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Riding solo is my thing. Some of us are just wired that way. Leave when I want, stop when I want, etc. I ride with my wife, been doing that for 12 years but she rides her bike less and less as the years go on.
I always meet interesting people during my travels, I never feel alone. I go for a ride every chance I get, there is always a coffee on the turnaround. My riding buddy is the bike and the road...
hmm... I have to ask what's wrong with solo riding? I ride solo most of the time or I would not be riding at all. Most folks I know that have bikes don't ride them much, if at all.
I have been a solo rider most of my life . Because I loved riding to work on the bike . The funny thing for me is I retired 4 yrs ago , sold my truck and the bike is it . Until someone comes home with a car for me to use . But it get the job done for most all my errands as long as it’s not raining out or too cold .
Last edited by Iron lHorse; Apr 19, 2023 at 08:34 PM.
It's hard to spark up a conversation to a random stranger or just feel comfortable around them. I just dont really like to talk, I just feel like the odd man out in a group of people especially for those that already know each other. You go to these meetups and you can already tell which groups are already in a Click. Feels highschoolish to me. Like a boys club, you dont want to step in their boundries or they will give you this odd look.
One way to "spark up a conversation" is to look at their BIKES, and start talking about THEM! People LOVE to talk about their bikes; what they've done to them, how they've modified them, etc., and that makes it easy to start the "conversation", which you can then turn to whatever you want, or you can then show them what you've done to YOUR bike.
I understand the "cliques" thing, and that's a natural human thing to want to be around those who share similar interests and likes, but you don't have to let that keep you away from making new friends. You may not make a connection with all of them, but if even one becomes your friend, you've increased your pool of people to ride with by double (you + someone else). The more you do this, the easier it will become until it's second nature to gravitate to the bikes, and start talking with people about them. If you find that nobody still converses with you, then you haven't really lost anything. You're still riding with yourself, and that may be fine for you. You never know, though. You may find a new riding buddy that you can share all your wonderful trips with, or even someone to help out with maintenance or other work you want to do on the bike, but can't do all by yourself. It's at least worth a try.
Riding solo is my thing. Some of us are just wired that way. Leave when I want, stop when I want, etc. I ride with my wife, been doing that for 12 years but she rides her bike less and less as the years go on.
I always meet interesting people during my travels, I never feel alone. I go for a ride every chance I get, there is always a coffee on the turnaround. My riding buddy is the bike and the road...
There's nothing wrong with riding solo, BUT, if you find someone else to share it with, your enjoyment of the ride DOUBLES, and if it was a terrible experience, then the "low" is HALVED, and not so bad, because you're not carrying that burden alone! If you just don't want that, then that's fine for you.
Over the years, 14 of my friends have died. Only one or two in a bike accident. Fortunately, there are still quite a few left. Some don't ride as much. I've thought about a sidecar for one of the bikes, so I can ride with my dog.
In my case, I dont like people. I dont trust them. So Im not a sociable guy. When I go to bike nights, meetups, whatever you call it, it is hard for me to interact because everyone is some type of know it all. The age range is all over the place from old dudes to young dudes which is good but for me it's hard to connect. Sounds kinda gay but in the scheme of things everything seems gay right. It's hard to spark up a conversation to a random stranger or just feel comfortable around them. I just dont really like to talk, I just feel like the odd man out in a group of people especially for those that already know each other. You go to these meetups and you can already tell which groups are already in a Click. Feels highschoolish to me. Like a boys club, you dont want to step in their boundries or they will give you this odd look.
Everyone's comfort zone is different. Some people just have that presence of being welcome and have the personality of being the cool guy. In the back of my mind I'm thinking what shady **** is this guy going to do. I dont trust this fool. To me everyone is a 2 face liar.
As I got older, for me it's harder to make friends. As much I would love to have a riding buddy, it's hard to find a good friend that you can trust and not be shady around them.
To be real with you, that mindset keeps people away. 75% of communication is non-verbal, so how you think comes out in your facial expression & body language. I guarantee you would talk all day about stuff you're interested in. You say you have a problem with know-it-all's & that tells me that you're probably pretty smart & like to teach, or at least share your knowledge. Fish don't climb trees, so don't think that you need to (to deviate from that Einstein quote). The only reason I'm saying this is because I can relate - except for me, the 'smart' part is questionable.
My absolute greatest pleasure and treasure is riding with my wife 2-up. I do ride solo at times, but nothing beats having her back there to chat with as we motor along all day. We would happily ride with another (or more) like-minded couple but those seem to be like unicorns around here. So we ride our ride and answer to no one but ourselves for most rides.
If I was forced to ride solo or quit, I would still ride. However I'm pretty sure I would move to a dual sport, given the huge numbers of backroads and rough riding available where we live. If I depended on other riders or buddies to keep my interest level up, I would likely stop riding as I simply know of none in my area.
I think the key is as long as you have numerous scenic places to ride that can be ridden for hours to take your mind off things, that's all you need to be content.
Ride for your enjoyment, screw what others do, it's their loss, nothing is more relaxing and enjoyable than riding in a peaceful setting.
The problem with places like down here (FL), there are no really good places that offer favorable, satisfying rides that can be done over and over again.
Bar hopping is not my idea of fulfilling nor is it a smart idea even though it has become the accepted tradition for bike events especially for Daytona, this is why I'm told Sturgis is so much better than Daytona is for riding around.
ln Florida, A1A is about the only place you can go and in my opinion, can only be cruised just so many times before it gets old, not to mention that corrosive, salty air isn't doing your sled any good either, it's why I buy Salt-Away by the 55 gallon drum size from West Marine...
I think the key is as long as you have numerous scenic places to ride that can be ridden for hours to take your mind off things, that's all you need to be content.
Ride for your enjoyment, screw what others do, it's their loss, nothing is more relaxing and enjoyable than riding in a peaceful setting.
The problem with places like down here (FL), there are no really good places that offer favorable, satisfying rides that can be done over and over again.
Bar hopping is not my idea of fulfilling nor is it a smart idea even though it has become the accepted tradition for bike events especially for Daytona, this is why I'm told Sturgis is so much better than Daytona is for riding around.
ln Florida, A1A is about the only place you can go and in my opinion, can only be cruised just so many times before it gets old, not to mention that corrosive, salty air isn't doing your sled any good either, it's why I buy Salt-Away by the 55 gallon drum size from West Marine...
West Coast would blow your mind when it comes to riding country. Stay out of LA or the central valley there are no boring rides, and even those have scenery in the distance.
West Coast would blow your mind when it comes to riding country. Stay out of LA or the central valley there are no boring rides, and even those have scenery in the distance.
I'm right on the border and I've never been to the coast. I really have to check it out one of these days.
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