Why Not

[Fatcycledaddy]

I read a thread the other day asking "why"? Why we ride a Spyder when, and a whole list of problems were listed.
I would like to ask "why not"? It was said that they wondered about taking it on a long trip.

I purchased my 2015 RTL in July, road about 1,500 trouble free miles, hooked it up to a camper trailer and started out on a trip of over 4,000 miles.
In 14 days we road in the rain for 10 of them and the Spyder NEVER missed a beat.

It rained so hard that there was a river running across the road, couldn't see it because of a truck in front of me. When he hit it he hydroplaned and the back of the truck got loose. There was no time for me to react and when I hit it, the nanny kicked in, it kept the back end straight and true, and in a matter of seconds we were back to normal. The Spyder performed flawlessly and never missed a beat.

When the roads were so rough that it broke a bolt on my trailer hitch, the Spyder never missed a beat.

When it was a cold rain that was so hard that my waterproof gloves got soaked, the hand warmers kept me warm, and the Spyder never missed a beat.

When in higher elevation in the rain, the Spyder never missed a beat.

Now with almost 9,000 miles on it without it ever missing a beat, I am heading out on a 1,200 mile round trip over memorial day weekend. Then we are off for a trip the last 2 weeks in June that will be over 5,000 miles from MI to UT. I am expecting the Spyder to perform flawlessly on those trips also, and never miss a beat.

I have stopped and help out almost every brand of motorcycle on the road side dead when on our trip, and I have observed almost every brand of car dead on the roadside. I for one however have never saw a Spyder on the roadside dead. Now I understand that there are fewer Spyder so that plays into the fact that I have not ran across one dead, but my experience so far has been GREAT!

I meet a lot of Goldwing riders and they all love to talk about how dependable their bikes are, they all have the same mantra. I hear the same thing from every BMW rider, Harley rider, and almost every other brand out there. I have learned that if you set and talk to any of them for awhile, they can all list off problems or repairs that have had to be done on every one of their bikes. I remember one Goldwing rider talking about taking his bike back to Ohio 3 separate time before they got his problems fixed. He still said it was the most dependable bike he has ever owned. Go figure.

Do we as Spyder riders want too much and want everything to be trouble free, ignore the obvious that not everyone has problems with their Spyders, and pay way to much attention to a few who have problems?

I love the information available on this site when problems do arise, but the things I like more are reading about all the GREAT riding times people are having, the fun trips they have gone on, and the wonderful friends they meet because they ride a Spyder.

[SpyderTwyn]

As a new Spyder owner, I appreciate this thread. I love my already and expect it to be fairly trouble free. It is a joy to ride, and if it weren't for my Spyder, I wouldn't be riding!

[fencepost]

Well said and very true. Every bike I have had over the years has been the best for me at the time. I can remember taking off on a 3k trip on my 66 Harley without any reservations and having enough tools to do a complete top end if needed and I loved that bike. I love my F3 and am quite confident that it will give me many pleasurable miles.

[Fatcycledaddy]

As a new Spyder owner, I appreciate this thread. I love my already and expect it to be fairly trouble free. It is a joy to ride, and if it weren't for my Spyder, I wouldn't be riding!

From what I have read, most Spyders are pretty dependable, but anything and everything can have some problems.
I think the timing of the problems when they crop up causing major inconveniences is what frustrates people.

Then you have the people who can repair or create about anything with their hands. God has blessed my and there is very few things I can't repair, and even fewer that I can't get repaired enough to get me home when on a trip. The frustration comes in when it is a on board computer issue that very few mechanics understand. Then I feel like I am useless because I can't over ride it, get it going to get home, or fix it. I then am at someone else's mercy to get back on the road.

[Gunkandpudge]

My 2015 RT-S is very dependable, so much so that I don't give it another thought when I start up for either a short or long trip. I now have 7000 miles all trouble free. Planning two trips this summer one to western New York and one to Durango Co. I'm looking forward to both trips without so much as any misgivings. I owned a 36' class A motorhome. Now that was an adventure in what will break next. Not so with my new Spyder.

[karlcovington]

I to love my f3s my wife has a 13 st limited I had an 08 gs I rode all of them hardly no issues at all we go to north myrtle beach every year for atlantic beach bike fest where it take you 3 hrs to travel 7 to 9 miles on a Saturday night we seen countless bikes pulled over due to over heating all brands except my can am never ran hot

[Bob Denman]

Every time that I ride the thing; 30 years just falls off this old carcass of mine...

[Smokinspyder]

It could have just been a troll trying to be a keyboard warrior to get us riled up. You know since the anonymity of being behind a screen helps people become the weakling to the muscle head.

OORRR it could have just been someone curious about the sypder looking for opinions???? I will take the high road and say someone was curious about sypders and wants to join the web.

[PrairieSpyder]

Well said, Fatcycledaddy! i just purchased my third Spyder and wouldn't have any other machine! I'm one who did have a problem which put me on the side of the road with a dead Spyder. But in all my years driving cars and 2-wheelers and Spyders, it's the first time ever. In about 50 years of motoring, it's bound to happen sometime. Gotta keep things in perspective.

[Mr. White]

I triked my Gold Wing in 2005 as I found that if I got off balance 10 degrees I could not hold it up as my Korean War knee was giving out again. After 1,000 miles I fell in love with it. I bought a 2011 RT-S and after 1,000 miles, I fell in love with it. I had a little trouble with my 2011, but never with my 2002 GW. I traded my 2011 for a 2014 limited and it is a much better machine than my 2011. I kept my GW and ride both often. I like both. As my riding buddies (over 25 years with some) are buying trikes.....As I got older, it has extended my riding life.....It is hell getting old.

[bronzeflex42]

with fatcycledaddy, the Spyder is by far the best bike i have owned. It just gives me a more comfortable feeling of open air riding than a two wheeler. Stop at the traffic light, don't have to put your foot down to hold up the bike. Mess around and hit some loose gravel don't have to worry about loosing control and tumbling over. and more safety features and options, than my previous bike (Honda Shadow) had. I have not had any mechanical issues with my so far, which i am glad of that. I'm sure everything man made machine can give you trouble, and there are some that don't and that's a blessing. I just like the brand, the look, style, safety, and piece of mind, a whole lot better than any other bike I've had.

[kamper]

I am very new to the spyder, but from what I read I made a good choice.2012 rt

[Fatcycledaddy]

It could have just been a troll trying to be a keyboard warrior to get us riled up. You know since the anonymity of being behind a screen helps people become the weakling to the muscle head.

OORRR it could have just been someone curious about the sypder looking for opinions???? I will take the high road and say someone was curious about sypders and wants to join the web.

No troll, an active member with a list of problems by year. I am not picking on him for his opinion, I just hate for those who are new to a Spyder, or currently contemplating buying one to be turned off because they think EVERY Spyder or Spyder owner has problems.

If you search Harley Tri-glide problems, you will find all you would ever want to read.
If you search Honda Goldwing problems, you will find all you would ever want to read.
If you search Harley Yamaha Venture problems, you will find all you would ever want to read.

In fact I read an artical that says "Based on responses from 4,424 owners of motorcycles built between 2009 and 2012.Yamaha was cited as the most reliable motorcycle brand, BMW the least reliable, and Harley-Davidson next to BMW in reliability issues. Interestingly, over 75% of Harley and 74% of BMW owners stated they would buy their motorcycles again if given the chance."

This loyalty of Harley and BMW brands is awesome and what attracts new buyers and riders to their bikes. I have even read some of that loyalty to other brands on this forum where they are quickly defended when bad mouthed.

I would love for that same loyalty to be there for Can Am Spyder, and in some instances, it is. But just think of the new riders and buyers that we could get on board if they heard more good things about them with that same brand loyalty.

[NorCalBud]

Reading a forum gives a slanted perspective. IMHO, this site is used primarily as a means of troubleshooting and secondarily for Social discussion. So you will find a greater number of discussion centered around difficulties.
The real Problem is not understanding human nature....People will complain about something hundreds of times more often than they would compliment something. If you own a Spyder and it's meets or exceeds your expectations then nothing or little is said, but have any difficulty and it's yelled from the top of the mountains.

Let me say, from my little mountain....
I LOVE MY SPYDER!!!! I've got no complaints and I look forward to rydin' every chance I get!!!!

[Smokinspyder]

No troll, an active member with a list of problems by year. I am not picking on him for his opinion, I just hate for those who are new to a Spyder, or currently contemplating buying one to be turned off because they think EVERY Spyder or Spyder owner has problems.

If you search Harley Tri-glide problems, you will find all you would ever want to read.
If you search Honda Goldwing problems, you will find all you would ever want to read.
If you search Harley Yamaha Venture problems, you will find all you would ever want to read.

In fact I read an artical that says "Based on responses from 4,424 owners of motorcycles built between 2009 and 2012.Yamaha was cited as the most reliable motorcycle brand, BMW the least reliable, and Harley-Davidson next to BMW in reliability issues. Interestingly, over 75% of Harley and 74% of BMW owners stated they would buy their motorcycles again if given the chance."

This loyalty of Harley and BMW brands is awesome and what attracts new buyers and riders to their bikes. I have even read some of that loyalty to other brands on this forum where they are quickly defended when bad mouthed.

I would love for that same loyalty to be there for Can Am Spyder, and in some instances, it is. But just think of the new riders and buyers that we could get on board if they heard more good things about them with that same brand loyalty.

So the "Why ride a spyder" was more of an informative type of thing, Kinda like if you are looking at a spyder here's what you might want to look at before buying a certain one or the problem and a rough idea of a solution. hmm Not a bad idea to have just sitting around!

[ARtraveler]

Check the signature below. I have had five and am considering number six. Lots of miles and smiles here.