Impressing the Joneses

 In Bill Zehme’s biography on Frank Sinatra, “The Way You Wear Your Hat: Frank Sinatra and the Lost Art of Livin',” it suggests the way you wear your hat speaks volumes to your character. In a biker’s mind, it’s in the way you walk, roll or glide to your destination that sets you apart – especially in the City of Angels. Wheels are king in Southern California and Big Dog Motorcycles has the pimpest catalog of production choppers on the block. For 2009, the Kansas-bred crew has even got a budget chopper in the catalog named the Coyote. And it howls.

 Ride Hard, Ride short

There are times in your life when you think about doing something, and then there’s actually doing it. Often these two conditions don’t evolve or meet. The football star, baseball great or bad-ass mofo often outshines county clerk, bricklayer or telecom engineer as viable career paths. Who wouldn’t wanna shine? Big Dog is here to help break the mould with well-built, fully insurable, Blue Book-listed production choppers. Zed’s dead, baby…

 Surrounded by life’s responsibilities – buried by invoices, emails and office demands – we often turn toward a way out, seeking alternative identifies to release built-up pressure. If MySpace and Facebook aren’t your cup of tea, perhaps a killer set of wheels is what you crave? Maybe you want both. We know Fonzie does. Have you seen his Tweets about the sound of the Supertrapp pipes? Tame enough to not alert the sound police, but still big and shiny; the 2-into-1 double-barrel pipes exit the wrinkle-black V-Twin with chrome-plated goodness.

Leading the way to a new you is a polished-billet spoked 21-inch front wheel, followed by a wider 18-inch billet rear wheel, creating a visual unity from tip to tail, typical of a pro-street chop. Overall the Coyote is 8.5 feet long, with a 6-inch backbone stretch. A 39-degree frame rake plus 3 more degrees in the tree, the trail pushes that Avon tire 4.74 inches towards the finishing line - as if you were racing. A bike like this is mean to cruise, meant for being seen.

A stretch like this is often thought to be unwieldy in the turns and parking lots. The Coyote is far from it.  While the turning radius is bigger than your scooter, the ability to carve up the asphalt is a well-balanced ballet.

“The Coyote impresses when lifted off the swingarm-mounted sidestand, as it feels smaller and lighter than it appears,” said Motorcycle.com Editor in Chief Kevin Duke after his first spin.

With a balanced 700-pound stance (665 pounds dry), dodging last-minute potholes in the road ahead is a predictable breeze. As with cornering characteristics, there’s minimal fork flex and steering delay to speak of. I almost wish I had the time to take this girl up in the mountains. Alas, as cool as she and I are together, I can only take a few hours before I need a beer or a massage…or both.

When you need to know how fast you were going when the light bar sparks atop the police cruiser behind you, there is a very cool speedometer with integrated LED tachometer front and center. At night, the instrument glows with a cool blue light causing you to think – if you ride other motorcycles – that you’re running with the high beams turned on. The feeling fades in time.