SV650.org - SV650 & Gladius 650 Forum - View Single Post - Would you rather have a drink or ride a 'bike?

09-05-06, 07:39 AM

Strange place, America - and they probably think that about us!

On SVRider, there is a lengthy thread about someone feeling nervy and bad about.....lane-splitting. Strong feelings are aroused about this but, in our country, if (say) London-based bikers didn't do it, the traffic queues would stretch to Newcastle! This set me thinking about some of the differences between our Nations and the ones that sprang immediately to mind were:

1. In the UK, you can buy alcoholic drink at 18. In the US it's 21.
2. In the US, anyone can get a driving licence at 16 - and at 15 in many States, and 14 in some. With that, you can pretty much ride any bike you like and the test consists largely of knowing which side of the road to drive on and what is the first letter of Harley Davidson (in Wisconsin, they skip the first part). Over here, our Government (ie, the unelected idiots in Brussels*) would really like only people over the age of 29 and under 31 to ride bikes - and then only if they have owned a bike continuously since 1977, to weed out born-again bikers......

* That's the Brussels where you can get legally rat-ar5ed at 16, by the way.

I wonder which is worse and more anti-social: whipping through some traffic, or buying 12 cans of Diamond White and beating up an old lady before vomiting in Marks and Spencer's doorway?

09-05-06, 07:39 AM	#1
Anonymous Guest Posts: n/a	Would you rather have a drink or ride a 'bike? Strange place, America - and they probably think that about us! On SVRider, there is a lengthy thread about someone feeling nervy and bad about.....lane-splitting. Strong feelings are aroused about this but, in our country, if (say) London-based bikers didn't do it, the traffic queues would stretch to Newcastle! This set me thinking about some of the differences between our Nations and the ones that sprang immediately to mind were: 1. In the UK, you can buy alcoholic drink at 18. In the US it's 21. 2. In the US, anyone can get a driving licence at 16 - and at 15 in many States, and 14 in some. With that, you can pretty much ride any bike you like and the test consists largely of knowing which side of the road to drive on and what is the first letter of Harley Davidson (in Wisconsin, they skip the first part). Over here, our Government (ie, the unelected idiots in Brussels) would really like only people over the age of 29 and under 31 to ride bikes - and then only if they have owned a bike continuously since 1977, to weed out born-again bikers...... That's the Brussels where you can get legally rat-ar5ed at 16, by the way. I wonder which is worse and more anti-social: whipping through some traffic, or buying 12 cans of Diamond White and beating up an old lady before vomiting in Marks and Spencer's doorway?