Why do you ride?

[Conquiztador]

Nostalgia hit me.

Memories from days gone past. Bikes. People. Some of them now gone. (Bikes and people). I used to ride because I did not care. I was never gonna become an old fart that was 30+. I liked the adrenaline. Took risks. And I also liked the parties. The riding to them, the sitting on the lying bench swapping stories and then riding back home.
I did ride because it was me.

Well, things changed. One day I realised that I was 30+ and still alive. So things happened. Kids. Ex. But I always had a bike. Sometimes only a small 125cc 2 stroke. But always a bike.
I did ride to get away from it. Freedom. And adrenaline. I admit I am an adrenaline junky.

Now life is moving on. Better jobs with a better income. Security? Kids are growing. I still ride. Have some bikes.
I ride because I still can. And it still gives me the adrenaline kick.

Why do you ride?

[sunhuntin]

cos i cant drive.

[98tls]

Because nothing has ever made me feel as good as when i do.......after 30 odd bikes and more than that years riding them i still get the same thrill from doing it,all these years later if away the next day on a trip away i still cant sleep............used to piss me off but ive learnt to just enjoy it:banana:

[yod]

cos it fuckin rocks

[James Deuce]

Because I work in IT.

I thought it was compulsory?

[yod]

if away the next day on a trip away i still cant sleep............

haha, nice....me too...it's great aye :laugh:

[Ocean1]

One day I realised that I was 30+ and still alive. Why do you ride?

I'm... more than 30+. Much more.

Don't know why I'm still alive, but I ride so that I know the difference.

[swbarnett]

Because it's a part of who I am. I spent 10 years plus on bikes in my youth and then ten years plus without a bike. It's not till I got back on just over a year ago that I realised what I'd been missing. Now I actually enjoy the daily commute.

[BarBender]

Because Id be a 'prick of a person to live with if I didnt.'

[deanohit]

Because of the freedom from everyday life and the trip. When I ride, it's only whats happening here and now, I'm focused on what I'm doing, every thing else gets thrown out of my head. Even though I enjoy driving, it's that boring I have to listen to music or something while going from A to B.

[2wheeldrifter]

Me + Machine become one = Freedom & Control !:yes:

[Matt_TG]

Because of the freedom from everyday life and the trip. When I ride, it's only whats happening here and now, I'm focused on what I'm doing, every thing else gets thrown out of my head. Even though I enjoy driving, it's that boring I have to listen to music or something while going from A to B.

Hit the nail on the head there mate!

[kiwifruit]

corners.
i ride for corners!
bring on the corners, bring on the sweet sweet corners

[EJK]

Cause cars sux, too expensive, too big hence parking problem, another parking problem etc

Bikes better cause it's fun

Just..... FUCK YEAH BIKES!!!!!! :D:D:D:D

[0arbreaka]

Coz I can!!!!

[banditrider]

Because I have to. It's a habit I can't/won't kick.

[spookytooth]

I wonder sometimes why i keep my bike.With work and all the other crap that needs doing these days, it often sits in its corner for weeks on end.Then weather and time come together i get her out start putting on me gears ect then all it takes is the first few gear changes and i know again :) why there will always be a bike sitting in the corner of my garage Why do i ride ? cause i fucking love it :)

[NighthawkNZ]

cos i cant drive.

me too... and im 38(ish) and have no intentions of getting a cage license :headbang: :Punk:


all these years later if away the next day on a trip away i still cant sleep............used to piss me off but ive learnt to just enjoy it:banana:

Ferk I though only I had that problem... now I see its not a problem its part of the experience


But I ride coz I can...

[helenoftroy]

Because nothing has ever made me feel as good as when i do.......after 30 odd bikes and more than that years riding them i still get the same thrill from doing it,all these years later if away the next day on a trip away i still cant sleep............used to piss me off but ive learnt to just enjoy it:banana:

Absolutely:scooter:can relate to all of that 98tls:niceone:

Always had bikes from age 15-28 .The xl500 thumper was sold as I couldnt do my jacket up over the pregnant tummy any more.Marriage,children and work came next.

Move on a few too many years.Divorced and feel the urge to get a bike so the teenagers can ride.Magic:yes::yes:now I get why I always rode - it makes me feel soooo good and lifes a better thing for being on two wheels:woohoo::woohoo:

[SVboy]

The freedom, the buzz, pushing personal boundaries, die young, stay pretty! [Yeah right!] love the machinery and FTW!!!!! Yay for bikes...

[Blackbird]

I wondered exactly that a couple of years ago so sat down and wrote down all the things that appealed - see post http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/showthread.php?p=462122#post462122. Bike Rider Magazine were kind enough to publish it last year.

It was great fun trying to figure out just what it was that kept my interest up after 40+ years of riding! Makes driving your average car seem very boring by comparison eh? No wonder people who only drive cars don't have their wits about them eh?

[deanohit]

Ha, yea I remember reading that and thinking 'thats it exactly'.

[Griff]

Because "Jet-Rocket-Slippers" haven't been invented yet.

[MSTRS]

I started riding as a spotty 15yo cos I couldn't afford a car. Since then, a year or 30+ (and many bikes/cars) have gone by. But the siren song that is pleasure motorcycling is as strong as it once was. Sometimes I think the riding is a way of looking at the 'establishment' and saying "Fuck, I'm glad I'm not like you".

[MVnut]

Why do I ride? .................. You gotta be farkin' joking, right !!!

[SimJen]

I ride:

because I can
because lots of cage drivers are envious
because you can't do wheelies in a cage
because they are freakin fast
because they are cool
because I like bikes
because girls dig them
because they sound wicked
because they are dangerous
because you can ride around traffic
because they smell good
because you can get your knee down
because you have to wear cool gear
because helmets look cool
because kids like them
because wives don't

I ride cause I want to :)

[vifferman]

Because I work in IT.

I thought it was compulsory?


Huh? I've worked in IT for yonks, and I'm usually one of the few (or the only one) who rides.
Last company: 100 employees, and most of the time I was the only rider. At most there were 4.
Current employer: I'm the only bike rider (the scooterist doesn't count).

I'm... more than 30+. Much more.

Don't know why I'm still alive, but I ride so that I know the difference.
Good reply :niceone: - that's one of the reasons I ride.


Because it's a part of who I am.
Me too.


Because of the freedom from everyday life and the trip. When I ride, it's only whats happening here and now, I'm focused on what I'm doing, every thing else gets thrown out of my head. Even though I enjoy driving, it's that boring I have to listen to music or something while going from A to B.
Same same.


Coz I can!!!!
Yup.

[avgas]

cos i have a very small penis and i need something to get the ladies :eek5:

[craigs288]

And why not

[Trudes]

Because I like to be permanently broke, it makes me feel good, it gives me an excuse to leave the house on a nice day, it provides a social network that isn't anything to do with my family or my work, and it's an obsession.

[Midge]

The only regret about riding i have is that i never started earlier!!!

[Trudes]

The only regret about riding i have is that i never started earlier!!!

I can relate to that!! I often think, "why oh why did I spend so much time sitting on the back of other people's bikes and not get my own??" Then again, I probably would've killed myself if I'd had a bike as a youngster (says she who is all of 31, but I mean when I was a teenager)

[jim.cox]

Why do you ride?

'cos I like leaning for corners :)

[TerminalAddict]

because I choose to

[fireball]

i ride because its only me in my helmet everyday life gets left behind...
i ride for the thrill and experiences
i ride because i hate cars (choose not to drive)
i ride because its how i cope......

me without my outlet is not a good thing

[DVS 69]

Barbenda got it rite in a few words (on the 1st page), i was a angry lil bastard :mad: when i was younger and since having bikes over the years its made me less angry cos i kinda took everything out on me bikes lol. I just love it as its just you and what ever is in front of you etc. Its my get away... my space to think no nagging from anyone etc. Just sumthing i think everybody should experiance in their life time. Bikes For Life :Oi::devil2::Oi:

[vifferman]

cos i have a very small penis and i need something to get the ladies :eek5:
Ah... Dude - that's not going to work, coz most ladies aren't interested in bikes.
I suggest you buy a car, and a 10" black dildo.

[Griff]

Ah... Dude - that's not going to work, coz most ladies aren't interested in DYkes.
I suggest you buy a car, and a 10" black dildo.

Whoah!!! Too much information!!!!

[deanohit]

Ah... Dude - that's not going to work, coz most ladies aren't interested in bikes.
I suggest you buy a car, and a 10" black dildo.

So why would you suggest those? Experiance maybe? :pinch: :lol:

[MSTRS]

Deanohit - have you not learned which questions are very dangerous?

[deanohit]

Danger is the spice of life! And sex is the sugar!!

[Toaster]

I got into riding in early 2003 because it was something I had never done and always wanted to try.

I bought my first bike off Jimmy Mair at Wellington Motorcycles... a new GSX-250. I have been addicted to the thrill of motorcycling since and am now on my fifth bike.

It's fun, the phone doesn't ring, you are at peace to think and relax as you focus on the road and scenery and ride to your heart's content.

The next thing on my list is a second bike for track days.

[EJK]

I ride:

because I can
because lots of cage drivers are envious
because you can't do wheelies in a cage
because they are freakin fast
because they are cool
because I like bikes
because girls dig them
because they sound wicked
because they are dangerous
because you can ride around traffic
because they smell good
because you can get your knee down
because you have to wear cool gear
because helmets look cool
because kids like them
because wives don't

I ride cause I want to :)

FUCK YEAH!!!!!!!!!!! :D:D:D:D:D:D:D Bling for ya!!

[MaxCannon]

Because I started a new job where there is no parking and the traffic is terrible.
Decided when I went for the interviews that I'd have to get a bike (too far to cycle and buses are a joke).
It also saves me a fortune in fuel

Riding is so much fun I'm wondering why I didn't start earlier.

[marioc]

because its the most fun you can have with you pants on,anyone ever ridden a bike starkers btw as a matter of interest?

[fireball]

because its the most fun you can have with you pants on,anyone ever ridden a bike starkers btw as a matter of interest?

once or twice :whistle:

[90s]

I love transport.
I rode small motorbikes from 15, and got a real buzz and sense of freedom from it. Being able to get about by myself, reliant on no-one, able to feel the thrill of riding a bike. Rode cycles even earlier - so different. You feel the pain in your body grinding away the miles and all your worries. Stopped riding motorcyles for many years and loved cars - yes cars. Having a place to listen to music free from people bugging you, hauling friends about. Great.
Kept on with cycles; commuting 200k week for over 10 years and mountain biking weekends; little racing. Get a bike into the forrest - magic. Took suzuki TSXs off-road too (although was always crap off-road motorbiker. I fear air.)
Now few motorbikes later (5 or 6 & back into motorbikes 1 1/2 or so ago) I'm on my biggest yet. Just a 600, but I never want to be without one again.
I do the same routes on my bike; my cage; my MTB and my road bike and the feeling is totally different on each. Each gives something unique. In fact I hardly recognise the route as the same depending what I'm on.
I wouldn't change having all that world of possibilities for anything.

[avgas]

Ah... Dude - that's not going to work, coz most ladies aren't interested in bikes.
I suggest you buy a car, and a 10" black dildo.
I did - but why stop at 10", mine must be at least 80 - and it has yamaha stamped on the engine

[avgas]

Danger is the spice of life! And sex is the sugar!!
And sugar 'n' spice cost you $140 an hour on K rd

[Kelem]

Cause its just plan fun :niceone:

[deanohit]

And sugar 'n' spice cost you $140 an hour on K rd

Really? :blink: Thats more than a nice date, course you take a chick on a date, you may not get layed, but if you do, it's generally for more than an hour!! :buggerd:

:Oops::Offtopic:
And bikes are really, really cool. :2thumbsup

[Pwalo]

I ride because my better half lets me.

[RC1]

I ride 'cause I like the rush and it's cheaper than buying P ;)

not with all the bikes you have been through :wari:

[DMNTD]

not with all the bikes you have been through :wari:

Chortle... :whistle:

[RC1]

Chortle... :whistle:

thats not what was there a minute ago

[Thunder 8]

Pilion with dad when we were kids and then riding the brothers bikes (Old dirt bikes etc ) and now 150 odd motorcycles and about 30 yrs later i still cant leave them alone. Ridden them, raced them, wheelied them, smokied them, broken them and about everything in between and still feel best when on two wheels.

[babyblade250rr]

I ride because it's a feeling like no other!! driving a car is absolutely no fun at all regardless of being a 1.5L or a 5.4L however the adrenalin of a motorcycle is something that is hard to match!! perhaps flying a fighter jet maybe the only comparison available. (Not that i've ever flown one but i can imagine lol)

[breakaway]

- Fast
- Chicks
- Freedom
- Wheelies
- Everyone thinks you're a badass biker thug when they see your menacing tinted visor

[P38]

I ride for for the same reason I Breathe......


Seems no matter how hard I try not to eventually I can't hold it back any longer and I just gotta go do it.:ride:

[seens]

cause nothin else comes close not even sex well not usally
an yea im gettin older

[klingon]

I ride:

because girls dig them...
because wives don't

I ride cause I want to :)

Hmmm... must be some mysterious transformation between being a girl and being a wife :whistle:

I started riding to avoid traffic, parking hassles, petrol costs...
I keep riding because it's an addiction!

[Wiki Drifter]

free parking, less petrol money, faster commuting... oh yeah, the whole adrenalin rush and my compulsory weekend escape from the suffocating concrete jungle thingy as well...

[Fryin Finn]

I was thinking about this on the way home yesterday. I get free parking. Petrol only costs me $26 per 18 days on my commute but the biggest reason for riding my bike daily, is not having to sit in stinking traffic.
I ride my dirt bikes because I enjoy the challenge, and the buzz, and it's the best exercise I can get for me at my age.
I ride my road bike because sometimes I feel like being naughty

[RC1]

Petrol only costs me $26 per 18 days

fark me i use that in 3 hrs riding :pinch:

[dwnundabkr]

here here to all the above cause i can cause i like it and because

[HenryDorsetCase]

cos me likey.

[MSTRS]

... must be some mysterious transformation between being a girl and being a wife...

Yep. Wedding cake. Terrible stuff.

[JMemonic]

So many good replys, for me I used to ride all sorts of junk off road, (never very well I might add), my mates at the time all had bikes so I guess I got bitten by a bug, I have been in a couple of relationships where a bike was out of the question and looking back I believe I should have said stuff it accept the bike or walk but I didn't (hindsight is 20/20).

There is no other feeling like when the bike disappears and is not a machine you are just sitting on but part of you, your interface between you and the road, when you know where all the controls are and any adjustments are just a thought, even in a group you are an individual.

I know I am not the best rider, I have seen folks who are by far superior but when I get into that grove I don't care, its my world to enjoy how I feel comfortable, I can smell the honeydew as I ride through a forest, or the smoke of the farmers burn off not some artificial air freshener cut out of cardboard, perhaps it is selfish but on a bike I am my own master, I go where I want with in the limits of my fuel tank and gas stations.

Also there is in most a camaraderie between bikers you will not find in cages, when was the last time you saw a group of different makes of cages getting together for just a drive as the cruisey nights are, or pulling up at a pub or gas station and saying hi to other cagers (I dont worry about those selfish brand specific types that are out there, you know the ones, if your bike is not the same make as mine you are not a biker losers).

In the the end the simple answer is I ride because I love to ride, its my drug, my utopia.

[crshbndct]

i started because of my dad. i remember him coming home on his black gsxr750 (back when this was a new model of bike) and i thought he was a super hero.

then once i had started, it was because, nothing else makes me feel alive like riding does.

[Bonez]

Because I can bugger off by myself and not worry about anything but the ride.
Clears the lungs after a hard day at work. Meet some interesting people and see some interesting sights.

Oh and look for my marbles.

You know you're getting older when the wife suggest you buy a Harley.

[NZsarge]

This might seem a little over the top but here goes.
I was and had been missing something in my life for years and by chance there was a change in ownership of the company I work for which lead to a pay out, rather than do the sensible thing and put it away for retirement or a rainy day I immeadiately started thinking now I can get back onto motorcycling.
My mate had been at me for years to get a bike and join him on some rides and it was always my excuse that I would'nt buy a bike until I could get something I really liked, pay out = excuse gone:woohoo:.
I can say now without doubt that it was motorcycling that was the thing missing from my life, i'm by no means a hard core biker, I really don't like riding in the cold and rain but hey sometimes shit happens. This time round motorcycling has been a revalation in my life, i've never been a particularly social guy, shy you might say. Since getting my "Ace":love: and in particular this website i've meet more new people than I have in years and because we have a common interest or common ground i've found it so much easier to converse and socialize when we get together to ride. I've meet some really nice folk too.
The only reason I would give it up (motorcycling) would be financial or injury and believe me it would leave the biggest hole in my life. When i'm having shit days at work it's the ride in the weekend that i'm looking foward to.:headbang: Makes a shit job worthwhile.
Answer to the question: Thrill of riding and the social aspect to riding with people of a common interest.:done:

[bikerboy011]

cos am the fuckin man!!! :D