El Rojo the 2004 Roadster

El Rojo is a 2004 Harley-Davidson Sportster 1200R. Rojo means "Red" in Spanish and the motorcycle was given this name while I lived in New Mexico because of the overwhelming use of the color red. Most people dress up their motorcycles with extra chrome but on this bike I have taken parts that were originally black, gray cast or silver and either painted or powder coated in red. I still have a few more parts to powder coat before I'm done.

Sportsters have the reputation of being beginner bikers, or starter Harleys, or girl's motorcycles, but this reputation is undeserved. This is a very small nimble bike with plenty of power. It isn't a great motorcycle for carrying a passenger and it isn't a touring bike, but it is a great short range bike and perfect for riding around town and commuting to work. I often find myself choosing this motorcycle from the garage when I don't want the work of riding the larger heaver Road Glide.

The Sportster being a lighter weight motorcycle is a much quicker motorcycle than the Harley-Davidson Big Twins. Over short distances and in curves they can be faster than their bigger brothers. When the Sportster was first introduced in 1957 it was the Superbike of the day designed to compete against the smaller and faster British and European motorcycles, not against the larger Harley FLs or Indians.

It's all a matter of expectations. The Sportster is a wonderful motorcycle for what it can do well, and maybe it simply wasn't designed to do the things it doesn't do as well.





These photos were taken in my back yard in New Mexico.