Bonneville America Forums Forums Rider Safety Forums Riding Technique What did I do wrong? Group riding.

were they riding horizonal twins??? Was there an extreme
lack of waving? Full face helmets? They may have been rushing to do a Geico commercial....

Hey buddy, just ride your ride...forget about incidents like this...sounds like you're doing fine. And PM me if you want to ride with company, I'm over in Spartanburg.
SteveB

Ummm - an admitted newbie here from Asheville NC, - question: if you lined up 50 yards behind the tail rider, what on earth COULD you have done to mess up their ride? I understand not wanting an unknown rider in the middle or lead of the pack, but come on . . .

It really was probably nothing. you could have pulled over and they would have talked to ya. Unless they had some kind of patch on there backs you gotta watch those guys some of them are dangerous. A lot of Bandidos here, so if the patch is red and gold leave them alone, easy enough.
Most really don't care unless they are newbies being led by a control freak, then they may over react.
I usually just pass when I get a chance.

I dont see a problem.

So Steve! It appears "somebody" around here saw bigbill's last entry in that "33 degree rake" thread, eh?!

(...isn't it fun whenever ya get new tools???)

watcha talkin about Dwight?

(...oh...nothin'!)

Four years ago I rode from Townsville to Brisbane in late December.(1400.00k) The heat was right up there with dehydration being a real issue. purchased a pair of off white pants and had a white shirt with the bike boots of course. The only riders who waved were Goldwing owners and the odd trike that I met. Seems they are a lot less discernng about the fellow riders they meet on the road than the others! Yep! The uniform and the bike can make a difference as to how you will be accepted especially by the Harley Fraternity.

Well Kent, IF you're lookin' to be accepted by those who prefer The Motor Company's products, then I hope you know you could still probably wear that white outfit o' yours, BUT you'll also need a few accessories that will relay more of a Pirate impression to others!

(...might I suggest a doo-rag and a sleeveless vest...also in white, of course!!!)

I really never have a problem with the harley guys who are real bikers, its the wannabes that try to be stupid. The old school guys know about triumph and actually like my bike quite a bit. The guys I ride with around here are Harley riders as none of the triumph riders do any thing but hang out at a bar downtown. I did that once not to be repeated that was a disapointment for real I posted abut it. RAT is not organized here as they have no leader so its nofun. I usually ride withthe leagionairs they are a cool and benevolent group of guys, who invite me to their rides and events.

Quote:

---

The old school guys know about triumph and actually like my bike quite a bit.

---

Same here Chad, them guys (and us) know where it's at!

I know, I know, Chad. Most riders who have ridden motorcycles for years and who now own a Harley know of the rich "heritage" of Triumph motorcycles too, though I still run into the occasional "seasoned" Harley riders who seem to have no friggin' clue that John Bloor "resurrected" the brand over two decades ago now, and THAT I always just chalk up to them being, lets say, "insulated" inside their little Hog Chapters just a little too much these last few decades.

Oh, and the above was just my standard little jab at the whole "Pirate Look" thing there, thanks to Kent who set me up there.

(...much obliged there, Kent ol' boy!!!)

They also don't realize that Harley was saved from exstinction about two decades ago as well. you can argue whether AMF saved them or drove them to the brink of oblivian. Honda nearly killed them, oh, and ahhh bad engineering.

I wouldn't say the demise of British brands, nor the near demise of H-D was caused by "bad engineering", per se.

Nope! I think a more valid reason would be the lack of reinvesting into future R&D which both entities were guilty of during their heyday of the 1960s, and as you mention, just as Honda and the rest of Japan Inc. were developing whole new modern and less "cantankerous" motorcycles for the public.

In other words, considering the basic design of both the Triumph vertical twins AND the H-D OHV V-Twins were debuted in the late 1930s, and basically over the years both of them were just given mild updates, and while they might've have been well engineered for 1930s/40s/50s/60s, they were eventually overtaken in many areas by Japan Inc, and the purchasing public recognized this by the early 1970s.

Oh, and I forgot to add here...

There is an argument to be made that "The Faithful"(meaning the dyed-in-the-wool H-D rider) actually owe the "Bowling Bowl Company" a debt of gratitude for keeping H-D going at that time, as word was if they hadn't bought the company when they did, H-D might have also gone the way of the Dodo bird due to their financial troubles at the time of the purchase.

However, there are also many others out there who dispute this claim.

so they should hold a ride to the bowling alley at least three times a year.