Just a generation ago, Cycle magazine described the Harley Davidson
Sportster as “so fast it will put hair on your chest, and if you have hair
already, it will part it!” Seems a 1/4 mile in just over 13 seconds was
considered quick...until the Z-1 from Kawasaki came along, running in the low
12’s, and suddenly body hair had a new definition. And as bikes got quicker, a
Z-1 dipped into the 11’s, and we all wondered “how can anyone hold on to that ?”
Soon 10 second quarters were the yardstick that quick was measured by. And
today, two production bikes, the Kawasaki ZX-14, and the Suzuki Hayabusa both
run in the 9’s! And it hasn’t ended there, as I had a press bike for a week, a
special built Triumph Rocket 3 that turned an 8.99@155 mph in the quarter. Now it is important to
note that although I may ride fast, none of these bikes will do this time with
me in the saddle, I am not that quick. But just knowing they can...and maybe it
tells you why Sportys of today are humbled by 250cc bikes....
So we are talking quick here, not to be confused with fast. When I first
rode a Z-1, Bouke’s 1973 with a Yoshimura pipe, at 102 mph my helmet almost blew
off my head. Now the ZX-14 will do 102 in first gear, and 132 mph in second!
Now that is fast and quick. But back to the Rocket 3 I rode.
At the first light a Sons of Anarchy wannabe pulled up next to me, and
revved his engine. When I did the same, he wouldn’t look at me, and left the
light very slowly-all the race had gone out of him. Ask Karl, it sounded like a
NASCAR racer. But just how fast was the Rocket? I wondered why the light
traffic was going so slow, until I looked down and saw 110 on the speedo.
Mickey had built and tuned this to go fast, a stock Rocket has over 165 lb. ft.
of torque, this had almost 200, and horsepower had gone from 150 to 220! And
redline from 6500 rpm to 9000! When I took it back I was cruising at 125 mph,
at 8000 rpm-in third gear. As my friend Brett used to say “more power than any
white man should ever need.” You may think you are quick, this bike was! And
you know I just had to see how quick, and Mickey had told me the rear tire will
not hook up under full throttle until third gear, try it on the freeway. And he
was right, second will spin the tire WOT, and it will also scare the crap out of
you, as I thought I was in third when I opened it up, and when he asked if it
puckered me, “I told him I didn’t have time to.” I don’t ride like that
normally, but be honest, if you were given a Ferrari for a week, wouldn’t you
open it up just a little? And truth be told, the hair my chest still didn’t
part...
So quick and fast are relative terms. So be careful how you brag on them.
I have ridden over 100 miles in one hour, not just 100 miles per hour, there is
a difference. And one time with my son on the back-don’t tell Theresa. I have
been in the rev limiter on my FJ1100, which Yamaha states is 155 mph. Don’t
believe your speedo, they lie. And even my 2007 Tiger 1050 will record the top
speed, mine shows 133, that I thought was fast, until I saw a press bike that
showed 148. Not so fast Mike...and of course when I tell people how I used to
ride 1000 mile days, they think you must be going over 100 to do it. Do the
math, 1000 miles in 14 hours is only about 70 mph...your SUV cut me off
yesterday going faster than that. So fast and quick are relative, and no matter
how fast or how much hair on your chest, someone will always be both, faster and
quicker. Just like the SOA wannabe found out.
So the people I bench race with know fast and know quick. And when someone
says they went such and such quick, we know the truth. Ask Ray, his B King has
only 264 hp, over 100 over stock. He knows fast. We see what a bike’s power
really in on the dyno, as opposed to what the factory claims, or how fast it
feels from the seat. Dyno horsepower is for bragging rights, in the wrong hands
it is useless, in a fast rider’s it may make a difference. So don’t be
impressed by numbers, or the fact you think you are fast, the fast guys know who
they are, they know who you are too. And may ask you to prove your bragging, no
need to embarrass yourself further. Why don’t you just go out and enjoy the
ride like I do, and save the sped for the track, or some deserted highway. Just
in case that old Sportster is out there. And like the old saying goes, “don’t
let your alligator mouth over load your pussy cat lies.”
And it works with Christians too. Watch how you brag, for you may be
called to prove it. I know a man who claims to have the gift of healing, but
when confronted gets scared. He forgets it is God who heals, not him. And not
as he led you to believe. Prayer warriors, beware. If you tell me you are one,
I may ask you to pray. And expect results quickly, like your testimony. Bible
students, you claim to know the word? I will challenge you, and you will be
embarrassed. You see apart from God, we can do nothing. It is his power, his
spirit working within and without us. It is all about Jesus, and if you don’t
know that, read Acts 19, about the Skeva boys. Who had seen or heard the
miracles of the apostles, and thought them mere tricks. And that they could do
them too...all without the spirit guiding them. And what a shock they were in
for, as when they approached a man with demons in him, and they used the name of
Jesus, in vain, without the spirit, the demons confronted them. Claiming “we
know of Paul, we know Jesus, but who the heck are you?” And after beating them
up, sent them away naked and bleeding. With no mention if the hair on their
chest was parted. Something to remember when bragging, if it is not about
Jesus, you may be in for trouble.
So trust the spirit, listen and obey. Which is better than the sacrifice
you may have to make ala the Skeva boys. It is OK to say “I don’t know,” when
asked, but do try to find out and get back to the person. Not to argue, just
answer the question. It works, I know, for I have been asked, and also asking.
Christian experience vs. Christian education? The word will back up what the
spirit directs you to do, just because you don’t know it doesn’t make it not
true. If you are so smart, who were the first three when Jesus commanded
Lazarus to come forth? We aren’t interested as much I what you know as who you
know, and how much you care. Jesus told us as you go, live the gospel for all
to see. Love beyond reproach, his spirit that changed you will do the same for
them. Get out of the way, you may not be in God’s way! I know, man I know.
Love will cover a multitude of sins, all of them. By his spirit, backed up by
scripture. And if you walk in the spirit, you will know when you aren’t, for in
your spirit it will not be right. But know we can return to God where and as we
are. For he never left us, it was us who turned away.
So some talk a good game, while others are out living it. Some brag,
others deliver. Some look at the picture, while yet another takes it. I want
to be in the photo, I want all of Jesus I can get. I want to see the miracles,
see people saved and lives changed. I want to be around the blessings, but know
that they only come from one place, the spirit. So does your walk meet your
talk? You may be surprised what a photo of you in action reveals.
Your speedo may say 100, but on my GS1000 it is only 91 mph, the speedo is
off 10%. We cannot afford to be off at all when it comes to the things of God.
We need to be 100%, so listen and follow. Too much throttle you wheelie, too
little you stall. Either way you will never get out of the bike what it can
do. And in your walk, your ministry, your family, and church. You need the
hand of Jesus on your throttle always, you never know what will pull up next to
you. Or the challenge you will face. By his spirit, God says, for there is
always someone with more power, is faster, and is quicker, and is looking to
prove it. And without God’s fruit of meekness, power under control, you will
lose. I find I win more arguments because I pick my fights better. Choose
Jesus, he chose you. Now how fast did you say you were?
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com
photos taken in my garage.