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Can I Sit On It?


ArTravlR

1,860 views

Can I sit on it?

Last week the job required that I visit some of the local courthouses and inspect some state owned equipment. The most interesting courthouse was the one for Desha County, Arkansas, which is Arkansas City. Arkansas City is located on a spit of land (Choctaw Island) surrounded by the Mississippi River.

There is a truckload of history in this little town. Arkansas City was a major river port for the Mississippi after the Civil War. Nearby, in the middle of the Mississippi, was the town of Napoleon, which was a major river port before the Civil War. This is also the location of where the Choctaw Nation crossed the Mississippi River in 1830-32 on their way to present day eastern Oklahoma. Col. Warton Rector, Paymaster 2nd Cavalry, was in command of that operation.

I arrive in Arkansas City aboard the Interprize, this is my 2005 Silver VFR800A model named Interceptor. The town of about 200 souls appeared to be deserted. I pulled into the parking lot and as I was taking off my helmet, some children ran up to me. I counted seven kids all below the age of ten some where white, some were black and some were of Chinese decent. (There is a complicated story concerning the immigration pattern for Southeast Arkansas.)

These kids were gushing over the bike, they asked the usual questions of what kind is it, how fast does it go, and every answer was replied with the exclamation of 'Sweet!' One small boy asked to sit on it and I picked him up and let him sit on it. As you can imagine, he was saying vroom, vroom while leaning forward and twisting the throttle. The other children were saying 'Me too, Me too'. Everyone got a turn and the crowd grew as folks leaving the courthouse stopped by to see the 'purty motorcycle'.

I then got into a conversation with another gentleman about my age about his Goldwing (GL1100) that he has been riding for over twenty years. The next thing I know there is a tall lanky teenager sitting on the Interprize and he has the sidestand up. As the old guy with the John Deer baseball cap talks about his Goldwing, I carefully watch the teenager and double check the key to the Interprize in my pants pocket. Suddenly, I am uncomfortable with people sitting on my bike. I am not sure why.

I start telling folks that I need to go inside and get to work. Soon, everyone is moving on and wishing me a good day. I take care of business and move on to the next county. I had fun and was paid mileage too.

Later in the week I take my 1990 CBR1000F to work. After lunch, one of our secretaries informs me that her fiancé had been sitting on the CBR, making vroom, vroom noises and saying, "I have to get one of these."

I have to admit that I felt a twinge of frustration /resentment about this young man sitting on my bike without permission. I do not mind little kids sitting on the bike if I am there but I do not like 'grown ups' sitting on my bike without permission.

I suppose the general public thinks that is unreasonable but, I have concerns that the bike will be tipped over or worse that the poser will be hurt. Those of us who ride understand this, I think.

A little over a decade ago while in Saudi Arabia waiting on a war to start, a TV reporter used my bunk to interview a girl without permission. I really felt violated and I raised holy hell about it. The reporter and especially the cameraman thought I was being unreasonable. However, there is a long-standing tradition in the Army that you never sit on another persons bunk without permission.

That is how I feel about my bikes.

Robert Bashaw

www.RideHSTA.Com

LoweST Arkansas

CBR1000F

ST1100A2 STovokor

VFR800A5 Interprize

Sport Touring Calendar = http://www.lulu.com/content/1901567

12 Comments


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I hardly ever sit in people's cars without permission...

I can see letting little kids sit on a bike, but a teenager sitting on it and putting the stand up? ridiculous.

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Nice blog entry.

Of course to us it's wrong to sit on someone else's bike without first asking and receiving permission, but some people (mostly non-riders) just don't know any better. Nice job keeping cool when it happened.

If the future, you could carry a bike cover with you - one that has grommets at the bottom so you can lock it in place.

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Guest Gap Trash

Posted

It amazes me how many people think nothing of sitting on someone else's bike, especially when they do not know the owner. several years ago when I lived in the dorms, I came out several times to see people on my bike. I didn't seem to be annoyed so much when the people that were sitting on my bike were cute girls, that was always a great ice breaker! My worst experience with people sitting on my bike was one night I met some friends at a bar (I wasn't drinking just hanging out) I come outside to see a guy sitting on my bike I said something like "Hey, get of my bike" The guy got all offended but I had a lot of backup with me. The guy moved on. I'll be damned if I'm gonna let some drunk that I don't know play around on my bike and knock it over. I should invest in an alarm.

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  • Member Contributer

That has always bugged me.

If I see someone fondling my baby I usually ask where their car is, so I can go and sit in it.

I usually get the 'wtf'? look. I'm not a big fan of stickers, but I will have one soon that alerts the passer-by to not sit on the vehicle...

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this just happened to me today.I'm in a restraunt and just as I get my food the manager (mid 20s) is walking around my bike looking at it then all of a sudden thows his leg over and has a seat.I'm out the door lickidy split loudly saying GET OFF

my bike.He says I"m just looking and I say looking is alright but don't sit on a mans bike without permisson.He got off but acted offended glad I got my food first.I won't be eating there again.I let people who ask sit on it while I'm standing there but strangers with 28" inseams make me panic.Thats my rant for the day

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  • Member Contributer

I used to think that it was just the younger "me" generation.

Now I believe that there is just something wrong with most people.

There is a guy in the town where I live. He has been retired for a few years. I would say that he is well over 60. So is his wife.

He fixes CB radios for fun.

I rode my bike over to his house one day to talk about having him do some work on a radio.

We were down in his basement in his shop.

His wife came in and announced that she and the woman across the street had just put her grandson on my motorcycle.

Silly me. I asked her when a privately owned motorcycle became public playground equipment.

She hasn't spoken to me for about two years now. She won't even answer the phone if I call to talk to my friend.

The guy told me later that he was sorry. Then I explained that motorcycles have hot parts on them that could burn a kid and that a driveway tipover can cost $2000-3000.00 to repair. The look on his face was something to behold.

I am still amazed that people will simply help themselves to other people's property and then get mad when they are told to leave it alone.

I may be the only person left in the world who had parents that taught me to keep my hands to myself.

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Shoot, you guys got lucky.

The very first day I got my plate put on my VF700F, I took it out to show it off to some friends. The last house I stopped at, had a bunch of cars in the driveway, and an artesian well in the yard. Not wanting my new baby to sink her stand into the mud, I parked over the stone walkway leading to the house, front wheel on one side, back wheel on the other, kickstand on the walk.

I went inside, announced that Iahd my new bike outside, and one of the girls(actually a woman older than me) ran outside and hopped on it before I even made it to the door. She got on from the kickstand side, and promptly fell over on the right side, smashing my helmet into the gas tank and putting a huge dent in it. (it was hanging on the handlebar).

Once I figured out she was ok, I started talking to her about reimbursement, and wouldn't ya know it, she got mad and yelled at me for parking my bike the way I did, it's my fault for parking it there... b!tch! <_<

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  • Member Contributer
Shoot, you guys got lucky.

The very first day I got my plate put on my VF700F, I took it out to show it off to some friends. The last house I stopped at, had a bunch of cars in the driveway, and an artesian well in the yard. Not wanting my new baby to sink her stand into the mud, I parked over the stone walkway leading to the house, front wheel on one side, back wheel on the other, kickstand on the walk.

I went inside, announced that Iahd my new bike outside, and one of the girls(actually a woman older than me) ran outside and hopped on it before I even made it to the door. She got on from the kickstand side, and promptly fell over on the right side, smashing my helmet into the gas tank and putting a huge dent in it. (it was hanging on the handlebar).

Once I figured out she was ok, I started talking to her about reimbursement, and wouldn't ya know it, she got mad and yelled at me for parking my bike the way I did, it's my fault for parking it there... b!tch! <_<

Now THAT is just plain wrong! Guess you can't take them to court for something like that, can you?

P.P-M

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Now THAT is just plain wrong! Guess you can't take them to court for something like that, can you?

P.P-M

S'pose I coulda, but I'll forever chalk that one up as 'young and dumb' on my part. <_<

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  • Forum CEO

I used to park my cruiser under the roof of my resturant, it was a pizza deliver shop and It was always raining in the afternoon. People would sit on it all the time, at first I would get angry. But so many people would do it - I finally just put a sticky note on it saying "you breaky you buy"! Of course it helped they were mostly fine looking females visiting the gym next door. Then my boss told me to move it cause he wanted to make my store a carry out service, so I had to park it in a space out in the open.

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  • Member Contributer
It amazes me how many people think nothing of sitting on someone else's bike, especially when they do not know the owner. several years ago when I lived in the dorms, I came out several times to see people on my bike. I didn't seem to be annoyed so much when the people that were sitting on my bike were cute girls, that was always a great ice breaker! My worst experience with people sitting on my bike was one night I met some friends at a bar (I wasn't drinking just hanging out) I come outside to see a guy sitting on my bike I said something like "Hey, get of my bike" The guy got all offended but I had a lot of backup with me. The guy moved on. I'll be damned if I'm gonna let some drunk that I don't know play around on my bike and knock it over. I should invest in an alarm.

A buddie of mine had an alarm on his bikes one day a kid climed on set the alarm off fell off and the mom blamed my buddie for the alarm makeing the kid fall

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  • Member Contributer

Anybody who would sit on someones motorcycle without asking is an a$$&*^# and thus deserves to be verbally abused and beaten if need be. If they drop your bike and your not there what are the odds that you will be reimbursed. I think about a million to one.

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