"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--  I took the one less traveled by,  And that has made all the difference." 
-Robert Frost (1874 - 1963), The Road Not Taken

2004 BLACK / SILVER HONDA CBR 600RR SUPERSPORT

__________________________

CURRENT MILEAGE- 12,260 miles.  Averaging 41.05 mpg as a daily rider on 70 plus miles round trip commute

The story of my '04 Honda CBR600RR-  I was about to purchase a brand new, '04 Suzuki GSX-R600 (trying to decide between what color scheme I wanted since none of the three schemes really grabbed me) when I thought to give my Honda dealer one last chance to stir my soul. I'm a Honda man from way back (try 1984 VF500F Interceptor followed by a 1993 VFR750F) so I knew the bikes were both fast and well made. Basically, I walked into the Hattiesburg, MS Honda shop on Friday, after lunch, not really expecting to find anything I was interested in.  My wife had asked me to even look at a cruiser or a standard, so I entered the shop with the last thing on my mind being a new CBR.  I was interested in buying a new '04 Shadow or VTX.

Lucky for me, the black / silver '04 CBR600RR was parked right near the front door, so close, in fact, that I almost tripped over it walking in. I walked into the Honda shop and walked around the black CBR600RR as it grabbed my soul like a tractor beam. I didn't even wait on anyone to help me with the bike as I walked right back out with the instant inner understanding that this black CBR600RR was my next bike.

On Saturday, I went to my hometown Honda dealer in Columbia (trying to spend some money locally to help the economy, you know) to see if he had a CBR600RR. He did, but it was an '03 model, a red / black paint scheme for $7499 but that wasn't the color I wanted. I know he had a black and silver one just a week before, but he didn't remember it, even though I had seen it in the window and now there was a very tell-tale vacant space between a 600F4i and a 954RR where the black 600RR USED to be. No, he didn't have a black 600RR but he said he would try to get me one and that he'd have to trade a bike for it from another dealer. When I asked him what the price would be, he was very non-committal about it. I told him that I knew there was a black CBR600RR in Hattiesburg, but the local dealer said he didn't deal with the H'burg people (there's some really bad blood between them because this dealer actually worked for them ten years ago). I've always dealt with the H'burg people, they're the best in local Honda dealers, so I decided to go back to them instead of deal with this guy.

Well, to make a long story short, I just picked up the 2004 black/silver CBR600RR (in Hattiesburg, MS).

The Honda shop was closed on Mondays, so Tuesday, June 15, I went in as soon as they opened, put down $500 cash and had them run the credit app. Thirty minutes later, I owned the black CBR600RR. The purchase price was $7899 under the Honda "Real Deal" special (they gave you $500 credit). I put $500 down and financed the rest for 60 months at 6.9% which is a pretty smurfy deal.

Truly love at first sight for this bike in this particular color scheme.

• June to August, 2004-  Just a few pictures and some musings on riding during a really bad rainy season.
   

• May, 13th, 2005- The Dark Horse goes down on Friday the 13th... Hit from behind in a turn lane in Lamar county by a careless driver.  Who would have thought that?  A careless Lamar county driver.  Duh.
   

• June 3, 2005-   Damage to the bike, from what I saw of the estimate the other day, is around $3200 including a new rear swing arm.  Basically, from what I could read on the estimate sheet, going by the parts I knew listed, the bike is getting completely rebuilt / replaced from scratch from the fuel tank back.  I should have my horse back in a few weeks which is good since I have grown rather fond of the little CBR and its impressive capabilities.  More info to come as I find out and thank you for all of your well wishes, they are appreciated.  Like I have said many times before, a motorcycle accident is a terrible thing (I know because I've walked away from a handful of them during my life... bad ones) and I wouldn't even wish that fate on anyone, not even the mentally destitute, genetically bankrupt hill scoggins who pollute my email. 

• July 11, 2005- I picked up the CBR from Honda Sports Center in Hattiesburg and spent the next week riding it to work.  It felt good to get my horse back under me again.
   

• July 16 - 22, 2005- Vacation in the Great Smoky Mountains of Tennessee.  I've wanted to ride my bike through the GSM since 1992 when a friend took his Gixxer 750 through.  Thirteen years later, I get the chance to fulfill a dream and it was worth waiting on, rain and all.
   

BACK