Are We Outlaws ??

SAFE....your screenname says it all before you touch a key to wax on about rules and safety. "PLAY IT SAFE". Dude, everyones not built like you. We are all different animals here and everywhere.

MBers in general are a subculture, right? Dont be so hung up and preachy about it. If you want to wear full leathers that match your saddle and bags:helmet:....go ahead. Not everyone wants to do that, but its OK for you to. Theres a whole world of us outhere who have been the Marlon Brando-Peter Fonda route. Some of us still are. Chopped or ratted out MBs dont make us cool or tough or anything else than individuals. OUTLAW=INDIVIDUAL. Set apart from the rest....ergo 1%er. I've never been a 99%er and I bet most MBers havent either. Thats who and what we are. We arent trying to be anything, but we are being who we are. You gotta accept that or you may choke on it. No one wants that. You enjoy your ride your way and we will to. Happy Motoring!
 
Oh no. I recently learned that I was a " Domestic Terrorist " because I cling to my Bible and my guns. Now I learn that I'm an outlaw too. :sick: I'm getting way to many labels. But I will keep riding my MB. Later, Milo.:D
 
I think he needs to start complaining and writting letters to Law makers about speed limmits on these things inorder to advance his selfish agenda... This way when his local State makes them ALL ILLEGAL, we know who to thank!

Sounds to me like that's all he wants anyway, his name in the history books!

Why worry about what everybody else does? Enjoy your life and be happy man. Quit being concerned w/w/others who are on the same side as you are doing. You only get so many trips arround the Sun, till it's over!
 
Are We Dorks?

Maybe we've all been looking at this from the wrong perspective?

Rather than do the equivalent of talking about "going on a diet" (restriction based thinking) and staying legal, maybe we need to look at how the "real world" views us?

The "real world" sees people on bicycles as "Dorks" unless you wear all the fancy bicycle racing gear and look like you are training for something. If you look like you are training for an Ironman Triathlon then at least people see that as some recognizable thing to be doing.

Ride a regular bike with regular clothes? Kinda dorky. (must have a DUI)

Ride a regular bike with a motor attached? Really dorky.

Ride a regular bike with a motor and pretend to be a chopper? Super dweeb?

Ride a regular bike with a motor and pretend to be a road racer? Strange... does it go fast? If not, then that's dorky.

...I think the real question should be:

"Are we okay with being dorky on our motorized bikes?"

Maybe we just need to embrace our "inner nerd"? :geek:

(one has to admit that the world sees us as less than the more advanced categories like motorcycles)

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Are We Dorks?

Maybe we've all been looking at this from the wrong perspective?

Rather than do the equivalent of talking about "going on a diet" (restriction based thinking) and staying legal, maybe we need to look at how the "real world" views us?

The "real world" sees people on bicycles as "Dorks" unless you wear all the fancy bicycle racing gear and look like you are training for something. If you look like you are training for an Ironman Triathlon then at least people see that as some recognizable thing to be doing.

Ride a regular bike with regular clothes? Kinda dorky. (must have a DUI)

Ride a regular bike with a motor attached? Really dorky.

Ride a regular bike with a motor and pretend to be a chopper? Super dweeb?

Ride a regular bike with a motor and pretend to be a road racer? Strange... does it go fast? If not, then that's dorky.

...I think the real question should be:

"Are we okay with being dorky on our motorized bikes?"

Maybe we just need to embrace our "inner nerd"? :geek:

(one has to admit that the world sees us as less than the more advanced categories like motorcycles)

6a00bf76d0a9b7438300e398c20f580002-500pi

Actually, we're not outlaws or even dorks, mostly we're not there. In my experience, most of the world just ignores people on bikes, powered or not. In some areas law enforcement zeros in, in other places the legislature has seen fit to legalize out sport. In my place, I'm illegal, law ignores me with great indifference. Even when I stop and talk to them, they would rather I just move on.

I see this thread as nonsense, you got toys, go play with them and quit worrying about what anyone else is doing. My bike is fun, I like to visit with other like minded people but this is far from a movement. Besides, if your top concern is a dang bicycle with a weed eater motor on it, you ain't been pay'n attention to what's go'n on.
 
First of all, I'm an urban rider. My commute route is primarily on many heavily traveled boulevards. Small side streets leads to nowhere or are far away from my destination. Debris is abundant all along the edges of the street. Cracks and potholes are everywhere. If the city can provide me adequate bike lanes or at least properly maintain the shoulders then I wouldn't mind paying a tax for my motorized bike. I obey the traffic laws when on the streets but it would be nice if I was given the same courtesy by motorists. On some of the narrow roads with heavy traffic on my route, I am forced to ride on the sidewalks for a short distance. This makes me an outlaw by necessity, not by choice. On one stretch, the shoulders/easements have been so overgrown with small thorny bushes that hurts like heck and there are NO sidewalks. I mean the plants protrude at least 6" into the street. During rush hour traffic, bottles, diapers, and half full beer cans have been thrown at me because i won't ride into or against the thorny vegetation. I have had so many flat tires due to riding into small ruts at the edges of the roads just so I won't inconvenience the other motorists. Seriously, I have to tighten up my spokes and true my wheels WEEKLY due to jacked up roads. Until they trim vegetation to at least 5' off the roads, sweep off the debris from the shoulders, create more bike lanes, they can't even talk to me about taxing my motorized bike. Yeah you can call me an outlaw but all I'm trying to do is keep down my carbon footprint while also surviving my 24 mile daily commute to work and back.
 
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Some see these motorized bikes as "toys".

Others see them as "transportation".

Yet others see them as cultural "rebellion".

...outwardly we are mostly seen as "Dorks" (whether we like that or not) by those in the real world.

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In many places you can own an electric bike or a moped (motorized bike) without any registration and the laws just give a big "okay" as long as you don't cause trouble. (that's how it is where I live)

Rarely there are places that fully ban and also enforce the ban of motorized bikes.

How we (somehow) arrive at this idea of "Outlaw" is that we take something that is supposed to be for "Dorks" and tweek it just enough so that the law decides that it isn't "Dorky Enough" anymore. Maybe it's too much power, or just some technical issue. The overridding "theme" is that bikes are dorky toys for people that can't get it together enough for real transportation like a motorcycle. The exception being the "cyclist" who is actually an athlete in training for something. (healthy)

When the "Dork" becomes just "Undorky Enough" they become the "Outlaw". :D

Maybe what we need is a "culture of nerdiness" and celebrate that rather than encourage the "Outlaws"?

(changing our perspective, our self image, to align better with external opinions of our hobby)

After all... these motorized bikes are really "techie" machines... you need to know enough about technical matters to make them work. It's not as bad as with computer geeks where people are rebuilding their Linux kernals and other such things, but it's not that far off. And as I recall the computer culture was a success while retaining it's geeky image from start to finish.

What image should be encouraged?

...people are going to do whatever they are going to do, but what "should" we promote?
 
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Dangerous Motorized Biking Outlaws?

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...what if the bike was illegal?
 
That's why you use a 49cc or smaller and don't exceed 25 mph when riding on city streets.
If a cop pulls you over and you've got that 66cc sticker on your engine and your bike isn't registered... kind of hard to talk your way out of a ticket. My bike can do 40 MPH but I choose not to ride it that fast on city streets. Ride smart and ride safe.
 
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