Note: This is an excerpt from a longer email I’d written to a very old friend last October. When he recently replied at similar length it caused me to re-read what I’d written and realize you might enjoy reading it, too. Remember, this was written late in the fall of last year.
Nope, I’ve not had any new, or new-to-me used bikes during the past nine years but continue doing things with my small motor pool of older motorcycles which keeps riding at the center of my mobility life. After letting my two old (78 and 81) airhead BMW’s collect dust in the corner of the garage for about the last eight years, I finally put them away semi-correctly only a few weeks ago: Washed off layers of accumulated dirt and bugs. Waxed. Drained the gas tanks and float bowls. Put oil in the cylinders. Moved them from the cold dirty garage into a corner of the basement not far from the washer and dryer where they can sit safely for years. I like looking at them there.
Squeezing them in through the door between the garage and basement was difficult because boxer engines are extra-wide but after about ten minutes of wiggling, they fit through. One has around 350K and the other probably about 150K. I rode one for roughly ten years and the other for twenty while doing nearly all of the work caring for them mysef. Tires, tune ups, fluid changes, repairs, adjustments and modifications.
Seeing them now on their center stands near the washer and dryer sure makes me smile. I always wanted a bike inside my home, and now I have two, and both carry lots of memories. When I was young, I remember fantasizing about someday possibly owning something exotic to display next to an umbrella stand in the foyer of a fantasy McMansion. Well that never happened but this little private two bike museum down in the corner of the basement of our small home feels just as good.
When I was sixteen my first street-ridden legal motorcycle was a 90cc Honda and my bedroom was located on one end of the basement in my parents 1,800 sq. ft home. At the other end was a built-in garage. For the first week I owned that bike, after everyone else was asleep, I’d quietly sneak out to the garage and carefully push the bike from there into my bedroom, then softly close the door. I still remember falling asleep with my hand on its gas tank.
A few days later my mother caught on and no motorcycles were ever allowed inside her home again. No matter how wonderful and special. Today with those two old BMW’s safely inside my own home things have come full circle and I’m as happy with this arrangement as can be.
My current ‘long distance bike’ is a 07 R1200R with about 50K on its odometer. I’ve never taken care of this one myself except to do some easy stuff like changing and balancing a front tire once and replacing a brake rotor another time. Plus a few very minor modifications. The rest has all been done hooked up to an O.B.D. (On Board Diagnostic) computer at an excellent multi-line BMW dealer called Moon Motors. I know it’s a cop-out to say it’s “too modern for me to learn to work on” but that is the truth. My priorities have changed. A month ago, this one got it’s 48K service, plus some little repair items and two new tires, at a cost of just under $1,000 (which is one reason why I used to do this sort of thing myself). But at least it’s now ready to go for next season and maybe beyond.
My old XR650L commute-bike (the world’s slowest and least powerful motard-converted Honda) was also recently oil/brakes/battery serviced so it’s already set for next year, too, though I’m still riding it for probably another month depending on the weather. When winter comes road salt ends that and I’ll switch to a rusty-from-the-past-two-winters electric pedal bike with studded tires.
After all of these years the biggest question about riding remains, “why don’t more people do this?” It is a stunning, flummoxing question. Riding for me is such a happiness-generator that every time I ride to work, or anywhere else, it easily is he best part of the day. Every F’n time, regardless of weather. Bicycle or motorcycle. I just cannot believe more people are not doing this. It’s absolutely pure joy.
One possible reason, which I don’t like to think about, is maybe my neurology is a little different than the average persons(?). Everyone is unique. We all exist on numerous spectrums. Height, hair color, weight, introversion/gregariousness, etc. It seems that maybe there is also a spectrum of human affinity for kinesthetic experiences. I guess I don’t mind admitting I might be a bit to one side of the median in this area, since I have two motorcycles in my basement.
– Mr. Subjective, October 2019
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