My favourite/worst bike I have owned.
Open Microphone Social Night Organised by Colin
An exceptionally well attended Thursday evening meeting in the Three Compasses, Charminster- well, who could resist not waxing lyrical about their favourite and/or worst bike, and the regrets many of us have had in sending a bike on to its next chapter of existence?
57 bikes covering 20 different marques were either cherished or hated. The vast majority were cherished memories; most involved friends and/or partners.
As can be seen Triumph were the most popular marque. An interesting mix of European and Far East machines were discussed.
The organiser of the evening, Colin, kicked off with his comments about the BMWs he has owned and the trips into Europe.
He was especially complimentary on an annual BMW meeting in Alicante observing the Spanish riders know the best roads, have friendly Police who escort them, and the best restaurants to stop at.
As seen below ,we were all issued a programme informing us when it was our time to take the floor. Now heavily redacted, GPDR and all that. Looks like a page from the, oops cant mention those files.
We then heard praise for Laverdas and on the rarity of spares for these machines.
Another member extolled his time at Police Training College in Swaffham when he owned a Suzuki x5 200cc machine – a tale of a noisy machine in the college’s underground carpark, time trials at Mousehole Hill and annoying prostitutes plying their wares with the noise of his and fellow trainees’ motorcycles.
Others recalled rebuilding machines with their fathers, of parents forbidding the purchase and use of a motor bike (and so a Royal Enfield, and, a BSA B40, stored, initially, in a friend’s garage), of the sadness of their machine being stolen, and hints and tips about Triumph 2/1 to ensure the exhaust valve is greased and the dire consequences of not doing so. One member commented he had had seven (7) bikes in a 12-month period. Some poor choices me thinks.
Marque
A common theme appears to have been wanting a particular machine at all costs, e.g., a Honda CBX which cost the family’s monthly budget. A resilient marriage as they were both present tonight.
An amazing number of our members claim to have speed tested their past/present favourite machines on the German Autobahns. I’m sure a few noses grew longer…. to be honest if they had tested their bikes on the original 1930s autobahns around Berlin (I drove a car from Warsaw to London on them a few years ago) they underestimated their speed on the rough concrete slab roads! They could have gone much faster. I think some porkies may have been told!
Biggest regret of the night?
Rod selling a Brough Superior. His description of the quietness of the machine from the rider’s perspective, of being able to hear motorcycles fore and aft changing gear, and the underlying sadness of selling the machine. A few damp eyes around the function room.
This highlights the relationship each of us has with our motorcycles. They may not be a top of the range, super machine, with performance you do not need on the UK’s roads (let alone being able to use such performance); instead, they have potentially annoying idiosyncrasies which perversely bring back happy memories that make us smile. In other words, they are our personal mental health therapist. They help us face up to and cope with life’s stresses and strains, as well as the social aspect of meeting together and sharing our experiences.
In addition, I have recently been told that using our machines brings a smile to stranger’s faces as they recall their previous experiences with such machines.
Some people admitted they were not mechanically minded but enjoyed owning and riding their motorcycles; others enjoyed the challenge of renovating and bringing back to life neglected motorcycles. Something to keep each of us interested in owning wonderful mechanical marvels.
Words, mostly by Mike Davis
