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Why They All Hate Us
 by
Dave Preston
Well, OK, not all the non-motorcycle people hate us – it just
seems that way most of the time, and has for the forty years of my
experience. And why is that?
I had occasion to research the topic while driving a car home to
Bothell from SeaTac after dropping my wife off for a late afternoon
flight. Driving a car solo on 405 at 4 p.m. gives you time to research
- a lot of it. Moving slowly, or not at all, I tried to imagine the
thoughts of a not-motorcycle-person, as dozens and dozens of
motorcycles streamed by me in the commuter lane.
I’m indebted to all the motorcyclists who came by for the examples
to follow, and I want to stress that NONE of them did anything
wrong, illegal or dumb, at least that I witnessed. With that, here
are some reasons why non-motorcyclists hate us.
PERCEPTION vs. REALITY
From a stationary car in crowded traffic, a motorcycle in the
commuter lane going by at 45 mph looks terribly fast. It APPEARS
that an errant vehicle will lumber into the commuter lane at any
second and the motorcycle will then “Spiderman” into the barrier.
Those who do this regularly know it’s pretty rare for such an event
to loom, and the driver’s shoulders and arms usually provide ample
warning for corrective action. But – to the uninformed – it LOOKS
dangerous.
When people see danger, they get scared. One of the natural
responses to fear is… anger. So there you are, toodling along in the
commuter lane minding your own business, and at the same time
(unbeknownst to you), frightening the cage drivers who are now
(illogical, but true) angry because you frightened them!
MEDIA FOCUS
I won’t use the hackneyed “media bias” charge. Print and video
reporters are not that organized. Nor are they willing to work as
hard as careful and consistent bias would require.
It is their focus, which is a product of laziness, that is the
problem.
An old adage for news states, “If it bleeds, it leads,” and it works
out that way, IF the media people can access the gore. Ski slopes in
January resemble an emergency room, complete with triage procedures
and Medivac flights, but are “way up there” in the mountains and
hard to get a camera on. The motorcycle that just crashed into the
viaduct? “Hey, we can be there in five and shoot great video.” There
is also the eager public that suffers from…
OUR PURITAN HERITAGE
One of our relatively minor problems as a culture is the
pervasive urge to, if we find someone having fun that we’re not –
make them stop! People revel in the misfortunes of those who’ve had
accidents – especially if they are doing something different. Since
only 2 – 3% of the population own motorcycles – any accident is
greeted by mass “I told you so’s” from know-nothings all over the
place.
COOL GUY YIN AND YANG
Remember the yearning to be “cool” in high school? If you
actually achieved a state of “cool,” remember how hard it was to
maintain? If you were not cool, remember how you resented the
people? Picture a middle-aged person sitting in a typical car – such
as my Honda CR-V. First guy rides by – on a 1200 Sportster with mild
pipes, wearing a leather jacket, helmet, and gloves. He’s cruisin’
up the commuter lane at 45mph or so, while I sit immobile and listen
to his “potato-potato-potato.” He is cool.
I am not.
Next comes a guy on a Suzuki sport bike. Yellow bodywork and yellow
wheels. A black and yellow fabric riding suit, black gloves, and a
bright yellow helmet. The bike is spotless. He is cool.
I am not.
A guy on a big BMW adventure-trailie thing, with the Touratech
boxes, an Aerostich suit, and a nice helmet. He is cool.
I am not.
This went on all the way home – my little car passed by five or
six dozen motorcyclists. They were all cool. I was not. Parked in
the garage is my Triumph Speed Triple. Behind it hangs a couple of
jackets, the fancy helmet, a selection of gloves. OK, now I can be
cool (to me).
What if I didn’t have the bike? Would I resent those guys and gals?
Yes. Bitterly.
WHY DON’T THEY RIDE?
But, you say, anyone can ride a bike. Can they? Not everyone.
A lifetime of media reports abetted by parental harping has
convinced many that a motorcycle will cause their demise. They do
not necessarily agree with this as a logical consequence, and it may
not matter. I once had an 86-year old detail for me the many classic
motorcycles he’d wanted over the years and had not enjoyed because
“they would kill me.” It was excruciating. I just barely refrained
from blurting out “What’s stopping you now – you’ re 86!”
When you tell such people they can buy a bike they feel worse – and
resent you for it.
Some folks lack the coordination. Don’t laugh. It can be really
hard. Go back to high school when you probably wanted to be a star
athlete. Were you? How did you feel about people who had the talent
to succeed in sports? If you resented it, then you can identify with
the feelings of some who feel “trapped” in a boring car with an
automatic while you go whizzing by.
EVERYBODY HATES THE RICH
You probably do not think you’re rich. But you LOOK rich to
others, and that has predictable results. Everybody who rode by me
that day displayed a reasonably new bike. ALL of them were wearing
full gear (a pleasant surprise) and most of them had obviously
selected gear that all went together in terms of style and color.
Very chic.
In this country motorcycles have always been toys, so if you can
afford what appears to be an expensive motorcycle (and most people
cannot tell the cost from the appearance) AND have matching gear…you’re rich! People love to hate “the rich!” The definition of
“the rich” is usually “everyone who has more money than I do, or
appears to.”
SPEED AND SOUND
Obvious factors that have to be included. Even if people
understand the logic of encouraging moto-commuting, as they sit in a
stuffy car going nowhere and hear and feel bikes zooming by they
resent it – more than the other cars with passengers doing the same
thing. It sounds great, and looks great and seems to be so fast.
Quick – what President signed a transportation bill that allowed
motorcycles to use the commuter lanes? Answer at the end!
As to sound, none of the people who rode by me that day had bikes
that were exceptionally loud, so how could the sound be resented?
Again, it’s the reality of sitting still while you listen to the
mechanical symphony of a motorcycle disappearing ahead of you. The
potato-potato of the Harley, the melodious buzz of several different
sport bikes, that wonderful imminent mechanical disaster of a Ducati
clutch, the industrial thrum of the BMW – none were objectionable –
but all could be resented by those stuck in line.
SO?
You can be polite, and courteous and always represent the sport
well. I hope you make the effort. I do. Just keep in mind that no
matter how hard you try, many people are still going to not like us.
When you put yourself into their heads, maybe at least you’ll feel a
little sorry for them.
Don’t hate them, the poor things!
CAVEATS and OTHER GOOD STUFF
1. It was Ronald Reagan who signed the bill allowing motorcycles
into the commuter lanes.
2. It was impressive that every rider who went by was wearing full
gear – impressive and surprising. Not until I was almost home and
off the freeway did I find one rider not wearing gloves. Since he
was astride a 1972 Honda, it could be argued that he was “period
correct” for the bike!
3. Some of you will note that my data sample is not too scientific –
weekday rush hour, only twice (yes, my wife flew back in at the
wrong time as well!), and at a time when only “pros” would likely be
seen riding on the freeway.
I did not see any “stunters” doing loopy things on the freeway, did
not see any indication of drunken riding and I was not passed by
any of the Nobel prize winners who still think open pipes are a
performance enhancer – the three groups we typically point fingers
at for poor images of street riders.
On the other hand, when do most non-riders typically see
motorcycles? Seems to me that, for about three quarters of a million
people each rush hour, what they see is what I experienced.
We are probably lucky in that respect.
4. If fuel continues its steady rise in cost, many of these people
will be forced onto two wheels – probably starting with scooters
with CVT transmissions. They will then learn to hate the weather…
instead of us!
Dave Preston is the author of
Motorcycle 101, a sensible book
for the new and returning rider. |
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