Last week, my bicycle was stolen.
I realize it was my fault for leaving it on the front porch, using only a cable lock. However, I really didn’t think someone would want a 13-year old mountain bike, equipped with a 15” women’s frame, and had been wrecked, crashed, submerged in hurricane flood waters, rebuilt, and generally abused.
I also didn’t believe that someone would steal said bicycle at 2:30am in the midst of a tropical storm. Silly me.
(Note to self: Use a better lock! Or keep it indoors. Note to self and everyone else: if it’s there and can be stolen, eventually it will be. This is just as true for your motorcycle as your bicycle.)
So, Saturday found me in Georgetown looking for a new bike. And since I was meeting friends for a motorized ride later, it seemed like an excellent day to wear my favorite Ducati Corse 46, as in Rossi 46, t-shirt.
I realize it was my fault for leaving it on the front porch, using only a cable lock. However, I really didn’t think someone would want a 13-year old mountain bike, equipped with a 15” women’s frame, and had been wrecked, crashed, submerged in hurricane flood waters, rebuilt, and generally abused.
I also didn’t believe that someone would steal said bicycle at 2:30am in the midst of a tropical storm. Silly me.
(Note to self: Use a better lock! Or keep it indoors. Note to self and everyone else: if it’s there and can be stolen, eventually it will be. This is just as true for your motorcycle as your bicycle.)
So, Saturday found me in Georgetown looking for a new bike. And since I was meeting friends for a motorized ride later, it seemed like an excellent day to wear my favorite Ducati Corse 46, as in Rossi 46, t-shirt.
Walking through Georgetown, no one paid my t-shirt any mind. Something of a step forward for the D.C. Metro area as I was once stopped at a northern Virginia gas station and admonished for wearing a “messed up” NASCAR shirt.
Things changed once I was inside the bicycle shops. Then seemingly everyone recognized the 46:
Things changed once I was inside the bicycle shops. Then seemingly everyone recognized the 46:
One sales guy owned a Ducati 748. Another had a Monster. A third rode a Triumph Thruxton. Several customers complimented the shirt or at least my preference for European motorcycles. All were as passionate about motorcycling as they were bicycling. This was true for mountain bikers and road racers. Which got me to thinking…
(I know, dangerous occupation, I won’t be making a habit of it… )
And the more I thought about it, the more it became apparent to me that, at least among the sportbike, adventure bike, and streetfighter crowd, there were a lot of non-mechanized two-wheeled enthusiasts. Equal opportunists, if you will.
Think about it for a moment. How many riders do you know who also ride bicycles?
Here at EMD, our friend Striple is an accomplished rider in both disciplines. Yours truly is accomplished in neither, but I enjoy both immensely anyway. Many of my riding friends are active cyclists and more than one has a bike or two suspended from the beams in the garage, hanging above their motorcycle.
The entire Hayden clan rides, with Nicky even securing sponsorship with high-end bike manufacturer Specialized. (Click HERE for article).
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| Nicky Hayden cruises the neighborhood on a Specialized road bike |
Troy Bayliss once entered bike races in Italy. MotoGP racers Dani Pedrosa and Marco Melandri are avid cyclists. Max Biaggi once missed Grand Prix races due to an accident riding his mountain bike.
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| Troy Bayliss looking like he'd rather be on the bike, riding it |
Maybe it’s because bike riding is a great way to stay fit for racing? That is certainly the most logical (and boring) answer.
Or it is another way for the gearheads to express themselves. Another outlet for the hyper-competitive? Makes sense.
Perhaps, there is a less sterile and empirically oriented reason: cycling and motorcycling offer the same sense of speed and the freedom that comes with it.
Maybe because it’s because cycling is a little on edge, literally and figuratively, allowing riders to do things and go places the cage drivers and pedestrians can’t comprehend?
Maybe because it’s because cycling is a little on edge, literally and figuratively, allowing riders to do things and go places the cage drivers and pedestrians can’t comprehend?
Then again, maybe we are all just born with a loose screw and a couple misplaced bolts in the head, leading us to conclude that activities with high rates of crashing are FUN? Which of course, they are, even if the crashing part isn’t.
(This also might explain why so many sportbike and adventure riders are a bit partial to snowboarding )
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| Valentino Rossi exploring a different kind edge |
As for me, I found a replacement bike, albeit not my first pick. I had to make a choice: new, super cool mountain bike or new tires for the CBR900RR and a service for the Ducati 848Evo. Motorcycles won.
I settled for a used mountain bike that will work for the trail and the daily commute, won’t win any style awards, but with a little work and a few pieces from a "parts" bike, will be just fine.
Two wheels, no matter what the form, are best. Cheers!