i disagree with you, ted. people ride bikes all over the world, for many reasons.

economic, especially in 3rd world countries: motorcycles are generally cheaper to buy, maintain, and gas up.

convenience: motorcycles are much smaller, allowing one to get through congested city streets considerably faster than on a car. it is much easier, faster, and cheaper to find a parking spot for a bike than a car.

environmental: motorcycles pollute the environment considerably less than cars do, both via producing less emissions and via less materials being used to produce a 400lb bike rather than a 5,000lb car.

pure pleasure: as webbikeworld puts it:

\”The act of riding is a form of meditation, because the concentration that\’s required to safely ride a motorcycle tends to focus the mind in a way that eliminates other mental distractions that might interfere with the mission. This creates a single-mindedness that, in effect, displaces the continuous stream of thoughts that normally flow through our consciousness.

Thoughts about what to eat, who to meet, and worries about the common stresses of everyday life, such as pressures from work and home, disappear from our minds during the ride, because the concentration that\’s necessary to focus on the ride pushes those thoughts far into the background. The result is that the mind becomes refreshed after a ride just like it would after a session of formal meditation or a relaxing vacation.\”

Now, these aren\’t all of the reasons why people ride, only a few of the main ones. Looking cool is just a by-product.

I do love motorcycles and I can see your point. There are some people who do it to look cool and end up buying the most expensive and least efficient bike out there. My parents only promised me a motorcycle if my dad trained me first and they’re making me promise not to do stupid things. But agree that it’s natural.