My motorcycle, the much-customized Honda Valkyrie seen above, finally broke. After 40000 miles of use/abuse. Some background... I work nights, if I don't hit the gym first thing on my way home in the morning, well, I don't hit the gym. This morning was a good workout, felt great, was a good night at work, I'm happy as I cruise the 3 miles home.

In Seattle, many streets merge from two lanes to one directly as you pass through an intersection. The torque of the big six cylinder serves me well, as a quick throttle blip has me merging well in front of any traffic.

Stopped at a red, there's a big v8 coupe beside me. No challenge. The light turns, I goose it a bit. No spin, no wheelie, just that creamy flow of power I love so much, the reason I bought a valkyrie rather than the latest greatest crotch rocket. 100 ft/lbs of torque, down low in the rpm range where you can use it. I felt a slight slip from the rear, but it often spins just a bit on uneven pavement while accelerating. I shift into second, then gas it a bit again....

BANG!! CrunCH! GriiiiNDWhapwhapwhap tinkle click grindclick click....no power. I coast to a stop at the side of the road.

The universal joint has failed. The rear wheel is now no longer connected to the motor, and from the death song, it grenaded in a spectacular fashion inside its little rubber boot.

Thankfully, I was less than a mile from home, only two tiny hills to push up. I rolled her home, the driveshaft making little clicks and pops as the wheel turned.

The pic below is from a volvo, but it illustrates the joint well.

Guess I'll be riding the commuter bike for a while until I get my valk back together.



Stay tuned. You know I'll post all about it.