The Question

I was just thinking today that it's been over a month since I've driven my car to work.  Mostly, my VW has sat forlorn in the driveway, save for weekend runs to the grocery store.  My Triumph has been pounding the pavement everyday and battling the traffic on my four-mile commute.

Most of my commute is spent idling, which is really fun when it's 90° F outside.  Save for a few close-calls and some obscenities hurled at offending drivers, it's been really uneventful commuting.   One thing that has been interesting is the questions I get at work.

People see me in my jacket, holding my full-face helmet and ask "do you ride a motorcycle?"  "No, I just carry this stuff around for fun" is what I would like to tell them but some of these people are higher on the ladder than me, so I can't.

The responses I get are along the lines of the danger of motorcycles, how they would never ride one or how I don't look like someone who'd ride a bike.

The last one gets me because what does a motorcycle rider look like?  Non-riders think of the Hell's Angels or the Sons of Anarchy guys as the stereotypical rider but that shows a lot of ignorance.  Yes, I've met and seen lots of people who fit that mold but most of the riders I know are normal people.  They're doctors, businessmen, mechanics, factory workers, office workers, etc.  They just happened to ride motorcycles. 

Sure, riding a motorcycle is dangerous but so is everything that's worth doing.  Mountain climbing, skydiving, deep sea diving and many other activities would be pretty boring if the amount of inherent risk was gone.  Climbing Mt. Everest or racing in the Isle of Man TT is a big deal because it's dangerous.  If all you had to do was ride an elevator to the top or putt-putt around the TT course, there wouldn't be much sense in doing it.

The attraction to the amount of risk or to the rush of adrenaline you get when blasting down a back road is difficult to explain to people.  That's what attracted me to motorcycles in the first place and that's what continues to do so.  My boring four-mile commute is so much more fun on a motorcycle.  That I save on gas and parking is a nice bonus.

When I explain this, I'm usually meant with blank stares.  I just smile and think about how someone won't blink an eye at skiing or snowboarding yet won't ride a motorcycle 50 feet. 

It boggles the mind, really.