Talking about my generation
By John Dickinson on 2nd Sep 11
Talking about my generation, as The Who so memorably said. They also said, Hope I die before I get old, although time has shown that Daltrey and Townshend didn't really mean that, or at least they are glad that they didnt take their own advice as the wrinkly rockers, now in their seventh decade, are still touring and raking in the scheckels.
And what a good job that the vast majority of 'My Generation' also chose to hang on a while or the world's motorcycle industry would have gone down the pan several decades since!
Yep, it is the oldies who spend all the cash on two-wheelers these days. Who rides off-road?
Youths of course in trials and motocross – and who picks up the tab for this? Good old dad shelling out vast wads. Then who rides? Well, in general, and this is every bit as true for the road bikers as well as off-roaders, there's a great void through the 20 and 30-year-olds before bikes kick back in and the oldies spend more hard-earned dosh on bikes for themselves again through their 40s, 50s and 60s before ageing bones get the better of willing minds and it all comes to a standstill.
Except for those who go the Classic or, more likely these days, the Twin-shock and Evo route! It's called re-living your youth!
So what? Well, after ignoring the flashing warning signs for around a decade now the major manufacturers have finally twigged that all the old gits really are coming to the end of their cycle (no pun intended) and the 'Born Again Biker' generation has finally grown through its passion for shiny new Fireblades and Gixxers and R1s and Ninjas.
And there is no follow-up generation in sight who were brought-up on bikes. Yamaha pulling out of World Superbikes is the first sign of reality having crash landed.
How the 'Big Four' will react, where they will go with future development and where else the axe will fall we all wait to see with trepidation...
It might even be good news for off-road. Let's just hope it is.
And now, as Monty Python used to say, something completely different as I own-up to taking a look at how the other half live as – and I can't believe I'm saying this – I attended a Tractor Pull (yes a tractor pull!) recently.
Just me and several thousand sons of the soil standing in a damp field while a series of crazies sitting on screaming 5,000 horsepower monsters, which threatened to grenade at any moment, attempted to tow a weird mechanical weighted sled down a 100-yard track. I'm not even going to try and explain – go look on YouTube if you are really interested.
Started at six, finished at midnight for just £12 a head. And if you think a 450cc racing single makes a racket you want to try the headache you get when a pair of Rolls Royce V12 Griffin engines on huge open pipes and full throttle, from just over the spectator ropes – unless you plug your lugs. Or how about FOUR huge supercharged V8s howling on methanol.
I didn't tire of the exotic machinery but I definitely maxed-out listening to the tractor obsessives that made-up the crowd on the lines of, "My Massey Ferguson's better than your Massey Ferguson..." etc, etc, etc...
Funniest quip of the night though followed the monumental blow-up of one of the tractors and as the red-hot bits rained down my favourite nearby noisy hayseed shouted: "I'll bet his missus goes flippin' (only he didn't say flippin') bananas. Mine does, I can hear it now, 'How much is that going to cost'...?"
It then crossed my mind that if you think that hiding a newly acquired motorcycle from your better half (and don't tell me you haven't tried!) on the grounds that you don't need to field the above question any tea-time soon, you've absolutely no chance with something the size of a Chieftain tank that sounds like Armageddon.
Although I must say I half fancy one just to wind the neighbours up. The ones who peer through the curtains and look like they've just sucked a sour lemon every time I crack a bike up.
Which reminded me of a memorable conversation I once had with that arch enthusiast Frank Thornton, former bossman of MXM Graphics but mainly a professional Geordie.
"That's the reason I only buy bikes with red tanks," quoth Frank. "It's all my missus notices, as long as when she looks in the garage and sees a bike with a red tank, I'm safe!"
Although. as I've just tipped Frank's missus the wink, you're in trouble now Frank...
Finally, I just want to join everyone involved in off-road in wishing Henry 'Mr Renthal' Rosenthal a speedy and full recovery following his monumental crash and severe injuries sustained that you can read about on page 2 of this issue.
Henry is one of life's true gentlemen and a great conversationalist.
So, and I'm sure one of his many visitors will read him this, so Henry, there are an awful lot of people in the sport thinking about you and we all wish you the speediest of recoveries.
