Blatherings From The Editor 
June 2007 

Throwing your leg over a motorcycle (or climbing on the back) and going for a ride puts you in what many of us riders think is a pretty elite bunch of folks.  Motorcycle riding isn’t for everyone; it can really be tough out there on the open road battling the weather and all the other road hazards that man and machine can throw at us.  Kind of why we motorcyclists think of ourselves as a family - we’ve gone through these trials together and survived.  Powerful stuff, family ties.

     Not every rider, biker or motorcyclist thinks of the sport in the same way, though.  To me this couldn’t have been brought out any better than during the question and answer portion of the Motorcycle Focus Group Sessions that were recently conducted in Tucson.  Every one of the questions the facilitator asked could easily have elicited answers 180 degrees apart depending on which motorcycle subculture the responder chooses to be a part of.  What riding gear we use and ride in was one of the questions that added the most spark to the discussions; and because the answers were so different, you could pretty much guess which subculture a particular rider identified with by their answers.

     Take for example the question on what type of helmet we use.  The choices were something like:  beanie, shorty, open face, full face or none.  It would seem, in general, that the type of helmet of choice for the rider is directly linked to the style of the motorcycle s/he rides.  I’m willing to bet in the cruiser genre the beanies and shorties are probably way more popular than the full face lids.  A bit of style over function maybe?  (How many of you ever called your helmet a brain bucket or skid lid?)

     Wanda and I wear leather pants; actually they are just a puck or pad away from being track pants.  The choices for riding pants at the group session didn’t include leather pants - chaps yes, leather riding pants, no.  So the only choice we had was the “Other” category which seemed to be directed at folks who ride in jeans.  Not the real choice of us sport tourers, but probably just the ticket for the cruiser rider who rides in denim.  Interesting, totally different choice of gear, yet the same answer?!?

      No matter which subculture of motorcycling you choose to be a part of, one thing is for sure – we are all exposed to the same hazards while out and about on our motorcycles of choice.   Be sure to keep an eye out for your fellow riders; and give each and every one of them a wave - just like you, they deserve it.  Deryle & Wanda, ATGATT. 

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