Social Anxiety

I don't like people

Actually, that is as inaccurate as it is accurate...let me explain.

Ever since I was a little kid, I've been a bit of a loner, which probably explains a lot about why I love motorcycles so much. It's not that I don't like people, it's that I don't enjoy being in large crowds of people. I prefer being alone, or in smaller, more intimate, groups of people with whom I share a common interest. 

I've always enjoyed the peace of solitude. When I was a little kid, we would visit my grandparents in rural Missouri and one of my favorite things to do was go hiking in the woods next to their house. The smell of the forest, the sounds of the birds, bugs and wild animals just living their lives and knowing that I was a part of their world, just the same as I was a part of my own that was filled with concrete, cars and people, gave me comfort. Knowing that an escape from the hustle and bustle of our busy world was just a few steps into the woods brought me a special comfort that I still enjoy to this day.

Disconnected

There is often a negative perception of people who are "disconnected." If you choose to live off the grid, you are thought of as being a recluse. If you choose to live off the land, you are thought of as being a hippy, or worse, a doomsday prepper. If you choose to simply kill off your social media accounts, you are thought of as being anti-social. Recently, I did just that, or at least I'm trying. I've deactivated the social media pages for The MotoWriter and have been making a valiant effort to deactivate my personal Facebook page (but conveniently for Meta and their data mining efforts, there is an "unknown error" that is preventing me from doing so). It's not that I'm being anti-social, but let's be honest with ourselves for a moment- how many of your social media "friends" are actually your friends? I've got a lot of acquaintances, but very few actual friends. To be clear, when I say actual friends, I'm referring to those people who contribute to my life as much as I contribute to theirs- the small handful of folks who simply enjoy having a conversation with me over a cup of coffee and who have been there for me through triumph and tragedy. They are the people in your life that never asks for, or expects, anything from you other than fellowship.

Social Anxiety Disorder

I'm not one to validate ailments. I refuse to believe that every wild ass kid has ADD or ADHD. When I was a kid, those "conditions" weren't solved by medication- they were solved with parents who weren't afraid to snatch a knot in my ass when I got too wild or tried to be disrespectful. We didn't have "time-outs"... we had a leather belt across the ass and manual labor in the form of yard work on a beautiful weekend. There were no participation trophies or entitlements- we learned to have respect for our parents, earned rewards for our hard work, learned how to live with disappointment and failures and we learned to work hard and keep trying until we got it right. 

I read about something once called Social Anxiety Disorder and, by reading it, I guess you could say that I might have that. I don't like being in or around large groups of people, get irrationally nervous in social situations and my wife and I have avoided more events over the years, due to our own irrational anxiety, than we can count on all of our fingers and toes combined. When I was a kid, we used to just call it being shy, but of course now, everything has to have a diagnosis followed by a prescription medication. I refuse to submit to Alice's world of taking a pill for everything, so instead, I self medicate with the most effective therapy I've ever found- mototherapy.

Motorcycles

Motorcycles are my grown up instrument of solitude. Just like when I would cross that fence and walk off into the woods as a kid, as an adult, when I'm on my motorcycle, I become completely immersed in my own thoughts, observations and solitude. I'm able to disconnect from all of the things that my eyes have seen, escape the sounds of this chaotic world and immerse myself in the simple joys of just being alive. There is no room for scrolling, filtered photos, fake virtue signaling, or lip-synced videos when you're riding... there is only room for riding. Both hands and feet, working together with my eyes and instincts to control the motorcycle, which becomes an extension of my body, as it glides through the backroads and tree lined two lane highways. Riding through pockets of cool air, alongside rivers and streams and under shadows of trees and clouds as the fresh air of the countryside fills my lungs is the best kind emotional and psychological therapy. 

Genuine people welcome

We are living in a society that praises the fake. The more ridiculous it is, the more popular it becomes. Genuine people get shunned, shamed and abandoned in this new world we live in. Not here though, not in my world or in my circle. Those folks that are flawed, insecure, afraid or suffer from social anxiety are welcome to ride along with me anytime. Drop your guard and enjoy life. Embrace your flaws and don't be too nervous to get embarrassed, too cool to be silly or too scared to take the road less travelled. 

Seek only that which is real- real friendships, real experiences and real adventures. Give your love freely, but only give it those that will cherish and respect it. Don't be afraid to get hurt. Remember that your life matters, what you want matters and that your time here is limited-  don't waste it on people or things that don't fill your metaphorical cup. 

Ride safe and make good choices, y'all- I hope to see you out there living your best lives.

p.s.

For those of you that keep coming back to my little corner of the web to read my words... thank you.

Love ya... 

J.D. (aka, The MotoWriter)

Hyenas need love too

A while back, I made a comment at work that garnered quite the response. In a, perhaps not so common, conversation about people and their importance in this world, I made the observation that everyone is special, to someone. While that may not have been an interesting enough comment to be the basis for a blog post, what followed next, certainly was. One of my sharp witted and borderline cynical co-workers challenged my, very generic and ubiquitously bland, comment so I simply replied with the observation that, "even a little orphaned kid in Kenya is important to the hyenas."

Yep. I said that. 

Now, before you allow complete and utter repulsion to set in, allow me to elabortate...

You see, despite what we tell ourselves about how advanced of a species we are and regardless of how we groom, dress, live and even die, we are all still just creatures in nature. We are all still links in the natural food chain of the world. We are simply meat, blood and bones and if you don't believe that, then I'm sorry to be the one to inform you that grizzly bears, great white sharks, tigers and Jeffrey Dahmer would strongly disagree. You don't have to like it, but truth and reality do not require our permission.

So yeah, everybody is special...to somebody... even if that "somebody" happens to be a hungry animal trying to survive another day in the wild. 

With that observation made... and for anyone still reading... I offer this- what makes us think that we are better than the ferocious carnivores that we share this earth with? Is it because we are super smart and we build things? Maybe it's because we live in houses or drive cars? Perhaps it's because we groom ourselves, shave our body hair or buy our food from a store? But, not all those things apply to every human, do they? Is it because we are sentient creatures? Creatures of thought, memory, emotion and intellect? There are a lot of creatures in God's world that are capable of, and possess, those same traits. 

It's all about perception and perspective. Hyenas hunt and kill the weakest prey they can find... be it a slow running wildabeast, or an orphan kid from a local village. They don't distinguish one from the other. They aren't psychopathic monsters.  They are just ornery dogs with really bad posture that are hungry and trying to survive. What they kill and eat is not relevant to them... it's just meat, blood and bones that contain life sustaining nutrients. Our perception is what is different. A fellow human that is killed and eaten by wild animals is more offensive to us than an animal being killed and eaten. Hell, we even have weird perceptions about what we kill and eat. Think about it- some people are offended about other people eating cows and pigs. 

Like I said- perception and perspective. Animals don't know the differences because they don't have any pre-conceived, or self-taught perceptions on what is, and what is not, okay to have for dinner. We do. For example- Dahmer knew better. He knew he wasn't supposed to kill and eat people... civilized society told him not to, but he did it anyway because he was crazy. But the hyenas and other wild animals don't live in a civilized society and they aren't taught which animals to kill and eat, and which ones not to.

Civilized society is what makes us special- not our cars, houses, clothes, grooming habits, jobs, tech or anything else. Civilization is the key. What makes us civilized is how we treat each other. Treating other people with respect, compassion, empathy and kindness is what makes us civilized. Turn on the local news for ten minutes and you can quickly see that our society is on the verge of losing it's cvilization. People are victimizing each other over some of the dumbest shit. We kill each other over nothing... and we act as if we are better than the wild animals. I don't know about you, but I never heard of a great white shark attacking and killing another shark over "territory" and I've never heard of a mama grizzly bear attacking or killing her own cubs, but I've seen that kind of stuff more than I care to admit within our so-called civilized society. With that said, though... it's not all grim. Bears, sharks, tigers and hyena's don't give their own blood to help others; they don't gather and share food for those among them that can't; they don't have creatures among them whose sole purpose it to protect the weakest among them, or die trying, from those that wish to do them harm. So in that sense, we as a society, are special.

When you look out at your neighbors, friends, co-workers and even the strangers walking along the street- be civilized. Treat each other well. Stand up for those who can't stand up for themselves and remember that everyone is dealing with their own struggles. You might be the person who changes someone else's attitude. I know it sounds cliche, but how hard is it to practice a little kindness? It doesn't cost you anything to tell someone to have a good day, or to wish them safe travels. It doesn't even take that much time out of your life. When you're in the checkout line at the grocery store, what's the harm in telling the cashier thanks for what they do? Maybe tell the kid sweeping the floor or cleaning up a mess that you appreciate what he's doing... does it hurt, or does it make him feel appreciated for an otherwise thankless job? 

Simple kindness is all that I'm talking about. Small, effortless acts that cost you nothing but pay you back in dividends. What makes you special is how you treat people. If you're known for being a selfish jerk, then you might just be left all alone when you're at your weakest, left to defend yourself against the hyenas of the world that are only looking at you for the sustainance that they can get from you, before they leave you for dead... figuratively or literally.

Be kind. Be good. Be civilized.

Ride safe, make good choices and most of all... be a good person.

Let's talk...

Hello MotoReaders!

Hey folks, I want to apologize for my absense lately- when I realized that it had been almost two months since my last post, I knew I had to write something and write it quick. Not to make any excuses, but as many of you know, writing this blog and writing the occasional piece for H-D Forums, does not pay my bills. Actually, if anything, the few bucks a year that I do happen to make from writing slideshows for the forums just barely offsets my cost to maintain this blog site. But, my point is that I have a 40+ hour a week "regular" job that demands the majority of my time and lately, it has been very demanding. 

Let's be clear on something- I don't want your money.

It seems like everything we encounter these days is just a ploy to get into our wallets. It aggravates me to no end that I can't even answer my phone without having some jackass on the other end trying to sell me something or steal my info so that they can drain what little I have in my bank account. Just getting on the internet for five minutes exposes us to a constant barrage of advertising and click bait. Seriously, how many times have you seen this picture with the caption "20 unbelievable vintage photos - number 19 will blow you away!" You click the link to see who the chick is and it's a slideshow with so many ads on each page that it takes a half hour to get through the whole damn article, only to find that they never even showed the picture of the girl, much less identified her! Honestly, it's enough to drive you insane. Truth be known, that's why I don't write more than I do for H-D Forums- the only assignments I get from them are slideshows. By the way- the picture of the girl is, from the very brief research I've done, taken from a postcard from the Phillipines from the 19th Century.... there ya go, no need to click on that one ever again. 

You may be wondering, then, if I don't want your money, why do I have a Patreon site? Simple- why not? Look, truth be known, I've seen a lot of folks making YouTube videos, writing blogs and making a living off of their content. When Google first sent me the email telling me that my blog was "eligible for Adsense"... I got a little caught up in the moment and signed up for it. I figured, what the hell, I can let a few advertisers put some ads on my page... my readers can decide if they want to click or not. Before my site had generated enough for me to actually get a check though- Google closed my account. That little setback frustrated me, but in my aggravation, I had an epiphany- my readers don't come to my blog so that they can get bombarded with ads about gross hygeine products, computer virus software or rain gutters- they come here to read about motorcycles, life and finding happiness in the simple things. 

I signed up for Patreon so that if someone likes my site enough that they want to help me keep it up and running, they can have a safe way to do it that is legal, easy and most of all- OPTIONAL. Look, I can't stand watching a YouTube video and having to sit through 5 minutes of commercials... if I wanted to see frickin' commercials- I'd watch television! So, as long as I can do it, my content will always remain ad-free and it won't cost you anything to enjoy. But, if you want to help me keep it going, I'll try to do my part to give you a little something as a thank you for your support. I started this blog site so that I could write about the things I wanted to write about, without being dictated by someone holding a paycheck over my head.

So, where've I been lately? 

I've been busy at my regular job and, when I get home, I've been riding as much as I possibly can. With the Autumn weather slowly moving in, as soon as I get home from work, I get on the bike to get a few miles of mototherapy before dinner. With my current schedule, I don't get to ride as much as I used to, so I try to get in the wind every chance I get. If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you may have seen that I've posted a couple of short Reels to let you know I'm still here. On top of work stuff keeping me occupied, I've also had a lot of family stuff going on lately that has really been weighing heavy on my heart and that, of course, has zapped my creativity. I started writing my first installment of "Tales from the Asphalt" a while back and then just lost all interest in finishing it. I'm still not sure if I'm going to, after all, my "Bike of the Month" feature fell flat on it's face after just a few months, so my "feature" ideas are just sort of simmering on the back burner for now.

 

And what about the swag?

This is one idea that I had
(please don't steal it)

This is another one
 (again, please don't steal it)

You may be wondering, what ever happened to the swag that I was having made? Well, I'm still working on that. I was talking to some friends about having some shirts and some decals made up from a couple of designs that I came up with, but it just didn't work out (for a few different reasons). I decided to pump the brakes on that stuff for now and re-focus on establishing some semblance of a real logo, not just some crap that I sketched out on a notebook on my lunchbreak one day. After all, if I'm going to do this, I want to do it right. My niece is a talented graphic designer and I'm enlisting her help in coming up with something fun and cool for me. I suppose that we'll just have to see what happens after that. Currently, everything that I've done as "the MotoWriter" has cost me money, so it's tough to justify making another investment into t-shirts, decals, pins or patches. T-shirts are especially tricky, because I'll have to order a bunch, in a variety of sizes, for anyone that might actually want one. If I do get any "patrons" to my Patreon site, maybe I can offset some of the cost with that. If not, the swag idea may end up falling to the wayside like my other ideas have. I really hope not, though... because I like to look at the "stats" of my website to see where everyone is visiting from and it's pretty damn cool to see that there are readers from, literally, all over the world that are visiting my little corner of the world wide web and I'd love to be able to send y'all a little something to wear while you're out riding or to stick on your helmets, windows or back fenders of your bikes. 

Thanks for your continued support, even though I don’t show you any boobs.

To be completely honest, I have never really considered myself a "writer," not by any means. I'm an overthinker and, for lack of better terminology- "an observer of the world". As I see different things, have different interactions with people or have new experiences, I get ideas- ideas for stories, advice or insights and, I just seem to have a knack for articulating those ideas into the written word. Ironically, my half-ass ability to manipulate the English language into something, even slightly, interesting to read has been revealed to me at a time when videos and pictures reign supreme and words are nearly dead. I suppose if I started each one of my YouTube videos (which are few) with a short video intro of a girl with big boobs about to lose her modesty on camera, I’d have a much more popular channel. I saw a video in the last month or so, about some kind of motorcycle upgrade and it was so gratuitously sexualized that I had to turn it off. Look, I’m not a prude by any stretch of the imagination, but come on, is your motorcycle content really so crappy that you have to turn it into soft-core porn in order to get people to watch? Well, actually, disregard that question because the video of the well-endowed woman that didn’t seem to know the difference between a box-end and a crescent wrench that was fumbling around a motorcycle, had tens of thousands of views compared to my best performing video, so I suppose the joke’s on me. Sex sells, but modesty and morality will get you into heaven, and I’ll take the latter because it lasts longer. 

Look, I know that I may have missed my “ideal time” to explore this idea of being a writer, but it’s pretty encouraging to see all of you clicking over to my site to see what I have to say, and doing it without the promise of seeing some skin. That tells me that you guys are more than just the conditioned sheep that are led by photographic pheromones, but you are true intellectual motorcycle enthusiasts. In other words- you are my people and I’m proud to be your writer. I've always believed that the motorcycle community is vast, supportive and universal and you, my readers, prove that to me every time that I log in to my computer and I see that you’re still there, even when I haven’t been.

I really appreciate all of the support and site visits, more than you can know. It's honestly a little overwhelming for me to look and see that the MotoWriter site has had over 22 thousand site visits in just over a year of being active on the interweb, and that it has reached countries big and small, literally, all across the globe. I’m a very humble person, by nature… I always have been, so when I see so much interest in my words and commentaries, it’s a little bit shocking. So, thank you. Thank you for taking the time, your time, to read my blog and thank you for checking in. I’ll try to do a better job of keeping new stuff coming, and coming more frequently. 

Till next time, ride safe and make good choices!

Weight Loss

Are you overweight?

As a society, we’re fixated on our physical appearance. We spend millions of dollars each year on gym memberships, special diets, supplements and even prescription medications just to shed a few pounds. We eat crap that we don’t really enjoy, drink junk that our 8 year old selves would have gagged at the very sight of, and we spend hours of our weeks in the gym, running to nowhere and lifting things up, all while listening to other people grunt and groan as they do the same thing. We stand in front of mirrors and criticize every curve and angle that we see. Then we take pictures of ourselves, all sweaty and red in the face, and post them to social media as if we’re hoping to get some kind of approval or validation from the world.

We’re so concerned about being overweight, that we put ourselves through this daily regimen, but does it actually make us happy? Are we truly happy and satisfied? Sure, don’t get me wrong, if you’re in your late 30’s or 40’s and you get mistaken for someone half your age, I have no doubt that’s an ego booster for you, but that’s not happiness- that’s just a temporary boost to your self-esteem that is completely contingent on your level of suffering. Sort of like, if I work a bunch of overtime, I’ll get a nice paycheck… but that extra cash only lasts, respectively, for about as long as I worked over my regular hours. Let me explain, if I suffered through an additional 20 hours of work, then I will get enough extra dough on my paycheck to pay extra on a bill or maybe take a weekend trip… but I’m not gonna be able to retire early on it. It’s all relative. You can find short-term happiness every single day, regardless of what you do. You might be happy because you hit your goal at the gym. You might be happy that you got a promotion at work. You might be happy because the waitress got your order right… but it’s all relative and it’s all just short term, superficial happiness. 

Weight loss is the key to true, life changing, happiness

I know what you’re thinking- this guy, who hasn't seen the inside of a gym in years, is about to preach to me about losing weight… well, yes… but not in the way that your probably thinking. You see, the weight I’m talking about isn’t the weight that you are bombarded with every time you turn on the TV or open a magazine (do people still read those?). I’m talking about the other weight, the obesity that no one wants to talk about. The weight that you can’t get rid of by simply drinking protein shakes or running on a treadmill. I’m talking about the truly ugly weight- the stuff that causes heart attacks and high blood pressure. I’m talking about the stuff that steals your energy, zaps your libido and strips you of your core happiness. I’m talking about the weight of your burdens. The things that cause you the most stress, anxiety, fear and sadness. The weight of these things are significantly more dangerous to your health than those few extra pounds you picked up from Thanksgiving last year. 

Now, I know that some of my friends who are really into the aforementioned workout routines are probably rolling their eyes and saying something like “being unhealthy and fat is way worse.” Okay… but… let me pose a couple of questions to you- what’s more dangerous to your health, what is actually worse for your heart? Eating an extra cookie, or being so stressed that your blood pressure is so high that you need medicine to bring it back down? What brings you the most anxiety? Having a bowl of pasta, or working late and missing out on important life events like your anniversary or your kid’s birthday? Look, I’m not telling you to not get (or stay) physically healthy, after all, while I may be carrying a few extra pounds of cookie weight myself- I’m not obese. I don’t have limited mobility or any serious medical problems, because I control my diet and I do get physical exercise. Sure, I enjoy a good cheeseburger from time to time, but I don’t eat like crap at every meal and I make sure that I stay physically active on a daily basis. For the most part, my cholesterol and blood pressure are in pretty good shape and I still wear the same size jeans and t-shirts that I wore when I was in my twenties (they just looked a little better on me back then). Physical health is important, but I’d argue that mental and emotional health is just as, or possibly even more, important. 

What’s our emotional weight?

If we go to the doctor, he can tell us with a quick reference of our height and weight if we are, or are not, overweight. But the ole sawbones can’t use the same technique to tell us that we are overweight emotionally. Let’s face it, as adults, we suppress a lot of our stress, emotions and psychological burdens, primarily because we don’t want to be a burden ourselves. We don’t want our family or friends to see that we are stressed out over our bills, a project at work or our health. We don’t want them to worry, or we maybe we just don’t want them to think that we can’t handle our own shit. Either way, we bury it down deep, put a smile on our faces and we trudge along, acquiring a little more psychological weight each day.

We can monitor our physical weight pretty easily. We can simply get on the bathroom scale, and it will promptly cite our exact weight within a few seconds of stepping on that abominable thing. It can clearly show us that eating a whole half gallon of ice cream last week has put a few extra pounds on us, but it can’t tell us why we stress-ate the whole damn container of frozen goodness in just four days in the first place. The bathroom scale can’t tell us that our stress level is redlining and that we are, or are becoming, mentally obese. So how do we know when our stress or burden is too much to carry? How do we know when we’re emotionally or mentally overweight? And more importantly, how do we shed those pounds?

I’m not that guy

I’ll admit that I’m not that guy in the gym every week. I don’t do the fad diets, run for no good reason, pick things up that don’t need to be picked up or do any of that other stuff. I’m not criticizing anyone that does, mind you. I just don’t have the time in my life to do it. I know that’s an excuse that a lot of people give, but I’ll actually elaborate on it. I don’t get enjoyment from doing it, so I’m not going to carve special time out of my life to do it. I’m simply not going to dedicate a special part of my day, so that I can do something that I don’t enjoy doing. And before you fitness folks judge me for it, let me ask you, would you do it? Would you make a point to watch an hour long PowerPoint presentation on the economic strategies of a paper mill (no offense to the paper mill accountants that are probably not reading this)? If you say you would, you’re full of crap. Even if you are an accountant for a paper mill, you’re not gonna dedicate an hour of your life that you’re never gonna get back to voluntarily do something that you don’t enjoy. I like to ride motorcycles. I can spend a full day in the saddle. I’ll make the time to ride, because it’s something that I enjoy doing. I get plenty of physical exercise without going to the gym. I’m not saying that I can dead lift 250 pounds, but in my life… I don’t need to. If you enjoy spending hours in the gym perfecting your physical being, then go for it. Do what you enjoy doing, whatever that might be. Just don’t judge other people for doing what they enjoy, because you never know what else they are dealing with in their lives.

I ride

For me, as I’ve said many times before, riding motorcycles is more than just “fun.” Riding is my stress relief. It’s church. It’s therapy. It’s my emotional workout program that helps me to be a better, more healthy person. Riding motorcycles has helped me to deal with the loss of loved ones, accept personal failures and get rid of emotional baggage that I no longer needed to carry. Riding has also brought me closer to God. I have seen proof of His existence and I’ve felt His presence with me, telling me that things are going to be okay. From the seat of my motorcycle, at 60 miles per hour on some lonely, two-lane highway that cuts through the middle of nowhere, I’ve prayed. I’ve listened to the sermon that is sung by the birds and buzzed by the cicadas. I’ve seen the majesty of His creation, shimmering through the leaves of an autumn mountain forest and witnessed the power of His might, lighting up the sky in blinding bolts of electricity on a humid summer night.

Riding is my primary weight loss program, but what is yours? How do you de-bug? What do you do to isolate those necessary stresses and justified fears, from those that you should dismiss because they are doing nothing more than weighing down your soul? 

Writing this blog is another weight loss program for me. It gives me an outlet to express my feelings and share my thoughts with the world, absent of the pressure of making a paycheck or following some irrelevant rules that were arbitrarily conceived by someone else. Now, don’t get me wrong, if you click on one of the ads on my site every now and again, I’ll earn a couple of cents and by the end of a year, I might be able to earn enough to pay for one of those cheeseburgers I like so much. But the point is, I’m not trying to pay my bills with this blog, so there’s no pressure there. 

Working for a… living?

If you take nothing else away from this post today, at least try to remember this-  at work, you’re completely replaceable and the company machine won’t stop running once you’re gone. At home, however, with your family…everything gets thrown off when you’re not there and if it doesn’t, then that’s a problem that you need to fix right now. Take your family on a relaxing vacation- a simple retreat of face to face interaction with no distractions. Take time off from work now, while it matters. You’re not promised tomorrow. Your health is not guaranteed, no matter how much kale you force yourself to eat or how many times you lift a barbell. Don't believe me? Take a walk through a graveyard and look at the headstones. Those hallowed grounds are filled with people of all ages, races and economic backgrounds and no matter how many times they hit the gym, no matter how much money they made or how many vacations they took (or didn’t take), they all have the same thing in common. We say that we “work for a living” but somewhere along the way, we often forget to actually do some living. 

Go to work. Earn a paycheck. Pay your bills and feed your family. Just don’t forget to live. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, we only have around 75 good years to make, not just a life but, a good life for ourselves. Sometimes you have to work overtime, and that's okay, just don't overdo it.

Deal with it

Take proactive steps to deal with the stress in your life. Talk to a friend, go to church or have a family gathering and for pity’s sake, let yourself eat a damn cookie every now and again. Take a road trip, go hiking, boating, fishing or, better yet, spend time with your favorite people. Just don't ignore your stress or your emotional burdens. Don’t starve yourself of the things that bring you joy, for the sake of dropping a few pounds- doing that will do more harm to you than eating a cookie, a doughnut, a cheeseburger or a bowl of ice cream, ever will.  

When you shed pounds, your body may feel lighter… but when you shed burdens, your SPIRIT will feel lighter. 

Ride safe and make good... healthy... choices, y'all. 

Do you want to see your bike featured as the MotoWriter's Bike of the Month? Email me in your high-res photos and your personal motorcycle story to me and, if I pick your bike, not only will you get some pretty rad bragging rights, but you'll also receive a small bit of swag to show off your support of the MotoWriter! Thanks for all your support!

Piglet

Soichiro Honda 

Soichiro Honda, circa 1964

Three years after William Harley and his partners, Walter, William and Arthur Davidson rolled out their very first motorcycle in Milwaukee, a child named Soichiro Honda was born on the other side of the world. Soichiro grew up around his dad's bicycle shop and, in 1928, at 25 years old, the young man opened his own auto repair shop. Captivated by speed, Soichiro built his very first race car and started competing. In 1936, however, when Harley and his pals were introducing their brand new Knucklehead engine in Milwaukee, USA, Mr. Honda was injured in the opening race at Japan's first racetrack, the Tamagawa Speedway; the next year, he gave up racing and formed a company to manufacture piston rings, supplying them primarily to Toyota. His new company's success would be short lived though, because just four years later, the Japanese government authorized an attack on Pearl Harbor, setting the stage for the bombings that would soon end the second World War and would alter the young man's business plans once again.

In 1946, just one year after his country was nearly obliterated by the infamous bombings that killed hundreds of thousands of Soichiro Honda's fellow countrymen, he started a new business, focused primarily on providing affordable transportation to those left behind. Honda did this by fitting small, two-stroke motors onto bicycles- sound familiar? Three years later, in  1949, Honda's very first actual motorcycle rolled out of the factory and quickly earned the name "Dream." The very first Honda Dream, or "Model D" as it was officially called, was powered by a 98cc two stroke engine, but Soichiro felt like the noise and smoke from the Dream made it more of a nightmare, so in 1951, his company introduced the new, quieter and cleaner, four stroke Dream. The new machine boasted a 146cc engine and it's popularity surged, putting Honda's motorcycle company on the map.

Fast forward to 1968- Soichiro's company rolls out it's 10 millionth motorcycle, proving to the world that the man from Hamamatsu, Japan had become a formidable businessman and a force to be reckoned with. In 1973, with his company well established, Soichiro retired at the age of 67. Soichiro continued working with his company as an advisor, and served on the Board of Directors, so he could keep his finger on the pulse of his company to ensure it's success.

  

Original ad from 1978

In 1978, among the 27 models of motorcycle that Honda offered, the company introduced a new entry level machine- the CM185 Twinstar. The Twinstar was a small, but elegant bike that was refined and smooth, friendly and reliable. It was a twin cylinder four stroke that breathed quietly out of two chrome megaphone exhaust pipes and started easily with either the kick-starter or the electric starter. The Twinstar was adorned with chrome fenders, a seat big enough for two, passenger pegs, a grab bar, a locking gas cap cover and, it had a neutral riding position that was pretty comfortable for such a small motorcycle. Thousands of Twinstars were sold across the world in 1978, but there was one in particular that was sold in Ohio, USA, that would be the subject of this story.

And this is where our story truly begins...

"Piglet"

Sometime around 1995 My wife's folks took a trip to Ohio to visit some family and, while visiting with his nephew, my father-in-law noticed a small, blue Honda motorcycle tucked away in the corner of the barn. My wife's folks were doing quite a lot of travelling in their RV back then, so the prospect of finding a small, economical motorcycle to tool around on really sparked my father-in-law's interest. As it turns out, his nephew got the little blue Honda brand new, back in 1978. He rode it for a few years, then parked it in the barn and pretty much forgot about it, so it didn't take much convincing for him to sell it to his favorite uncle. My pa-in-law got the old Twinstar running again, then loaded it up in the back of his truck and he and my mother-in-law started writing the next chapter of the old Honda's life. And what a life it was. My wife's parents lovingly named the old Honda "Piglet" (because it wasn't quite big enough to be called a "Hog") and they took it all over the place- Tennessee, Niagra Falls, New York, Canada, the West Coast and everywhere in-between. Everywhere they parked their home away from home, Piglet got unloaded and they would set out exploring the area on the old Honda. 

After a few years of travelling, Piglet started getting tired and the folks decided that they wanted something a little bigger (and more comfortable than a motorcycle) to get around on during their travels, so they upgraded to a diesel coach and started pulling a car to the campgrounds. Piglet got parked back in a barn, where it would stay, untouched, for over 16 years. 

New life

My father-in-law and I had a mutual love for antique cars, hot rods and motorcycles and we could sit and talk about them for hours. He also knew that both of my sons were up and coming gearheads and that they were just as interested in riding motorcycles as their dad. When my father-in-law decided to clear some space in his barn for a new project, he knew that all he needed to do was offer us his old motorcycles. As soon as he asked us to come get them, my boys ran over as fast as they could! It was this fateful day that would ultimately breathe new life into that old Twinstar, yet again. Being a Harley guy, I was pretty unfamiliar with the Honda, so I enlisted the help of a good friend of mine to help me get Piglet running right. It didn't take my buddy long to get the old Honda back to her old self again and the mood was absolutely electric when he brought it back to the house. Soon after, I started teaching my oldest son how to ride the little street bike. It wasn't long before he had the hang of it, so he moved on to riding my Sportster and my youngest boy took the controls of the old Honda. 

Before he passed last year, my father-in-law got to see both of his grandsons learn how to ride a motorcycle on the very same bike that he and his beloved wife used to ride when they were out exploring the country; the same bike that his brother's son started out riding, all those many years ago. 

Value versus worth

We often confuse what something is worth by it's market value. Market value is generally based on a variety of things, but most of all- it's based on what someone is willing to pay for something. The Honda Twinstar played an important role in the history of Honda motorcycles and it is often overlooked for it's contributions. For example, the Twinstar started it's life in 1978 and over the next several years, it would get a bump in displacement to 200cc, then in 1982, it got bumped up again to 250cc. This new CM250 would later become the well known and widely loved, Honda Rebel. Countless motorcycle riders have learned to ride on a Honda Rebel and many still do. The Rebel has become so popular in fact, that Honda increased the displacement again to 300cc, then 500cc and now, diehard Rebel fans can get their beloved Honda with an 1100cc mill! 

While this old 185cc Twinstar may not be worth much to anyone else, to the MotoWriter and family, this unimposing and otherwise unimpressive little Honda, is priceless. It has been in our family since the day it left Soichiro Honda's factory in 1978 and it has travelled all across this great nation and into Canada during it's 43 year lifetime. For every generation that it has carried, and will carry, on its modest little frame, this old Honda Twinstar has secured it's place in the MotoWriter garage as one of the most valuable motorcycles, if only inside these four walls.

No matter what you do or what kind of bike you ride, have fun and make the best of it, because your actions today will be your memories tomorrow and we only get 75 good years to make the best of this life.

Ride Safe and make good choices!

Piglet, with OEM mirrors and the factory front fender replaced

  

Not quite a Hog... more like a Piglet

My youngest son, learning the ropes on Piglet

My oldest son, taking Piglet out on the road

Funny story about this one... to be told later

My oldest boy replacing fork seals

My baby boy, taking his first ride on Piglet

My boys astride their respective steeds

BOTM Template Do you want to see your bike featured as the MotoWriter's Bike of the Month? Email me in your high-res photos and your personal motorcycle story to me and, if I pick your bike, not only will you get some pretty rad bragging rights, but you'll also receive a small bit of swag to show off your support of the MotoWriter! Thanks for all your support!

April Bike of the Month....

Whose bike will be featured? Send your submissions and it might be YOURS!

motowriter74@gmail.com

Spring is here and the weather is perfect for riding! 

Ride safe and make good choices, everybody!

www.TheMotoWriter.com

BIKE OF THE MONTH!

January 2021

For the very first (and hopefully not last) Bike of the Month feature here on The MotoWriter.com, I present to you, the MotoWriter's January 2021, Bike of the Month... 

Lee's 2014 Indian Chief Vintage!

My good friend, Lee picked up his beautiful, Springfield Blue Indian Chief Vintage as soon as Polaris released the revived brand into dealerships in 2014, which just happened to be the same year that Lee retired from the United Stated Navy with over 20 years of service to our country. Lee and his family moved back to Mainland, USA from his last duty station in Rota, Spain in 2014 and dropped their gear in the great state of Texas. When Lee got back to the Lone Star State, he was bike-less, because he had to leave his beloved 2006 Harley-Davidson Dyna Street Bob, aptly nicknamed "El Fuego", behind in Spain when the Navy shipped him back home. While Lee loved his Dyna, he had been anticipating the release of the new Indians since he first heard that Polaris had bought the rights to the Indian name and was planning on resurrecting America's First Motorcycle Company. It's only fitting that Lee would buy an Indian Chief Vintage, after all, the name "Chief" was very special to him, you see- Lee honorably retired from the U.S. Navy, at the rank of Chief. 

When Lee picked up his new Indian, he immediately started racking up the miles. He was riding his Chief Vintage all over Texas and even made a trip to South Mississippi to visit his ole buddy- yours truly. As a matter of fact, the day that he rode over, we took our bikes up the highway to Hattiesburg, so that he could get his first service done. As it turned out, we would only ride together one more time before he got offered a job back in Spain. Shortly after getting back to Rota, Lee quickly unpacked the Chief and set out to racking up the miles, or rather- the kilometers. In the past 6 years, Lee's Indian Chief Vintage has taken him through 11 countries, 5 of which he knocked out in a single trip, earning him the Iron Butt Association's "Saddlesore 1000" certificate, for riding at least 1,000 miles in 24 hours.

During another summer abroad, Lee took advantage of his ability to ride through multiple countries, by riding into France, then taking the Chunnel into the United Kingdom, riding through England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland. Most recently, before the country locked down again due to the resurgence of COVID-19, Lee was able to take his Chief on an 8 day trip, circumnavigating Spain. In all, Lee has racked up a whopping 100,000 kilometers (that's a little over 62k miles for the rest of us). That's an awful lot of riding, considering the fact that he works a full time job and lives in a country that is smaller than the state of Texas. 

Upgrades and Goodies

Lee's Chief Vintage remains mostly stock, with the most significant upgrades being a set of 16" ape hangers, a Stage 1 kit complete with hi-flow intake, those classic fishtail pipes and a Dynojet fuel controller, rear air shock, color-matched tank console, aftermarket windshield, a heated seat to keep him toasty on those cool Spanish nights, and a Kuryakyn Road Thunder soundbar to provide some toe-tapping tunes to help the miles pass by a little easier. Up next on Lee's list of upgrades is going to be a set of Cuztomkraft amber afterburner tail light lenses. Being in Spain, the availability and accessibility of aftermarket parts can be a little tricky as compared to living in the States, so a lot of the goodies he's added to the Chief have been ordered from all over the world, with the latest order coming in from Australia.

It's not what you ride

Lee and I share the common belief that, it's not what you ride, but rather, that you ride. You see, Lee and I both grew up in working class homes and we learned at a very young age that it doesn't matter what you have- as long as you're happy. Lee and I both started out riding old, ratty street bikes- I had an old Kawasaki EX500 and he had an old Honda Interceptor 500 and, at the time, we felt like the coolest kids on our respective blocks. Of course, as the years went by and we started enjoying some success in our individual careers, our bikes got much better. Lee has owned a variety of bikes to include a Suzuki, an Aprilia, a Harley-Davidson and now an Indian. He routinely organizes and leads group rides around the Navy base in Rota which often consist of every make and model of motorcycle available in the area. Following one of the most basic rules of motorcycle group riding, he and the rest of the group simply ride to the skill level and ability of the weakest rider on the smallest bike. Being an MSF instructor for the base in Rota, Lee understands the importance of teaching new riders the skills they need, so that one day they will be able to carve the corners of some random, mountain road and stay safe when doing it, just like Lee does, on his 2014 Indian Chief Vintage. 

Check out more pics of Lee's 2014 Indian Chief Vintage, here: