I briefly spoke to another biker today and his words ‘Any ride is better than no ride’ really struck a chord.
Part of the preparation for my Short(er) Way Round ride has been to kit the bike out with luggage. I’d mentioned in a previous post that I’d bought some generic saddle bags rather than spend a fortune on Ducati luggage, however, I felt that a tank bag was needed for the additional space and a map holder. Getting the tank bag turned in to more of a search than I was expecting. The Ducati, being a lightweight tourer does not have a metal tank and most tank bags now seem to use large magnets to attach to the bike. My search for a strap on bag ended where I’d bought the bike, Richmond Motor Sports, which I guess should have been obvious as they’re selling bikes with plastic tanks.
The point. I picked up the bag whilst on my scooter. Now I’m pretty sure that back in the UK a biker would probably not acknowledge the existence of a scooter rider – bit of a mods ‘n rockers thing. However, as I was getting back on the scoot, another bike pulled in, and the guy called over “Enjoy the ride”. I said thanks and offered up that the real bike was coming out on Thursday, just to establish a bit of credibility. When the guy then said “Hey, any ride is better than no ride” I suddenly realized that things were a bit different here. The biker camaraderie extended to scoots. Now, maybe it’s because I need a bike license to ride the scoot I have, but I’m not complaining, I’m still accepted as a bona fide biker (which in reality I’m not).
So there you have it, scooter or bike, any ride is better than no ride. Thank you unknown biker, you’ve made my day.
