Back in the day...Tom's VF500 with optional lower fairings. Several months ago, reader Tom B. from Boise, ID contacted me with a few questions, later sharing his moto-story and how it led him to his latest buy, a 1986 VFR750 in R/W/B.
Like many of us, Tom's story begins back in his early teen years with a fateful visit to the local dealer. The gleaming showroom bikes we drooled over make a lasting impression, and for some of us, it's an attraction we never quite get over.
In his own words….
Like many of us, Tom's story begins back in his early teen years with a fateful visit to the local dealer. The gleaming showroom bikes we drooled over make a lasting impression, and for some of us, it's an attraction we never quite get over.
In his own words….
Relax, she's photo-shopped. Tom's 1992 VFR750 "My dad used to take my brother and me to a Honda dealer occasionally when visiting Bend, OR. My brother and I always headed straight to the dirtbikes; for us, the dream bikes. A few years later I turned 15 and got my driving permit and my attention began to sway to driving interests but I still liked dirtbikes. My dad took us to the Honda dealer that summer and my brother and I headed to the dirtbikes like normal, but this time there was this R/W/B streetbike displayed right next to the CRs and XRs.
I was so captivated by the body work, lines, and paint that something in my brain clicked. There was suddenly more to motorcycles than dirt. This time when we left the dealer I was carrying more than the usual dozen dirtbike brochures. I was also leaving with brochures for VFs and the new VFR. Through my junior and senior years of high school, while friends carried pictures of sports cars in their school binders, I carried the sales brochure for the 1986 Honda VFR.
As a teen it was far out of my grasp, but boy did it inspire me. In 1990, I was sent to Saudi Arabia for Desert Shield, which in 1991 turned into Desert Storm. We saw a lot of USO, Red Cross, and troop support care packages come our way. Some boxes contained donated books and magazines. I started collecting motorcycle magazines there in the desert. My buddies and I would talk about what we'd do when we got home safe from the war. I said that after surviving that ordeal I deserved to get a motorcycle. Of course you know which one I had in mind.
When I got back to the States, for me it was Port Hueneme, CA (USN Seabees), I immediately got my motorcycle permit then headed to Santa Barbara Honda when I heard they had some sportbikes. They had a 1987 VFR700 in blue. They also had a 1986 VF500 in Rd/Wt/Bl. I actually chose the VF500. It was significantly less. It was the right colors. Also, in a rare form of good sense, I decided it was a better first streetbike. I learned to ride and survived those twisty SoCal and Malibu canyon roads where all the magazines test. Two weeks before my discharge from active duty my baby-ceptor was stolen.
I moved to Boise, ID and bought some other bikes in my four years of college, then I bought a 1992 VFR750. It was midnight blue and I thought it would look better silver. A friend who was a painter shot it with some PPG and another friend with a sign and graphic shop printed me some decals. I ripped and toured on that bike for many miles and 9 years. I rode it to my first track day. However, motorcycle life changes had it sitting too much over using other bikes so I unloaded it.
I've been without a Honda V4 since 2005ish, but I've always had a soft spot for them. When I started road racing, I painted my CBR600 in the 1986 VFR Rd/Wt/Bl scheme. I've always pined for a 1986. I never really aggressively searched and shopped. I always felt one would just happen to come along and I'd know it was the right time. I wasn't even shopping when I found the one I just bought. A friend who knows I like the old VFRs happened to notice it for sale in Facebook classifieds. He sent me the link."
I was so captivated by the body work, lines, and paint that something in my brain clicked. There was suddenly more to motorcycles than dirt. This time when we left the dealer I was carrying more than the usual dozen dirtbike brochures. I was also leaving with brochures for VFs and the new VFR. Through my junior and senior years of high school, while friends carried pictures of sports cars in their school binders, I carried the sales brochure for the 1986 Honda VFR.
As a teen it was far out of my grasp, but boy did it inspire me. In 1990, I was sent to Saudi Arabia for Desert Shield, which in 1991 turned into Desert Storm. We saw a lot of USO, Red Cross, and troop support care packages come our way. Some boxes contained donated books and magazines. I started collecting motorcycle magazines there in the desert. My buddies and I would talk about what we'd do when we got home safe from the war. I said that after surviving that ordeal I deserved to get a motorcycle. Of course you know which one I had in mind.
When I got back to the States, for me it was Port Hueneme, CA (USN Seabees), I immediately got my motorcycle permit then headed to Santa Barbara Honda when I heard they had some sportbikes. They had a 1987 VFR700 in blue. They also had a 1986 VF500 in Rd/Wt/Bl. I actually chose the VF500. It was significantly less. It was the right colors. Also, in a rare form of good sense, I decided it was a better first streetbike. I learned to ride and survived those twisty SoCal and Malibu canyon roads where all the magazines test. Two weeks before my discharge from active duty my baby-ceptor was stolen.
I moved to Boise, ID and bought some other bikes in my four years of college, then I bought a 1992 VFR750. It was midnight blue and I thought it would look better silver. A friend who was a painter shot it with some PPG and another friend with a sign and graphic shop printed me some decals. I ripped and toured on that bike for many miles and 9 years. I rode it to my first track day. However, motorcycle life changes had it sitting too much over using other bikes so I unloaded it.
I've been without a Honda V4 since 2005ish, but I've always had a soft spot for them. When I started road racing, I painted my CBR600 in the 1986 VFR Rd/Wt/Bl scheme. I've always pined for a 1986. I never really aggressively searched and shopped. I always felt one would just happen to come along and I'd know it was the right time. I wasn't even shopping when I found the one I just bought. A friend who knows I like the old VFRs happened to notice it for sale in Facebook classifieds. He sent me the link."
And the rest, as they say, is history. Tom's currently working to finish the cosmetics on his '86…his original dream Interceptor.
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