Pooped into a café just outside of Haverfordwest this morning for a sausage sandwich to find about a dozen motorcycles parked outside. Inside were the riders and their molls, all kitted out in full leathers, and various shapes of beard and goatee (On the men), plus enough artwork to keep a tattooist happy for a week.
Not a single one was under 55 at the youngest. How times have changed, back when I first rode a motorcycle it would be rare to find anyone even approaching thirty at a biker hangout. I guess the extensive testing procedure you have to go through now plus the cost of insurance has killed off motorcycling as a young man's sport. Makes you wonder how many bikers there will still be round in years to come.
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I know quite a few into bikes who are young, but more sports bikes. I think there's a fair few young men into bikes still but not the whole beards, tattoos, black leathers thing. They wouldn't be interested in the slightest in a 'biker hangout' very much seen as a middle age and upwards sort of thing.
Last edited by: sooty123 on Sun 28 Feb 16 at 11:10
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>>Pooped into a café just outside of Haverfordwest this morning<<
(Resisting my self-imposed embargo): There's no answer to that...
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It's hardly going to make the place more appealing to the younger element, is it?
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>> Makes you wonder how many bikers there will still be round in years to come.
All those nice new shiny hogs are not a good investment if there are no new buyers?
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In my office I can only think of one guy around 30 who has a bike (and has for some years).
The rest are all 45+ who got into, or back into biking later in like - I wonder if the practicalities of life and cost lead to this?
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I did the Dragon again this year. Quite easily the best in years. What was clear was that there is a younger demographic emerging again, as well as significant female riders (as opposed to pillions). I gravitate towards a particular style of bike, riding and apparel no war-paint and a more teutonic leaning !
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I sold my bike a few years back, and replaced it with an MX-5.
I dropped into the local bike dealer recently, and was looking at a Honda NC750. Apparently the 2 cylinder engine is half a Honda Jazz! It's even available as an automatic (well, a dual clutch DSG-type gearbox). Being car-derived, the red line is at 6,500 rpm.
This is a long way from the 14,000 rpm 4-cylinder bike engines that I'm used to.
Not quite sure who the target market is. It seemed to me that a CB500 was similar power but a lot lighter.
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A friend road-tested one. It lacked ooomph at UK road speeds to overtake - critical on any bike. They may have improved it since but enough to put me off. The recent crop of BMW sub 1000cc bikes seem to get UK riding styles.
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The demise of the 250 - 400cc class was a great pity. Bikes with decent performance that were light, easy to live with and cheap to run.
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They're coming back thanks to licensing changes. Toying with a 250 for my commute.
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You really do have a masters degree in man maths Rob !
;-)
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Absolutely.
Well it goes something like this. 80 miles round trip. Too much for the GS (mileage limitation on the insurance) - Unsuitable for the Scooter....well for various reasons....um er.. you see don't you. StreetTriple will be used in reality.
House going on the market in March moving east. Small bike will be ideal.
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>>House going on the market in March moving east.
You'd get wet moving West.
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Well there's always Aberdaron though....
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Find North, turn right Bromp.
;-)
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Denbighshire. Probably the Vale of Clwyd somewhere. We've done some hunting from Dyserth south to Ruthin...
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I've been a pillion passenger on quite a few motorbikes, including a BSA Gold Star down in Zummerzet and an old sheep's-ear handlebar paralellogram-suspended Vincent geared for a minimum of 45mph in top gear... how the cat managed it in London traffic was beyond me, but he did because I was on the back. His dad owned a prominent West End art gallery but he was a bit of a black sheep.
Also remember a trip in the country, hitch-hiking, on the back of a very suave, powerful, quiet fore-and-aft V twin with a very beautiful looking engine, alloy and anodised gold, pretty thing.
My own hand-on motorcycling experience is derisory. Its nadir though was in Chad, where I hired for about 4 quid a day a Japanese mo-ped with pedals and also an engine, which drove the thing through an infinitely-variable fully automatic transmission using rubber belts. It had a lousy headlamp and was generally dodgy. The belts which worked in a pulley whose width varied, making the ratio change, could get twisted and bring the rider to a halt.
This happened to me one hot but muddy day. As I stared helplessly at the immovable machine, a geezer in an impeccable white kaftan garment and small white cap appeared and attacked the thing with his bare hands, getting utterly filthy in the process but straightening the ghastly rubber belt. He wouldn't take money or indeed any reward, but clearly saw it as his religious duty as a Muslim to give help and succour to travellers.
I mean, chapeau. These religions aren't all bad.
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Heading East? Try Mongolia, far more civilised.
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Hell's Crinklies - sooty123
