And it's a wrap, the bike has been sold. 

I posted an ad on Craig’s List late Thursday night with the same info I’d put on Facebook recently, and there was a LOT of interest in it. A guy came out Saturday with his buddy’s van so he could take it away, but we couldn’t settle on a price. Yesterday another guy came by and looked at the rust and said his offer would insult me, so I asked how much, and he offered less than half what I was asking, so I sad no, I couldn’t do that. I think he was looking for something in great cosmetic shape so he could flip it, he didn’t seem to care about the mechanics at all, just the appearance.

All in all about ten people responded to the ad. Some people made cash offers site-unseen but a little low. Sunday afternoon I got an email from a guy named Ron asking me to call him. Turns out he was looking for a first bike for his son (in his late 20s, not a kid which I was glad to know) and didn’t want anything too big. Ron is a Harley guy and knows the Sportster is the perfect first bike, very agile and nimble. He’s ridden bikes his whole life and when he saw my bike, it was obvious he was impressed with it. He commented on the rust which I mentioned in the ad and I pointed out how the brake light was also out, something I’d discovered Saturday. I gave him a little off my ask and we made a deal I was very happy with. I went up to my apartment to bring down my toolkit so he could take the old brake light out, and when I got back I overheard him talking to his son on the phone. He said there’s some rust and added, “If you don’t want it, I do!”

He was ready to finish the deal and ride the bike away, but he only had a paycheck from work he wanted to sign over to me with some cash to make up the difference. I said I’d need him to cash it, Melanie said banks can give you a hard time with double-endorsed checks even from businesses. Ron was a little concerned because he was afraid the bike would be sold before he could bring the cash back (this was Sunday night). He REALLY wanted the bike. He ended up leaving $100 as a deposit and I promised him I’d hold the bike and take it off the market until he got back to me. I liked him and he obviously genuinely wanted it, and I liked how he was helping his son with it, it seemed like it’d be a father-son project, so I was comfortable waiting for him.

He ended up having his brother-in-law come by today with the cash and a truck to take the bike away in. That was at around 1:00. So no more bike.

I have mixed feelings about all this, but mainly relief that it’s finally gone. I simply never rode the thing. I’d had it 13 years and only put 9,800 miles on it. I live in Manhattan and riding a bike in Manhattan is just trying to stay alive until you get to where you’re going, it’s miserable. Even Queens was a lousy place to ride when I lived there. Plus I was paying to park it every month, and my desire to take the bike out pretty much went away. I let the insurance lapse in March and hadn’t had the bike inspected in two or three years. The front tire had a slow leak and the battery kept draining because the bike sat idle in the garage, so it became an anchor around my neck instead of something I took pleasure in.

IF Melanie and I had a 2nd home outside the city, then I’d like to have the bike. But I don’t see that happening, not in the near future anyway. We’d both rather get a more expensive place in the city with more space than buy a 2nd home elsewhere, and it’s impossible to keep a bike here, so no dice.

In the end, as much as I enjoyed having the bike and riding it on the few times I’d take it out, I’m relieved to finally get rid of it.