Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/141010
It) " .'" e, N .... '" _-- --v-~ ... ..d'" no packaging a hillside aflame _ith color in mid-october, the soh green of valleys and flats in early summer, the bro_ns 01 august are all there _Ith not even a panoramic _indshield to interfere. by terence r. porter "A motorcycle provides 'no packaging' for the operator." So runs the answer to one of the questions on the motorcycle operator's written test given in my state. The composer of the test question had in mind, no doubt, the issue of safety. The answer rang another bell with me. The question might well have been, "Why do you personally ride a cycle?" Having owned a cycle before, I finally gave in, after a lapse of five years, and bought a 350 street bike early last Spring. With just over five thousand miles on the odometer in approximately eight months, I now know why I bought it when I did. It has to do with that "no packaging" bit. Who, once initiated, could really stand to watch the arrival of Spring from any vantage point but the seat of a bike? A cycle represents to me an escape from all that seeks to package, can, and reduce to the humdrum. Rather than boxing one in, as do so many things in our world, a cycle sets one free. The writer of the test question was right - from a safety point of view there is precious little protection on the seat of a bike. Only skill, careful attention to the job, and properly maintained equipment will enable a man to ride safely over the long pull. A bike doesn't package, it exposes. But what an exposure! Take the smells one encounters on a bike: The steamy heaviness after a warm shower; the smell of a freshly cut hayfield; the pungent smell of a silo oozing "corn squeezins"; the bracing freshness of a s!a breeze; even the eye-watering, sinus clearing smell of a freshly manured field. How about the sweet-sour perfume of a hard working diesel engine or the skunk-like stench of old macadam being tom up for the sake of a new roadbed? I think of the smell of a tar road baking in the sun, the smell of smoke drifting from campfires or farmhouses or the gentle nostalgia-producing fragrance of burning leaves in the fall." These , and many J' ~ l ~ ..)0:1\ ...... more, are the smells of life and activity. They all come at you undiluted, over the handlebars of a bike. The air itself has a texture to the cyclist. He feels the gentle breeze on hands and face, the howling wind with his whole body, and particularly the seat of his pants as it seeks to unseat him. He feels the temperature change as he climbs the hills or drops into the valleys. The mist 'b ecomes almost tangible and the rain frequently feels like buckshot. The current of air flowing over him now tries to freeze him, now to sear his skin. The sights that come into a biker's field of vision create indelible impressions. A hillside a flame with color in mid-October, the soft green of valleys and flats in early summer, the browns of August are all there with not · even a panoramic windshield to interfere. Frequently he tops a rise to find a whole new vista spreading out before him like a giant mural bracketed only by the horizon. , While the rush of air does distort and block some sounds, others get throught and are remembered. Try following a big twin (750 or so) up a long grade at a good clip you'll find it a thrill for the ears. It's a sound I'll never forget - it reminds me of some mighty engine struggling to do a great job from within the recesses of a darkened cave. I love the sound of air roaring in the venturis of a winding engine, the gentle thrashing of valves, pistons, cams and the lot at cruise. The throaty rasp of a big diesel, the acrid bite of a small four-holer as it powers a diminutive sports car around a string of traffic are all there in this "unpackaged" atmosphere. In addition to these things which tantalize and sharpen the senses, there are two other factors that make biking a joy. Both are in the nature of a challenge. The first has to do with the road, the second with the elements. One of the reasons that cycling is an escape from the humdrum, packaged existence that so many of us must ... ~ ..... # . . . •• ... . . . . endure is the simple fact that riding a cycle is one of the most demanding things one can attempt. I've flown airplanes (600 plus hours), gliders (40 hours or so), ridden a batch of horses, sailed a few boats - none of these can compare with motorcycling when it comes to demanding attention. An airplane all but flies itself, a horse will remain upright and may even find his way home ·with o u t the rider, but a bike does what it is told - nothing more, nothing less. Carelessness or inattention are unpardonables. The texture of the road, the sweep of the wind, the relative wetness of the surface, the degree of bend in a curve all these must be fed into the computer inside the helmet. Oddly enough, the bike frees you as you become its slave/master. To ride ~e\l and long is an accomplishment of physical endurance, manual skill, mental alertness and a process of planning. The confidence gained, the freedom experienced is an invigorating thing. The final challenge comes from dealing with the elements as they come in "unpackaged" form. If you plan a trip in some air-conditioned juggernaut, you may well get away with traveling in shirtsleeves and bermuda shorts. You'll plan to carry the climate with you, and, by the grace of God and a little luck with' that compressor under the hood, you'll do just that. The same stunt on a bike involves some very different approaches. At certain times of the year it is possible to encounter heat, rain, cold, sleet and the like in a one-day period of time. It is possible to ride on the newest superhighways, old country roads and metropolitan bumper-to-bumper strets. There will be long stretches where shelter of any sort is the last thing you'll find. The answer is planning. I ride with at least one and sometimes two saddlebags full of foul weather gear, extra jackets, spare gloves, dry rags, the works. You pit your skill in preparation and riding against the elements in a constantly changing scene where no two trips are really alike and where the challenge of "unpackaged" motion and speed presents a maximum opportunity for a thrilling mix of challenge, adaptation, fun and freedom. No, a motorcycle does not package the operator, thank God! '------