A Sportbike Blog by Dylan Weiss
Back at it Again...
The bike is slipping into second gear as the sunshine flickers. Bright and dark rays shutter through the weeds. Spill onto the road. Laying out a pattern of texture that’s deep with shades of gray but very little black and white…
And then the torque starts to talk…
Big hits of power slam into the road. Punch the asphalt straight in the face as the bike gnarls, and snares, and grabs hold. Wringing the last bit of grip as the power envelops not only the moment, but my mind. And it’s evil and it’s vicious and it’s just down-right mean… After three or four hits I find myself thinking the poor road didn’t even do anything to deserve this sort of punishment… And yet it’s still getting knocked silly… Rip after rip…
The top of Stunt Road
Jumping forward, the bike blasts. Begins beating up the wind as well. Nothing it seems can stand in its way… And then you realize it’s time to buckle down. Fully focus. As in 100-percent pay-attention time… No room for wandering thoughts, idle memories or business decisions that lurk ahead… No, now there is no time for anything else but moto-satisfaction…
Breaking left, the road tries to sneak one past the machine… But it doesn’t are. Just flicks in. Dives for the centerline. Acts unfazed…. Subconsciously I lean inside… Slide off the mount and towards the ground… Think to myself it wasn’t that long ago I was fighting this situation… But that was months ago and even though it’s been awhile since I was on the bike, this somehow feels more secure than it has in quite awhile… Because the bike just holds its line… Hangs on in one extended moment of solidarity with the asphalt. As if suddenly they’re best friends again… And I think what a change a six-pack of months make…
They say that ‘absence makes the heart grow fonder,’ but historically, for me anyway, that’s not always been case when it comes to bikes. The longer I’m off them, the more reasons I seem to find for putting off the first ride back. Chores, bills, parties, work, sleep, all those other things from regular life that tend to get in the way…
And it’s not because I love the machines any less, but rather, really, because the first ride back after a long lay off always seems to suck… It almost never fails that I find myself fighting something… The machine, the transmission, the road, the grip, the rusty feelings…
In truth, it’s not my favorite emotional ride…
And yet today none of that is true… The machine is matching the revs of my mind and doing exactly what I want, when I want it and it just seems easy… Remarkably easy…
Pulling off at a vista spot, the old man, pulls off his helmet and looks at me and then the machine…
“You look like you again,” he says with a smile… And I think, ‘I feel like me again’…
“It’s seems like it’s been a long time since I felt this good on a bike,” I respond and he nods…
It’s been months since I was last on the bike, thanks as usual to work - the traveling, the catching up on sleep, the deadlines, it’s the perfect cauldron for poor riding really… But somehow, for some reason, not today… How that’s remotely possible I don’t know, but I dig it… And I can’t wait to ride out the rest of Summer… Ah… It’s nice to be back…
Honda, Part 6
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You know, I’m the same way. The longer I’m off, the easier it is not to get back on. For me, I think it’s a combination of laziness (both mental and physical), and a sort of basking in the sunshine of not risking life and limb.
I also seem to always have sort of a crummy ride after a long absence. Which tends to reinforce the absence. Every once in a while you get to savor that fantastic first ride back in the saddle which just makes you kick yourself for not getting out more often. The mind blocks out all the hot frustrating rides where you dont click with the bike or the flow, or the close calls, or the lowsides.
I think motorcycling is a drink best taken in long draughts, savoring and reveling in it, drunk and heady with the nectar. And then a fast which cleanses the impurities and cobwebs from the mental connection to the good and bad, which are both intense extremes in the canon of motorcycle.
Really nice report there. It’s always more difficult for me to get back on and ride after a long break. Never had one longer than three months and my riding group ensures that.
I love the last lines, superb!
It’s um, like riding a bicycle? You can’t really ever forget how to ride, but you can certainly be rusty after a while off the saddle. The cobwebs usually clear after the first few corners, but I sympathize with the “first ride back sucks” crowd. That’s why you should make it a habit to get out on the bike every weekend, even if only for a quickie!
Beautiful MV, btw. I like how the overexposed pics really convey the August heat. How’s the S2R1K treating you?