We’re Not Just About Cars – An Ode to The Thrill of Motorcycles
by Hub Sales Director Angus MacCurrach
There are some hard-core bikers out there who use their treasured motorcycles all year round. We have all seen them ploughing up the M4 in the pouring rain with their thick Gortex coverings keeping them dry-ish in mid January and thinking nothing of it. I am not one of those.
Come the end of October / early November there is a definite time when the days shorten and the temperature drops and, for me at least, the season is over. Engine cases are oiled, chains greased and batteries charged in preparation for hibernation, winter and heated seats. I find this a sad time as I love riding motorcycles like nothing else – the freedom of the open road viewed from within your helmet, which becomes your little world for the journey, gives you space to think and relax. All this is locked away.
Then spring arrives. You don’t notice the days lengthening to start with and then all of a sudden, in late March, you awake one day and the sun has warmth in it again and the open road calls to you like a migrating bird. You open up the garage doors and let in the fresh young air that is unique to early spring.
That, readers, is what I have been doing this week – opening the doors to Spring and getting ready for the year ahead. The bikes are dusted off and readied for action but the key to enjoying this task is taking your time and enjoying the process, as the moment you rush, it becomes a chore. I am very lucky and have a couple of bikes so there is always plenty to do but the essentials are pretty much the same on all bikes; change the oil, check tyre pressures, run a spanner around the bike and tighten everything up then go round them with the oil can and grease gun. There is normally something that needs more attention than this, a job you promised yourself would be addressed over winter and that you still haven’t done but hey, there is always next winter and the sun is shining now!
You wheel out your favourite bike (or more realistically the one you think will start), swing your leg over and give her a kick. Those first blips of the throttle and the accompanying roars from the exhaust do more to expel winter from your soul than anything on Earth. Pulling on your lid and feeling the comforting weight of your leather jacket surround you makes the moment complete and as you engage first gear you can see the summer before you with endless sunshine and no mechanical issues whatsoever! This feeling is the same every year and the sad departure in autumn makes this reunion all the more special for it.
I was sat on my Norton the other week with the sun on my face and with joy in my heart as Boris came on the television and ruined everything. Bugger!! We will have to wait a little longer but – as an optimist – I hope that after a short delay we will be even more joyous when the time arrives that we can open the garage doors once again and enjoy the thrill of motorcycles.
When this day comes, do pop over and see us at The Classic Motor Hub. We welcome all bikers and we have a wonderful café ready to warm you up plus some beautiful bikes to tempt your wallet! See you there…
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