BABY BIKES

By Hanne

Small bikes can be loads of fun

Much has been made in recent years of those who are ‘childless by choice’. Tired of people constantly asking ‘so, when are you going to have children?’ and expecting that all couples should act out a storyline of ‘marriage – children - happily ever after’, they have joined forces and rebelled. Think ‘Non-Parents’ Day’ and groups like ‘No Kidding’. Sure, they still get sideways looks because they are not behaving like the majority, but their ranks are growing.

In the motorcycling world small bike owners are the equivalent of childless couples and the pressure to conform to the norm is just as strong. The narrative goes like this: start on a 250cc machine, get a full licence and graduate to a bigger bike as soon as possible, never to look back on bikes the size of a happy meal chocolate milk or small chai latte. But what about those who make a conscious choice to keep it compact, be it for economical, design or convenience reasons?

My flatmate currently has two Hondas in the garage, a racy looking 400cc and an H100, nicknamed ‘Brown Fury’. After taking the hundred to work one morning he was told by a workmate in no uncertain terms that unless it was one’s first ever motorcycle, riding such a bike was unforgivable. It didn’t matter that Brown Fury has seen more of the country in its 2 ½ trips to Wellington and three rebuilds than many Sunday riders ever will. The workmate had seen the ‘100’ sticker, and sizism did the rest.

Size Matters

There seems to be a myth out there that little bikes can never be as much fun as their litre counterparts. Try telling that to anyone taking part in the Postie Bike Challenge: Brisbane to Alice Springs on a ct110 is no mean feat. It’s a challenge, and that’s where the fun comes from. Small bikes are also fun because they can be ridden to 100% of their potential (in the case of Brown Fury, even more, although the rebuilds are testament to the fact that this is not recommended). There is never any shying away from the throttle or mentally tallying up one’s current demerit points before attempting an overtaking manoeuvre. Instead, another kind of mental gymnastics takes place. Otherwise known as ‘the planned overtake’, drafting behind the logging truck until the very last minute and the very longest stretch of road takes skill.

It also takes skill to politely negate the all too common assumption that I must have a learner licence because according to the motorcycling narrative no one would willingly downsize. In fact, I don’t fancy chewing through hundreds of dollars of 190 section tyres on the morning commute down the motorway or pouring petrol into a bottomless pit. Squiggles is thinking of buying a CT110 or similar next year after being blown away by my weekly petrol bill, which often sees me travel in excess of 300km and still get change from a twenty. I have faced my share of sizist assumptions at the checkout too. According to certain oil manufacturers the ax100 doesn’t even qualify as a ‘motorcycle’, taking ‘scooter oil’ in the 2-stroke reservoir. We take it in our stride, knowing that an entire new engine is only ever $400 away and that all those extra $ that would have been spent on tyres and VFR spark plugs can now go towards heated hand grips and an endless supply of fresh chai lattes on the road.

The moral of the story? Good things come in small packages. The Childfree brigade have been promoting the value of choice on the reproductive front for years. It’s time motorcyclists stopped lusting after four digit capacities and realised that small bikes are a valid option too.