Easy Rider and Chopperguy

My wife commented to me the other day, "It's amazing who will wave to us on the road." She had noticed that day how a lot of people on Jap bikes would give us a wave or nod, but the Harley riders tended to sit solid in the saddle, hands firmly on the grips, staring straight ahead. Now I have my own theories about this. I used to tell people to never expect a wave from a chopper rider. Old choppers can offer people some difficulties, especially those that suffer from front end flop. Of course some of us need to reserve our hands for giving signals as well. I myself have recently taken to using the Satan fingers when giving signals. Just today I glanced back and noticed my wife using my "Satan Signals" as I approached my turn. And of course we have probably all heard how you should keep both hands on the handlebars.

All of this provides good reasons why a Harley rider, especially one on a chopper, wouldn't wave. Now before I alienate a whole bunch of my fan base let me state, I don't care if you wave or not. Personally, I grew up in a rural area where all of the farmers tended to signal to each other even if they didn't know each other. This has carried over to my riding habbits. So now for the debunking. My chop suffers from some degree of flop. As stated before, I use hand signals when turning to let other traffic know my intent. I also often ride one handed, using the free hand to do such things as clear bugs from my goggles, pick bugs out of my teeth, dig a bug out of my nose, or bug my passenger. Sometimes I just want to give it a rest and so I set it in my lap while the right hand continues its job. Don't get on my case. If people can drive a car and talk on the phone at the same time, I can certainly take one of my hands off the bars for a few minutes. I will give a wave to other riders as they approach. Just my style. For those of you who choose not to, fine. Some people expect that kind of road recognition, and you have no excuse not to give it. So next time my wife sticks her fore and pinky fingers up into the air in the good ol' rock star Signus Satanicus, at least give her a little thrill and nod your head.

On a seperate note, since my site gets a lot of traffic from all walks of life, I would like people to know that I have started the search for a new job. My previous experience rests mostly in the Graphic Design arena. If you know of any jobs in California, Oregon, Washington, or in Santa Fe that might fit the bill, please, send them my way. You can check out some of my work at http://www.napstudios.com/. Nothing like shameless self-promotion.

93 y'all.