Why car enthusiasts love motorbikes, too

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I came to bikes relatively late in life - I passed my bike test in 2002 at age 39. I had always been a car enthusiast and owned a succession of fast, light sports cars from Lotus and Caterham. But then I discovered bikes.

Until I retired in February 2020 I owned both bikes and cars - A daily driver, a sports car and a bike. After I retired I sold the sports car (a Lotus Elise 250 Cup) and then the daily driver. Now I just have the two bike and no regrets. I miss the Lotus sometimes, but then I realise that if both the Lotus and a bike was in the garage, I’d choose the bike every time.

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I like my cars as well as my bikes.
I use the cars in a different way to the bikes. A bike ride is more involving and adrenaline filled whereas a car drive can be both fun but also sensible.
Mrs O is not a big fan of getting on the back of a bike yet we did 2600 miles round Europe in our car and she loved it.
So horses for courses for me .
Always a difficult decision on a sunny Sunday but generally I would try to fit both in, early brekky run on the bike, back home and pub lunch run in the car …!

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Very similar here, no bikes until I was about 35. I was running the local branch Capri Club at the time, had a couple, and Mini Cooper S before that. Exhibiting at car shows for quite a few years until I got bored with it and touring on motorbikes took over.
Just have the one nice car between self and SWMBO (Evoque) now that we’re retired.
If only I’d kept those Capris & Mini, worth nearly 10x what I sold them for now! :man_facepalming:

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I am in a car club but we have a splinter group that get out quite regularly in the cars to do our own thing whilst also participating in some of the clubs activities.
Some of the club are quite anoraky so couldn’t spend too much time with them all but our smaller group are very similar minded and have a lot of fun and share good times out on the road …!

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:laughing:
I think every car (& bike) club ends up with splinter groups. :slightly_smiling_face: :+1:
Just like minded folk band together.

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And Forums, come to think about it…! :face_with_open_eyes_and_hand_over_mouth:

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Yes, you could argue this forum as a whole is indeed a splinter group. :slightly_smiling_face:

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I was in a couple of car (Lotus) clubs and made some good friends through it - we still stay in touch.

I also did track days with Lotus-on-Track and competed in Sprint and Hill Climb events with Borough 19.

I got bored with car track days although I have great memories of some of the European tracks (Spa, Nurburgring, LeMans) and even entry level motorsport like Sprint events are ruinously expensive (especially for a retired person!)

I’ve never done a bike track day, but don’t really have any desire to do one.

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Only ever done one motorcycle track day which was at Mallory for my 40th birthday nearly 30 yrs ago now.
Thought I was doing really well - until Michael Rutter came past on the outside of Gerards, hand on hip “you coming then?” :laughing: :man_facepalming:
I’ve since claimed to have taught him all he knows to anybody daft enough to listen. :wink:

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Back on topic, I thought the article was unusually honest/accurate on the pros and cons of motorcycles both as regular transport and/or enthusiast hobby.

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Partially but there are plenty of newcomers as well. :slight_smile:

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I had my bike license before the car’s - 2 years in fact. I’ve always thought of cars as just a means of transport and hauling groceries…

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That’s no way to talk about the wife. :grin:

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That’s good reading in the first post about the subject combined.

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I don’t like horses…

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But you do like their powers…!

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That depends…sometimes I feel sorry for the horse :rofl:

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