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Finding My Africa Twin
I bought this 2019 Honda Africa Twin new from the Honda dealership. The story of how I acquired this particular unit was funny. My friend Vinny (a longtime Harley rider) was friends with a Honda dealership near where he lived. He met me there to introduce me to his "sales guy," Rob. I sat on a few Africa Twins and was disappointed that the Adventure Sports model was a bit too tall for me. The standard was a perfect fit.
They had a ton of bikes on the showroom floor and in the back, so I gave Rob my wish list. I said I wanted a black 2019 Africa Twin standard, manual (not DCT), and all of the Adventure Sports OEM goodies: center stand, skid plates, bars, etc. Rob and I went to the computer, and Vinny went looking around the showroom — or so we thought. Rob looked hard to find one in his inventory or being shipped to him, but there was always one thing off from what I wanted. He even checked local dealerships that he had relationships with for a swap. We had no luck. He said that he would keep his eye on what came through the shop and reach out to me if they got one in.
We started walking back to the showroom to find Vinny and found him walking toward Rob's office. Rob called out to Vinny, "We can't find the one he wants." As we got closer, Vinny replied, "What do you mean? His bike is right here." Rob looked seriously confused. Vinny turned right back around, walked out of the showroom, and went into the back room. Where is he going? We followed him to the back where the dealership receives new inventory before it even makes it into the shop.
There was my bike, strapped down in the crate, waiting for Rob to write down the VIN. Rob said to Vinny, "I didn't even know we had this." Then he started asking the other employees, "Hey, when did this bike get here? How long have we had this?" I asked, "Is this one already accounted for?" Rob said, "This one doesn't even exist — it's not even in my system of bikes being shipped here." I said, "It's mine now." YES, I was that excited to get my blacked-out Africa Twin. Rob and I were instant friends at that moment, and we still talk today!
Blacking It Out
I put 14,000 miles on the Africa Twin and loved most of it. This bike was a lot of fun and got a lot of attention. At the time, you didn't see them anywhere on the street near me, so everyone would ask about it. I immediately started upgrading everything I could find. AltRider, Camel ADV, all the bits and pieces. I had a U.S. Hepco & Becker dealer order me the stiffening brace for the upper tank guards, which made a big difference. It tied each side of the upper bars to the frame, reducing vibration and increasing strength. I had the upper guards, lower guards, and stiffening brace powder-coated black. I rattle-can painted the skid plate, shifter and brake controls, and other pieces. It looked great all blacked out!
Urban Adventure Bike
The long-travel suspension and ground clearance turned out to be useful for more than I originally expected. During my years commuting in New York, I encountered plenty of abrupt traffic stops, damaged pavement, construction, debris, and other situations where having a motorcycle capable of confidently handling rough surfaces gave me additional options. There were times when avoiding an immediate hazard meant encountering terrain or road surfaces that I would not have wanted to tackle on many street bikes. The Africa Twin handled those situations without hesitation. I bought it for both recreational riding and commuting, but that capability became one of the things I appreciated most about the bike. The 21-inch front wheel just rolled over stuff like a monster truck, and the suspension soaked it all up.
I Loved This Bike Until.....
I loved this bike until..... I started taking long trips with it. A group of friends and I took a ride down to Rhose Island to eat too much seafood and see some sights. Some of the small things that about this bike that I brushed off started to become more pronounced. Upshifting wasn't as smooth as I was used to, but I could live with that. The wind buffeting was OK on trips that were an hour or less, but on long trips it would wear me down. I tried the original fork shield and all the usual tinkering recommendations found on the forums. None of that made a meaningful difference.
I decided to get the MadStad windshield, which was great but introduced a new variable. It allowed a massive amount of airflow through, which kept me cool and comfortable in the summer daytime heat while commuting through the five boroughs of NYC to upstate NY. But on early morning commutes there wasn't enough wind protection to keep me from getting cold. Also, I would ride to work rain or shine. You see where I am going next. Not enough rain protection.
And on super-long trips, parts of my anatomy would fall asleep that I never knew could fall asleep. I had never experienced that on a motorcycle before. I am not going into more detail on that, but all I am saying is it's the same reason I switched my bicycle seat to an "old man" seat.
I was disappointed that this odd assortment of issues was changing my love for this bike. Every time a little issue was nagging me, I kept thinking, "My old beater bike was more comfortable." I also started to realize that all of the off-road adventures I had planned just never fit into my lifestyle. I tried planning some BDR trips with friends, but they just weren't into it. I think crushing the miles on pavement is fun solo, but I imagined off-road would only be fun with a friend to thrash with. At that time, nobody I rode with did the ADV thing.
A Pavement Princess
I started to realize that my AT was mostly a pavement princess, and it needed to go to someone else who would show it the life it deserved. My previous bike was a beater/commuter Versys 650, and for long hours it just served me better. TRIGGER ALERT: I sold the Africa Twin and eventually bought another Versys 650 for long-distance runs and a Triumph Rocket 3 for local cruising.
Should I Buy Another ADV?
Sometimes when I see other people posting awesome pics and videos of their Africa Twins, I get a little regret about selling it. But that chapter is closed for me. I really enjoyed the bike, but it wasn't a proper fit — at that time. The funny thing is that now I do have a few friends who ride dual-sport. Should I buy another ADV? If so, I will update you here! Until then, we would love for you to ride with us in the comments section of our social media accounts.
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