Well my bike had the 2nd outing of the year today and boy what an outing it was, weather was awesome, roads were great, and my riding after a bit of a break just seemed so much better it all just flowed so easily and effortlessly I didn't want to stop and go home I just wanted to keep on going..! It got me to thinking why do I do it, there really isn't any point to it for me, its not my only means of transport, I have a car so why do I pay out for all the service costs, insurance, tax, pertol, maintenance and so on just to use it for a few days of the year, well today was the day all that was justified and made perfect sense..! I was trying to think of some words to explain how good it was when I got back but I couldn't put the feeling, the enjoyment and the exhilaration into words it was just so immense all I could do was smile :biggrin: This year for me seemed to get off to a cracking and somewhat unbelievable start, but a few things along the way haven't gone to plan but today while I was out riding I totally forgot about it all, it didn't matter, it was just me, my bike, the open road, some wonderful countryside and a coffee to defrost the hands :wink: it was excellent, and what made it even better while drinking my coffee was being asked by a little lad if he could have his photo taken next to my bike with his dad, of course his dad then proceeded to try and offer me his son in exchange for my bike and eventually re-negotiated on his offer and added his 2nd child into the deal as well but no I wasn't interested lol..! I have a lot of hobbies and interests but I can't say any of them deliver what being out on my bike does, I think if I had a somewhat common bike like an R1 or Fireblade (no offence to those who have them), those kind of bikes, it wouldn't be the same, somehow it's only like this for me because I own and ride a Ducati, it's somehow special with a truley awesome soundtrack which I could never get bored of despite how deaf I might be when getting off. It'd be interesting to know why others ride, what enjoyment you get out of it as I know it can differ, but today for me was brilliant just amazing, I can't wait for the warmer wearther to come along and hopefully hop over to Spain, France and Italy later this year as well as getting out in the UK with like minded folk off here :biggrin: Cheers Stu
Hi Stu glad you had a great day, I too got out on my Tiger 800xc not for long but loved it. Real me time ! can't wait to get my Multistrada and run it in. :biggrin:
You summed it up perfectly. After an 8 year break from Ducati and owning some of the most desirable bike on the market I'm back with Ducati. I still own a Honda but nothing compares to a Duke
Great read stu. Ever since owning my first Italian bike (Ducati 998) I've fallen in love with them. My MVAgusta was stunning, wheeling her out of the conservatory all polished and gleaming was the best feeling. Waiting for her to warm up whilst I put my suit on getting my adrenaline flowing and concentrating on the journey which laid before me. I always felt like as I ride further the frustration and stress of life dissolves and I can truly relax and concentrate on one thing. ... the road ahead. Even better is coming home adrenaline pumping and slowly winding down whist giving her another clean and polish. It's
Does it feel even better on a Ducati then ? Friend of mine has 3 and always swore by Jap bikes but now obviously loves Ducatis, I haven't told him I 've got one on order !
I think you get the same buz on any bike for any rider but once you've experienced the ownership of an Italian bike it's difficult to go back to jap. I'll own a panigale one day but since buying a house, starting a business blah blah blah one can only dream........
Great topic...... why do I ride? Easy... one word... sanity. LOL Very few "non riders" get this... but you guys will understand when i say, The world could be coming to an end and I can be stressed out completely, but give me ten minutes on a bike and life is good again. Doesnt matter if it is a Harley or Honda or Ducati, just riding... the freedom of the open road... no worries, no work no wife/girlfriend no payments no stress ... just you and the bike... as one.. While i have not yet had the pleasure of owning a Ducati, I am soon fixing that and can only imagine the fun times to come.
Stu, Great thread.......I have to say I ask myself the same question, I don't go out on the bike very often but am still willing to pay insurance, service etc....think there just something about owning an Italian marque. Conquest carbon, Wish you all the success in your new venture.
Solitude. That's what it means to me. It's a bit of 'me' time, to relax, forget about work or paying the bills, a bit of spring freshness in the nostrils makes all the difference. Just hop on and go for a ride. The road doesn't matter, nor does the speed, and the bike makes no difference at all. Fast or slow. Sometimes I just plod along smelling the flowers, sometimes I'm head down arse up and taking on the world. Even in a group it's the solitude that counts; no-one to talk to, no-one to take account for, it's pure hedonism. I used to ride because I had to. I could either afford a car or a bike, the bike normally won. I rode to work every day, then I rode for work every day; I still loved riding, but not as much as now. I was faster then, much faster, but I don't care now, I'm just riding for the sheer pleasure of it, not to win a plastic cup. And the bike doesn't matter at all, you can have a whale of a time on any bike. My mate Des had a suzuki B120 for 30 years, rode it 2-up plus luggage to the Isle of Man every year, and was resolutely unimpressed by any of the whizzbang superbikes I rolled up on, the B120 was his dream machine and he rode it until the frame snapped, then he gave up riding. I still maintain that the most fun bike I've ever owned was a 250 MZ. And I mean it.
I ride because of the freedom and thrills it gives me. Sometimes I ride fast, but most times I like to ride briskly. I've done the flat out speed thing but I get more pleasure from flicking the bike round bends (like carving turns on my snowboard :tongue Like others have said, I can go out and forget all the pressures of day to day living. Work, bills etc all get tucked away whilst I'm riding. Doesn't matter which bike I've had they have all done that for me.
Wow you nailed it mate. I used to ride with a guy who had a late 80s Suzi GS 1000. I was on my ninja and he had as much fun as I did ... And without a payment book LOL. So IMO it matters not WHAT you ride ... Just THAT you ride.
you mean the pani and "bang tidy" bird in the avatar aren't yours?? Best of luck making both a reality.
Yes there is something about just being alone and in control of such a beautiful machine. I have done some long trips and at the end of them have no idea what I was thinking about just control of the bike. Can we put it down on the tax return as therapy do you think?
My happiest moment in biking was riding alone in the dead of night across France, on a wanky old eastern European commuter bike, heading for Clermont Ferrand and then on to the Bol D'Or on my first foreign bike trip. I rode the first night alone then met up with the others next day. Then, as the sun rose, I started being buzzed by swarms of superbikes, thousands of them...
why do i ride? , because i was fool enough in the late 70s to get a bike to scamble in the local woods, i have never been without a bike since, blkes are in my blood, i wish i could shake it, its like a drug, even 3 months in hospital and a year not working failed to put an end to it, its the only time i feel really alive, god i wish for my wife and kids sake i could stop it, but nothing else does it for me, god even thinking about bikes makes me grin ; )
Because it's the best feeling ever and it's grin factor is priceless Though today I had the experience of being a passenger in an Audi RS4 and the grin factor when I got out was near to riding
I ride because i enjoy it just like everyone else. The car just sits there most the time on the drive. My recently purchased Yamaha Fazer is great, starts and runs smoothly on choke(no chance my Monster will ever do that!), butter-like gear changes, awesome brakes, turbine smooth power building up as you rise in the rev range. Light clutch and Soooo easy to ride. When i get off it i think "that bike is so nice to ride". Then there's my Monster ........'Grumpy' is an understatement! When its cold that is, lol. But WOW, its just so freakin' awesome to ride! I love it! Like i'm in 'attack and destroy' mode. I was out today on both, the Yam then the Monster, when i got home after riding the Fazer i smile to myself knowing how nice it is, but when i got home after riding the Monster i had the biggest stupidest grin on my face! I said to my girlfriend when i walked indoors, 'i got my Monster fix now', haha. But its true, as nice as the Fazer is, my Monster is the bike that does it for me. All my problems are forgotten when i ride it, not that i have many, but just to be out for the hell of it, me and my bike, thats something i always look forward to.
I've never found a bike that I've not been able to enjoy in some way. Even the cute little yamasaki had its own sort of pleasure - I had a very enjoyable bimble on it last summer around local unclassified roads. If you can enjoy a Chinese commuter 125 you can enjoy anything. Every bike has its own unique pleasure.
Strangely, I've had two Triumph Sprints and, even though in theory they're perfect for my kind of riding, they did absolutely nothing for me. Perhaps they were too good at their job. I put the miles in on them, and did the garage tinkering bit, which is the prescribed method of bonding with a bike, but still nothing. I guess it proves that bikes are not merely a mode of transport; if we all bought bikes for impassionate reasons we'd all be riding Sprints. I saw a middle-aged couple dodging round on a Vespa yesterday. Clearly not their regular mode of transport, it was polished to within an inch of it's life, and the poor bike was squashed flat on it's suspension by the pair of them, but they were having a whale of a time. If they'd viewed their purchase with just their heads they'd have ended up on a Honda or BMW, but bikes aren't about common sense, they're not bought with the head, they're bought with the heart. I guess that's why I've ended up with two shonky old aircooled v-twins...
