I admit it - I did not come up with this catchy title. I was discussing motorcycle riding with one of my friends the other day (he knows who he is). And I was sort of complaining that riding is great and saves you time especially on congested roads of Los Angeles. However you can’t just get up and go like you would if you were to drive a car. You have to gear up before you leave and gear down once you reach your destination. And that is when he came up with this line.

Essentially motorcycle riding gives you the feel of freedom. And even though I am just a newbie I already start getting a gist of this feeling. It puts a subtle smile on my face when I go through a stand still traffic like a knife through butter. It makes me feel quick and nimble when I overtake cars with a gentle flicker of my right wrist. There is a definite freedom of movement. But there are things all of the sudden I realize I have less freedom with.

I love my riding boots. They are a perfect fit for riding. But I can’t wear them around the office. Neither can I wear them around town all day. My feet will melt in an 80+ degree weather. Same goes for my riding jacket. It is great (I am yet to write a review about it). But again when it is over 80 degrees outside walking around in it is not that comfortable. I am not going to even mention my helmet. So in case I want to go someplace, like go work out, or play beach volleyball, or just swim some laps I absolutely have to find some safe storage room for all my gear and also carry a civil set of clothes with me. Now I do own saddlebags but they are not securely locked. So I would be reluctant to leave valuable stuff in them while my bike is out of sight.

There are other freedoms that are now being slightly oppressed. I am a single male in my early thirties living in Los Angeles. With all that said it is almost given that I go out and I do drink. Clearly doesn’t go well with motorcycle riding.

Another limiting factor is that I can’t take a passenger. I mean of course I could go out and buy a cheap helmet of a “one size fits all” type. But I am a responsible individual. I want my passenger whoever that might be feel safe. Just a cheap ass helmet is not going to cut it. AGATT (all gear, all the time) has to be followed for passengers as well. And also at this point in time I am not that experienced to ride around town with someone in tow.

Life is all about compromise. We choose one road over another. We joggle various job offers, pick life partners, choose some vacation trips over other, compromise on expensive clothes and so on. Even before I had purchased my bike I knew that it will come with a price. Basically in my case owning a motorcycle boils down to finding a reasonable balance in my lifestyle. And I believe I am doing a good job so far. I still go out and drink, I still go swimming, play beach volleyball, take vacations, get together with friends, read books, watch TV. And yes, I do get to ride too.

P.S. I did not ride my bike today :).

This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 24th, 2007 at 11:17 am and is filed under Motorcycles, Street, Travels, Riding, Gear, Life. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.