Topic: Why do you ride a classic bike?

[Johnie]

All great comments.  I also have nothing against the newer bikes.  Hey, ride what fits you and what turns your crank.  I started riding in 1969 and I really like the style and nostalgia of riding these classis bikes.  I also enjoy the people looking at the bike and giving me the "thumbs up" when I ride by.  The guys that pull up next to me at a traffic light and just stare at the bike.  I stopped at a gas station last year with my KO and there was a Harley gang there off to the side waiting for a buddy.  I pulled into the group and said, "this bike is older than all you guys."  They got a laugh and then enjoyed taking a look at my KO.  Riding this KO breaks the ice and people love to look and talk about these classics.  Plus, who does not like to go back in time a bit...

[74cb750]

I rid the older cb550's, cb750's, Kawasaki S2, and H1 because they are so easy to fix and keep on the road.

Had some zoom-splats (VF750, GSXR750, GS1100G, Z1 etc etc) and though they could go fast, most were not comfortable for just riding at / near the posted speed limits. Have enough speeding tickets to show for it.

peace,
michel

[Demon67]

I grew up with classic bikes Matchless, AJS, Triumph, BSA, Norton, BMW, Honda, Suzuki, Kawasaki, Yamaha, Jawa, CZ etc and when I was mechanicing  on them they looked and felt like motorcycles, the new ones look like a japanese teenagers wet dream and riding them is OK but but they lack soul, and yes sometimes our older bikes burp and let us down, but coping with the burp brings out the character in yourself and brings you into harmony with the bike. As far as the other segment of the market goes, if after working on Harleys and rejecting them as an enjoyable form of transport, why would I go for a Harley clone, as far as I'm concerned a bike should be able to run on the road or in the bush with a few mods, try taking a cruiser through a dirt road with steams across it or for that matter a crotch rocket. Price, it would be nice I suppose  to be able to afford 20,000 for a toy but there so many other places where the coin could go (think how much wine or suds 20,000 would buy). Working on modern bikes is OK but I'm from the school that says ride the piss out them and repair them as needed, if you have a classic, you know that if you're stuck you can use a cigarette paper to set the points, a pair of vise grips and farmers fence wire to get you going again, but you can't do that with a module thats gone down the tubes, enough.
Bill.

[nickjtc]

What Raul said, ditto.

Also, being a bit of a 'green' soul I like the idea of 'Reduce, Re-use, Recycle'. By playing around with what the youngsters today call a POS, I can give an old bike an extended alife nd have fun doing it. All helped by a fairly ready supply of the consumable bits.

[kghost]

How about.....

I don't have the good sense God gave a turnip...

I would kill myself on a modern bike.

All the aformentioned reasons are of course valid......

Plus working on them keeps me out of places with low moral character.

[Aaron J Williams]

We are merely passing through history but these bikes ARE history.  Looking around me at everyone who shares this forum, this love of these old bikes, and seeing the generosity members share so willingly I have to ask why not ride a classic bike? We are what those cliche Harley wannabes try to buy their way into. We know our bikes, love and sometimes hate our bikes but never give up on our bikes. We are bound together by our bikes and the bygone era they represent. Growing up in the 80s surrounded by "real" bikers I learned a code of conduct, an unspoken set of rules that they lived by. They were family in the truest sense, giving of themselves freely with no thought of return other than a favor at some later date. I would trust any of them with my life, and they would do the same with me. I live my life as they taught me, to honor their code or creed even though they are all but extinct now. I ride a classic bike because I am a classic biker.

[nickjtc]

We are merely passing through history but these bikes ARE history.  I ride a classic bike because I am a classic biker.

Very well said. Me too.

[fonz]

I've got mechanical ability, don't care for the younger sportbike crowd (for the most part, anyway), can't afford insurance on a newer gixxer, and have some sense of composition. A modern bike with all its mandated bells and whistles just can't compare to a stripped-down, purpose-built machine. I work in a bike shop, and know what all that goofy bolted-on #$%* does, but still find beauty in simplicity.
Plus, modifying vintage vehicles just blows all the squares' minds.

[tonian]

A couple more reasons why I appreciate classic bikes:

1.) typically, there is more thought and care put into the realm of classic cycling. It seems the crowd that loves these kind of bikes love motorcycles and cycling for a genuine reason and not just image alone.

2.) I've never seen someone with no shirt and flip-flops riding a classic bike. It seems like there are plenty of douchebags like this riding out there.

[markb]

Because I can.