You asked for it.
My first mode of transportation was a bike when I turned 16, couldn't afford a car and my fathers phylosophy was if I worked and payed for whatever I was going to drive that I would respect it and take care of it better. A guy I worked with was selling a Honda 350 four cylinder cheap, so I bought it, I drove it daily everywhere, in the rain, sun, got caught in hail storms, even road it in the snow as lond as it wasn't to deep but I loved it, it was freedom, pretty soon it was an extension of me. I knew everything I needed to know about that bike, all it's little quirks, how to keep it running, everything, as I said it was part of me, I could feel the road through the bike and knew it's limitations. Anyway, that lasted for about a year or so and I ended up joining the Marine Corps at 17, while i was serving my country at a young age I needed money and my dad sold it and sent the money. My love for bikes increased while in the service and I started drooling over Harleys, I particualy wanted a 1980 Lowrider Sturgis Edition, all black with Harley orange highlights but money was always the problem. Loved the biker lifestyle of the time, ended getting lots of ink from the local tattoo shops in Jacksonville N.C., wearing the leather and black tee shirts but no bike. After i got out of the Corps and returned home in the mid 80's all my buddies started calling me Miker the sidewalk biker and that used to enrage me, i wanted a bike so bad I could taste it, just couldn't get ahead money wise. Finally I broke down and bought a used 750 Kawasaki, no it wasn't a Harley but at least I was riding again. That lasted for about 3 years until some guy who saw me coming, he made eye contact with me, I had the right of way, and at the last second he pulls out in front of me, knowing that a colision was emminate while I tried to avoid hitting dead on with the cage of the car I jumped from the bike and flew over the back end of the car and rolled to the pavement. No serious injury, just bruised my knees on the handlebars jumping from the bike, the bike was totaled and the guy didn't have insurance so I was screwed, again without a bike. Ended up getting married and having two boys, the wife wouldn't let me get another bike. (Sorry if this getting to long, I'm on a roll.) Anyway, the marriage ended in 2003-04, our credit was in the shitter at this time because she handled the finaces, so I started my life over on my own, found out everyone I owed and started to pay off my debts. I visited our local BD dealer in 2003 and saw a chopper, I was in awe, I was hooked, It was my goal come hell or high water to own one of these bikes, I followed BD every year since getting a new catolouge each and every year, hanging pictures of them in my studio and work areas to remind me of my goal, when the K9 and Ridgeback were introduced I was going crazy visiting the dealer all the time, telling the sells guy, soon, very soon, I'm sure they got tired of me coming in and drooling all over thier bikes, rolling thier eyes at me thinking this guy is never going to buy. But finally I got out of debt and my credit started to climb, I bought a brand new house in 07 all on my own and then last fall payed off a bunch of things like old student loans and such and decided it was now or never, looked at hundereds of Big Dogs since last fall, had the dealer spec out what I wanted this spring, 2010 K9 EFI, chrome package, diamond cut heads with firnace flames, quote $37,900, bank wouldn't finance more than $25,000, FUCK I want a new dog so bad, so I had my eye on an 06 with XXX carb, weld chrome wheels and Paul Jaffe pipes, $17,000 and they would put new tires on to make the deal, only problem for me was it had 18000 miles on it so I dragged my feet on the buy for a week. I joined BDB in Sept. of 09 and learned alot just reading your guys posts, so about a week after trying to decide whether to but the 06 I found an 08 K9 EFI, with chrome package, diamond cut heads and furnace flames on sleasebay and it had the 18" sissybar, p pad and windshield. Contacted the seller and found out he and a friend bought it at an repo auction and were flipping it to try and make a profit, thay had a reserve of 17,000 on it, I offered him 21,000 if he pulled it, but he wouldn't, said he wanted to see where it would go, okay fine I said, I guess i would have to bid on it. Six hours before the end of auction it met the reserve, now I am left with the deision to bid on this beautiful K9 sight unseen 400 miles away. Someone that deals with BD that I met said the could chech the vin on it for me to see if it had been wrecked or anything else was wrong with it, it came back clean. I waited till the last 60 seconds of the auction, place my bid and won the auction $100 over the reserve! I was in bliss, traveled down to pick it up and when I first layed my eyes on it I was in love, when I first road it, well lets just say I still can't get the smile off my face. I decided to ride it home and had to go through Witchita, Got about halfway to Witchita and it died on me, (posted the episode on BDB), couldn't get it started again, so I called the seller and he came with a trailer and pulled me into Witchita and took it to the factory the next day, ended up being the VR which they replaced and got it home, have put 1100 miles on it since April and have not had a problem since.
I am finally living the dream and my buddies now call me Miker the Big Dog Biker! You guys and this site are great, thanks for all your help and I only hope I can return the favors at some point in time. Sorry this is so long, but thanks for reading. Peace
Didnt want the total custom, as Im a Roofer not a wrench. Made the mistake of going to the dealer 
