The Rude Riders

The other morning I was blasting up the 5 freeway north of Los Angeles, almost to work. For some unknown reason there was almost no traffic and I was rolling along at 80 mph. Ahead I noticed the distinctive wide, hard saddlebags of another FJR though it was a few years older than my own 2007 FJR. The FJR is an expensive and somewhat rare bike so anytime one of us owners spots another we tend to wave a little more vigorously than when we see some other more typical bike.

As I gained on the rider I noticed something even more interesting; he was wearing a Harley-Davidson jacket. Yes, while riding a Yamaha. And this was no inconspicuous Harley jacket, it had the H-D bar and shield logo about three feet wide, covering it’s back. (Ok, maybe it was really only about a foot, but it was big.)

Since I own both a couple of Harley Sportsters (and a Buell) plus a couple of Yamahas, I immediately thought, “wow, here’s someone like myself! Someone not wound up in some specific marquee bigotry!” So I twisted the throttle and pulled up to him in the next lane. I glanced over, made eye contact and gave him a big ‘thumb’s up’.

His response? Zip. Nada. Nothing. There I was, barely five feet from him, waving my left paw, my leather clad thumb pointing at the sky and his response was to do nothing. I know he saw me, I could see his beady little eyes through his helmet as they quickly tried to not look my way. I was almost close enough to hook my upturned thumb up his helmet...

I turned back, grasped the left grip and continued on past him. Once I was well past him, I checked my mirror and noticed that he slowed and moved over to the right a few lanes. I guess he not only didn’t want to acknowledge me, he wanted to make sure that I didn’t bother him again.

Or maybe he was scared of me... “Oh my god, that other human tried to bond with me!”

What the heck is up? I showered that morning. Ok, maybe my bike was dirty, but not that bad. Perhaps he was embarrassed by his jacket? I don’t believe my thumb’s up could be interpreted any other way than “hey, cool!” But his guy couldn’t even manage a nod of his head, let alone a friendly wave of response or thanks.

It used to be that riders always waved at each other. It didn’t matter what type or brand bike you rode, you waved. Always, always, always, as long as it was safe to do so. An unwritten rule of the road. A sort of an ‘us against them’ comrade that’s existed for many, many years. Yet, every year fewer and fewer fellow motorcyclists wave.

It’s come down to Harley riders will only wave at Harley riders and then it’s often they’ll only wave if you’re riding the RIGHT Harley. God forbid, when I wave at a weekend Harley rider on a Fat Boy from the saddle of my Sportster, they won’t wave back... “Ewww, he’s on a lowly Sportster... Must... not... make... eye... contact...” So they keep their eyes averted and maintain their nasty poser biker scowl. You should see the shock and amazement I get when I wave at a Harley rider when I'm on one of the Yamahas, or visa versa... It's all they can do to try NOT to look at me.

Still, I keep waving.

I’m sure I’ll talk about this one again...