Conference noted::bicycle

    
    	Me
    
    	'Coz its fun
    
    	bicycles first, due to age requirements for licences,
	then motorcycles, then bicycles again, then...., well, I have
    	a few of each still in the garage, but the M/Cs have been idle
    	for a while now, I'll get back to them again tho.
    
    	a lot more parallels than most folks would imagine, but the
    contrasts are as/more interesting.  M/Cs don't require the same
    kind of physical effort (unless you're racing) and in some ways
    can free you for the other sensations of cycling pleasures.  I don't
    just mean speed and acceleration, though they count for a lot. 
    Its a much bigger machine, control inputs require a different set
    of skills, practicing these skills can be a totally absorbing pastime
    in itself, especially when you get into competition.
    
    	"noisy" ?  I think not, unless you're talking about kids with
    the baffles ripped out for "more power",  outright racing machinery
    (road or dirt), or poor/no maintenance.  I think that I have never
    had one that is as loud as the typical Briggs and Stratton lawn
    mower, and I've had some *FAST* ones.

    	bicycling for exercise, see more of less.  Motorcycles for speed
    and distance, see less of more.  Three figure speeds are a blast,
    no doubt about it.  I don't know many cars that could, for example,
    get onto Rte 495 north bound at Rte 117 and be doing 100 + to join
    (perhaps I mean "redefine" ?) the traffic stream from the ramp with
    another couple of gears to go.  You don't have to look back for
    a gap, you chose just about any one you want from those ahead of
    you.  Irresponsible, right ?, well sorta.  When I'm in motorcycle
    phase (I've grown out of both vehicle types a couple of times) my
    attitude is very much, "The only thing more dangerous than passing
    EVERYTHING is being passed by ANYTHING."  Car drivers seem to resent
    motorcycles more than they do bicycles, probably because they're
    farther out in the lane, and they pass where a car driver knows
    its unsafe to be passed (what do they know ?).  Physical fatigue,
    endorphin addiction, sense of achievement in bicycling a certain
    distance in a record (personal best, best this year, etc.) time
    is a different set of "rushes", just as great.
    
    	Off road.  M/Cs have taken a lot more heat than ATBs for ripping
    up the environment and I think its been blown out of all proportion.
    There are trails that I can ride without leaving a tire mark, hiking
    boots make postholes there.  I've been lost in the woods quite a
    few times and not been able to trace my own wheelmarks.  Yes, kids
    that want to spit up mud/rocks with their tires will dig trenches,
    but that isn't the way to get traction, or to find the land still
    open next year (or even next week !).

    	At low amateur levels I've competed on each, never got seriously
    hurt, always enjoyed the companionship/comraderie/contest.
    
    	In the M/C conference there's a lot more, "If you don't ride
    this brand you must be stupid" attitude.  Once in a while it gets
    out of hand, but mostly its just kidding (I hope).  I don't see
    too much of that here, and I'm not looking to stir that pot either.
    
	Reg	[about dooo for a nooo....,  Nah, I'd better not]
    

    	I had five street machines and three dirt bikes. Not all at
    once though. During this time I did a little bicycle riding but
    not as much as I find myself doing now that I sold them all. The
    bicycle was just for exercise, while the motors were for fun. The
    pleasure of the street bikes were to see the senery smell the air
    in as many miles as you felt like. I spent alot of time exploring
    back roads all over the state. Also distances seem alot shorter
    and time is not really considered. I also will admit I hate noisy
    bikes, my bikes had there stock pipes left on and were kept quiet.
    
    	I sold my motorsports out of fear for my life and the high cost
    of body parts in a small accident. SPEED MAKES MORTALS OF US ALL!
    Now that I ride bicycles I find the same enjoyment I found on
    motorcycles. The fresh air, senery and the exercise is a plus.
    
    	I would like to say that all (motor)bikers aren't "bikers"     
    Tom
                                            
    

    I've been motorcycle riding since '73 and have owned three street bikes
    and two dirt/trail bikes.  Until a few years ago, my street bike was
    the family's "second car", allowing my wife to have our car while I
    commuted on my (motor) bike.  I rode nearly every day when there was no
    danger of ice on the road, day or night, sunny or rainy, warm or COLD.

    When I relocated to Valbonne, I decided to leave my motorcycles in the
    USA.  The roads here are beautiful but they're too dangerous for my
    blood -- crazy, unpredictable car drivers (worse than Boston drivers)
    and, most of the time, no shoulders.  I'm looking forward to motorcycle
    riding when I return.

    After a year here, I've just taken up bicycle riding.  It's nice to be
    out in the wind again.  That part is something like motorcycling.

    As far as speed is concerned, I can go as fast as I want given that
    (1) there's NOTHING under me (compared to a 650 pound touring bike) and
    (2) I have no brakes.  Well, actually, my bicycle does have brakes but
    they don't compare to 3 disc brakes and a lot of rubber on the road.

    Given that I was afraid to ride my motorcyle in France, I was surprised
    to see how safe I feel riding a bicycle in traffic.  French car drivers
    are remarkably courteous to bicyclists, probably because it is part of
    the culture and there are so many of them.  It's also nice that if
    there is an accident between a car and a bicycle, it's the car driver's
    fault.

    -- Ward  (not commuting by bicycle yet)

    	Did my motorcycle thing in the mid '60's. It was a Suzuki X6:
    six speeds, 0 to 60 in 6.0 (using first 3 speeds), and a quiet
    two-stroke.  Fetched up against the tail of a station wagon with
    no brake lights on rainy day and got religion (scar below left knee
    is my reminder).  I'd love to ride a motorcycle now a-days, but
    only on roads with no cars or trucks on 'em.  Since that ain't apt
    to happen soon, I'll just wait for $10/gallon gas.  (The motorcycle
    guys have gotten smart re. fairings. Just had to add that.) - Chris

	I started riding a bicycle in elementary school and did some
	reasonably serious riding in high school.  In high school I
	bought my first motorcycle (Yamaha 175) from a friend and
	rode it around town.  I've had several old motorcycles since
	then (always very used and cheaper than my bicycle).  I didn't
	do much bicycling between 1974 and 1986 and I didn't do
	much motorcycling either.

	I started serious bicycling again in the spring of 1986 and
	bought another used motorcycle (1972 Honda) in the spring
	of 1987.  I ride the bicycle on club rides and weekend trips
	and ride the motorcycle to work and on errands that don't
	require luggage capacity (like to the Digital Family Picnic).

				Your host,
				John A. Wasser

	P.S.  Anyone interested in non-Harley-Davidson motorcycles
	(Japanese, European, British) might want to look in the
	MOTORCYCLES conference in the same directory as this BICYCLES
	conference.  I created it as an alternative to the name-calling
	and bar-room manners of the original CYCLES conference.

    I raced open class motocross in High School.  I lived in the 
    desert then, and I could ride my YZ400 pretty freely in any
    direction of the compass.
    
    The power-to-weight ratio of the machine was insane.  There
    were very few moments when you could push it to its limit.
    The bike mainly tested the rider's sheer strength and nerves.
    I never got seriously hurt, but I saw plenty of others go 
    down hard.  Though I've never experienced the rush of power
    that the motorcycle gave me in any other sport, I've resisted
    getting back into it.  In New England, there's little open 
    country for off-road riding, and competing with cars on the 
    highway is a losing proposition.  Unless I move somewhere like
    Arizona, I doubt that I'll ever own another motorcycle.
    
    Bicycling, on the other hand, is a sport in which I can push
    almost all the time.  The satisfaction of it is totally 
    different.  Sure, there are moments in competition (steep
    descents, crowded corners, sprints to the finish) where
    the rider's nerve gets abused, but, for the most part, performance
    is something the rider has to get from his or her own body.
    At its best, there's a smoothness, a silent harmony with the
    road, which slips by rapidly and effortlessly.  That's a 
    feeling I've learned to prefer as I've grown older.
    
    MATT

    Started as a workin bicyclist in school (5 mi country paper route).
    took up again when I started at DEC (Long time back).  Not at all
    "serious" by todays standards.  Got a BMW, hmmm, well, lets say
    100k mi, back and let it go at that.
    
    For "really seeing the country" NOTHING beats a bicycle.  For routine
    "use", I fear the "time compression" of powered transport has
    advantages.
    
    Congruence between the two?  The one that struck me was the same
    arguments over "helmet vs no helmet".

    dave pierson
    Raleigh SuperCourse
    BMW R75/5

    Does a 'motorcyclist who bicycles' count?
    
    I've been riding a motorcycle for 4 years or so, and love the feeling
    of really being outside -- makes the 'getting there' as much fun
    as 'being there' (I hope that I don't sound like a commercial)
    
    RE: .2,I think.
    I have to also point out that not *all* motorcyclists are jerks!
     Yes, I know that a few spoil it, but not all are bad.
    
    I used to bicycle back in BC (you know, Before Car) and in a funny
    sort of way, being on a motorcycle made me want to be back on a
    bicycle.  I'd forgotten how nice it is to ride outside, and enjoy
    all the sights/smells/sounds (to some degree) of things as you go
    by.
    
    I'm not a serious bicyclist by any means -- I just like to be outside
    doing something.
    
    As far as riding the roads, though -- I live in the back woods of
    New Hampshire -- you know, where there's no shoulder, and people
    fly down the road at 15+ over the speed limit -- and I am less fearful
    riding those roads on my motorcycle than on a bicycle!!
    
    			- Lorri
    

    The priority order goes bicycle bike, motorcycle bike, car. I have
    some rather old, low mileage vehicles.
    
    I started as a kid with a bicycle. I didn't get a motorcycle until
    I was around 30. Bicycles in MY city environment (12 years ago)
    were not convenient. Long distance to work. No showers. No good
    routes to take. The motorcycle was a compromise between the car
    and the bicycle.
    
    The bike gives me the physical exertion that I need as well as the
    "feel." The motorcycle gives me the "feel" only in a different way.
    There is wind, balance, skill, outsideness. At this point I wouldn't
    give up either one. If I need to be in Manchester or Concord before
    closing time I can take the motorcycle. If I have more flexibility
    then I can take the bike. I use the same reasoning on the weekend.
    If I'm taking a large mileage trip, Vermont, then the motorcycle is used.
    For a lesser trip, I'll take the bicycle. I've done camping trips
    on both vehicles and had the same amount of fun. The only difference
    was the mileage.
    
    I consider the safety hazards of both vehicles to be approximately
    the same. Helmets of course. The basic belief that "they" are out
    to get you so a certain amount of defensive riding. 
    
    While riding I've met other riders and there were about the same 
    percentages of jerks, uneducated and otherwise, riding on both 
    vehicles. I've also met about the same percentages of good
    people on both vehicles. 
    
    I like my bike. I like my motorcycle. Anybody want to buy a low
    mileage rx7?
    
    Denny