The link is an extract from the book Full Throttle Aristotle. Unfortunately I don't have the nouse to copy from the file so I've had to settle for the link however if you skip most of it and go straight down to page 72 you'll read pages of the best description of what riding is about that you will ever find. It's from the philosopher Bernard E Rollin (some of the other stuff is interesting too, if a bit heavy). The story of his bike trips with his young son; the Indians straight out of jail asking him to start up the Harley so they could hear it and "know they were really free"; the Navajo cop on the Harley warning them that helmets are required on the reservation, and other observations are magic. Have a crack at it and I think you'll thank me for it for the bits that are readable. Straight to Page 72!
http://books.google.com.au/books?id=NrsfTreAPfwC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Bernard+E+Rollin&hl=en&ei=O8alTNODA42-cYDugagH&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CDoQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q&f=false
Oops maybe it doesn't come up for everyone. I'll try on another computer. It's an extract from a book - you should see the cover (a tattooed arm) then pages and pages of text. Apparently not! Next week I'll try to lift the text and pick up just the good bits. You'll like it. Here is one bit I can reproduce:
...cars have become increasingly automated, replete with cruise control, navigator computers that talk to the driver and electronic parts that take the ‘I’ out of driving. There are those who project a future automobile that do not require a driver, where the machine is centrally controlled, the would be driver thence becomes a passenger. Such changes are not seriously projected for motorcycles, for motorcyclists do not largely ride for practical reasons, despite those who extol their mileage per gallon,… motorcyclists ride largely for the aesthetic experiences riding provides , from being nearly out of control, or extending total concentration not to get killed, from getting soaked in warm summer rain to being totally dry an hour later. In a deepest sense, riding takes skill that driving a car does not, skill that one can take pride in‘.
Or this:
"Excessive emphasis on safety, health, and "welfare" as dictated by "experts" is turning American society from a society of reckless adventurers, risk-takers, ocean and continent crossers, and zealous protectors of individual choice to a nation of helmet wearers."
