SPLASH THE CASH

FEATURE

The original Blade is still a big crowd-pleaser.

We all have that list – bikes we wish we still had and can’t believe we sold for what we did, because since then they’ve gone on to become icons that everyone wants... but when we owned them, they were just what we got our kicks with. In my case, I’m talking about, among others, my Kawasaki KR1-Ss, Suzuki RGV250, Yamaha TDR250, Suzuki TL1000S, Ducati 916, 1998 Yamaha R1, Suzuki GSX-R750Y and Kawasaki ZXR750-RR, all of which I virtually gave away. At the time, I got fair prices for my 916 at £4500, my TDR for £750 and my RGV for £1500, and the ZXR-RR sold for a couple of grand. I could be depressed about the sheer amount of money I’ve lost in depreciation over the years OR I could actually act my age and apply some of the accumulated wisdom I’ve gathered and try to buy my next imaginary bike smarter, so I never lose another penny to depreciation.

There are some downsides to this approach, though – specifically, every single new bike is off the menu purely on the basis of them depreciating massively in the first few years. So, you’ll be in the wilderness of the used bike market, without any warranties or dealer support that come with a new bike, unless, of course, you buy your used bike form a dealer. You also might therefore not be able to treat yourself to the bike you really want above all others, and by definition you’ll not have the latest and greatest tech at your fingertips.