Why do we ride?

Have you ever had someone ask you what is so great about being on a motorcycle, or why do you ride. Well I woke up this morning and thought the same thing. I know most of the Club went to the Parade today, either watching it or participating, I wanted to ride. I knew another member was not going to the parade so gave him a call, He asked where I was going and I told him I didn't know, he said he'd rather do something “fun”. Something fun? A lot of us use our motorcycles everyday to go places and that's o/k. Myself I just like being on it and I don't care where I'm going or if I'm going anywhere at all but is it...fun?

The Club runs two official trips to New Hampshire a year, one for Laconia Bike Week, and one just for the roads, ride up, ride around, stay the night, wake up ride around, stay the night, wake up, ride around...you get it. But why do we enjoy riding?

I made a call yesterday, and called someone else about today and he agreed to the trip, the person he invited also didn't make it so the two of us met at friendly's in Norwich Ct. before heading out. Not deciding on where to go we just figured we'd ride and see if we could get lost.

We rode up 32 through Yantic, Franklin. Lebanon, North through Willimantic, Mansfield, Willington, and into Stafford Springs. West on 190 through Somers, Hazardville and across the Connecticut River. Through Suffield and onto 75 to Granby across 20 to 179 and south through Barkhamsted to 44 and 219 to 202. east on 4 through Harwinton and 69 south to Bristol then east on 72 through Plainville and on the highway to New Britain and 9 south to Middletown 16 east through Portland, Cobalt and East Hampton to Colchester where we split up and I headed home 11 to 85 and 95 to 184.

A ride to nowhere, and yet it was great. So why do we ride, is it the wind in our face, the changing temperatures between riding in the sun and diving through heavily shaded areas where the air is cool and smells of green. Is it the feel of the wheels on the road, or the thrumming of the exhaust behind us, is it the feeling as the bike climbs and leans sweeping through corners not fast, but a constant speed. Could it be the 360 degree view of the world around us, incomparable with life in a automobile. Maybe the fact that a ride to nowhere is just that, a ride to discovery, seeing places you haven't seen before and things which go by UN-noticed in a car. A ride to nowhere means no time schedule just you the bike and the road and since you weren't anywhere in particular then everywhere you go is a bonus. Someone told me you are more relaxed on a bike, I don't believe that, if anything you are more alert, everything you encounter reacts with your consciousness, I have never fallen asleep on my bike, (I have come close), but in a car I often find myself drifting off.

I believe the reason we ride is because in a car you are disconnected from your surroundings, on a bike you are part of them. The reason we cannot tell someone who has never ridden why we ride is because it is all those things wrapped together, the smells, the sensations, the wind on your skin, the sounds, the feel of the bike as it handles the road, even the simple things like watching your shadow pass under you from one side of the road to the other. Have you ever just looked at your hand on the throttle the changed focus to the scenery passing by, you are truly part of the trip, not just a passenger in a glass enclosed isolated cage.

What ever the reason...it is better to be riding than parked.

So keep riding.
 
klay