From then to now, the Burgman has been and gone. Today I sold it to a fellow named Anton from North Saanich via an ad I placed on Craigslist. I’ve threatened to sell it before, but this time I was serious and I picked my time: right at the beginning of nice weather. Through both Craigslist and Used Victoria, I got three phone calls and four emails in 24 hours from placing the ads. Anton was obviously serious right from the start, being first on the draw and offering money down via PayPal and the rest in cash.
I don’t think I did so badly: I got $4000 for it. That’s only $200 less than we got in the trade for the Subaru last year… I think next time I have a car to sell, I’m going to do it myself. Some nice photos on an online ad seem to do the trick.
I’m a little sad about it, but the fact is that I wasn’t riding it, not even enough to keep it in running shape. I don’t commute anymore, the cost of parking downtown had shot up and the cost of bus passes dropped, and the last thing I have time for on the weekend is ditching the family to go for a ride. 🙂
One of those funny little coincidences that make you wonder if there is some sort of higher being altering chance…
A little back story: ever since I became seriously interested in motorcycles (1992), one bike that always pushed my buttons the right way was the Kawasaki ZX-7. It was always a bike that I’d gawk at, given the opportunity. I even had a mug made with a picture of one on it. In 1993, it was revised and Kawasaki really did well in racing that year and the following few years. I had an opportunity to buy a 1995 edition in mid-1996, but financially it wasn’t possible (I didn’t even have a m/c license at the time). It just wasn’t the right time. When I did enter the market, I couldn’t find one, and I bought the next best thing, my 1989 Suzuki GSX-R750. I loved that bike, but the ZX-7 was the bike I really wanted. In 2004-5 when I was considering getting myself another motorcycle, I decided that practicality was the overriding feature to look for. Practicality, reliability, utility. I was a dad now, and hanging on the back of a crotch rocket is a young man’s (idiot’s?) game. Thus, the Burgman was purchased.
However, as the reality of day-in day-out riding the Burgman set in, I realized eventually that the scooter wasn’t the answer to commuting that I was looking for. Despite the efficiency and utility with which the Burgman transported me, there were only a few days in the year where the ride to/from work was a great experience. Most of the rest of the time it was too cold, too hot, too rainy, the sun’s in your eyes, allergy season (not fun in a helmet), etc. So bus riding resumed, except for the occasional day of riding. Then those started getting less common, and then I stopped commuting regularly at all. I put the bike up for sale in the fall of 2005, but I didn’t get any takers then. Then in the time since, it’s been rare rides and the odd errand. Since I started working from home, the scooter has always been there as an emergency means to get to the office in a hurry if necessary, but that has only happened once in almost a year. So Tammy and I would speak of selling the scooter from time to time, but late spring is the time of year to sell. If it hadn’t been for the piano, I might not have got my finger out this year, either. We talked about was the reasons for selling, and also why I wasn’t riding. And the biggest reason is that our situation just doesn’t call for a lot of personal transportation for me, and recreational riding would almost always take away from other things I would rather be doing with my family. But another thing was that I’d never really made an emotional attachment to the Burgman. I’d tried, but never really got that pride of ownership that I had with the GSX-R, the Subaru, and now the Mazda. We’d talked about that and agreed that someday if an opportunity came up, I’d sell the Burgman and get something I loved, like that Kawasaki I’d always wanted. For months, I kept an eye on Craigslist and UsedVictoria, and only once did a ZX-7 of the right vintage come up for sale, and it had a horrendous paint job that the previous owner had done.
This morning, I had a moment, and I went into Craigslist again. For a laugh, I brought up the motorcycle column and searched on “Kawasaki”. First thing in the list? 1994 Kawasaki ZX-7. From the pictures, in showroom condition, without any stupid boy-racer modifications.
What were the odds?
Anyhow, it doesn’t change anything. I still don’t have opportunities to ride, and I’m not even considering buying any bike at all. But I thought the coincidence was worth posting about.
