I’m aware that it’s not unusual for truck drivers to be bikers and petrol heads in general, but after driving 1-2K miles a week for work how do you motivate yourself to indulge yourself in your hobby which might involve riding/driving a few hundred more miles?
Maybe It’s me, but after a week on the road I’m struggling to motivate myself to get the bike out the garage and hit the road for pleasure.
Time to change hobbies?
Actually I find it hard to be arsed to get the Pan out now, so Im gonna down size a bit and go for a more enduro style thingy. Im too old and worried about licences, and other road users (idiots) to get a tarmac burner, can`t be doing with heavy cruisers or choppers*, and motorway cruising is boring so…enduro time for me.
*No offence to anyone loves `em, but not for me, thanks.
After a break of almost 10 yrs, i treat myself to a 650 bandit for christmas . Lovely little bike but as i discovered physically too small for a fat git. So recently traded it for a cbf1000. It does everything i want, its compfortable and fazt enough for a recycled hooligan . Might be something for franglaise to consider. ? But back to th op. It simply de stresses me . I dont get far as i have h,a,v,s ( white finger ) from 30 yrs of heavy engineering .
syramax:
After a break of almost 10 yrs, i treat myself to a 650 bandit for christmas . Lovely little bike but as i discovered physically too small for a fat git. So recently traded it for a cbf1000. It does everything i want, its compfortable and fazt enough for a recycled hooligan . Might be something for franglaise to consider. ? But back to th op. It simply de stresses me . I dont get far as i have h,a,v,s ( white finger ) from 30 yrs of heavy engineering .
Too easy to go too fast ! CBFs are lovely things, but thats half the trouble with them. I reckon summat with a smaller engine and more upright position might keep my licence cleaner. Its more fun (IMHO) to wind up a little `un and play with the gears? But, each to their own.
I only use mine for weekends away/day trips.
Have considered selling up…but it costs so little to run…
Thought about a sports car,instead…but quite enjoy the garage space.
At the end of a day spent plodding around in a lorry, I actually look forward to the drive home. Its only about 17 miles but I usually manage to put another 10 on top by choosing a few country lanes. Weekends are more of the same.
I still have my motorbike, but I’ve not ridden it at all in well over a year as I find my small red mid-life crisis (Mazda MX-5) so much fun (and it doesn’t take half an hour or more to get us kitted-up for a ride).
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As I day man I go to work on my 650 bandit everyday,weather got to be really bad to stop me riding,
Can’t wait to get on the bike after a day in the truck and regular put a 20-30 mike detour in on the way home,
Each to there own but I can’t see point of having a bike in the shed all year get out an use it…
People say it knackers them up and are shocked by how clean and well kept my bike is when I tell them I ride 12 month of the year…
Biking is an escapism for me,slide the helmet on and shut the visor it’s me the bike and the road,
Roymondo:
At the end of a day spent plodding around in a lorry, I actually look forward to the drive home. Its only about 17 miles but I usually manage to put another 10 on top by choosing a few country lanes. Weekends are more of the same.I still have my motorbike, but I’ve not ridden it at all in well over a year as I find my small red mid-life crisis (Mazda MX-5) so much fun (and it doesn’t take half an hour or more to get us kitted-up for a ride).
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this…only in my black mazda rx8. 
I miss my bike, still got them but laid up in another county in my mates garage. Her indoors won’t let me have them at home, [emoji15]
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Roymondo:
I find my small red mid-life crisis (Mazda MX-5) so much fun (and it doesn’t take half an hour or more to get us kitted-up for a ride).
I feel the same way about my Lexus IS 300 …
peirre:
I’m aware that it’s not unusual for truck drivers to be bikers and petrol heads in general, but after driving 1-2K miles a week for work how do you motivate yourself to indulge yourself in your hobby which might involve riding/driving a few hundred more miles?
Maybe It’s me, but after a week on the road I’m struggling to motivate myself to get the bike out the garage and hit the road for pleasure.
The world doesn’t end with UK roads. 
On that note I always regarded driving a truck for a living as just being paid to go on a permanent road trip every day.Which then paid for an even better one going wherever I wanted with the right car during my time off. The same might apply now having been forced out of retirement into,hopefully,distance car driving work.
Having said that over regulation everywhere has admittedly removed some of the magic and fun of it all.In which case lower your sights in that 50-60 mph on non motorway roads isn’t the end of the world.With motorways becoming a pointless irrelevance in most cases.Even if it is a case of going backwards to a 1950’s type speed regime,with the exception of something like a Vincent or Scott or Jag XK120 etc in the day.
peirre:
I’m aware that it’s not unusual for truck drivers to be bikers and petrol heads in general, but after driving 1-2K miles a week for work how do you motivate yourself to indulge yourself in your hobby which might involve riding/driving a few hundred more miles?
Maybe It’s me, but after a week on the road I’m struggling to motivate myself to get the bike out the garage and hit the road for pleasure.
Please rephrase ‘get bike out of garage and hit the road’!!
Did that more than once, it hurts!
I have an Audi RS4, doesn’t take much motivation to want to drive it
Generally can’t be bothered driving the car at the weekend, I enjoy going a good blast for a day trip or the weekend away but can’t stand driving around unless it’s early or late at night.
One car is garaged and the diesel daily is “tweaked” ( 
ahem ) so the run home is a bit of fun and when I do need to drive it’s not totally hateful.
peirre:
I’m aware that it’s not unusual for truck drivers to be bikers and petrol heads in general, but after driving 1-2K miles a week for work how do you motivate yourself to indulge yourself in your hobby which might involve riding/driving a few hundred more miles?
Maybe It’s me, but after a week on the road I’m struggling to motivate myself to get the bike out the garage and hit the road for pleasure.
You’re not alone. I’m pretty much having a year out of biking; well at least the rallying/weekend away bit. New girlfriend with a talent for gardening and interior decoration/renovation has focussed my mind and efforts on getting my house done up while my mojo recovers. 
Should add that she enjoys riding pillion as well so I get the best of both worlds!
I don’t know if it’s what you describe, or perhaps the fact that there are only so many variations on the theme of getting ■■■■■■ up and ■■■■ wet through in a field; but oddly enough I’m not really missing it. My main club seems to have got itself stuck in a loop of rugby club rallies; great if you like that sort of thing but it gets a bit like having a touring caravan that you park up on a site and visit at weekends; you end up seeing the same people every weekend.
No intention of giving up bikes though but I am tempted to thin the herd a bit. Six in the current stable, three on the road and three in various stages of overhaul. Cost is mitigated by the fact that four are tax/MOT exempt owing to age; the ElectraGlide joins that select band next year so that will be this winter’s overhaul.
Sidevalve:
You’re not alone. I’m pretty much having a year out of biking; well at least the rallying/weekend away bit. New girlfriend with a talent for gardening and interior decoration/renovation has focussed my mind and efforts on getting my house done up while my mojo recovers.Should add that she enjoys riding pillion as well so I get the best of both worlds!
I don’t know if it’s what you describe, or perhaps the fact that there are only so many variations on the theme of getting ■■■■■■ up and ■■■■ wet through in a field; but oddly enough I’m not really missing it. My main club seems to have got itself stuck in a loop of rugby club rallies; great if you like that sort of thing but it gets a bit like having a touring caravan that you park up on a site and visit at weekends; you end up seeing the same people every weekend.
No intention of giving up bikes though but I am tempted to thin the herd a bit. Six in the current stable, three on the road and three in various stages of overhaul. Cost is mitigated by the fact that four are tax/MOT exempt owing to age; the ElectraGlide joins that select band next year so that will be this winter’s overhaul.
I know what you mean, the bike will always be ready and road legal albeit in need of my time
Despite once being a regular rally go’er, for over a decade I haven’t been to a UK bike rally because I got tired of the same old format of a club sticking a marquee up in a ■■■■■ wet field in the middle of nowhere, (usually in a field full of corn stubble), with a poxy stage at one end and a “bar” selling warm beer at the other end. Add in the drunken antics of fellow attendees shouting “I’m Spartacus” at 4 in the morning, or worse.
These days the only rallies I attend at usually in Portugal or Spain, with the Faro rally the 3rd weekend in July being a regular trip. But due to the availability of cheap flights I now tend to fly down on Wednesday morning and fly back Sunday evening right after the rally ends.
Especially as Faro has much more to offer, such as guaranteed sunshine, the close proximity of the site to the airport, Faro town, and the beach. So it’s possible to spend the night enjoying the entertainment, sleep for a few hours, then spend the afternoon sunbathing or having lunch at the beach. The club do make sure you have a good craic, and over the years I’ve seen numerous bands on stage from Iron maiden, to Joe cocker. Though watching St.Dominics gospel choir belting out Bon Jovi covers in front of 50,000 people is a bizarre sight to see.
The smaller Portuguese club run events I enjoy more so, as the hospitality is amazing. So if you ever get the chance to try those you won’t be disappointed
Anyhow back to the OP
raymundo:
Roymondo:
I find my small red mid-life crisis (Mazda MX-5) so much fun (and it doesn’t take half an hour or more to get us kitted-up for a ride).I feel the same way about my Lexus IS 300 …
Sounds fun but having lost my hair, wearing a goatee to stop looking like an alien, projection of the homosexual stereo type would be too much driving those types of cars, especially the mx5, for example I could never use the gents toilets again without thinking i was perhaps sending a misinterpreted signal to members of the LGBTQ community that are known to sometime loiter around such places.
rsg1234567:
raymundo:
Roymondo:
I find my small red mid-life crisis (Mazda MX-5) so much fun (and it doesn’t take half an hour or more to get us kitted-up for a ride).I feel the same way about my Lexus IS 300 …
Sounds fun but having lost my hair, wearing a goatee to stop looking like an alien, the homosexual stereo type would be too much driving those types of cars, especially the mx5, for example I could never use a pull up to use a washroom again without thinking i was sending the wrong signals…
I don’t give a flying ■■■■ what others think I look like - although when I first bought it a couple of years ago I did consider putting a “No hairdressing products left in this vehicle overnight” sticker on the back for comedic effect
Bikes for years but gave up a while ago, been a car nut forever so that has continued, but do less trackdays than I used to & don’t leave a car at 'ring anymore.
Still love it & have a nice commute home which is fun blatting upto 3 times the speed you’ve sat at all day & does take some re calibration.
Don’t do the euro road trips & few track days that I used to, as just do so many euro miles in the day job its not such an appeal, but did scoot out to Sweden do an ice driving course on winter for something different, but flew out.
I own a bandit and although im not out every weekend.
go out about every 3 or 4 weeks weather depending.
its an escape 4 of us usually go around the countryside for few hours pull over have a brew chat admire the other bikes if any then head home.
just the freedom and the open roads hard to explain to a non biker.
I don’t need motivating. if we had hot weather all year round id sell my car and stick with the bike.
suppose its only the same as truckers who then spend there weekends at truck shows.
or airport workers who spend there time off plane spotting etc
Nice one Edd, I can see where you are coming from. How can anyone compare driving a truck to riding a motorcycle? Or compare driving a fast car (only supercars get near a decent bike) as there is no better feeling than riding a decent motorcycle on a decent road or on a track.Cornering alone on a bike is far more exhilarating than any car and the power through your right wrist in not understood to those who think they have fast cars.( 
)
Don’t get me wrong I enjoyed driving many trucks and cars but nothing beats a bike in more ways than one.