T-Sport: First Two Years

How Does It All Work?

Overall, it works very well indeed. After the 800 plus pounds of the Electra Glide, this 650 pound Dyna feels almost like a featherweight. Simple things like backing out of my garage, or maneuvering through traffic have become pleasurable rather than a chore. The suspension is adjustable for compression and rebound to suit one's riding style, and adjusting it on the firm side as I had done, made a big difference to keeping tires well planted at speed on rough roads.

Need I say more about the power? The only thing that is really needed is a sixth gear, the one I frequently reach for when cruising on the highway. Riding at highway speeds, however, is effortless. One time while wearing ear plugs and goggles, I was very surprised when I looked down at the speedometer to find that I was cruising at close to a hundred miles per hour, and there was still plenty of oomph left to go faster still.

There are a few negatives that needed getting used to. The biggest one, at least for me, was the cramped riding position when using the mid controls. I have managed to Charlie horse myself far too many times lifting my legs on to the pegs, especially at the start of the riding season after a long winter. With exercise my muscles do become more flexible, but with my years getting on I doubt I will ever be 100% comfortable. Luckily, the highway pegs allow me to stretch out, and that is where my feet spend most of their time. I have no plans to go with forward controls as I appreciate the excellent control the mid mounted pegs offer me. I do use them whenever the traffic gets tight and unpredictable, or riding conditions warrant extra caution. I also feel they are superior in spirited riding through the twisties.

Further compounding the cramped feeling is the tighter passenger accommodations. Carrying my daughter behind me is no problem as she is petite, but when my son finds himself back there, it becomes a different story. At six feet tall, his knees stick out so far that it feels like they are level with my shoulders. Although he is slim, he does make his presence quite apparent to me. Those with heavier builds are definitely stealing some of my space, and I feel like I have returned to the days on my mini-bike back in the late sixties. My geezer glide was a much more capable people hauler.

Something I didn't expect was a front end shimmy under heavy acceleration. So far I haven't had the pleasure of a tank-slapper, but the front end's shake has made me a bit nervous a few times. It seems to me that Harley has not done any wind tunnel testing of the T-Sport's fairing. With the windshield raised in the up position, and while accelerating to about 80 mph, the front end gets loose and goes into a rapid shudder. Easing off the throttle slowly brings everything back to normal. Gradual acceleration to much greater speeds has not had the same effect. The obvious solution is to crank the windshield back down before exercising the ponies. Unfortunately, the decision to hit the throttle tends to be a spontaneous act, and I have yet to take the time to see if a lowered shield makes a difference. Incidentally, this shimmy occurs with either the cut-down or stock windshield. More experimentation is in order.