All I did was stop in to use the bathroom. And Quaid’s Harley being along
my ride route, I decided to use their facilities. As we get older, the need to
water a lemon tree gets more frequent, ask Burt Munro, and I was greeted while
leaving by a salesman I have known casually for years. He began asking about
the Scrambler I was riding, and was keenly interested. “Can I go look at it
before you go? I have some questions?” So we went out among the many Bar and
Shield faithful around my bike, and he started telling me how they had taken in
a Thruxton last summer. And rode it all summer before putting it up for sale,
and how much they loved riding it. This from an older Harley rider and
salesman, who just happens to love motorcycles. Soon another salesman came out,
and asked more questions, and when finding out the price and seeing how cool the
Scrambler was, admitted he had just spent too much on a new Sportster, he wished
he had looked at Triumphs first. And he sells Harleys for a living! Soon I had
half a dozen Harley owners gathered around admiring the Scrambler, asking
questions and making positive comments. The last one being a question from the
original salesman, “are they loud? I am so sick of loud motorcycles.” And to
him and a few others, when this muffled Triumph started up, they all commented
on the exhaust note-they liked it. Lemon tree watering completed, I threw a leg
over it, and riding away I couldn’t help but blip the throttle in true Harley
style, wondering if I had just crossed into a Twilight Zone event. Where were
the cameras, and would anyone believe me?
The one thing we all admitted while talking was how much fun the Triumphs
were to ride. They were lighter, faster, braked and handled better. They were
easier to ride, and both salesman admitted so many were taken in by the Harley
mystique, only to be found to be a mistake, as any Japanese dealer can attest
to. Look at all the used Harleys they have, recent models with low miles.
Traded on bikes to be ridden. And I always think of Spud, who always liked to
see whatever Press bike I was riding. An old Harley rider, he liked the Daytona
R the best. He had read about them, and secretly wanted a ride...but felt he
was too old. He had been riding a cruiser since the late sixties. But looking
at it one day, getting up from bended knee, after admiring the details, told me
“we have a common disease, motorcycles.” And he was right, we do. And like
many of us who do, the fact we ride is more important than what we ride. But a
quick reminder of a few years back shows how many are just brand specific to a
fault. Glen and I traded bikes for a ride. He on my Sprint RS, me trying to
catch up to him on his Road Glide. We both stopped for an outlaw biker pulled
over on the shoulder in distress. He waved Glen on, but when I stopped he
explained his situation. He thought I was a Harley rider...boy was he wrong. I
guess my Triumph t-shirt didn’t give me away. And we both laughed about it
later, but sadly we all have built in prejudices toward what we ride. But there
is a wind of change, as even Sonny Barger went from HD to Victory, and now rides
an Indian. And likes my Triumphs, and knows all about them. And if they were
made in America would own one. Heard from his lips, and also from his first
book. And this guy knows how to ride....what’s your excuse?
You have not always met the nicest people on a Honda, or let the good times
roll on a Kawasaki. Harley almost faded away, Triumph came closer, and BSA,
Indian, and many others have come and gone, come and gone, and Indian decided to
stay. Riding is a personal thing, and what you ride is personal. When Theresa
started riding I told her this, and after a few weeks explained how it was. She
couldn’t quite put it into words, but her bike and her had a relationship.
Suddenly it was her bike, instead of the Bonneville. And her attitude towards
it changed, and an intimacy began. Not a worship, but like a relationship
between two friends, where many things go unspoken, but say a lot. We don’t
often think of Jesus like that, we think personal as in heavenly, or he is our
savior. And he is, but we see a different side of Jesus when his friend Lazarus
gets sick and dies. Jesus calls him friend, in Greek the word meaning brotherly
love, like in Philadelphia. He was God, he was man, but he is also friend, and
was to Lazarus and his sisters. I am sure they talked heavenly things the many
times they met for dinner, but maybe other things as well. Jesus being a
carpenter may have shared about what he had made that day, or how his family
was. What he had seen on the news, seemingly non-religious talk, but talk
among friends. The kind of talk we do with our friends. And another side of a
relationship was seen. One time telling Jesus all about a ride I had just taken
was precious time spent with him. We are told to be in the world, but not of
it. Jesus is that great example. And how many times have you been unable to
share him because you didn’t find common ground with your new friend? Yesterday
I was reminded that just because we ride different brands, or make a living from
one, that we don’t all love riding. And with a deeper relationship now, we have
a common ground, a respect for each other, and now the words I share about Jesus
come from a friend, not just another person making a point. Consider that next
time you meet someone new, or someone you know. Seek a common ground, and watch
as Jesus is part of it. Listen, share, never preach. I don’t like being
preached at, so I don’t to others. And if you do to me, I’m outta here. Good
teachers know it takes a good audience, works while riding too.
So maybe this was just one afternoon at the Harley shop, but it made my
day. It is always good to talk with others who share your interests, but also
good to listen and learn. We had an audience that day who overheard what we
were saying, and were interested. Maybe never considered anything but a
Harley. Now they know about others, and that it is OK to ride another brand.
Riding should be fun, and if it isn’t, you need to change. Maybe your style or
lack of it. If something is missing from your life, consider Jesus. He
considered you that day on the cross, and is right now. Consider the words you
speak as you never know who is listening. Or who sees you. After riding a
Thruxton all summer, two men found that all bikes are not created equal. And
they couldn’t wait to talk when I showed up. Many have heard about Jesus, and
have questions. Will you listen and answer, or just continue an argument? We
all have a common disease called sin, and only Jesus is the cure. If three old
riders can agree on riding, can we maybe agree on Jesus? Let those who ride
decide.
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com