What Are YOU?
I have been watching the responses to Gmans "What is A Biker" thread with great interest. Seems we have some disconnect between members of our own community (Sportbikes, Cruisers, Harley riders, Tourers, ect). So then, I guess it should be NO surprise that another aspect of being a "biker" hasn't even beed mentioned: our relationship with THEM; those @#*&&^%$ cagers!
We constantly harp on what a bunch of dumb, stupid, dangerous group anybody on 4 or more wheels are....but we never hear (or mebbe don't want to talk about ) the other two sides of the equation : our own "Bad Acts" which give rise to the sensational news stories when a manaic biker kills himself and/or others; and the frequent (in MY experience) "Good Samaritans"
not on two wheels.
I'll talk about my own experiences with the second phenomena, and save the Bad Acts for last.
I have been fortunate to have been allowed to ride for many years now over most of this great country, as well as a goodlly portion of Canada (you Canucs have some of the most beautiful country in the world, as well as some of the most bleak, and I have been treated to some of the finest hospitality by your great people). As such, I've had occasion to to experience my share of flat tires, elecrical gremlins, mechanical ills and poor planning (empty gas tanks and closed gas stations). I have been offered aid IN EQUAL MEASURE by folks driving everthing from bicycles to eighteen wheelers; by everone from doctors to strippers, and everthing in between, all of them complete strangers.
As a result, I've made it a practice to stop for all manner of vehicles that appear in distress. A while ago one morning I was travelling through a busy but remote section of western Maryland and saw an older, scruffy looking minivan pulled off the side of the road; kids and adults sitting dejectedly on the side of the road. I pulled off in front of them, dismounted AND REMOVED MY HELMET BEFORE I APPROACHED. (I could see the concern and fear in the eyes of these folks at being accosted in the middle of nowhere by a BIKER).
I asked them if they were OK, and the lady started crying; they had been broken down since 10 oclock THE NIGHT BEFORE, and no one would stop! They had given up, and spent the night huddled in the minivan, no food, no water and no cell phone service (the mountains up there have a lot of no service spots for miles). The kids were crying and the parents were beside themselves.
Fifteen minutes with the cheesy pliers from my tool kit, a knife and some spare fuel line, and I had bypassed the plugged fuel filter and they were happily on their way.
I have changed flat tires for anyone who looked like they needed it, and dropped gas off to the stranded. In doing these things, I believe I can accomplish two things: a. remove some of the stigma associated with bikes and bikers in the non riding community, and b. build a little positive karma for the day when I REALLY need some help out in the middle of nowhere. I really do believe we reap what we sow.
As for the "Bad Acts" issue; ie that which leaves a bad impression of the non-riding community: I try to limit my own exhuberance to less and non-populated areas ( I love the sound of that v-twin through that "Competition Only" MotoCorse pipe, but those folks next to the road may not appreciate the Bimota at full song at 6am on a Saturday morning) and I try to bring up these issues on boards whenever I can, and to talk with other bikers who maybe haven't thought of the long-term consequenses of anti-social behavior on their beloved sport.
State and municiple governments across this country are contemplating or enacting restrictive motorcycle specific legislation or outright bans on PUBLIC ROADS AND STREETS, as well as some private communities building anti-motorcycle covenents into bylaws. We can trace this trend directly back to the bad behavior, (real or imagined) of our own members.
While joining the AMA is good, and being politically aware and active are also good, I believe that the best way to counter these trends is for me to remember that my actions ARE BEING WATCHED AND JUDGED by the public.
How I ride and what I do are going to directly affect the public's perception of who and what we are!
What kind of Ambassador will you be, today?
Just something to think about.
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On Riding, Dying, and Freedom
On Riding, Dying, and Freedom
I read the rather sad series of posts regarding mgs251's apparent demise.
http://www.twowheelforum.com/showthread.php?t=17491
I don't mean to sound callous, but reading his posts from the beginning, it's not much of a surprise. I've attended more than one biker funeral that never should have happened.
As the riding season begins, we get more and more posts and questions from new(er) riders about stunting, top speed runs, which bike is faster, how great my friends are at 10 'oclock wheelies at 120 on the freeway, running from the cops; and the complaints on this and other forums about helmet and gear nazi's (of which I am one, proudly) always "puttin' us down". and "prejudging us", along with the usual complaints about older or more experienced riders being hypocrits.
I don't know about the hypocracy part, but I will share with those that wish to listen about how I survived my early ignorance, and how I try to pass along what I've learned.
First off, there is nothing wrong with ignorance; when we're new to this game, everything is a mystery. The language and terms are different, and much of riding is counter-intuitive; we need to learn new behaviors, and unlearn others. That being said, there is a difference between the ignorance of "newness" and the WILLFUL ignorance of being pig-headed or (self) destructive. Those of you that fall in the latter two catagories; may you live long enough to out grow those traits.
When I first started riding, there was no MSF course, Harry Hurt hadn't yet published his landmark findings on the causes of motorcycle accidents and injuries, and what little "knowledge" that was available out there in the form of Lore was mostly WRONG. The hanging off style of riding was just being developed by the likes of Paul Smart, Giacomo Augustini and Kenny Roberts, and complex dynamics of motorcycle handling and chassis and tire dynamics were just beginning to be explored. Common myth required that if the average motorcyclist is confronted by an object he could not avoid, his best course of action was to "lay her down"....as if somehow losing all control of the situation...no braking, no steering...was going to mysteriously give a better outcome.....
The term "counter steering" had not yet been expressed, and concepts like target fixation, chassis static sag, gyroscopic precession and trail braking had hardly been discussed. Helmet use was sporadic, and padded, armoured leathers were for the rich......knee sliders were composed of wads of folded-over duct tap, taped to the knees of those expensive leathers. (Truth!)
What does all this have to do with the topic at hand? Well, we now know that fullface helmets and good gear save skin, injury and often lives. We also know that lack of training and poor riding habits are the direct cause of single vehicle motorcycle accidents, and that, regardless of who is at 'fault" in motorcycle /car accidents, over 70% of the riders simply froze up and never attempted any avoidance in those accidents. And while excessive speed is not the direct cause of many motorcycle accidents, it is the precipitator of the "Fatality" part of the equation. Today with the huge body of motorcycle specific research, especially with the internet, and boards like these, there is simply no excuse to REMAIN ignorant very long.
So, yes, we older riders did a lot of what I now consider "stupid" moves. But blame a lot of it on ignorance of newness and lack of real knowledge. To those of you that chose to ignore the facts today; because facts they are, and calling them otherwise doesn't change 'em. That's just plain willfulness and wishful thinking.
...and that will get you killed....or worse.