Ya know, since I've been riding I can't really say I've ever felt obligated to look, or ride a certain way. I can remember my first time riding a cruiser; I was riding on my fathers Yamaha Vstar Silverado Classic, a 1100cc bike. Regardless, it was an awesome feeling. The damn thing even sounded like a Harley! Now now boys, keep in mind I'm riding HD now so don't get your panties in a wad!My dad took me out to a rural school parking lot that had a loop and figure eight pattern that would allow me to practice my starts and stops, left and right turns as well as doing circles in a tight one lane all without ever having to be in the street. I think I only killed it once or twice before I got the hang of starts and stops, and I never did drop the thing. We spent a good few hours out there before having to go home. Eventually he told me that if I got my permit, he'd let me ride it; and that's just what I did.
The first day I got my permit, I asked him if I could take it back to the school parking lot to practice some more. I spent what seemed like all day out there in that parking lot practicing my turns and figure eights; with each loop of the figure eight I'd tighten it up until I was able to basically ride in two tiny circles at full crank over top a man hole cover without issue.
My first real ride I had asked my dad if I could take the bike out, I'd thought about riding to Horseshoe Bend (bout 20 or so miles from home). I ended up taking Hwy 55 all the way to Cascade just south of McCall, roughly a 200 mile trip. Having had no road experience in my life, my first "ride" was on a 1100 cruiser and I took one of the most dangerous highways in the state of Idaho head on. It all came natural, like second nature! I couldn't believe the feeling, the freedom! I'm sure my father was secretly pissed that I took his bike so far out on my first ride, but I think the fact that I brought the bike back in one piece compensated for a lot of that. I knew that day that I was a biker, and I would one day have my own.
It took me a few years but I finally got my Honda Shadow VT700C that I bobbed the shit out of and gave away to a co-worker 6 months and 8,000 miles later after I bought my 2015 FXDB. I handed him the keys and rode away on the new horse.After getting the Honda, I rode the piss out of it and I rode hard. The thrill of nearly dragging knee and being able to look down and see sparks flying from the kickstand dragging across the pavement was an awesome feeling; and my style never really changed after I got the Street Bob. Pushing the limits of my bike has always been sort of my thing, and I can usually out ride anybody riding along in terms of speed and maneuverability; but I'm not foolish enough to say there's none better, because there are legends out there.
After a conversation with a brother man of mine, I got to thinking. He'd said that when he got his bike, he just wanted to ride; that the bike came with an image that he didn't ask for. This is something I'd never thought of before, but I can understand.
See, it seems that every Joe Nobody out there can go out and buy a brand new Harley Davidson and suddenly they want to gear head to toe in a brand new $1000+ set of leathers. They buy an HD dew rag, a set or riding shades, and a brand spankin new set of HD brand biker boots for $300. They walk out to their brand new Street Glide having little to no experience having ever rode, they throw over a leg and take off. You can literately watch these people as they roll away and see their level of experience plain as day, maybe its taking off while their feet are hoovering just over the pavement to "maintain balance" or maybe its over turning and having to correct themselves causing the bike to wobble. Simple things like this are a dead give away, but the point is that these people didn't buy a Harley, they bought an image. Odds are the bike will never see over 5,000 miles and be sold for some stupid reason or excuse.
I blame HD for this, since that's how they market their bikes; utilizing an image built by bikers who didn't give a shit what others thought, if not for the "outlaw" culture, HD would have a hard time selling their bikes. In fact, a vast majority of Harley Davidsons designs were influenced by back yard builders back in the day. They'd see shit they didn't like about their bikes, chop and modify them to their liking and later these changes became so popular that HD adopted them and are still used today. HD's got few original ideas, if any. Never-the-less, the image is a problem.
My "attire" consists of a $60 pair of Herman Survivor steel toe work boots; the same brand I've been wearing since I was 16 years old, long before I ever knew of the biker life. I generally wear a pair of blue jeans on weekends, or a pair of wrangler cargo pants on work days. I generally wear just a T-Shirt and hoodie, or my black Carhartt Jacket if its cool out. If its cold, I do have an HD thermal reflective jacket I wear because its light weight and keeps me warm riding in -8 degree temperatures. I started wearing a chain wallet last year after I lost a pocket knife while riding. I kept the damn thing in my back left pocket, but my pants must have been baggy enough that it fell out along the way. I got to thinking about it and decided that if I could loose my knife, I could loose my wallet too; thus, chain wallet. I do have a leather vest, but that's the only leather item I own.
Now, it doesn't sincerely bother me that RUBs go out and buy all this shit just to look like a "real" biker, but it does concern me. Its not the act of doing so, but the motive; why? Why do they feel so obligated to "look the part"? None of that gear makes you a better rider. Granted, leather is the equivalent to all the power ranger gear that sport bike riders wear, but I'd say only about 25% of the biker population actually consider protection beyond helmets when going out to ride. Sadly, its mostly for "looks". Leather has its purpose if bought for the right reasons. I'd love to have me a nice set of thick leather chaps, but not because it looks "cool", but because riding in freezing weather and rain like I do, the leather is optimal for wind and rain deflection and keeping my legs warm.
Unfortunately, I can't afford a $300 pair of chaps, so instead I wear a pair of WWII issue wool insulated trousers that were given to me underneath my jeans and it does the trick. Being wool, it even keeps me fairly warm if I get wet in cold weather. Ya gotta do what ya gotta do cuz it is what it is.
Another thing brother man was bothered by was the seeming demand of "club support". It seems that if you're a biker, you're expected to "support" a club of some sort.
Truth is, this is just another misconception. Honestly, nobody cares if you choose to support or not. The only time you're going to have a problem with supporting a club is if you choose to support rival clubs. You'll never see a Red and White supporter sporting Black and White support gear or vice verse; its a conflict of interest. If you want to remain 100% neutral, you're better off just never buying a single support item, whether it be stickers, t-shirts, hoodies, hats or what have you. As an individual, nobody expects you to support anything, its a personal choice. And nobody will hold it against you for choosing to be neutral. Before I ever chose to officially "support" a club, I never once had anyone ask me "who do you support" as if it were some how expected of me, not once!
Now what is expected of being a club supporter if you choose that route? Not much really. There are only a few very serious do's and don'ts. Never claim to be a club member, never state the club name without it being followed by "supporter" say for example "Hi, I'm ZipTie, Club Support". MC's were influenced very highly by military structure, and should be treated with the same respect, not only out of respect for the club, but respect for yourself. You can't piss on a Marines boots without expecting to get your ass handed to you, so don't go disrespecting a patch holder simply because you hold different ideals. Its all about respect. Lastly, if you claim to be official "club support", you must realize that any kind of socializing with opposing club members, mutual friends, or even acquaintances is an absolute no.
Before I chose to support a club, I was very "independent" minded, and still am today. But back then, I had a very serious "nobody tells me who the fuck I can and can't hang out with. If someone treats me with respect, I'll treat them with respect." And I still firmly stand by that. Ultimately, if someone treats me with respect, I'm going to treat them well. The difference today is that I will not knowingly approach a conflict of interest to strike up conversation, the only difference is that I'll avoid people that I know oppose my chosen club. Its not because I think they're bad people, but because I respect the club, and they've got some sort of beef with each other. As a supporter, personally, its about respecting both clubs. They've got their own shit going on, and has nothing to do with me. But I support one over the other, and I choose to support this club because they're the only ones who have ever treat me like family spite not being a patch holder. I earned their respect simply by being myself, and being real with them. So its just better that I not associate with those the club doesn't get along with.
In the end, I'm not going to be a dickhead to anyone who hasn't first been to me. Rival or not, I offer them enough respect to simply keep the peace. I don't talk shit about anyone or anything I don't know about personally, and I never listen to hearsay.
It really boils down to this when it comes to club support or neutral. Lets say you're a neutral party claiming no club support. You're still going to have to adhere to the basic rules of MC life. If you some how became friends with a club member throughout your journey as an independent, you'd still be expected to cut off all ties to any rival clubs members or acquaintances. If you chose not to respect that expectation, you'd no longer be friends with that patch holder. That's just how it is! Independent or not, you're still subject to certain expectations and the only way to avoid it is to strictly associate with individuals who have nothing to do with clubs at all.
The only way to avoid these kind of expectations is to buy a crotch rocket. Because clubbers don't generally hang out with rice riders.
My suggestion to anyone reading this that holds a neutral status and worries about these things; just fuckin ride. Stop giving a shit about MC politics and just fuckin ride. You'll meet who you meet, and odds are you're too much of a lone wolf to ever choose to run into them again or form any kind of long standing friendship, so you'll never have anything to worry about. Enjoy the journey and those you meet. Because truth is, even though I support a club, there is one grand understanding that I have.
If you take away all the cuts and tattoos, you'd never know the difference. Real bikers are all the same, and all live by the code. The only conflict of interest is business. Unfortunately at a corporate level, business does get in the way of friendship; throwing out that old saying "friendship is friendship, business is business".
MLH&R
Ziptie
