THE JOYS OF MOTORCYCLING
By: Rice
Date: 2/28/02

    Last weekend a couple of friends and I enrolled in our local Motorcycle Safety Foundation course at PCC and spent a total of 18 hours in their accelerated program learning how to grapple with crotch rockets. 10 of those 18 hours were spent on the range (read: parking lot) where a group of us jumped through the hoops our instructors put up. And it HAD to be the hottest weekend of this winter season, too. Phew.

    My point is, if any of you are planning, or even thinking, about riding a bike in the future, the MSF course is an invaluable resource. You not only get to ride a free motorcycle around for hours upon hours, you get to trash them around too with no consequence. You may find that scooting around with an engine ranging from 100-1000cc's just isn't for you. Much cheaper than actually purchasing one and learning the hard way. And beyond the basic skills that you acquire, you also learn ways to avoid accidents, like swerving, or maximum braking, or what to do when your rear wheel locks up.

    The best part is, if you pass their riding test in the end, you get a free waiver you can use at the DMV. Just take the written test, and you are licensed. Sweet. Their riding test isn't horribly difficult, and you get the benefit of getting tested by someone who knows how you ride and grades more leniently. Even though I ran over fifteen gazillion cones and screwed up a braking run, I still passed somehow.

    So now, I'm thinking of getting a motorcycle. Nothing fancy or even remotely powerful either, as a matter of fact. It'll be a while before I actually do take the plunge though. I am financially strapped, thanks to Westwood's price gouging apartment managers.

    You see, I took the class because some friends suggested it, and I thought it'd be a fun way to spend the weekend. It kicked off by showing a video on the joys of motorcycling, and though I snickered at the title in the beginning, I stopped after that weekend. Riding a bike made me feel incredibly free. Almost like I could fly. It's a weird sensation, and no, I did not take hallucinogenics prior.

One of our instructors, Doug, rides this bike.

    It's more about looking cool, which I know is why lots of people ride for. Gearing up in your full body Aerostich suit and full helmet w/ a tinted visor while revving that 1000cc Honda Super Hawk... must be a chick magnet! But no, for me, it's far more than that (although I cannot deny the cool-factor). It's about feeling the air whoosh around you as you ride. It's about being able to out-accelerate 99% of the cars on the road, even with a puny 250cc weakling. It's about splitting the lanes and waving to all the cars you pass during a log jammed Friday afternoon on the I-10. It's about being able to park even closer than handicapped people, and not even having to buy a stupid pass. And of course, it's about picking up them babes.

    Interested yet? It ain't just for guys, either. In my class, there were more than a couple of women, ripping it up just as well, if not better some guys. Click here to sign up!