How many of you have considered riding a motorcycle or scooter? If you haven't, reconsider. There are large benefits to be had that I feel outweigh the drawbacks. If that wasn't true, there wouldn't be so many riders out there and the motorcycle industry wouldn't exist. The biggest issue you might see with motorcycles is safety. Take the MSF course, be a smart rider, wear good gear, and that's about all you can do for safety. If the thought of two wheels is pure terror to you I don't think anything is going to change that. Your loss. Honestly, motorcycles are safer than you think; stupidity is a large part of what makes them so "dangerous". Other drivers hitting you no matter how "safe" you are is usually the other variable in the equation keeping people away from motorcycles. If you want to enjoy two wheel riding like many millions do, traffic collisions are something you have to put to the back of your mind or you'll always be afraid. Yes, be aware of the possibility of a crash, but don't be thinking about it every time you ride.
Practicality is another issue for most people. Where do I put all my crap? Well, I say chuck it, you don't need it, be a minimalist. If it can't fit in motorcycle luggage or be strapped to your bike you probably don't need it. I'm not saying ditch your car if you don't have to, but I am saying ditch the full size pickup truck or large SUV. Seriously how many of you really, really, NEED those things? Keep your car for hauling tons of groceries when you must, or friends, your dog, furniture...but you'd be surprised how many people transport these things on bicycles, less a motorcycle! But, when you don't HAVE to be driving your car, don't, and eventually you'll realize how much you can actually do with a motorcycle or a scooter and you'll use the car less and less. Even the bitter cold and rain won't stop you once you're comfortable with it and have the right gear.
Why do you need to do this? Well, there could be several reasons...because it's fun, because it's new and exciting to you, because its a skill to have, you like the sound of the bike or the looks, or you like how you look on it, but for a lot of you that isn't enough. OK how about spending a lot less money on gas and reducing your carbon footprint? Wait, you say your Prius gets 50mpg? Yeah sure if you keep your foot off the gas pedal and drive like an old person. And, are hybrids fun... like fun at all? Didn't think so. And if you think you're saving the planet by using less gas in your hybrid have you stopped to consider how those batteries are made or what happens to them after they're no good? Neither is what you would call "green". And how much did you pay for that thing anyway? Almost $30k, more? Yeah... that's a lot of cash to invest to save some gas, and that new Toyota will depreciate faster than you want to believe. If you bought a preowned one you saved some depreciation but how much longer are those batteries good for now?
Most motorcycles/scooters are less than $10,000 and if you buy something preowned you could be looking at half that figure. Insurance is pretty low if you have a clean record and if you don't buy a race replica super sport bike. Being over 25 years old helps too. Most fill ups at the pump will be $10-15 for the average motorcycle that has a 3.5-4.5 gal tank (premium fuel) and less than $10 for scooters which have smaller tanks. Your range will vary, but expect anywhere from 100-300 miles per tank depending on what you're riding. Most of you spend over $40 to fill up you car, others over $100 for your trucks, and your range can be 200 miles to 400 miles depending. Some of you who have newer turbodiesel cars can get 40-50mpg and have a range of over 400 miles. I see you all as more sensible than hybrid owners; if/when I get a new car it will be a turbodiesel.
Something that most people don't know about, so obviously don't consider, is energy efficiency. It's not the same as fuel efficiency. Technically, the most energy efficient means of human transportation is a bicycle. On a bicycle, you get the best ratio of mass transported for the least amount of energy output. So, bicycles are great for that reason, but you're limited to about 20mph, unless you're Lance Legstrong. That means it takes a lot longer to get places, and then time management becomes an issue. Also, you may not be in the kind of physical shape you need to be to travel 30+ miles a day on a bicycle (yes many people do that, and more). Anyway, think about the energy output of a car versus its mass and what it's transporting. Cars are REALLY heavy, so the vast majority of the kinetic energy attained by the combustion of the gasoline is spent moving the weight of that car or truck, not you. And that gasoline doesn't burn very efficiently either, most of the energy is lost as heat. The reason that diesel cars are more efficient is because the diesel fuel itself has seven times more energy in it per unit than gasoline, something to think about...
These days the average full size pickup truck is over 5,000 pounds, and the average sedan is over 3,000 pounds. Conversely, the average motorcycle is about 400 pounds, and the average scooter less than 200 pounds. My Vespa, for example, being a larger scooter and an all-steel monocoque rather than a tube steel frame cladded in plastic, is about 350lbs dry (no fuel or oil). So, you can see the massive weight advantage of two wheel motor vehicles concerning how much energy is needed to move them. The concept here is commonly known as "power to weight ratio" and while it's most often used to describe performance figures, these days its becoming more used in the war on gas prices. Cars are starting to get lighter without becoming much smaller through the use of high tech materials. This tactic along with more efficient engines, transmissions, tires, and aerodynamics, regular gas powered cars are getting over 40mpg highway. This is great, and it will get better, but for example, Honda's new 125cc PCX scooter claims over 100mpg, a figure previously only attained in smaller 50cc scooters. That's a 150% bigger engine in a larger scooter body, so quite an achievement! If only it were possible with cars at the moment. The PCX uses gasoline, so imagine the kind of mileage you could get with a high efficiency diesel scooter, likely over 200mpg!
So, I've piqued your interest? Which should you buy? Well, if you travel mostly by highway you'll need a motorcycle. You can go sporty for several reasons, but I even at 25 lean towards comfortable sport-touring or adventure motorcycles. When I started riding at 21 I stupidly only considered aggressive sport bikes, as most new riders do, and thought scooters boring because they were slower and you don't shift any gears. Most of the sport-touring bikes are still very fast and have great handling, while their roadability pays out huge over the sport bikes. And there's even big freeway-cruising "Maxi" scooters if you want to avoid shifting gears (automatic transmissions are only available in a few motorcycles currently). Please, as a new rider, do not get a very big, fast and powerful motorcycle, it's just a bad idea. Ridiculous speed isn't needed to have fun and it's really not smart on the street, save it for the track. Learning to handle a bike really well in the twisties at moderate speed is a lot of fun and shows you're of the right mind to be a good rider. I've seen many more talented riders on smaller, lighter, more agile, less powerful motorcycles rather than bigger, very powerful ones. Mastering these handling and control skills will also be a huge advantage when you are ready for a really fast bike, especially when you take it out for track days. Also, dirt/enduro riding can hugely enhance your road riding skills, or so I'm told.
If you drive around town a lot or on back roads, consider a 150cc or smaller engine scooter, a 250cc or smaller sport/standard motorcycle, or even a "motard" style bike. If you think about it you'll realize that all your running around town doesn't require four wheels, four doors, and a trunk. Example: Instead of going to Costco and buying 3 months worth of food and loading up the Chevy Tahoe (ew) go to a local market with a couple reusable bags to do a day or two worth of shopping, then put that under your seat, in your top case, or on your bag hanger between your knees. You may enjoy grocery shopping now instead of dreading it and you'll get out of the house more. Further discoveries I leave to you, the new rider.
There is a third option now, but you need as much money as you would spend on a new Honda Accord. It's called the CanAm Spyder and it has three wheels, two in front, one in back, a modern v-twin engine in the middle, and a whole bunch of cool electronic toys. Three wheels means no balancing act if you have a problem with the basics of riding something with two wheels or like the sure-footedness. There are companies that rent them and take you on tours, so I'd do that before buying one as they are so expensive. Same goes for those of you looking at options like BMW motorcycles, which are worth every penny IMO, but are some of the most expensive production bikes out there.
The details of how, what, where, and when are all up to you. I can advise certain makes and models but that's another blog entry. All I'm looking to do is plant the idea in your head and get you over your preconceived notions about motorcycles and scooters. Open yourself up to something that will make you a more aware human being and inject some fun into your day to day life.
See you out there!
Here's a short article about the merits of owning a scooter and specifically about that Honda PCX: MotorcycleDaily.com - Motorcycle News, Editorials, Product Reviews and Bike Reviews
Here's a short article about the merits of owning a scooter and specifically about that Honda PCX: MotorcycleDaily.com - Motorcycle News, Editorials, Product Reviews and Bike Reviews
