This time of year...

[James Deuce]

I always think about this chap.

Not long here. Still regretfully missed.

http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/sh...ad.php?t=10924

After reading some threads from '04 through '06, the tone of KB is quite different now.

Rightly or wrongly, I'm quite attached to you lot, and I hate these threads:

http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/sh...ad.php?t=11540

Why bring it up? Sometimes people need a reminder that, yes, you may be a free individual, but you are also part of a wider family and you will be missed if you stuff up. Your actions will affect people long after you've gone and you have a many, many chances to leave good memories. Somehow though, the default setting always seems to be do unto others before they do unto you.

Dying doing something you love isn't a nice way to go. Only people who haven't said goodbye believe that.

How about on May 2nd we all bling the RESPECT post. Just because.

[98tls]

Food for thought and will do.

[CookMySock]

Nice reminder. Thanks.

http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/sh...ad.php?t=10924

Human nature is that people with nothing to do will bicker and argue. This is poor behaviour - plain and simple.

It isn't the people who set the mood here - its the moderators. Oh but we could be more responsible? It's not that, because 10% of the people who post nasty shit without thinking cause 90% of the damage, and the bottom line is, the moderators and site owners permit it. As katman puts it "I can't imagine what one has to do to get banned from KB", and unfortunately that is perfectly clear - you can do anything you like here without consequence, other than a slap on the wrist with a wet bus ticket.

As they say, I once gave a fuck and stood up and said what I believed in, but got so resoundly ridiculed into submission, and then smirked at by the moderator team that now I simply do as they do - take what I want and leave, and forget about trying to make things better.

Until the owners and moderators formulate written policy and enforce it, then KB is only for that 10%. This has all been said before though, so now we have more go-nowhere talk on the cereal box.

Shrug.

Steve

[ital916]

every sport/hobby has a downside, unfortunately motorcycling carries a heavy price if it goes pear shaped.

Ride safe out there people. I've seen way too many crashes, never a nice thing.

A shame I never met him, he sounded like a good dude...respect.

[davebullet]

I haven't been a part of this family / wider group for long but it saddens me to read of someone so young dying and the far reaching consequences.

If only human instinct forced us to briefly think of our loved ones and the consequences to others (not ourselves) before we take that one bend too fast, or overtake without doing that lifesaver we know we should, or cross the centre line etc.... etc...

I implore you all to get into the habit of thinking of the person closest to you before that risky manoeuvre. All you need to do is say out loud into your helment, or think their name. I'm trying this habit to see if it improves my safety.

[Fatjim]

This ones particularly poignant.

http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/sh...&postcount=186



As for BD's post. Once again, DB, there does not seem to be enough ridicule for you. You really make me wonder.

[Patch]

Until the owners and moderators formulate written policy and enforce it, then KB is only for that 10%.

meh - what a load of horseshit.

Blaming others for one's own inability is weak, expecting different results from the same actions is lunacy.

[Hitcher]

One cannot bling the same post twice, unfortunately.

KB has changed over the years but I'm not sure whether that's for the better or the worse. I think that deep down people still feel the love for their fellow bikers, and that BRU aren't the only ones of us who care...

And I still think of Flyin every time I round "his" corner and on occasion when some young dude on a 250 turns up at the Fush.

[Mom]

One cannot bling the same post twice, unfortunately.

KB has changed over the years but I'm not sure whether that's for the better or the worse. I think that deep down people still feel the love for their fellow bikers, and that BRU aren't the only ones of us who care...

And I still think of Flyin every time I round "his" corner and on occasion when some young dude on a 250 turns up at the Fush.

I think it actually goes wider than the KB community too. Bikers really are a breed apart, and have some connection with one another as a result. There is a corner not so far from my home that even 30 years later, everytime I go around it I think of a friend that died there. Thirty years ago! Also a decent, caring, sensible young man who should have lived to a ripe old age.

RIP Dave.

[Lissa]

And I still think of Flyin every time I round "his" corner and on occasion when some young dude on a 250 turns up at the Fush.

I also think about him when I am riding that corner, but also the other people who died there as well in a separate accident when hit by a car.

I never knew Flyin, I have only known him from his posts on KB and from the people who knew him, but he lived and he was loved and still is.

[Tank]

Bikers really are a breed apart, and have some connection with one another as a result.

Ive never understood that.

I ride a bike, but I have nothing in common with the majority of people on here.

Do I have a connection with Skidmark or DangerousBastard just because they ride a bike (well Skidmark will be allowed to at some point) - no?

I find that the KB community at large is incredibly divisive - sports bikes vs cruisers, Suzuki vs Hondas, everyone vs HoBag owners, wavers vs non wavers.

While I would always stop to help a bike on the side of the road - if the guy was a rude idiot I'd leave him there.

If a biker was being a idiot on the motorway putting me at risk - I'd *555 him.

I measure people by their actions and their intent - not by what they ride.

From reading Flyin's post - he sounds like someone I would have liked - and Im sure he is missed by many.

[Quasievil]

I think Sams Funeral was the first that I went to as a KB member, since then there has been alot more, for me about 6-7 in total (stink when you cant even remember how many exactly)
However I think about young Sam and his Family as well as Uncle B, not forgetting my two best mates Daryl and Bruce....(those sights and sounds will continue to haunt me as long as I live.)

But as pointed out this is a big community and if it wasnt for KB I would have known none of them, so Im thankful that I got the chance to meet these awesome people in my lifetime, in saying that Im done on the funeral thing for a while !

[Mikkel]

Only one thing in life is certain, and that is that it will end sooner or later. I dare presume we all have a desire to not impose the associated trauma upon the people that care about us. Especially would I assume that we would like not to have our parents take care of our funeral or leaving behind a spouse with young children.

Despite that, it has always been the done thing that young people, with a taste for life and adventure, engages in higher-risk behaviour and as a necessary consequence some fall along the way. We're all idiots, we all do stupid shit sometimes - and most of the time we get away with it. Sometimes we don't even get away with being careful. behaving sensibly and taking no chances. That's not to say that it's just blind luck, you'll be better off for using all of your senses - but chance does play its part in these matters. Safety is an illusion if you choose to live your life.

[Mom]

Ive never understood that.

I ride a bike, but I have nothing in common with the majority of people on here.

Do I have a connection with Skidmark or DangerousBastard just because they ride a bike (well Skidmark will be allowed to at some point) - no?

I find that the KB community at large is incredibly divisive - sports bikes vs cruisers, Suzuki vs Hondas, everyone vs HoBag owners, wavers vs non wavers.

While I would always stop to help a bike on the side of the road - if the guy was a rude idiot I'd leave him there.

If a biker was being a idiot on the motorway putting me at risk - I'd *555 him.

I measure people by their actions and their intent - not by what they ride.

From reading Flyin's post - he sounds like someone I would have liked - and Im sure he is missed by many.

I am much the same way mate, but where I think the real difference lies is in the fact that we all take the same risks when we are out riding, we all appreciate the lines of a lovely bike, or heaven forbid shudder at an ugly one. We all know the pleasure of the thrill of being out there doing it.

An example here. There is a young fella that lives down the road somewhere from me. He has obviously recently got his first bike. I have watched him going from a puttering, slow learner to one of extreme confidence. So much confidence in fact that I want to go and talk to him, to implore him to take a bit more care in traffic. I dont know him from a bar of soap, have no idea what he looks like with his helmet and gear off, but I care about his welfare. Perhaps a little word in his ear will help him live through the YDFOC years he has ahead of him until he becomes a crusty old fart like me.

[CookMySock]

I find that the KB community at large is incredibly divisive - sports bikes vs cruisers, Suzuki vs Hondas, everyone vs HoBag owners, wavers vs non wavers.

There is no "vs", Tank. We are all just people with families and feelings, just like you and me. Most of the "vs" that you refer to is good-natured jibing, but then there are those who don't know when to stop, and then there are those who get angry and target people because of their own insecurities, like you for example, Tank.

We all have opinions, fears, and belief systems too, and they all differ like night and day. Unfortunately, when these differences are evident people will defend them, sometimes to religious levels. There is no point to this - you like the peace of mind from insurance, I would rather the financial advantage - so be it for each of us. There is no point to debating it until the sky turns black - we just alienate each other. So our opinions and beliefs differ - it is cause to celebrate our diversity not stand up with a weapon and show off our negative character traits.

Steve