Location: out front
Music: BassDrive
One of the more interesting aspects of my new ride is that people tend to come over and talk to me. A lot. I would see that happen from time to time on the Virago, but I think the unconventional-looking bike tends to get people curious. I get people coming up and talking to me all the time when I’m stopped somewhere.
Indeed, the first day I had the bike, I was gassing up and a cop stopped by to check it out, followed by a guy with a similar bike in different trim (dual-sport instead of supermoto). The first week I had it at work, I amused myself by watching out the window at co-workers inspecting it — you could almost see the “WTF?” thought balloons. At the gas station (again), a guy cheerfully talked about wanting to sell his Yamaha since he whacked a tree at 40mph and broke his hip (I suspect that story probably involved alcohol or other mind-altering substances, but he didn’t get into details). He also talked about riding in Baja, which sounded like a real blast but is a bit far to go for a ride IMO.
On a dirt road last weekend, a kid on a four-wheeler caught me at a stop sign and chattered about his friend who got a similar bike. Then yesterday, as I pulled into Home Depot (for a paint scraper), a guy on a decked-out Volusia came in from the other direction and we ended up sharing a sheltered spot where a third motorcycle was already parked. He came walking over to check out the DRZ and started talking about rides and all the other stuff we tend to talk about with our fellows. He’s from a family of riders; his dad rode cross-country a couple years ago and his mom sold him the Volusia because (at age 70) she considers herself too old to ride.
So if you want to meet people, this is definitely one way to do it: get an odd-looking motorcycle and make occasional stops.
Sunday, September 30, 2007
8 comments:
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Hay Far. That's a nice looking toy.
ReplyDeleteRecently I had the good fortune to acquire my own toy, a 1995 Subaru SVX. It is a rather rare car from a time when Subaru attempted to go upmarket. Well, one fine Saturday morning I took it to the local bank only to find someone taking a photo of it with a cameraphone when I was done with my business. We started a long conversation. It turns out that he had one too and was taking the photo for an on-line SVX forum. I have joined it also.
Should be 1994 SVX.
ReplyDeleteHi FAR and Boran.
ReplyDeleteYou guys are lucky to have such unique transportation. I'm still waiting for my number to come up to where I can afford a Rolls Royce. I figure I can meet a lot of people by doing that Grey Poupon thing.
Grey Poupon
Hey there FAR, and congrats on that mean machine! I've always been a bit scared of cycles and such, but more power to ya!
ReplyDeleteWe're just happy here that the newish Vibe is kicking ass on gas mileage compared to the Ranger we had previously (pre-ice storm!). Glad you're having fun with this one!
Solar: First I want to say is I just got your VM yesterday from Memorial Day Weekend! T-Moblie is having some problems lately with VM and I'm wondering how many others I've "missed". I'll give you a call this week.
ReplyDeleteI get the same reaction at the gas station with my Si only because it looks so much like the Honda Fit. I get asked what kind of fuel milage I get and how I feel about the fuel tank under the drivers seat. When I tell them it's not a Fit they looked puzzled because most have never seen my model style Si because they only made about 15,000 of them over 4 years.
Hey guys!
ReplyDeleteBoran, that sounds like fun. You'll have to put up some photos sooner than later. ;-)
FM, couldn't you put on a suit, go to the RR dealer in the nearest big city, and ask for a test drive? Let the salesdroid be your chauffeur; see how long it takes for him to realize you're waving a jar of Grey Poupon out the window.
IVG, I remember hearing about you guys wrecking the Ranger in the ice storm. Remind me to tell you about the time I used a Gremlin to make all the small holes in a fence into one big hole, back in high school. Good to hear you're getting a good... Vibe. (sorry, couldn't resist :-P )
Solar, I think that was Labor Day. Still, a month to get your VMs is kind of uggggly — I hope Teresa accepts that excuse. We trash AT&T when it takes a couple of *hours*. Looking forward to hearing from you though!
That is one sporty looking ride! Cool that it attracts friendly peeps. (Oops, never say "peeps" to the spouse of a chicken farmer?)
ReplyDeleteHi Nancy!
ReplyDeleteFunny thing about motorcycles, the off-road capable ones are light and nimble. Just the opposite of cars. Or maybe it's funny that off-road capable cars are heavy and ponderous?
Peeps? You can say peeps all you want, just don't say "drought."