Letter Of The Month: Unlikely But True

Reading Wayne A. Doenges “A Ride, A Lighter And A Little Luck” in the April issue reminded me of an experience I once had that is unlikely but true.

In 1993, I owned a Honda GL1200 Aspencade. Shortly after acquiring it, I started riding with the local Goldwing chapter. One Friday night after leaving the house something was forgotten, and I had to return. I parked the bike, got the garage door opener out, opened the door, set the opener on the back of the seat and placed my jacket, helmet and gloves on the seat while I retrieved the forgotten item.

Returning to the bike, I put on my safety gear and drove out to meet up with my friends for a ride, a few stops, and then dessert later on at a truck stop. Altogether, there were three different places we stopped plus a spirited ride on the interstate before returning home about 11 p.m.

When I pulled up to the garage and reached into my storage for the garage door opener, it wasn’t to be found. With bike ignition off and on the side stand, I checked everywhere on the bike I may have put it with no luck. I assumed it was lost. Finally, in desperation and re-thinking the last time it was used, I couldn’t believe my eyes. There it was, still laying on the back seat!

Joseph Pisano
AMA Life Member
Stuart, Fla.

Living The Life

Just received my May Issue of American Motorcyclist and felt compelled to write about the Guest Column (“Why I Love Riding”) on the last page by Wayne Carpenter. Wow! Nailed It!

I am a Life Plus Member who is 63 and still riding, both street and dirt, and I hope to be that guy who is still riding into my 80s.

My wife, daughter (33) and son (31) all ride.

My “new” dirt riding buddy is my grandson. We bought him, with his mom’s permission, a dirt bike for Christmas last year at the age of 9. He is hooked! Just last weekend my wife joined us for a trail ride, and the conversation on the way home was all about getting out. That led to an early arrival at the state off-road park in Hollister, Calif. It was cool in the morning, warming later in the day. There was the smell of spring, baby ducks in one of the ponds and lots of miles on the trails. It all added up to the perfect day.

My grandson is at the age when most kids are “plugged in” to some sort of device. He talked almost all the way home about how cool it was to ride and also to be outside. He also mentioned that he wants a street bike as soon as he is old enough. It makes the family proud. Whatever your motorcycle passions are, it may not be possible to explain them to a non-rider, but they just do not know what they are missing.

Scott Somers
AMA Life Plus Member
Walnut Creek, Calif.

Staying Young

Wayne Carpenter’s article on “Why I Love Riding” spoke for many of us geezers. At age 79 I still get the same euphoria that I did with my first motorcycle: a well-used 1946 EL model Harley-Davidson purchased in 1955 on a pay-as-you-ride plan. Absolutely nothing can compare!

Bill Herbert
AMA Charter Life Member
Hedgesville, W.Va.

Give Me Liberty

I appreciate the letter by Paul Cooper in the April issue under the heading, “How Does He Really Feel?” right up to the last sentence suggesting an ethanol ban.

This feeling grows from what I also feel when I’m essentially forced to use this diluted gasoline. However, the anger should be directed at lawmakers not to ban, but to stop making laws disregarding the words “life” and “liberty” in our constitution.

The use of blended gasoline should be a consumer choice, not a consumer requirement.

The ethanol industry can establish gas stations to sell their product without any government regulations forcing all stations to sell it. Lawmakers must understand they are obligated by the Constitution to make laws considering our individual freedom.

John Turner | Williamsport, Md.

Own Your Safety

About 70 years ago, I was approaching, from the rear, a car on the side of the road. This was an area of unlimited visibility. A group of cars had been released from a signal and coming toward me. The parked car started moving and making a U-turn and proceeded to punch the lead car in the side, sending both of them spinning. It was a huge lesson for these then-young eyes. Distracted or suicidal—who cares? Any front wheels turned toward my path were never to be trusted. It is interesting to read about efforts to reduce distracted driving, needed as it is.

In the May issue of American Motorcyclist, an article stated that “following a March crash in which an Uber self-driving car struck and killed a pedestrian, Arizona ordered Uber cars off its roadways, and California announced it will not renew Uber’s permit to operate.”

In the incident, a woman was walking across a roadway, pushing a bicycle, at night, apparently oblivious to the traffic. She was not crossing a street at a controlled intersection; she was jaywalking. There is no guarantee that a human driver in full control of the vehicle would have avoided striking her. Were it not for the fact that it was a self-driving car, the incident might have gone down as just another unfortunate accident. Because it was a self-driving car, people want to point fingers. Let’s not blame self-driving cars for things that stupid humans do.

George S. Augustas | Garland, Texas

Control What You Can

There is only one vehicle we can control and trust, and it is ours. Ride accordingly. That has allowed me to now be an old and still active motorcyclist.

Bill Brokaw | La Veta, Colo.

Correction

A story in the Race Recaps of the May issue misidentified the motorcycle ridden by Robertino Pietri in the Daytona 200. Pietri was on an M4 Suzuki GSX-R600 sponsored by Bespoke. Pietri’s third-place finish matched his father’s third-place finish in the 1982 Daytona 200 race.