this ride

Everytime I get on my motorcycle, I am putting my life into danger.

Than again, the same can be said for each time I get into my car. Or cross the street. Or swim in the ocean.

It’s a matter of degrees.

But the degrees matter. The feeling of danger when riding my motorcycle is a visceral one.

I take the proper precautions. I wear a leather jacket, full-faced helmet and riding gloves. I drive with a healthy paranoia and am heightened-sensitivity to the world around me.

Yet. It takes a single distracted driver, a slick spot in the road, or a particularly strong gust of wind to make my life…interesting.

And I love it.

The older I get, the easier it is for me to become insulated from the world. Safe and secure in my study, my car, my cube at work, routine becomes a comfortable cell.

That which makes it impossible for me to get my bearings.

I /need/ to be moving to know where I am.

2 thoughts on “this ride”

  1. I don’t have a motorcycle, but I used to go fr rides with family members who did. There really is nothing like that sensation.

    I’m not a traditional adrenaline junkie by any means. I hate roller coasters. I only watch horror movies because they don’t startle me — scaring yourself for no purpose never appealed to me.

    Similarly, taking unnecessarily risks strikes stupid and dangerous to me, certainly not fun.

    However, calculated risks, those are another matter. I live in an area where Hurricanes Irene and Sandy passed over. We watched the weather, subtracted the hysteria and hype from the news, and paid attention to what science said would really happen. I know other places got hit very hard — but our area was basically okay, as we figured it would be.

    Now if they had been category five storms when they headed for us, we would have evacuated like a shot — just like everyone else. but I also told both my partners that if I die in a hurricane, I’ll die laughing.

    Humanity has so withdrawn itself from nature and it’s primal reactions that many never no the combination of alertness and adrenaline that are natural to experience occasionally: the awareness you described experiencing when you ride your bike, and that I feel when I hike in the woods.

    Also, I tried to follow your blog. It says there is need RSS or Atom reader for your website. It’s possible that my reader is just malfunctioning, but if it’s a glitch on your end, I wanted to let you know.

  2. Mmm. I’ve no idea if RSS or Atom reader works properly o the site – or if it ever has. When I have some time, I may take a poke at it.

    For me, it’s not about adrenaline – it’s about freedom. And experience. And to experience life requires risk (definde by the person; motorcycle riding may be risky to some – hanging out in large groups can be scary and risky to others).

    But you’re right. It is a calculated risk and I always weigh my options when deciding to do something considered dangerous. Jumping out of an airplane may sound particularly risky, but when looking at the odds, my daily commute has a higher chance of killing me than jumping out of an airplane.

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