Tuesday, January 5, 2016

the curse of the clean bike



















My neighbor on the corner has 6 cars, four of them collectible.  On any sunny weekend, which we have lots of here, he can be seen polishing and detailing them, then backing them into the garage, while putting covers on the other two.  Hidden from view, never on the road.  I cannot remember the last time I saw him driving any of them, they are in great shape, just never used for their intended purpose, to be driven.  Which may explain a lot of today’s collector car market, they are collectible investments, and the theory of high miles versus low ones has made many an owner a prisoner to his machines.  But in today’s market a new, more realistic class is emerging, cars that are used and have patina, gentle aging.  And are mostly original, or customized as they were in the day when they were new.  And now are bringing high dollars, because that is how we remember them.  Gentle aging, like we would like to have our lives be, although I never thought of myself as collectible. 
Now with 6 motorcycles occupying my garage, I could have fallen into the same trap, collectability.  But when I bought them, I bought them to ride, and I still do.  With over 300,000 miles sitting with two wheels under them, they have memories of past rides, and dreams of future ones.  My 2006 Tiger just went over 100,000 miles, and I use it for my daily rider, except when I ride my 2005 Bonneville, which only has 74,000 miles.  Theresa’s 2002 Bonneville has just under 80,000, and is being ridden weekends again.  Christopher is back from Spain, and is riding the Street Triple, with 36,000 miles on it, which I use during his times away, to keep the battery fresh.  The 1978 Suzuki GS1000 sits on the lift now, only for storage purposes, ridden last moth 600 miles in two days, just under 30,000 miles from new.  And the newest bike in the garage, a 2007 Tiger 1050 just went over 10,000, 3000 on a week’s ride last June.  You see, my bikes get ridden, and maintained, and although not perfect, are clean, and look like new.  They get exercised regularly when not riding Triumph press bikes, and like Mickey tells me, they last longer when they are ridden.  Just like us, when we get out and live, we last longer, as opposed to sitting around getting old, and wearing out from not being worn.  Much different from my neighbor’s collection, I ride mine.
It seems he has come under a curse we all go through, but I pulled out of long ago.  Call it the curse of the clean bike in my case, car in his.  After the first rain, it can take hours to get it back to how it once looked.  The black engine turned gray, pipes not as shiny, wheels need polishing and you can never get where the rain did to get it clean like it was when new out of the crate.  Pull off a tank or body panel, the grime is there, and for many, they avoid riding in any weather because it will take a toll on their ride.  The patina of memories is unacceptable, so they sit unused, like their caretaker, going nowhere.  A while back a friend asked why I am in so many of our traveling photos, my answer was simple.  I rather be in the picture than taking it.  I rather be read about than reading.  I rather have a patina of high miles and high memories than low miles and perfect paint.  Each scratch on my blue Tiger can be remembered, the time and place.  And how.  When we look at old photos, we can date them by what we were riding at the time.  And suddenly the 2006 Tiger is the blue Tiger, or remember the road on the red Sprint.  The ride to Canada on the yellow bike.  We want to remember the good times, the good rides, and who we rode them with.  And personally I don’t worry any more about that first scratch, that first rain ride, or the high miles.  A collectible is only worth what you get for it when sold, my memories on two wheels are so valuable they are not for sale, and couldn’t be purchased if they were.  Many go to shows and have their pictures taken by a vehicle, maybe even sitting in it, or on it.  Mine are from where we have ridden, and what we have ridden.  When Karl took the pictures of the 220hp Rocket I had this summer, I got to ride it.  I was in the picture.  He took it. 
So I have risen above the curse of the clean bike, at least for now.  My most recent bike, the Tiger 1050 has never seen rain, but I know it will have to if ridden as planned.  The miles don’t come without times of rain and hardship.  It is the hard times, the storms in life that bring us the best testimonies, yet we resist them as much as possible.  Give me 85 degrees with sun any day over 40 and rain, yet in the flash floods I saw more of God.  I had to call out to him, I had no choice.  Not riding those days was not a choice.  I find it interesting that the first words of Jesus recorded in the gospels is a question, “what do you want?”  Asked in John 1, we see John with two other future disciples, hearing that Jesus is the lamb of God.  Interesting that Jesus got right to the heart of life, his few words speaking volumes.  Have you considered what you want from life?  From your cars or bikes?  When confronted about Jesus, what do you say?  Have you ever considered what you want?
Ironically enough it was the who asking what.  For it is the who you seek, that is the pathway to what we want.  Psalms tells us that God will give us the desires of your heart.  Is he your desire?  He offers the free gift of salvation in Jesus, is he the what you are looking for?  Consider Adam in the garden after he sinned, did he consider what he had done until God asked him “where are you?”  When someone calls and asks for directions, the first thing you ask is “where are you?”  From there you can be given direction.  So ask yourself, where are you in Christ?  What do you want?  And the journey begins, led by his spirit.  Now you can be directed.
You see we don’t really know.  Until we are asked.  My neighbor worships his cars, they own him.  My passion for riding allows me to have many bikes, but they don’t own me.  They are a part of me, and away from me have no value to me.  Same as with God.  My passion for Jesus runs deep, but I don’t own him.  He owns me, but his best concern is for me.  His passion is me.  And mine is him.  When he gave me the desire of my heart, it was and is him.  All else is added on.  He is the most important part of me, and away from me I have little or no value.  He is what I want, peace, love, security, and assurance of heaven.  On earth as it is in heaven, like the prayer says.  He can be my Lord here, I don’t have to wait for death to see heaven, I get a glimpse of it everyday in him.  The what is really a who, the who of Jesus Christ.  And in his garage of souls, we are all high mileage, need cleaning and maintenance, and need to be rescued and saved.  To be used out in the public, in life sharing our testimony of him, not sitting covered or in a museum.  We need to get out and ride like he did, spend time out on the road where the action is.
I don’t want my life to reflect the curse of the clean bike.  I have scars and bruises, there are dings and things that need to be fixed.  All from life.  But they were obtained from living and riding.  So maybe the first question Jesus asked in the gospels needs you to answer it.  What do you want?  When it is the who of Jesus Christ, you find life.  And that it is worth the living.  Just because he lives.  So get out and become part of the memories, get in the picture instead of behind the camera.  So it being a rainy day today, I will go and do the right thing-I will wash my bikes in the rain water.  Dry them off in the garage after.  Nothing cleans like the rain, and no fragrance is like the fragrance after the rain.  Now, which clean bike do I wash first?
Life will always be filled with questions?  What do you want?  Where are you?  In the midst of the storm, Jesus is there.  Start a new testimony today.  I’d like to see the pictures, but only if you are in them.  With him.
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com