I found this interesting and thought I would share it so get some 2o2p members opinions. It is from a local motorcycle website here in the Puget Sound area.

by Dave Preston

Well, OK, not all the non-motorcycle people hate us – it just seems that way most of the time, and has for the forty years of my experience. And why is that?

I had occasion to research the topic while driving a car home to Bothell from SeaTac after dropping my wife off for a late afternoon flight. Driving a car solo on 405 at 4 p.m. gives you time to research - a lot of it. Moving slowly, or not at all, I tried to imagine the thoughts of a not-motorcycle-person, as dozens and dozens of motorcycles streamed by me in the commuter lane.

I’m indebted to all the motorcyclists who came by for the examples to follow, and I want to stress that NONE of them did anything wrong, illegal or dumb, at least that I witnessed. With that, here are some reasons why non-motorcyclists hate us.

PERCEPTION vs. REALITY

From a stationary car in crowded traffic, a motorcycle in the commuter lane going by at 45 mph looks terribly fast. It APPEARS that an errant vehicle will lumber into the commuter lane at any second and the motorcycle will then “Spiderman” into the barrier. Those who do this regularly know it’s pretty rare for such an event to loom, and the driver’s shoulders and arms usually provide ample warning for corrective action. But – to the uninformed – it LOOKS dangerous.

When people see danger, they get scared. One of the natural responses to fear is… anger. So there you are, toodling along in the commuter lane minding your own business, and at the same time (unbeknownst to you), frightening the cage drivers who are now (illogical, but true) angry because you frightened them!

MEDIA FOCUS

I won’t use the hackneyed “media bias” charge. Print and video reporters are not that organized. Nor are they willing to work as hard as careful and consistent bias would require.

It is their focus, which is a product of laziness, that is the problem.

An old adage for news states, “If it bleeds, it leads,” and it works out that way, IF the media people can access the gore. Ski slopes in January resemble an emergency room, complete with triage procedures and Medivac flights, but are “way up there” in the mountains and hard to get a camera on. The motorcycle that just crashed into the viaduct? “Hey, we can be there in five and shoot great video.” There is also the eager public that suffers from…

OUR PURITAN HERITAGE

One of our relatively minor problems as a culture is the pervasive urge to, if we find someone having fun that we’re not – make them stop! People revel in the misfortunes of those who’ve had accidents – especially if they are doing something different. Since only 2 – 3% of the population own motorcycles – any accident is greeted by mass “I told you so’s” from know-nothings all over the place.

COOL GUY YIN AND YANG

Remember the yearning to be “cool” in high school? If you actually achieved a state of “cool,” remember how hard it was to maintain? If you were not cool, remember how you resented the people? Picture a middle-aged person sitting in a typical car – such as my Honda CR-V. First guy rides by – on a 1200 Sportster with mild pipes, wearing a leather jacket, helmet, and gloves. He’s cruisin’ up the commuter lane at 45mph or so, while I sit immobile and listen to his “potato-potato-potato.” He is cool.

I am not.

Next comes a guy on a Suzuki sport bike. Yellow bodywork and yellow wheels. A black and yellow fabric riding suit, black gloves, and a bright yellow helmet. The bike is spotless. He is cool.

I am not.

A guy on a big BMW adventure-trailie thing, with the Touratech boxes, an Aerostich suit, and a nice helmet. He is cool.

I am not.

This went on all the way home – my little car passed by five or six dozen motorcyclists. They were all cool. I was not. Parked in the garage is my Triumph Speed Triple. Behind it hangs a couple of jackets, the fancy helmet, a selection of gloves. OK, now I can be cool (to me).

What if I didn’t have the bike? Would I resent those guys and gals?

Yes. Bitterly.

WHY DON’T THEY RIDE?

But, you say, anyone can ride a bike. Can they? Not everyone.

A lifetime of media reports abetted by parental harping has convinced many that a motorcycle will cause their demise. They do not necessarily agree with this as a logical consequence, and it may not matter. I once had an 86-year old detail for me the many classic motorcycles he’d wanted over the years and had not enjoyed because “they would kill me.” It was excruciating. I just barely refrained from blurting out “What’s stopping you now – you’ re 86!”

When you tell such people they can buy a bike they feel worse – and resent you for it.

Some folks lack the coordination. Don’t laugh. It can be really hard. Go back to high school when you probably wanted to be a star athlete. Were you? How did you feel about people who had the talent to succeed in sports? If you resented it, then you can identify with the feelings of some who feel “trapped” in a boring car with an automatic while you go whizzing by.

EVERYBODY HATES THE RICH

You probably do not think you’re rich. But you LOOK rich to others, and that has predictable results. Everybody who rode by me that day displayed a reasonably new bike. ALL of them were wearing full gear (a pleasant surprise) and most of them had obviously selected gear that all went together in terms of style and color. Very chic.

In this country motorcycles have always been toys, so if you can afford what appears to be an expensive motorcycle (and most people cannot tell the cost from the appearance) AND have matching gear…you’re rich! People love to hate “the rich!” The definition of “the rich” is usually “everyone who has more money than I do, or appears to.”

SPEED AND SOUND

Obvious factors that have to be included. Even if people understand the logic of encouraging moto-commuting, as they sit in a stuffy car going nowhere and hear and feel bikes zooming by they resent it – more than the other cars with passengers doing the same thing. It sounds great, and looks great and seems to be so fast. Quick – what President signed a transportation bill that allowed motorcycles to use the commuter lanes? Answer at the end!

As to sound, none of the people who rode by me that day had bikes that were exceptionally loud, so how could the sound be resented? Again, it’s the reality of sitting still while you listen to the mechanical symphony of a motorcycle disappearing ahead of you. The potato-potato of the Harley, the melodious buzz of several different sport bikes, that wonderful imminent mechanical disaster of a Ducati clutch, the industrial thrum of the BMW – none were objectionable – but all could be resented by those stuck in line.

SO?

You can be polite, and courteous and always represent the sport well. I hope you make the effort. I do. Just keep in mind that no matter how hard you try, many people are still going to not like us. When you put yourself into their heads, maybe at least you’ll feel a little sorry for them.

Don’t hate them, the poor things!

CAVEATS and OTHER GOOD STUFF

1. It was Ronald Reagan who signed the bill allowing motorcycles into the commuter lanes.

2. It was impressive that every rider who went by was wearing full gear – impressive and surprising. Not until I was almost home and off the freeway did I find one rider not wearing gloves. Since he was astride a 1972 Honda, it could be argued that he was “period correct” for the bike!

3. Some of you will note that my data sample is not too scientific – weekday rush hour, only twice (yes, my wife flew back in at the wrong time as well!), and at a time when only “pros” would likely be seen riding on the freeway.

I did not see any “stunters” doing loopy things on the freeway, did not see any indication of drunken riding and I was not passed by any of the Nobel prize winners who still think open pipes are a performance enhancer – the three groups we typically point fingers at for poor images of street riders.

On the other hand, when do most non-riders typically see motorcycles? Seems to me that, for about three quarters of a million people each rush hour, what they see is what I experienced.

We are probably lucky in that respect.

4. If fuel continues its steady rise in cost, many of these people will be forced onto two wheels – probably starting with scooters with CVT transmissions. They will then learn to hate the weather… instead of us!

Dave Preston is the author of Motorcycle 101, a sensible book for the new and returning rider.