Ladies and Gentlemen...

...I give you Miss Zukiko, the most beautiful bike in all of Beautiful La Hacienda Trailer Park. Of course there are only two bikes in BLHTP (AFAIK), the other being a garden-variety Hardley-Ableson in a silver-gray sort of color. Miss Zukiko is beautiful, by comparison… although methinks her looks just might be an acquired taste.

Just for comparison's sake, I've thrown in a pic of the late and (un)lamented 'Zuki…which is the last pic in the series.

So. Wendy at Zia Power Sports called this morning just after I’d posted the “Naming the Baby” post below, saying Zukiko was ready to be picked up. Quite unexpected, that call was. Yesterday Wendy told me it would be tomorrow or Friday before the bike was set up and ready to go…and I told her to take her time, I wasn’t in a rush. But Hey! Earlier is much better than later, nu?

First impressions: the motor has ten more horsepower in this incarnation than in the ‘Zuki, i.e., 71 hp vs. 60. And you can really feel it, too. I was a good boy and didn't take it over six grand on the way home, but Boy-Howdy! The roll-on is worlds better than on the ‘Zuki, which always felt somewhat anemic...compared to bikes I've owned in the past.

The riding position is gonna take some getting used to. My wrists were aching after only ten minutes of putting around Clovis, but it's better once you're on the open road. I don’t think I’ll be doing any 500-mile days on this bike for a while. Zukiko is much better at parking lot speeds. I don't think I'll drop her in that situation.

The mirrors on the ‘Zuki were much better than those on Miss Zukiko…as a matter of fact, the ‘Zuki’s mirrors were the best I’d ever seen on a bike. Zukiko’s will take a little bit of “getting used to” but they’re OK.

I’d love to be putting a few more miles on her, rather than writing this post. But the skies are threatening rain and I just don’t feel like getting wet today. There will be more than enough time for rides in future.