in my little garage in the second picture. It doubles as a shed and storage unit for 4 people. I claimed my little corner for my 2 wheeled obsession.
I was also considering using my Go Pro and youtube account to produce actual complete how-to videos on many of the popular modifications out there. Having thumbed through countless videos, I have noticed that there aren't very many one-stop shops for info and how-to's, or the information is just very drawn out and presented haphazardly. I have a great opportunity for it since I have to assemble the bike anyway. I am also going to experiment with a few other upgrades down the road. Not sure how much interest there would be, but I like a good project.