Motorcycling... some thoughts.

[Villager]

 I was never the biker type. I never imagined I would even sit on a motorcycle, let alone be inclined to ride one. I wasn't much bothered by cars, either; A to B and all that. If it was cheap, reliable and comfortable, that was enough for me. It was only because I was accepted onto a university course 10 days before it started, and there was no public transport to speak of, that I need to get myself mobile. I knew it was impossible to learn how to drive and pass a test in that time, and my brother suggested a "125". There's no need for a test, you just do your Compulsory Basic Training; four hours' instruction, without running anyone over or falling off too much, and you're away. I wasn't exactly keen on the idea; on a bike you have no protection from the weather, other vehicles, or the tarmac. But I had little choice.

My CBT instructor was a man called Steve. Steve spent the day smoking and making misogynist jokes, but did manage the minor miracle of making me borderline competent by the end of the day. Being a student I was inevitably broke, and was hunting for used bargains, when I stumbled across a cheap Chinese import by the name of Huoniao, a 125cc cruiser for £550, new. I picked it up from a warehouse on the beach and carried it home in the back of my brother's VW Golf, with about 40% of the bike sticking out of the boot.

It was a pig to ride. It looked nice enough, with classic styling and lots of chrome-effect parts, even the sound of the engine belied its pedigree. But performance was poor. It did 0-60 in about an week, and I am struggling to find the words to describe how shockingly awful the handling was. Part of the problem was the weight balance; I came off a number of times when turning at low speed, simply because the bike couldn't hold itself up. Whenever there was more than a mild breeze, it felt like I was sitting atop a unicycle, on a tightrope, amidst an apocalyptic thunderstorm. I'm only talking about 25pmh winds here. It was impossible to feel safe, even cruising on straights. I lost count of the number of times I had to stop because I felt I was beginning to lose control.

I also discovered why it was so cheap. The mudguard fell off after 1,200 miles. The electric start button failed after 1,500. Rust began to appear wherever there was metal. Part of the rear subframe snapped under braking after 4,000 miles (my dad had to weld on a replacement as by this time, 6 months later, the supplier had mysteriously disappeared).

Despite all of that, I loved it. It looked far cooler than any of the bangers that my friends were driving and riding, and I gained an unexpected respect from the older boys at the school where I was training to become a teacher. But it was much more than that. The sense of freedom, adventure and closeness to the road was lovely, and unexpected. From being a reluctant commuter, I quickly realised that I would need to take my test and buy a proper bike.

My test instructor was, oddly enough, also named Steve, but his jokes were more tasteful and his vice was to be found at the burger van we stopped at each day. I rode a Yamaha Diversion 400, which gave me terrible leg cramps throughout the three days' training. I liked Steve, and I trusted him; so I bought a bike he had for sale, a 1998 Suzuki GS500. I knew nothing about the bike, but he let me test ride it and it was so comfortable, so easy to manoeuvre and control, that I went for it.

If anyone's still reading, this is what I'm building up to. After a few weeks of tentatively exploring the new power at my control, I fell in love with this bike. It's difficult to explain in a meaningful way to non-riders what I mean, but I'll try. Driving a car is a functional experience. Even with performance cars that I've driven, even when they're driven aggressively, they offer a sterile experience. You are securely strapped into a big metal box, protected from the elements and separated from the road by a ton of metal and mechanics. Even before you get on a bike, you are confronted with the realisation that if the tiniest thing goes wrong at the wrong moment, you can end up maimed or worse. Even low-speed accidents can be fatal on a bike; imagine hitting something at 70mph, and becoming separated from your vehicle.

Riding a bike is about experiencing your journey, not just being a passenger on it. You live the undulating, twisting curves, feel and respond to every bump and imperfection in the road. You feel the wind, and adjust yourself to sit in harmony with it. You feel the power of the engine sitting between your legs, and you respect that power severely because it can kill you. It is no exaggeration to call it a spiritual experience. There is no CD player on a bike, no In Car Entertainment; you can't talk on the phone and you can't talk to your passenger. There is only you, and the road. Especially on long journeys, you are left alone with only your thoughts, and I found it disturbing at first; how often do you spend hours simply thinking? I find it immensely calming. It's also deadly serious; that thinking time necessarily includes contemplation of mortality and self-control. You cannot make mistakes on a motorcycle and survive. How many times, driving a car, have you hit a kerb, found yourself going round a corner too fast and had to brake and turn sharply, found your eyelids heavy on the motorway, left too little stopping distance, not looked before leaving a junction or changing lanes? Any of these small lapses are lethal to a rider. You develop discipline, or you crash.

I love that riders nod to each other. It's not a macho club, men smugly acknowledging each other's masculinity. It's a recognition that the other person, too, has discovered a pleasure in life unknown to others; recognition that this person is likely a much more aware and responsible road user than most drivers. It's almost as if to say, 'Brilliant, isn't it?'

And it is. I love motorcycling because it combines functionality with raw, inexplicable pleasure. I always look forward to my journeys, and every one is an adventure, even if the route is the same. How many car drivers can say that?

[darb85]

 

[bucks1605]

Well put!   

[frankieG]

very well put congratulations on one of the bests posts i have read in a long time

[Villager]

Thank you! I've managed to dig out a picture of my old Pig 125....



Although mine didn't have the engine guard. Or a mudguard for very long.

[frankieG]

u paid money for that?

[Villager]

Er... the camera angle doesn't do it justice

Seriously though, for the money it was either that or a proper bike that was very old. I didn't plan to keep it long, and it did come with a year's warranty (fat lot of good that did me!).

[GeeP]

YES!  I agree entirely.  EXCELLENT post.   

Funny, every time I pass a car and look in the window I think "Poor bastard, he hasn't a clue!"  I'm sure on cold or rainy days the face staring back at me is thinking "Poor bastard, that has to be uncomfortable."  Little do they know...   

I never paid motorcycles any attention until I was sitting outside a coffee shop in London looking on as packs of small sport bikes went by.  My initial reaction was "Wow, those things really scream!".  Almost immediately that turned into "I wonder what it would be like to ride one?"  The rest is history.

Interestingly, I caught the twin bug.  Two big cylinders really is better than four little ones.   

[Jay_wolf]

Ive been a  biker since i was little . Bmx , Trails ,

when i was 11 i got on a little crosser and loved it , i then did motorcross for a few years , loving it up

i took a break from about 14 to 16 , got my cbt and then got a Dna , and kept it standered for the next year , then i got a Multidue of 125cc , kept getting bored,  so i changed my mind , sold them and got different ones ,

Cbr 125 m a kymco zing 125, a yamaha tzr 125cc , i liked the tzr the best

then aged 19 i was driving past a shop and i saw a 1996 gs500 , and i traded in my 125cc straight up , no tax , no mot on the gs , but i didnt care .. .then i rode i home , it was only a 2 mile trip , and i didnt get any trouble , took my big bike test and got the old girl legal , then i got a 1 year ban for speeding 6 weeks into my lieince , so aged 20 i was aloud to ride again , i had spent the time customing the old girl , and then got offered a bargin of a 2001 ., now ive been customising that whilst , using a little race tuned 70cc Dna  , ive had 61 out of her so far , and then recently , bought a 2002 Sv650s m just waiting on it being moit'd and serviced and i can pick her up

We are both rides of the roads., brothers by bikes , and no matter how u got there , Your always a biker 

[qwertydude]

Awesome bike. I've seen a disk brake on one of those chinese bikes disintegrate. Crumbled on hard braking, cracks can form on the drilled rotors if it's cast wrong. Technically motorcycle disc brakes that are drilled should be forged but casting and drilling is cheaper and looks the same. Except when it goes through heat cycles it develops hundreds of micro cracks between the drillings. Other problems the bolt that holds the rear swing arm can break, seen it twice, the people's bikes I've fixed were lucky they didn't fall off on a fast and crowded road because even if they made it off safely they'd die from the embarrasment of a bike falling apart on you. Electrical gremlins, poor switchgear, really rust prone, chrome that's not really chrome, it's just polished nickel (if the chrome is yellowish it's just nickel) the list goes on. 

[Teek]

Villager!   

Pure poetry, man, you nailed the ineffable, pretty much. 

Thanks!   

[ohgood]

I like the way you talk.

[pbureau69]

 

[simon79]

>Villager: 

I could read many thoughts of mine in your post.
Me too, I've never really been into bikes, actually I was quite scared of them, one of the causes maybe being a friend of mine losing his life at 16 on a 125 when I was 14. Sh%t.
My self definition has always been "a 2-wheels user, borrowed from the 4-wheels world", but a little at a time I became more and more interested in motorcycles. By the way... Why should I move (except when weather is an issue and/or your have to carry heavy stuff around, of course) one tonne of plastic, rubber and steel when it's just my own body to be carried around? In my very practical state-of mind that makes little sense, and I must say that the older I get, the less sense it all makes to me.
Sure, I still do like cars, cannot deny that, but my plans for the future are: a reliable, comfortable, torquey bike, to use as much as possible; and a cheap, neat, trusty supermini to use in winter months, or if I have/want to carry people or stuff.
Bike-wise...the little Suz is serving me well at the moment.
Car-wise...ditto, and I wouldn't bother downgrade to a 1000 cc in the future.
You know, city congestion and fuel prices... You realize that things are changing when you find yourself in a hard time looking for a parking place in your 30,000 souls home town.
Yay for my bike.

[kml.krk]

excellent post!

[surf.seppo]

Amazing post. (Sweet lil' bike too ... with 125cc, a vespa might be cuter, but dang ... for sheer classic looks, I kinda like the PIG. Especially for only 500 quid. neato).

Your history reminds me so much of my own learning to ride (reluctance, doing MSF, getting a bike, adoring it, ... who knows where I'll go from here). Beautifully stated, mate. Amazing point on the head-nod club. 

[noobrider]

Great Story! Though Im still new to the sport, my opinions on it have changed as well.. Before I took the MSF, my mental image of bikers was a group of either fat, middle-aged harley riders or the occasional meth-running, Hell's Angels motorcycle gangster, with the occasional sensible motorcyclist thrown in.  The GS is my first bike and I am quickly developing an appreciation for 2 wheeled machines. I even find myself ocasionally waving to a fat, middle aged, Harley guy..   

[Teek]

You wave at Harleys?

[frankieG]

i wave at them, if they choose to ignore me then shame on them for buying over priced, over weight and underpowered POS

[Villager]

Awesome bike. I've seen a disk brake on one of those chinese bikes disintegrate. Crumbled on hard braking, cracks can form on the drilled rotors if it's cast wrong. Technically motorcycle disc brakes that are drilled should be forged but casting and drilling is cheaper and looks the same. Except when it goes through heat cycles it develops hundreds of micro cracks between the drillings. Other problems the bolt that holds the rear swing arm can break, seen it twice, the people's bikes I've fixed were lucky they didn't fall off on a fast and crowded road because even if they made it off safely they'd die from the embarrasment of a bike falling apart on you. Electrical gremlins, poor switchgear, really rust prone, chrome that's not really chrome, it's just polished nickel (if the chrome is yellowish it's just nickel) the list goes on. 

A truly dangerous contraption, no question. The funniest thing is that I got £450 for it when I sold it on. The responsible thing to do would have been to scrap it - I had friends who were interested but I wouldn't have dreamed of selling it to anyone I liked.