The last bike

On Tue, 26 Feb 2008 16:09:58 -0700, timeOday
<timeOday-UNSPAM RemoveThis @theknack.net> wrote:

>BryanUT wrote:
>> Sometimes I think the next bike will be the last bike I'll ever own.
>>
>> And sometimes I think the bike I have now is the last bike.
>>
>> Other times I think, "What the hell am I thinking?"
>
>
>You never know. Sometimes people do wake up one morning and decide
>they're done with a particular hobby.

Hobby? Motorcycling as a hobby. huh. What a bizarre concept.

--
Turby the Turbosurfer
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

On Feb 26, 7:35�pm, "BryanUT" <nestl... DeleteThis @comcast.net> wrote:
> Sometimes I think the next bike will be the last bike I'll ever own.
>
> And sometimes I think the bike I have now is the last bike.

Hopefully.

There have always been two kinds of motorsport enthusiasts. There are
the Ho-Dads who were born with a wrench in their hand, and there are
the Surfers who surf through various motorsports without ever knowing
or even wanting to know about what makes their toys tick.

You're a natural-born surfer, you surfed into this sport, now you can
just surf on out, you won't be missed, because surfers are like
busses, there will be another one in 20 minutes.
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

"BryanUT" <nestle12.TakeThisOut@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:rM-dnToEQZnoR1nanZ2dnUVZ_gSdnZ2d@comcast.com...
> Sometimes I think the next bike will be the last bike I'll ever own.
>
> And sometimes I think the bike I have now is the last bike.
>
> Other times I think, "What the hell am I thinking?"
>
I think about it a lot. I'm 67. So I keep riding my comfy antique. People
spend a lot of money customizing their bikes just so they won't look like
all the others. Mine is unique because there aren't many around anymore.
Wayne
86 Venture
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

Turby wrote:
> On Tue, 26 Feb 2008 16:09:58 -0700, timeOday
> <timeOday-UNSPAM RemoveThis @theknack.net> wrote:
>
>> BryanUT wrote:
>>> Sometimes I think the next bike will be the last bike I'll ever own.
>>>
>>> And sometimes I think the bike I have now is the last bike.
>>>
>>> Other times I think, "What the hell am I thinking?"
>>
>> You never know. Sometimes people do wake up one morning and decide
>> they're done with a particular hobby.
>
> Hobby? Motorcycling as a hobby. huh. What a bizarre concept.

Well, what would you call it? For most of us it's not a job. It's not
a religion (Thumper notwithstanding). Even if you "live to ride," hey,
some people live to climb mountains, or watch movies. They're all
hobbies whose *practical* value is negative. If I ever wanted to quit
motorcycling, I wouldn't feel obligated to continue, like I am to my
family and (to some extent) co-workers.
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

On Feb 26, 10:35 pm, "BryanUT" <nestl....DeleteThis@comcast.net> wrote:
> Sometimes I think the next bike will be the last bike I'll ever own.
>
> And sometimes I think the bike I have now is the last bike.
>
> Other times I think, "What the hell am I thinking?"

Well, for me it's always the next one. Thinking that your current bike
is your last bike just doesn't ring with good vibes, if you know what
I mean.

Greg
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

On Feb 27, 12:07 pm, timeOday <timeOday-UNS....DeleteThis@theknack.net> wrote:
> Turby wrote:
> > On Tue, 26 Feb 2008 16:09:58 -0700, timeOday
> > <timeOday-UNS....DeleteThis@theknack.net> wrote:
>
> >> BryanUT wrote:
> >>> Sometimes I think the next bike will be the last bike I'll ever own.
>
> >>> And sometimes I think the bike I have now is the last bike.
>
> >>> Other times I think, "What the hell am I thinking?"
>
> >> You never know.  Sometimes people do wake up one morning and decide
> >> they're done with a particular hobby.  
>
> > Hobby? Motorcycling as a hobby. huh. What a bizarre concept.
>
> Well, what would you call it?  For most of us it's not a job.  It's not
> a religion (Thumper notwithstanding).  Even if you "live to ride," hey,
> some people live to climb mountains, or watch movies.  They're all
> hobbies whose *practical* value is negative.  If I ever wanted to quit
> motorcycling, I wouldn't feel obligated to continue, like I am to my
> family and (to some extent) co-workers.

Yup, it's a hobby for me, too. When I was younger, it was a neccessity
as I didn't own a car and had to "ride to live".

And yer right - you can wake up one day and take up another hobby.
When I think of the really nice guitar or amp(s) I could own for what
I paid for my bike, I shudder. And when you consider the risks
associated with riding, makes me think playing dingy bars was safer...
nah, riding a bike is probably safer -

In any case, riding seems more fun now than decades ago because now I
can choose not to do it if I want.

Greg
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

On Feb 27, 2:42 pm, Mark Olson <ols... DeleteThis @tiny.invalid> wrote:
> timeOday wrote:
> > Turby wrote:
> >>Hobby? Motorcycling as a hobby. huh. What a bizarre concept.
>
> > Well, what would you call it?  For most of us it's not a job.  It's not
> > a religion (Thumper notwithstanding).  Even if you "live to ride," hey,
> > some people live to climb mountains, or watch movies.  They're all
> > hobbies whose *practical* value is negative.  If I ever wanted to quit
> > motorcycling, I wouldn't feel obligated to continue, like I am to my
> > family and (to some extent) co-workers.
>
> For some, the word "hobby" has connotations (perhaps adverse, perhaps
> not) that they don't want associated with the way they view their
> participation in certain activities/pastimes/pursuits/what have you.
>
> I can accept someone else calling my motorcycling obsession my hobby,
> although I would never choose that word to describe it.  Hobby just
> sounds a little too lightweight for how I experience motorcycling.

Same for playing music, acquiring music gear, etc. It's usually those
hobbies that become obsessive that end up being something more than a
hobby.

I know golfers who are obsessive about what they do, even traveling to
far off lands like Ireland to play golf. I know bowlers and NASCAR
fans and baseball fans who are the same way. Same for rollercoaster
fanatics. They live it to do it and when they can't do it, they find
outlets like online fantasy games, video games so they can keep doing
it virtually.

They go well beyond what normal folk would call a "hobby".

Most good hobbies have multiple purposes. With motorcycles, you can
actually travel via your hobby. Barroom musicians can earn extra money
(and I use that phrase loosely) gigging. Rollercoaster fanatics can
use their hobby to get out of town on a regular basis. That type of
thing.

>  Not
> that I spend nearly as much time and money on bikes and riding them as
> some folks, but motorcycling is one of the most important things in my
> life, after my family, my phoney-baloney job, etc.

As is music, golf, bowling etc for others.

>
> I don't understand what you mean by the sentence you wrote about
> feeling obligated to continue.  I don't forsee myself wanting to quit
> riding, but I know better than to say never.  Hopefully I can continue
> to ride so long as I enjoy it.

That's the key... to be able to do anything as logn as you are able
and it brings pleasure, fulfillment, joy...

Greg

>
> --
> '01 SV650SK1  '99 EX250-F13  '98 ZG1000-A13
> OMF #7

Greg
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

On Wed, 27 Feb 2008 10:07:51 -0700, timeOday
<timeOday-UNSPAM.TakeThisOut@theknack.net> wrote:

>Turby wrote:
>> On Tue, 26 Feb 2008 16:09:58 -0700, timeOday
>> <timeOday-UNSPAM.TakeThisOut@theknack.net> wrote:
>>
>>> BryanUT wrote:
>>>> Sometimes I think the next bike will be the last bike I'll ever own.
>>>>
>>>> And sometimes I think the bike I have now is the last bike.
>>>>
>>>> Other times I think, "What the hell am I thinking?"
>>>
>>> You never know. Sometimes people do wake up one morning and decide
>>> they're done with a particular hobby.
>>
>> Hobby? Motorcycling as a hobby. huh. What a bizarre concept.
>
>Well, what would you call it? For most of us it's not a job. It's not
>a religion (Thumper notwithstanding). Even if you "live to ride," hey,
>some people live to climb mountains, or watch movies. They're all
>hobbies whose *practical* value is negative. If I ever wanted to quit
>motorcycling, I wouldn't feel obligated to continue, like I am to my
>family and (to some extent) co-workers.

It's a means of transportation. I use it to go places. It's no more a
hobby than my truck, or any other vehicle I've ever owned. (I've never
owned a 4-wheeler or trike that's only useful on weekends in the
dunes.) I ride daily, to the store, to work, to the beach, to anywhere
else I go. My motorcycles are my primary means of transport. The
practical value is incredible. My truck isn't practical. It gets lousy
gas mileage, it takes up far too much room to park, has poor
visibility, and it has poor maneuverability in town. Its only
advantage is carrying the rare load too big for my bikes.

The fact that bikes are _fun_ to ride is a bonus, but it doesn't
negate the prime purpose of the machine.

--
Turby the Turbosurfer
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

On Feb 27, 9:56 am, "." <Rhiann... DeleteThis @gmail.com> wrote:
> On Feb 26, 7:35�pm, "BryanUT" <nestl... DeleteThis @comcast.net> wrote:
>
> > Sometimes I think the next bike will be the last bike I'll ever own.
>
> > And sometimes I think the bike I have now is the last bike.
>
> Hopefully.
>
> There have always been two kinds of motorsport enthusiasts. There are
> the Ho-Dads who were born with a wrench in their hand, and there are
> the Surfers who surf through various motorsports without ever knowing
> or even wanting to know about what makes their toys tick.
>
> You're a natural-born surfer, you surfed into this sport, now you can
> just surf on out, you won't be missed, because surfers are like
> busses, there will be another one in 20 minutes.

Yet, surfers - real wave surfers, can be among the most fanatic
hobbyists out there and share many of the same attributes as bikers -
thrill-seekers, visit wild and crazy places... just to ride the waves
or, in the case of riders, the twisties.

It's a hobby even for ho-dads with a wrench in their hand. I know guys
who spend more time "fixing" their bikes with special pistons, racing
clutches, etc than they do riding them. To some, wrenching is the
hobby.

Unless we earn a living at motorcycling (racing, designing, building),
we're all just hobbyists of varying degrees with varying abilities to
indulge ourselves.

I know a guy who owned a guitar store. I talked to him many times
about his business and how I bought and sold gear. He told me that his
gear collecting had become such an obsession that he went into
business with it.

That's a case of a hobby turning into a profession by the sheer
obsessive nature of the hobby. It's called passion and the best
hobbies allow for that and can often turn into the best businesses.

Greg
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

On Feb 27, 2:08 pm, Turby <turbosur... DeleteThis @beach.comber> wrote:
> On Wed, 27 Feb 2008 10:07:51 -0700, timeOday
>
>
>
>
>
> <timeOday-UNS... DeleteThis @theknack.net> wrote:
> >Turby wrote:
> >> On Tue, 26 Feb 2008 16:09:58 -0700, timeOday
> >> <timeOday-UNS... DeleteThis @theknack.net> wrote:
>
> >>> BryanUT wrote:
> >>>> Sometimes I think the next bike will be the last bike I'll ever own.
>
> >>>> And sometimes I think the bike I have now is the last bike.
>
> >>>> Other times I think, "What the hell am I thinking?"
>
> >>> You never know.  Sometimes people do wake up one morning and decide
> >>> they're done with a particular hobby.  
>
> >> Hobby? Motorcycling as a hobby. huh. What a bizarre concept.
>
> >Well, what would you call it?  For most of us it's not a job.  It's not
> >a religion (Thumper notwithstanding).  Even if you "live to ride," hey,
> >some people live to climb mountains, or watch movies.  They're all
> >hobbies whose *practical* value is negative.  If I ever wanted to quit
> >motorcycling, I wouldn't feel obligated to continue, like I am to my
> >family and (to some extent) co-workers.
>
> It's a means of transportation. I use it to go places. It's no more a
> hobby than my truck, or any other vehicle I've ever owned. (I've never
> owned a 4-wheeler or trike that's only useful on weekends in the
> dunes.) I ride daily, to the store, to work, to the beach, to anywhere
> else I go. My motorcycles are my primary means of transport. The
> practical value is incredible. My truck isn't practical. It gets lousy
> gas mileage, it takes up far too much room to park, has poor
> visibility, and it has poor maneuverability in town. Its only
> advantage is carrying the rare load too big for my bikes.

Back in my younger days, I didn't own a car, so a bike was my only
transportation. I rode because I had to. Took the joy right out of it.
Now, I ride becasue I want to and that makes it fun again for me.

>
> The fact that bikes are _fun_ to ride is a bonus, but it doesn't

For me, the fun of riding is riding, the motion, the challenge of
staying alive. The fact that bikes are also _transportation_ is a
bonus.

> negate the prime purpose of the machine.

Which for some folks, is meeting new friends in riding groups or
riding for charities or wrenching their bikes or many things other
than transportation.

Greg
>
> --
> Turby the Turbosurfer- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

On Feb 26, 10:35 pm, "BryanUT" <nestl....TakeThisOut@comcast.net> wrote:
> Sometimes I think the next bike will be the last bike I'll ever own.
>
> And sometimes I think the bike I have now is the last bike.
>
> Other times I think, "What the hell am I thinking?"

the bike i'm on now is my first bike, a fat little thing with scrapes
and dings up and down

that, sometimes, makes me feel self conscious -- not because my bike
isn't pretty since i could buy a prettier one if i wanted (and
probably will pretty soon), but because i know i got a beater as my
first ride precisely because it's my first ride -- i can't come off as
much of an enthusiast if i'm only on my first bike, right?

i know it's only in the posts that respond to this post that the idea
of riding being "just a hobby" comes up, but the whole reason i feel
self conscious at times with my ratty bike is because it fails to
express how connected i am ... i ride when it's 20 outside (but not
colder, and not too far), i ride in the rain, i ride in the snow, and
i do it because i love the feeling

100 mph on the freeway, 15mph around the city with the water next to
me, 40 in the twisties out in the country ... i missed out on this my
whole life, and now i have it, and i'll keep at it until i physically
can't


(and it has nothing to do with the brand)
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

timeOday wrote:
> Turby wrote:

>>Hobby? Motorcycling as a hobby. huh. What a bizarre concept.
>
>
> Well, what would you call it? For most of us it's not a job. It's not
> a religion (Thumper notwithstanding). Even if you "live to ride," hey,
> some people live to climb mountains, or watch movies. They're all
> hobbies whose *practical* value is negative. If I ever wanted to quit
> motorcycling, I wouldn't feel obligated to continue, like I am to my
> family and (to some extent) co-workers.

For some, the word "hobby" has connotations (perhaps adverse, perhaps
not) that they don't want associated with the way they view their
participation in certain activities/pastimes/pursuits/what have you.

I can accept someone else calling my motorcycling obsession my hobby,
although I would never choose that word to describe it. Hobby just
sounds a little too lightweight for how I experience motorcycling. Not
that I spend nearly as much time and money on bikes and riding them as
some folks, but motorcycling is one of the most important things in my
life, after my family, my phoney-baloney job, etc.

I don't understand what you mean by the sentence you wrote about
feeling obligated to continue. I don't forsee myself wanting to quit
riding, but I know better than to say never. Hopefully I can continue
to ride so long as I enjoy it.

--
'01 SV650SK1 '99 EX250-F13 '98 ZG1000-A13
OMF #7
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike 

Turby wrote:

> It's a means of transportation. I use it to go places. It's no more a
> hobby than my truck, or any other vehicle I've ever owned.

I also use my motorcycle as my primary means of communication even
though I have cars. But if I ever ceased to enjoy motorcycling and it
were solely down to practicality, I would go car-only. I don't find
motorcycling any cheaper than an econobox, and it's certainly more
dangerous.
 >> Stay informed about: The last bike