Why don't more of you ride bikes?

I would love a bike, and maybe one day I'll do my test and get one. I'm sure it's as close an experience to flying as we can get (without actually flying, of course). The problem is, that I know that right now I wouldn't be able to resist the temptation to go MUCH too fast, and that would, at best, cost me my license, which is critical for my job, or, at worst, cost me my life.
 
I'm retired from bikes now having had all sorts from sports bikes to a Harley - now i'm officially an old **** I just find bikes too uncomfortable, though on a nice summer day I do find myself hankering for a blast.
 
If we didn't have so many idiot drivers on the road, I'd get a bike in a shot.

Or, if I'm given a year to live, I'll buy a Ducati :D
 
wozzizname said:
I'm retired from bikes now having had all sorts from sports bikes to a Harley - now i'm officially an old **** I just find bikes too uncomfortable, though on a nice summer day I do find myself hankering for a blast.
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same here, keep seeing bikes out & about in the area and think "that'd be nice" but after my last bike i dont trust myself or the old bats round here.
 
I had a bike literally since I could walk, mx off road then then 50cc fizzy through to sports bikes. Last one I had was a Aprilia 1000cc Mille which was great fun. Used them for track days, rides out and commuting alike. Even sold my car, rode in all weathers regardless for a decade. Over 20 years only dropped it once commuting (drain cover). Considered myself a reasonable rider. Fast when appropriate, yet smooth, observant and careful on the road.

Then I had kids and it all stopped. I now have no bikes and drive a 7 seater MPV. Why? Because as much as I love bikes, and I miss them terribly, they are bloody dangerous. So many near misses, anticipating bad drivers saved my life more times than I can count. When It was just me and the wife I took the risk without thought. But with kids? No, just too many idiots trying to kill me. Every one of my riding mates had multiple incidents. Being honest with myself I knew it was just a matter of time before when one of them had me off.

I'm not even talking about 'enthusiastic' riders. I've watched a dozen spills from over cooking it. Seen some nasty accidents, watched one mate turn his leg into spaghetti, now has one leg two inches shorter than the other. Ride long enough and you'll hear of an acquaintance who's died, usually from speed or rather the sudden stop at the end. Now I do think most of those can be avoided by treating the road for what it is, transport not a race track.
 
Yeah my honest reason for not riding a bike is similar to what most people say. I have far too much self preservation and too much distrust in other drivers to risk it.

My dad has been big into bikes since before I was born and the stories he has told me are brutal including his own near misses etc.

Not one for me really. Although I can see the appeal of a more touring style bike.
 
I suppose I was lucky enough to have been a biker when it was a lot better than now.

It was the late sixties and seventies.

The roads were good and probably better than now although driving down stretches of the old A3 which has been bypassed feels narrower now than then.

Traffic was much lighter and it took a bank holiday to snarl up traffic.

There were NO cameras, fewer speed limits and a lot less signage.

Bikes were still plenty fast although not the huge amounts of bhp nowadays.

A learner could buy a proper 250 which could do over 80mph.

You could repair the bike on the side of the road with a basic tool kit and any motorcyclist would stop and assist.

Now it seems a lot of hassle. My 2p worth
 
This thread has made me really want to look into getting a bike just for track days.

All the fun people are talking about, without the risk of moronic road drivers in SUV's!

Bikes have always interested me with the performance, but again I'll echo the risk is too much. Track day's seems perfect sweet spot of risk/reward.
 
For me, it comes down to the margin of error you have, especially when the unpredictable happens.

I used to have a motorbike and my Dad is an avid biker so I'm definitely not anti-bike but I do have "concerns" enough to stop me from riding.

As an example, I was driving along the other day around a roundabout and I got massive understeer at very pedestrian speeds, obviously something a bit slippy on the road surface (horses, diesel, who knows - there wasn't anything visible). On a bike, that'd have been a lowside for sure. No margin for stuff like that to happen on a bike.
 
Greenja said:
This thread has made me really want to look into getting a bike just for track days.
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I didn't even mentioned track days in my original post, they're just something else. I did the Ron Haslam race school last year and it was mind blowing, following an instructor and caning it round Donnington was such a high. I've done plenty of adrenaline raising things before but nothing has ever come close to that.

You know what sort of performance a bike has yeah, now imagine a lovely smooth track, no kerbs, no traffic coming in the other direction and the ability to go as fast as you dare.

Have I convinced you yet?
 
Haggisman said:
However real men do not only ride motorbikes...

You need to make your logic statements more robust if you're going to try and use them to casually insult people. :p
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Or correcting yours, not all real men ride motorbikes. (To make it valid that is).
 
I used to ride, never got around to doing my test so my CBT expired. I've never been bothered enough to pick it up again, though I do love riding. I'd like a classic British bike but even the less desirable ones fetch strong money now. I was looking at ZXR 750s the other day. Must not buy!!
 
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