Why do we ride

[Jackrat]

Ok,seeing as how I asked this dumb question I will go first.
I enjoy the feeling of being in charge of my own destiny,When I,m on me bike the rest of the world ceases to exist.Biking to me has always been a type of escape an power trip wound up in one.
Iv,e never been into the poetry of the road thing,but I can see where people who are, are coming from.I often hear people putting the ideal down,but I do strongly identify with the bikes I ride.I like the old British cafe,Rocker style of bike because thats what my father and uncles all rode when I was a kid,It,s kind,a odd that most of my bikes have ended up with flat bars an open pipes yet I don,t like modern sports bikes.Street fighters,Oh yeah,,race rep,s,,, Puke!!.
This don,t mean I have any problems with the riders of any style of bike,But I sure have my own prefrence in stlyes.
Bikes to me have always represented an alternative way of doing things that has nothing to do with being some kind of rebel,I mean it don,t matter what we ride, we have style.Some thing a bit lacking in every day life.
OK dribble of the day over.
Your turn.

[What?]

I just like bikes. Always have done. Maybe it's because my mum was 6 months preg with me before my dad decided to sell his bike & buy a car (not enough room on a 650 Triumph seat for three...)

Whatever, it's no rebel thing; I just enjoy travelling by bike. And I like all sorts of bikes, though not particularly cruisers.

[SpankMe]

Freedom!

and driving cars looks really boring. :p

[bluninja]

Can't afford a brand new Aston Martin....Yet:cool:

TTFN

[James Deuce]

Originally posted by What?
I just like bikes. Always have done. Maybe it's because my mum was 6 months preg with me before my dad decided to sell his bike & buy a car (not enough room on a 650 Triumph seat for three...)

Whatever, it's no rebel thing; I just enjoy travelling by bike. And I like all sorts of bikes, though not particularly cruisers.

You could get a family of 12, plus the load of 38 chickens destined for the markets, in any country from the right hand side of South East Asia to the left hand side of Asia Minor, on a 650 Triumph.

I reckon Mum made him buy a car.

My reasons: Mateship 1st (mates can be male or female), freedom 2nd, and 3rd it's the closest thing to flying in two dimensions I can think of.

[What?]

Originally posted by Jim2
I reckon Mum made him buy a car. 

Mum was a scooter gal, too.

Glad I don't live in SE Asia - i would have to carry a few dozen sheep on the BM...:D

[Motoracer]

Bikes are a challenge to ride, they offer high performance for not a lot of money, you stand out from the heard (from boy racers), freedom and of course they offer fun/joy/happiness (with the odd sad/bad moments in between)

Edit: Plus the last two lines of what Jim2 said applies for me as well.

[riffer]

My dad always had bikes growing up so I started on the back, then riding them.

I always liked the speed and handling, but with my ex she hated them and put the foot down. So it was a procession of fast cars ('72 Valiant 318 V8, '84 VH Commodore SS - 4.2 V8, '89 Mitsi VR4 turbo, '92 Nissan Skyline GTS-T, '94 Subaru Legacy GT-B spec) but they never quite hit the spot the way my bikes did.

So when my (now) wife and I moved to Upper Hutt in November it was obvious something had to be done. The Legacy was going to kill me on petrol consumption - plus the gearbox had just shat itself.

So - back on bikes. Jim had it in one - the closest you can get to flying on two wheels. It's just like the feeling when gliding - when you fly you treat the air like a liquid and that's just the feling I get on the bike.

Plus, a car is sooooooooo boring ... :cool:

[Coldkiwi]

my motivation for getting into biking was just the convenience of halving my commuting time to Uni. Soon got hooked by the feeling of freedom and actual enjoyment of open road riding compared to the boredom of open road car driving.

After the first bike I started getting interested in going a bit quicker and like you guys have said... its like flying in 2D! Its also a nice feeling to be on top of a cheap-as machine (brand new yes, but still cheap for what it is) that will kick the arse and ego of almost anything sitting next to it on 4 wheels at the lights!

And developing mates with in such different walks of life but with a common love of biking is also awesome. Plus you know you'll hardly ever get snobbed if you say gidday to a biker in a cafe (possibly excluding many BMW riders...FWIW, I find the harley boys and girls quite friendly once off their steeds)

[PZR]

I must be the Sado Masochistic type.

Get bored
Get bike
Get riding gear
Get frowned at by spouse
Get wet
Get cold
Get hot
Get sweaty
Get nervous
Get scared
Get run over
Get sore
Get better
Get another bike
Get "LOOKED AT !!!" by spouse
Get broke
Get ticket
Get demerit points
Get frowned at by nice policeman
Get more broke
Get tyres
Get even more broke
Get bigger bike
Get faster bike
Get better bike
Get a bigger mortgage
Get accessories
Get unpopular with spouse
Get a life? (See point two .....Get Bike........)

Sado Maschocistic??
Damn right and loving every ride
Just do'nt mention the leather underwear out loud OK?

[Lou Girardin]

There's nothing better. Even at legal speeds it's more fun than sitting in the most fuck off fast car stuck in gridlock.
Lou

[wari]

It's genetic ... My brothers ride ... my Dad rode .... my Grandfather rode ... and so did his father ...

[jrandom]

Jim2 put it down pat with the flying thing, can't say it better myself.

Apart from that... buggered if I know. Only thing I can say for sure now is that they can take the keys to my bike from my cold, dead hands.

(To clarify that point, I fully intend that the hands will be cold, dead, liver-spotted and palsied with about 70 years of yanking on handlebars. Also that the bike in question will have an engine displacement of somewhat more than 150cc, and will in no way be the direct cause of said coldness and deadness :p)

This thread always seems to come up on motorcycling forums, and I've never really hit on a fully satisfactory response. Like Louis Armstrong said, "If ya gotta ask... "

[STfella]

I'm a BOB (born again biker). Returned out of necessity while on OE. Could not bear the 2hr drive, in Dublin traffic, to get to work. Knew there must be a better way. Got me a BMW K100RS and fell in love with the riding experience. Cut the journey time from 2hrs down to 45min, saving myself 2hrs 30mins travel a day. But, I started to eat into that saved time by taking the long way home, through winding country roads. It's the freedom, the hightened awareness of road conditions, the ability to read the road further ahead and to lay it into those corners. And, when you are in traffic, the freedom to not have to queue (I just wish that the laws in NZ were as tollerant and as encouraging to the motorcyclist as yet are in Europe).

[Hitcher]

Bikes transcend traditional concepts of time and distance. They speak to your soul, whereas a car is just a means of transport.

"The motorcycle stands as a piper at the gates of the dawn, calling those of us who can hear to ride with the wind..."

[jrandom]

Originally posted by Hitcher
"The motorcycle stands as a piper at the gates of the dawn, calling those of us who can hear to ride with the wind..."

Since I'm too damn lazy to google for it properly, did you just make that up off the top of your head or is it a quote, and if so from where and whom, and why were they being so tacky as to rip off Syd Barrett's album title, eh?

[Motu]

I've been riding bikes for a long time,and it's just something I have to do,I just have a need to ride at times.When things are getting to me and I'm a bit (more) grumpy,my wife will often tell me to go for a ride,she knows I'll come back normal again(not happy,that doesn't happen) Stress managment really.

I like it to be tough,lots of miles,in the rain,something to get my teeth into.When a young fulla I found gravel roads to be scary - so I set myself the task of mastering them...I still ride them as much as I can,there is just so much to do when on gravel,max attention span and max enjoyment.I ride trials because I'm not very good at it - I don't run away from riding problems,I look for them,and get into it.Like Jack I have developed a preference for a style of bike over the years - sure,a Monster ,MV,or whatever would be nice....but how does it do on gravel?...no,I set them up as dirt bikes.

[matthewt]

Originally posted by Motu
sure,a Monster ,MV,or whatever would be nice....but how does it do on gravel?...no,I set them up as dirt bikes.

Actually the MV isn't that bad on gravel.  I've been to the East Cape lighthouse and a few other gravel roads.  Probably as useful and any sports bike on gravel (ie, can be done but not much fun). 

[k14]

I ride bikes cause someone told me that it is an easy way to get laid. I have yet to confirm that yet :D

[ManDownUnder]

Isolation, power and a love of machinery.

It was just the power, and love of machinery - but now that my job means I have to take a cell phone with me 24x7... isoltation comes into it too...

 

"oh I'm sorry I missed the call - I must have been on my bike at the time"... which is more like "oh THAT was who called!"

MDU (<== fresh back from boozy lunch, gotta love them!)

[Motu]

Originally posted by matthewt
Actually the MV isn't that bad on gravel.  I've been to the East Cape lighthouse and a few other gravel roads.  Probably as useful and any sports bike on gravel (ie, can be done but not much fun). 

I used to ride a Triton on gravel roads (thats a featherbed Norton frame with a Triumph 650 motor,clip ons,rear sets,the whole nine yards) so I know what it's like with a sports bike,although my motor would of been a bit more suitable.

Also used chops,apehangers,scooters,any damned bike I can ride gets put on gravel - that's how I learn what I like and how to set them up.

[Jackrat]

Interesting what you say about trials Motu,I knew for years I didn,t like real tight twisty roads that much.I,m talking about the one,s with gravel patches,cows,sheep an cockys on tractors.
Now I spend most of my time on em, Plus looking for new ones.
:banana: :2thumbsup

[LB]

I have always wanted to ride bikes, don't know what triggered it off but it started when I was at school. My parents bought me my first bike when I was 16, in the middle of a cold wet Waikato winter. They didn't want me to ride and thought that a month or two in winter would put me off. Hah!!!!!!

I love the feeling of freedom, the camaraderie between us, the buzz of a twisty road on a fine day that you just can't explain to non-bikers. I just love love love bikes, riding, racing and being around bikes generally.

I can't imagine not having at least one bike. If (god forbid) I am physically unable to ride, then I guess it would have to be a soft-top sports car. But I hope things never come to that.

[Hitcher]

Originally posted by jrandom
Since I'm too damn lazy to google for it properly, did you just make that up off the top of your head or is it a quote, and if so from where and whom, and why were they being so tacky as to rip off Syd Barrett's album title, eh?

This line is largely my own work. Feel free to recycle it.

[750Y]

i ride for the fun. I like to get along good sometimes, helps to feed the monster.

[SPman]

Buggered if I know, really.............

but it beats being dead!

[onearmedbandit]

For me its the freedom, the coming together of man and machine in a way that both rely on each other (moreso than most other transport), being so close to the road, the satisfaction of nailing those favourite, and unknown, roads.

There are so many areas of bikes I love, that it would be impossible for me to list them all. But from the first day I rode my brothers bike I knew that I had found my zone.

[marty]

wheelstands.
lanespliting.
going fast.
going REALLY fast.
watching cars move over for me.
seeing grown men hover around the bike when it's outside the shop.
seeing grown men stare wistfully at the rear swing arm.
having a powerband.
riding twisty roads in the powerband (none of this lazy horsepower lark).
waving at other bikers.
not having a back seat.
hanging off the side of the seat.
no kids screaming.
feeling the temperature drop when dropping into gullies (someone else on here said that one other time)
taking the long way home.
and still beating everyone else.

[SPman]

At 8.30pm suddenly decide to do Riverhead Rd,up to Kaukapapa, across to Dairy Flat and home.Roads dry,minimal traffic,lots of grassy country smells, great sunset, back to Milford by 9.30! In a car it would have been shit! On the bike it was great! Revitalised. Thats why I ride!

[Redstar]

I read somewhere that if you dont ride before your 20 your probably never will
it infectious an unexplainable a bit like tattoos?

[jrandom]

I read somewhere that if you dont ride before your 20 your probably never will

if you don't count pillioning then I prove you wrong so nyaaaahhhhh :p

[Coldkiwi]

I wonder if that explains why so many car drivers won't change to bikes despite seething with rage at sitting in traffic?

well its not really an explanation, more than an observation.

did anyone see the 'spleen' in the NZ herald yesterday (back page of section A)?
Some tit raving about how annoyed he was with his car radio playing incessant crap (talkback/ads/parliament) that he drove through a red light while he was distracted changing stations, got ticketed (HURRAH!) and proceeded to be grumpy all morning.

In contrast my morning starts with me having a wonderful time riding past such lemmings and their pathetic cage mates while I congratulate myself on being smart enough to have seen the light of biking.

add to my list of why I love biking
1. stupid top speeds available in very cheap packages (not many people under 24 have been 250kmhr on wheels)
2. absolute convenience of getting around this gridlocked city. I can choose when and where I want to go without worrying about whether the traffic is heavy. (leave work at 5, over the shore in 10 mins, play touch, leave shore at 6, fly back over the bridge and back in howick by 6.30).
How many (cage) dudes ya know roll like this??? :bigthumb:

[James Deuce]

Not many
If any

[georgedubyabush]

Just to wear leather without being called a fag.

[madandy]

All of the above, plus my bike uses half the fuel that my car does.So my wife can drive the car slowly for economy and I can ride quickly without feeling guilty for using all the gas...

[Bend-it]

The ULTIMATE resurrection of a long dead thread (look at the date of the previous post) which I thought was pretty cool. Why do we bike? Even though it gets cold and wet, even though we could get killed through no fault of our own, without a hope in hell of preventing it really, even though our friends (then) thought we were crazy. Why do we bike.

For me, it's simple... It's too expensive paying the fines to get my thrills in a car. On a bike, it's not hard to scare myself without exceeding the speed limit! Something someone said in one of the prev posts is quite true when I think about it. Biking's the closest thing to flying, without actually flying. And isn't that what we all want to do?

[Sniper]

Now this is a post worthy of reviving a thread. Well done.

[Nitzer]

I read somewhere that if you dont ride before your 20 your probably never will


I didn't learn to ride until I was 26yrs:

I ride as it's my only means of transport as I've never ever been behind the driving wheel of a car and can't drive. Fortunately I love riding bikes! :yes:

[Bend-it]

I didn't learn to ride until I was 26yrs:

I ride as it's my only means of transport as I've never ever been behind the driving wheel of a car and can't drive. Fortunately I love riding bikes! :yes:

Cool bananas! I'm 26 too and just picked up riding! ;) Scooters and pushbikes don't count...

[Nitzer]

Scooters and pushbikes don't count...

...I guess not but at least riding a bike or scooter will give you better road sense for riding a motorcycle. Prior to the bike I rode a pushbike for years around London. I think it helped!

[oldrider]

Spank said it for me too, I just love the feeling of freedom and facing up to and handling all the challenges that you face when you ride a bike, it's different every time I ride. Cheers John. Edit: Sometimes I get it ohhh so wrong!

[justsomeguy]

Speed, can't get enough of it.

[Paul in NZ]

Dunno?

Still get that feeling of phooaaarrr when the right hand goes twist and the world goes backwards and the colours light up, the air thickens against my face and intensity comes... aaaaggghhhh....... Vunderful

[Ixion]

Speed, can't get enough of it.


Si, book a seat on a jumbo jet. heaps of flights every day, you cna do 600kph!

[justsomeguy]

Si, book a seat on a jumbo jet. heaps of flights every day, you cna do 600kph!

Eh yas bot dey vont lit mii flii eet. Dha bastiges:angry2:

[babyface]

i like to ride for its your space no one to bitch at you, you can go where you want to go, at a speed that you feel good at
its a since of freedom, wind in your face loosing yourself on the turns
i spose riding is like a plane you can get yourself in situations only a bike can get you out of and do it again and again for it makes you happy and lost in laughter like a little girl on her first date