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about 7-8 years ago, just before i met my ex, i was seeing this girl from italy once in a while. she was here as a student. well, yesterday i get a phone call from her. she found me in the book. she was in the country and area visiting friends and family. she asked if i still had a motorcycle. i said of course. we were supposed to ride together way back then, but it just never happened....we did other stuff. anyway, she said she called to collect that ride. so i go pick her up. i could get into a long rant about how a semi pulled out in front of me on my way there and totally cut me off and how i had my work cut out for me, but i will skip that. anyway....i get there and she looks pretty good, although put on a few pounds. but it suits her and i had no complaints. gotta remember here...it has been 8 years. i have seen "huge" changes in people in a year. anyway, i gave her the tour....follow the lake...through a covered bridge, stopped to watch the sunset....then a cruise down mainsteet which is pretty cool here at night....then she comes home with me and spends the night and "censored". this morning we go have breakfast, do some more riding, then i drop her off at home and we say good-bye again and that maybe someday our paths will cross again. she also thanked me for everything...and i mean that literally.....for the sunset....the breakfast...the 300km ride i gave her....the other ride i gave her (hehe)....alot of thanks you's. but she said one thing that kind of made me feel really really good inside. she knows how to ride on a bike. hands on tank when braking...leans properly...she has it down. she told me she has 4 brothers and they all had bikes. her ex had a bike...she rode alot on alot of different bikes. we did have a small incident....i had a split second to decide if it was brake or look for a way out. i saw the way out as the choice, so i made a pretty smooth move around the back of a car (a woman pulled out of a driveway in front of me to go the opposite direction as me). anyway....she told me that in all of her riding as a passenger, she never felt so comfortable and enjoyed a ride as much as she did with me. she said it was very smooth, even when i took it up a little fast...which she enjoyed and wanted. and she said my bike was very very confortable. she was very expressive about it....kept telling me over and over. anyway....i felt really complimented about it. and this isn't the first time i have heard this. i carry alot of passengers. i enjoy the 2-up ride alone. it makes for good company.....free to explore as we wish.
So why did i feel the need to share this? cuz for me, that is what riding is all about. i think it was wildkat that asked in his thread about how we ride....well this is it for me. i will choose bringing a smile to a kids face as he or she enjoys her first ride on a bike.....or taking a female companion for a ride that will be a fun and exciting experience for her, over getting my knee down anyday. this might sound a little strange to some of you newer riders....or the older guys who see it as a sport and frequent the track... that is normal. i didn't think of this crap 20 years ago. but someday some of you will see where i am coming from. it is just a really nice feeling to know that all the years you spent on the road did actually achieve something. and that achievement is to be able to slap any tom, dick or harry on the back of you bike and make it an enjoyable experience for them. to know that they put their utmost trust in you....and that it will be a pleasurable experience. and this comes from the senses. i just give off that vibe...as aposed to "should i get on with this guy". could it be my total lack of competitiveness when it comes to riding? whatever it is, i take pride in it. and it doesn't matter what you ride to achieve it. it is possible on any bike. and when you hear someone compliment your skills in that way, you might just see it like i did....the best possible compliment one can get.
So why did i feel the need to share this? cuz for me, that is what riding is all about. i think it was wildkat that asked in his thread about how we ride....well this is it for me. i will choose bringing a smile to a kids face as he or she enjoys her first ride on a bike.....or taking a female companion for a ride that will be a fun and exciting experience for her, over getting my knee down anyday. this might sound a little strange to some of you newer riders....or the older guys who see it as a sport and frequent the track... that is normal. i didn't think of this crap 20 years ago. but someday some of you will see where i am coming from. it is just a really nice feeling to know that all the years you spent on the road did actually achieve something. and that achievement is to be able to slap any tom, dick or harry on the back of you bike and make it an enjoyable experience for them. to know that they put their utmost trust in you....and that it will be a pleasurable experience. and this comes from the senses. i just give off that vibe...as aposed to "should i get on with this guy". could it be my total lack of competitiveness when it comes to riding? whatever it is, i take pride in it. and it doesn't matter what you ride to achieve it. it is possible on any bike. and when you hear someone compliment your skills in that way, you might just see it like i did....the best possible compliment one can get.
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