Road Ramblings
by: goon73
Each month around the first of the month I begin to have topics run through my head for my newsletter contribution. Sometimes they evolved into the stories you have read each month in the Naked News, and sometimes they didn’t evolve into anything. Some months I have used ride reports I have written months or years ago for this column, and sometimes the stories evolved into something more. I have an article in issue #1 of the magazine about my evolution into the StreetFighter world. As I wait for my copies to arrive in my mail box I am in awe. Up to a year ago I had never had anything “Published” and the newsletter was my first foray into putting my writings out there. Responses seem to have been good, and I continued to write. When the opportunity to be published in the Magazine came about I was beyond excited. As the publication neared I began to get more and more nervous, and there were tons of second guesses.
Then I sat back and started thinking about where I came from, and how I got to be where I am right now. I can’t ever remember “learning” to ride a motorcycle. I know my parents were not fans of motorcycles so my earliest memory of motorized conveyance on two wheels was the scooter I got arrested on at age sixteen (issue #10 March 2008 Naked News). The first traditional bike I can remember (one with a clutch and gears) was a Kawasaki 600 of some sort in the early 90’s I remember asking my friend the gear pattern just before I took off on his bike. I remember acting a fool on that bike and seeing the blurry side of 130mph. I remember borrowing a few other bikes for quick rides here and there, but until I purchased my own bike I never had a daily rider.
I remember taking my new motorcycle home from the dealership, I had not been on a motorcycle in years, I had no Motorcycle license, and the dealership just handed me the keys. That thirty mile almost all highway (don’t exceed 50mph during break in lol) ride home in Houston traffic was an eye opener.
As time went on I realized that my motorcycle was the missing part of my life. I rode as often as I could anywhere I could. Solitude on the road brought me an inner peace I don’t expect anyone that doesn’t ride to ever understand. The inner demons of my life could not keep up on the road. I learned what I could from the long beards that I met, and I listened to their knowledge.
I created my own “style” with my motorcycle as it was an extension of myself. I became a member, and then an officer in one of the oldest motorcycle clubs in Texas. For those of you that do not have experience with traditional motorcycle clubs I will simply say that it is a different world apart from the civilian life. Respect and Brotherhood are the leading concepts by which you live. I sometimes feel like I was born in the wrong era, maybe it is the result of being raised by my grandparents, but I was lucky to have some old world values instilled in me at an early age.
I evolved as a person, and eventually chose the path of an independent rider. I went from absolutely no mechanical aptitude to building and working on my own motorcycles. I chose the path of function first in my overall attitude. I streamlined my life alongside my motorcycles. I continue to learn, and I continue to want to learn more.
I will leave you with something I found years ago back when the internet was new. I had not been riding very long but this piece struck a cord in my mind. It has stayed with me for many years. I have really adopted it as a philosophy for my life, and I wish others would at least understand part of what it is about. Now, I choose to share it with you:
THE BIKER'S CREED - (Continued on Next Page)
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