Hotshots

HOTSHOTS

Super Sporty

I really like what I saw in CW's exclusive sneak peek of the possible new XR 1200 Sportster (Up Front, December). That’s the best-looking tail I’ve seen on a Harley that wasn’t wearing a thong!

Just think, a Harley that you can ride with a full-face helmet and not have to wear a stitch of black leather. Hello, Joe Rocket! Don’t get me wrong, I like the old Sportys; I’ve had two. I liked “Then Came Bronson,” but most people have forgotten the old bad-boy Sportster dragsters of the ’60s. It’s not extreme anymore. We need another American Hooligan! Billy Eargle Charlotte, North Carolina

Tell Harley to build the XR1200,1 love it! I’ve ridden Sportsters since the ’70s. If the engine really is Buell-tweaked, then the Gods of Speedy Fun will be pleased and so will I. I’ll buy one. Robert F. O’Neal Rogers, Arkansas

What a great bike! It’s the first Harley I’ve seen that would make me trade in my Aprilia. Brad Cushnyr Canton, Ohio

The XR1200 is what I have been waiting for. I’m a longtime Honda four-cylinder enthusiast, but I’ve been want-

ing to break away and buy a V-Twin of some type. I seriously considered the Ducati Monster until today. I would buy the XR and really enjoy the Harley-Davidson fun-factor lifestyle. Republic of Texas Rally here I come! Mark Northrup Austin, Texas

If Harley brings the new Sportster to the States and it’s priced right, I’ll take a really close look at it. I ride a Suzuki 1400 Intruder, but I would love to buy an American bike before I hit the Pearly Gates. This is the first native machine that I would want to ride. Rich Smyrnios Kalamazoo, Michigan

You got my vote for the H-D XR1200 prototype. Harley should build it! Paul Holdsworth Chicago, Illinois

What this (cycle) world needs is the XR1200.1 vote “Yes.” Dain Gingerelll Los Angeles, California

I will trade my 2006 XL Custom today for a new, sportier Sporty. Please, please, please (to anyone who will listen) bring this beauty to the U.S. Phil Ruede Port Orange, Florida

I have not had a motorcycle since 1993, but I would buy one if Harley built the XR1200. Gary Short Plymouth,Ohio

Hey, the XR1200 looks just like a 1983-84 Honda Ascot. That’ll teach those Japanese for cloning H-Ds all these years! B.T. DeWitt Sterling Heights, Michigan

Remember the mid-1960s when the Sportster was the quickest, fastest motorcycle on the road? It would, according to Cycle World's own road test, turn an honest 135 mph. How did it become a “girlie man’s” motorcycle. What happened to the legacy of the XLCH? Now, the only Harleys you get credit for owning are those that: 1) have so much bling you have to take out a second mortgage to pay for them; and 2) have riding positions that appear to be designed by a gynecologist rather than anyone actually connected to motorcycling.

I am afraid this Harley will go the way of the XLCR Cafe Racer and be tagged by the “it’s-all-about-noise” cruiser crowd as not “worthy” of the Harley name. Since ownership of a Harley-Davidson today is

not about motorcycling but about tribal acceptance, I don’t see much of a future for it. Norman J. Stringfield Del Rio, Tennessee

About the new Sportster XR1200, man, if H-D decides to build this for Europe only, I’ll give up hope and be done with them. This is a bike that screams Americana just as much as any Big Twin. Build it, H-D, and I’ll actually buy my first Harley. Seriously. Brian Lankow St. Louis, Missouri

You wanted to hear from potential XR1200 buyers? I’m heading over to the dealer to put a deposit down on one right now! Black, please! Bruce Scott Broomfield, Colorado

Please use your vast and powerful influence over all things motorcycle to make Harley-Davidson bring the XR 1200 to showrooms here in the States. I’ve never been a fan of Harleys. They’ve always been too heavy, too chrome-laden and too much “I’m an individual so I’ve got to get a Harley like everyone else.” But the XR looks fantastic and it should actually be fun to ride on a twisty road. My faith in Harley is restored. Hopefully, there’s enough of us Yanks with the same sentiments to make a stateside release worth it. Tom Mast Bellingham, Washington

I must have this bike! Are you are listening H-D?! Try not to disappoint an old man. Phil BÜSS San Francisco, California

My pen is poised over a blank check, just waiting for a go-ahead on the deposit. Ben Russell Athens, Georgia

Harley Davidson has finally put together a motorcycle that I’m excited about! I was considering replacing my current bike with a Ducati GT 1000, but would gladly go for the XR1200 as long as Harley doesn’t overprice it like so many of their current models. A bike with belt drive,

great looks, good suspension and a great dealer network! Keep it around $10K H-D and I’ll buy one. Sam Phillips Wellston, Ohio

Leapin’ lizards! Now, that is a Sportster! Damn you, Willie G., just when I was set to do a cheap 1200cc upgrade to my ’03 883R and spring for a set of Storz flattrack-style exhausts for it, you stick a bike like that in my face.

Well, put me in coach, sign me up, dude, whatever, I will buy one! Tom Knowlton Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin

Will Harley make the XR? No guts, no glory. Michael Pozzetta Posted on www.cycleworld.com

Finally, Harley gets it right with the (hopefully) forthcoming XR1200. It has what I’ve been whining for all long: rearset pegs, sporty-sized tires, good suspension, cornering clearance and tasty styl ing. If/when they bring it here (in black, please), I will buy one. Jeff Davis Alpine, Utah

Just bought an ’06 XL883, been spending all my time and money trying to build what Harley now is thinking about putting into production. Am I mad? Hell, no! Build the XR1200 and my wife can ride the 883! Money is in hand, when can I sign up? Brian Drake Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

You can tell Harley-Davidson that I said they don’t have a hair on their ass if they don’t build the XR1200. Joe Placht St. Louis, Missouri

Actually, Joe, you just delivered the message. As did your fellow letter writers and the 2636 respondents to the www. cycleworld.com online poll about the XR1200, 88 percent of whom voted in favor of the bike being built. Pressed for a response about U.S. sales, a HarleyDavidson official told CW, “Our own online survey has yielded similar results from European riders. We ’re encouraged by the initial response and we ’re taking all feedback into consideration. That’s all we can say for now...” □