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Biker Discrimination

    M OTORCYCLE RIDERS ARE UNIQUE PEOPLE.  Over the years I’ve ridden with lots of riders, different types of them, on and with different ki...

    MOTORCYCLE RIDERS ARE UNIQUE PEOPLE.  Over the years I’ve ridden with lots of

riders, different types of them, on and with different kinds of bikes. As much as I love riding, I

also love to cut through the breeze with motorcycle riders of all ages and experience levels and

I consider it a privilege to converse with such a diverse variety of individuals.Regardless of

whether I'm speaking with an arrogant biker; or a  mature biker well versed in professional safe-

riding techniques; or hot-shot kids; easy going middle-agers; dirt bikers; cruisers; sport-bike

riders; retro bikers; sport-tourers; adventure tourers; custom motorcycle riders; highly

experienced tourers; brand-new riders; vintage aficionados; and every other rider imaginable, I

have found one thing in common: the love of riding a Motorcycle.Secondly, I have found that

“most” (but not all) riders that I have encountered are genuinely friendly. That might seem odd

to note, at least I consider it so, because my experience in the real world of meeting bikers is

different than what may be found in some online biking forums. I have found it remarkable over

the years to observe that in spite of their universal passion for riding, a certain number of online

bikers are so ready and willing to express vitriol to other riders over divergent sub-categories of

passion or motorbike preferences.You know the tired old arguments: individuals who assert that

certain Countries or continents produce better motorcycles and/or that certain owners of certain

brands are superior to others and all others are valueless and even keeping a discriminative

attitude towards whom they ride with, thus giving birth to biker discrimination.

Of course, at any

given time any specific brand may boast a particular motorcycle that features the current state-

of-the-art performance engineering. However, even though such a bike may be deemed “best”

based upon certain qualitative parameters, there will likely be a much larger percentage of

riders who will vote for their “best” motorcycle by purchasing a different one. What is a “best”

motorcycle for any rider is as variable(Subjective) as what any specific individual considers is

the “best” music, the “best” movie, the “best” ice cream or the “best” beer.I consider those riders

who espouse “My bike is better than yours” are simply not experienced enough to appreciate

what motorcycle riding is all about: enjoyment of the ride. And that can be realized on any

motorbike be it a 1000 cc supersport or a 100 cc commuter.The good news is that such a

malady can be resolved by more riding so lets not argue on who, which or what is better but

ride, ride as that’s the fuel for our common passion. Let us all ride into the sunset.

What attitude

do you like (or dislike) most among riders?

by Ankit Williams

RIDE HARD.RIDE SAFE

Inspired by MC-G