No, no, not that kind of moto slut.
I’m talking about the kind of rider that just can’t commit. Can’t be faithful. Can’t stay married to just one motorcycle.
I sometimes see these guys on the forums who will throw out statements like “Well, I bought her from the dealership when I was 18, and I’ve put 260,000 miles on it in the last 57 years. Still in love!” I have to respect it, but I can’t imagine settling down like that – at least not without doing some whoring around first.
I’ve ridden, owned, or built a disturbingly large number of bikes, and I have never once gotten off a ride and said, “Well, that’s it, I’m selling all the others and keeping this one forever.”
I want one thing on Sunday afternoon and a completely different thing Monday morning. And furthermore, I believe this is normal and right, and we need to stop the slut shaming. I just love and want to ride all the bikes! If it has two wheels and a throttle, it’s probably good for at least 15 minutes of fun.
Hell, my father who is a veteran flat tracker and a grown ass man insists that the most fun he’s ever had on a motorcycle was racing 50cc monkey bikes around a warehouse, but do you really want to ride one of those things in to work?
Instead of getting irrationally obsessed with one particular bike, or worse yet getting wrapped up in the manufactured brand identity and motorcycle-as-fashion-accessory nonsense that the industry generates, just enjoy all the different flavors that riding has to offer. Stop hating and release your inner slut.
I love the feel of a sportbike between my knees, but that doesn’t mean I can’t also love the sounds and sensations of cruising on a Sportster or the thrill of two stroke as it comes on the pipe.
The is a rush that comes from using a motorcycle exactly as it was intended, putting yourself and the machine in the context where its qualities will shine. It will enhance and extend your abilities in ways that make you feel superhuman. Unfortunately for most of you, your jobs do not entail taking bikes for test rides every day (mechanic FTW) so you’re probably going to have to settle on just one machine.
In spite of what I said about all bikes being fun, there is no “perfect bike,” and there are trade-offs with every configuration. What we always try to do with our customs is to understand how the bike is going to fit into the lifestyle of the rider, and build a machine that’s optimized for the type of riding he is actually going to do.
Our next post will look at the major categories of motorcycle and the key design trade offs that we face as we put together our custom bikes.
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