I'm an avid fan of YouTube videos and can spend hours at a time watching "fail army" and cat mash-ups. I'm also a huge fan of the VICE channel which has truly phenomenal short documentaries about current affairs and out-of-the-ordinary people. not much about bikes as such, but they've done a few documentaries about the Auzzie bike gangs and a fascinating episode about an all female bike gang called: "Caramel Curves" in New Orleans, Caramel Curves - Documentary
That being said, I found these mind boggling short documentaries about people and their motorcycles and why they ride the machines they own. You almost can't help but fall in love with the vulnerability of it all.
The first ever Stories of Bike episode I watched was this one, Now not the very first episode, but the first I saw:
This just blew me away. The more I watched the more I was hooked.
I also love this one...
And by now, I'm pretty sure you're hooked too. If you love them as much as I do, Click here.
I'll be publishing more interesting videos as I go along.
When buying a bike sometimes our significant other needs a bit of tender convincing. To justify my bike purchase to my wife I used a favourite line that I'm sure many bikers have used before me. I said something along the lines of; "I'd be home earlier cause I wouldn't have to sit in traffic." and "We'd save money on petrol....AND we can go on great breakfast rides on weekends."
Just as we convince our better halves, unbeknown to some of us is a group in South Africa called AMID (The Association of Motorcycle Importers and Distributors) who are a non-profit group that promote and protect the interests of bikers and biker related affairs. They have basically taken on the role of making riding awesome, for us and the Department of Roads and Transport.
All the big motorcycle brands back AMID, which I guess is incredibly important... they're working alongside you to convince the millions of "misses" out there that bikes are the solution to not only life, but also urban survival.
If you need some help convincing a mate or a date check out this video:
Its basically 4:30 minutes of guys doing stupid things....
So maybe this one instead
Yep... 64 year old granny owning this one!
I read somewhere, not sure where (so don't quote me on this), but apparently there's huge concern specifically in South African cities on the growing number of cars on the roads that are estimated to double in number over the next five years. More and more people are purchasing cars, carbon taxing will increase, the idea of urban tolling will look more and more favourable in legislature as our government attempts to curb the pressure on our ageing infrastructure. ALSO... traffic is kak, just in general.
So motorcycles are the ONLY solution when it comes to getting around this issue. Enthusiasts like me are wildly in favour of this, and honestly, you should be too.
What really puts the cherry on top of supporting AMID is that each year they run the "SA Bike Of the Year" award. This year's "bike of the year award" was sponsored by Pirelli as was last years, which is pretty great, a number of additional sponsors have come on board this year including LiquiMoly, TomTom and Total, as I can imagine having big sponsors makes it easier to convince large bike brands to let you really go to town on their machines (pun intended) for the sake of ultimately promoting excellence and having fun.
Here is some footage of the 2014 SA Bike of the Year
AMID support loads of local rides and events and really is at large, one of the backbones of riding in South Africa.
When I was a boy, my mom got me a BMX Haro. We went to the store and I got to choose it myself. It was this blue, thin framed bombshell that I fell in love with at first sight. I was so excited at the prospect of riding it that I had this irrational fear that we'd die in a car accident before we got home. Having that bicycle meant that I could escape the confines of the house and explore the world. This meant everything to me.
I guess this is where my love for motorcycles first began. The ride. The freedom. The fear.
I had this buddy Nicholas Norris, who would race Motocross every weekend and was always at school with a new broken bone, or battle scar. Needless to say, being friends with Nicolas meant that my mom saw the danger in motorcycles and wouldn't entertain my persistent begging.
On and off over the years uncles, friends and acquaintances would take me for spins on the pillion seat, it was only in my late teens that I rode a motorcycle for the first time. I keeled straight over after opening the clutch on a little two-stroke. I got it somewhat down a dirt road and eventually decided that this just wasn't my thing... BUT THEN (cue action-adventure sounds)
A mate of mine, Trevor, brought his brand new Suzuki 125cc to a party in 2010. While having a few beers he felt quite generous and handed me his helmet and keys. After receiving a dangerously brief tutorial, I got on the bike and promptly began learning the basics in a cul-de-sac. I decided to negotiate a few hills and expand my ride into the suburb, and that was it. My mind... BLOWN! A few months later I got my learners license and a little red Yamaha 125cc. It was literally the day after my wife's 23rd birthday. Not that impressive for her I guess.
I've only been riding for about 5 years now. I've owned three bikes including the Yamaha, a BMW F650 GS and now a Triumph Thruxton. Riding has never been about the speed for me, its always been about the wind in my face. Hence the title of this blog, and rightly so, it is better in the wind. I found, sprayed on a tank at Los Muertos Motorcycles in Cape Town, a phrase that epitomised my passion for motorcycles...
My aim is to ride and review as many bikes as I can. Expect to see photos of me in motorcycle showrooms and on long winding roads as we journey together. Put your helmet on, lets ride!
