This Royal Enfield story is a sad one

Every ad offering a Royal Enfield motorcycle for sale tells a story. "Must sell," one says. "Lost storage," says another. "Need money for grad school," says a third.

But here's one, for a two-year-old Royal Enfield Bullet, that tells a more detailed story and, while it is not complete, you can imagine what the seller is going through:

"I'm selling the best motorcycle I've ever owned. My relationship struggle is your gain!

"This bike is not in mint condition; it has a little wear and tear. It's a very simple project to get it back to fine condition. The chrome is a bit worn in places, but it's been well cared for. It was broken in to factory specifications, and has been loved mechanically.

"The bike has approximately 3000 miles on it. I've been in the process of modifying minor details. Mostly stripping off extra items I didn't care for. I have all the parts, so you are welcome to throw the mirrors, front fender, and signals back on.

"My plan was essentially to chop it, and make it in to a single seater, but I'm simply out of resources and time. The only things you'll need are a new air filter; I suggest the K&N permanent filter, which retails for about 40 bucks, I lost the airbox after cleaning the carbs, lesson learned.

"The tail light is scratched up, and is not on the bike at the moment, you may want to buy another one, but there are so many styles, I figured I'd let the new owner decide whether to rock the beehive or the tombstone, or something more minimal.

"Everything is wired up and ready to go. I simply don't have time to make it perfect again. My loss is your gain. It's never been dumped, and will give you years of joy. I love this bike and hate that I'm selling it."

The bike is in Bloomington, Minn. He is asking only $2,500.

Sad, isn't it? You can see the poor fellow going from proud owner to frustrated owner in only 3,000 miles. His experience is not unique but he appears to have had more than the usual share of bad luck, some of it self-inflicted.

It reminds me of an old car I bought as a younger man, hoping to restore, only to ruin it in the process. Sure, I could have started over, but instead I let it go and moved on.

"I understand," a friend reassured me. "You had a dream. That's what you lost."