01-13-2026, 10:36 AM
A great story, Ollie. For me it's neat to hear how owners came across the CB1100, a bike that didn't receive a lot of fanfare.
When I get comments at a gas station that begin with "I had me one of those back in the day..." or something similar, I can't really relate. Guys who look whistfully at my '17ex always seem to be about 10 years older than me. I'm 62 at present, and I think I was just a few years behind the UJM era as far as wanting / noticing motorcycles. When I first started thinking of buying a motorcycle, I remember gathering brochures of one bike in particular: the Honda XR250, must haven been in '79 or '80 right when they first came out. I would go to the dealership and ask for brochures and drool over the bike. I couldn't understand why my older brothers were interested in street bikes, when you could have a bike that would ride trails and street. But I never had the money to buy one, and settled for a '78 green Kawasaki KLE250 2 stroke purchased in '82 for $800 and owned for just 6 months--needed money to go to college. And college led me to study abroad programs and living in other countries where I had less money and owning motorcycles simply wasn't on my radar.
So zero bikes till 2003, at which time there was a show on Discovery--likely everybody has seen episodes of Orange County Choppers. It got me interested and there was only one bike I was interested in: a 2004 Sportster. This time I had the funds. In 2013, I was on the other end of a study abroad program as the leader of one in Costa Rica. I needed transportation and I bought the cheapest, decent bike I could: a '13 Honda CGL125, which has a certain "classic" look to it, albeit...tiny. But I loved it.
Yep, the CGL125 laid the groundwork for me to become interested in "the look", a more retro / classic look. It had a kickstarter that you could turn over with your hand it was so easy. When I got back to the U.S. I wanted a classic, kick-start bike. A couple of Yamaha XS650s cured me of that. Then I saw a CB1100 and it just "looked" right. Maybe it brought up memories of motorcycles that my brothers had or talked about, I can't be sure.
23 years later and I just bought a green Kawasaki KLX300...something about it hearkens back to a day when I was 18 and eating up the country roads outside of Topeka, Kansas I guess. I feel like I've come full circle! I have a classic-looking bike that maybe reminds me of what was out there in the early '70s, yet too young to really appreciate them, and another that could be the great grandchild of the first bike I ever owned.
When I get comments at a gas station that begin with "I had me one of those back in the day..." or something similar, I can't really relate. Guys who look whistfully at my '17ex always seem to be about 10 years older than me. I'm 62 at present, and I think I was just a few years behind the UJM era as far as wanting / noticing motorcycles. When I first started thinking of buying a motorcycle, I remember gathering brochures of one bike in particular: the Honda XR250, must haven been in '79 or '80 right when they first came out. I would go to the dealership and ask for brochures and drool over the bike. I couldn't understand why my older brothers were interested in street bikes, when you could have a bike that would ride trails and street. But I never had the money to buy one, and settled for a '78 green Kawasaki KLE250 2 stroke purchased in '82 for $800 and owned for just 6 months--needed money to go to college. And college led me to study abroad programs and living in other countries where I had less money and owning motorcycles simply wasn't on my radar.
So zero bikes till 2003, at which time there was a show on Discovery--likely everybody has seen episodes of Orange County Choppers. It got me interested and there was only one bike I was interested in: a 2004 Sportster. This time I had the funds. In 2013, I was on the other end of a study abroad program as the leader of one in Costa Rica. I needed transportation and I bought the cheapest, decent bike I could: a '13 Honda CGL125, which has a certain "classic" look to it, albeit...tiny. But I loved it.
Yep, the CGL125 laid the groundwork for me to become interested in "the look", a more retro / classic look. It had a kickstarter that you could turn over with your hand it was so easy. When I got back to the U.S. I wanted a classic, kick-start bike. A couple of Yamaha XS650s cured me of that. Then I saw a CB1100 and it just "looked" right. Maybe it brought up memories of motorcycles that my brothers had or talked about, I can't be sure.
23 years later and I just bought a green Kawasaki KLX300...something about it hearkens back to a day when I was 18 and eating up the country roads outside of Topeka, Kansas I guess. I feel like I've come full circle! I have a classic-looking bike that maybe reminds me of what was out there in the early '70s, yet too young to really appreciate them, and another that could be the great grandchild of the first bike I ever owned.