Touring bikes have changed over the years, but
then so have those who tour by motorcycle. When I first started riding, it was
BMW or Harley, an occasional Moto Guzzi, and the bigger the better. Then the
Gold Wing arrived in 1975, and changed all that. Shaft drive, 1000 cc, with
Honda on the tank promising it to be reliable, the market changed almost
overnight. My friend Geno, who thought there was BMW and other bought one.
Vetter made Windjammers for them, and soon they morphed from 1000 cc and 4
cylinders, to 1200, then 1500, and now 1800 with six cylinders. Weighing over
1000 pounds....add a plush animal, sound system, and enough junk from Kuryakin
to make it personal just like everyone else’s, and yes, the touring bikes have
changed. Where once it was maybe add a windshield and some bags, most were
bungeed on using Army surplus, to today fresh from the factory, color matched
and built in. Somewhere along the way what touring bike is and was went
astray. But how about the riders...
It takes a special person to be a touring
rider. A love of the road, going places for the first time, eating local meals
and crossing time zones and social barriers, and we do it on all types of
bikes. When BMW came out with the GS 37 years ago, the touring crowd laughed.
But they aren’t laughing now, they are riding them. Fast, comfortable, long
travel soft suspension, good handling, great mileage, and when the road stops
you don’t have too. And the Adventure bike was born, which I have been riding
for over 13 years now. Which now seems to be the standard long distance bike
for touring. From Triumph’s Tiger, Yamaha’s Tenare, Moto Guzzi’s Stelvio, and
ones from Honda, Ducati, Suzuki, and even Buell had one, they are the ticket to
ride. Maybe best told to me by an old man we met in Silver City, who had ridden
from Davis, California. He didn’t need no half ton monster, he rides. Amen to
that. Even more interesting is the fact many who ride Adventure bikes have
Harleys in their garages, but never ride them. Seems riding and cruising are
two different things, if you gotta ask, you might not understand. But the basic
adventure bike too is growing in size, and weight, and with all the options
available, you can build your own, making it a Gold Wing of a different sort
along the way. Talking with those we meet on trips who ride them, we seem to
know something the others don’t, and won’t listen to. Adventure bikes are fun,
are comfortable, and remind us of the dirt bikes we started on. The hair may
get grayer, the step slower, and the pace not as fast, but the rider never grew
up. You can sell a young man’s bike to an older man, but a young man won’t buy
an old man’s bike. Some quit riding because they got old, some got old because
they quit riding. How many miles of smiles do you remember and are you missing
today?
When some come to Jesus, that which is the
beginning for them is the end. They are saved, but never get the benefits of
his Lordship. They aren’t changed on the outside, maybe on the inside, and
still live like hell, when he promises more. I see many tested today who have
filled churches forever, and crater under the weight of being tested. They have
never travelled with Jesus, only read the travelogues, and have the knowledge,
just not any experience. Like the line of black Harleys, or Gold Wings that all
look the same, what they bought into is not what they got. For any bike is
useless until it is ridden, and grace and mercy must be experienced. You think
you can teach them, but you must experience Jesus to experience mercy, and
grace. Yet I hear the grumblings among denominations, who believe their church
is the only one, and all else others, who fall short. It has become popular to
add a tag line to your church, but where is the spirit in it? How many
Christian lives have become overweight like touring bikes, putt putting around
the neighborhood, claiming they own a motorcycle, when we claim we ride them.
They have superior knowledge, just not the relationship, and isn’t the
relationship we sought from religion? Didn’t we buy our first bike and others
to go farther? Has your religion become so burdened and overweight you don’t
ride it anymore? Do you ever wish to go back to the first time Jesus became
real in your life? Are you cruising when you are really seeking
adventure?
Each denomination or church started out to do it
better, different than the old one. Looking back, do you look ahead? Do you
wish Jesus to be Lord, or are you just playing church? Is the spirit guiding,
or the church? Have you confused the separation of church and state with the
separation of Jesus and religion? How have you influenced the world for him?
Maybe a quote by Bruce McLaren, who died young, a championship racer. A time
when auto racing was much more dangerous, and the monetary rewards fewer. When
his team mate died too young, he is quoted:
[On the death of team mate Timmy Mayer] “The news that he
had died instantly was a terrible shock to all of us, but who is to say that he
had not seen more, done more and learned more in his few years than many people
do in a lifetime? To do something well is so worthwhile that to die trying to do
it better cannot be foolhardy. It would be a waste of life to do nothing with
one's ability, for I feel that life is measured in achievement, not in years
alone.”
May I add to that knowing Jesus as Lord. Do you call him
Lord but not do the things he asks? Do you fill a pew, is your life all about
you? Each time a racer steps into a race car, he knows it may be his last
race. Competition takes a toll on the body, and can be deadly. So is
religion. Make sure you are buckled into the spirit, and that Jesus is your
Lord. To live for him is not foolhardy, and it would be a waste of your earthly
life if you did nothing with the gifts he has given you. Many have mastered
years in the church, but never got out of it. I rather brag on what Jesus has
done in my life, the testimonies of achievement, that unless he was Lord would
have been failures. Maybe as touring Christians, sojourners we are called,
travellers here just passing through, we need to adjust our ride. We all need
more adventure, Jesus never changes, it is up to us to change. A marksmen is
known by his aim, not his arrows. Are you all about arrows or your aim? Is
your aim Jesus?
Motorcycling is still about the ride, the way you ride is
your choice. And what you ride. Don’t forget who you ride with, that is the
most important. For riding, like life needs Jesus, and without him, you are an
accident waiting to happen, for in this world you will have tribulation, that
ought to build your faith. Bet that one doesn’t show up in many Bible promise
boxes! But the truth is we will all die, and all unexpectedly. Today may be
your last ride, your last race, your last chance to know Jesus. He who has an
ear let him hear what the spirit is saying. The ride is not measured in years
alone....what will they say about your passing? Better yet, what will they say
about your life? To live for Jesus is not foolhardy. Life is an adventure,
ride it.....
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com