What Got You Into Bikes?

As the title says what got you into bikes?
We have members from all across Aust. Some from East Bondi (NZ) and some from the land of the free and home of cheap petrol, so I thought I’d ask the question. I don’t care about your expertise or if you have owned a string of bikes or if you’re still trying to start your Yamaha DT1.

What/who fired your passion? What made you decide to brave the elements?

For me growing up on a farm I started on farm and dirt bikes for fun and riding has evolved from there. I used to love watching the supers when they did the Le Mans starts. You wouldn’t get me doing that. And the battles in the Castrol 6hr. I used to work with Andrew Johnson in the mid 80’s too. As a dozer operator he made a good rider.

This time round it was a Yamaha jog and the desire to save a few bucks on the way to work.

Never worked tho as now my bikes are more costly than my car - but who cares

it was 1973, I was a 1st year apprentice, and I knew fukall about bikes .. 1 down 5 up ???? how does that work? anyway I was sick to death of catching the bus (or was that 2 buses) .. whats that I hear, I can get my L's at 16 years 9 months, and I don't need a full licensed rider with me .. bring it on.
Needless to say I loved it though winter was hard as the riding apparel wasn't as good then as it is now, I remember stuffing a newspaper into my socks so it covered my knees (for the cold, not the fall).

Aged 5 living in England ,got tied to the rider with a scarf for a ride .Farther was a bike fan so its in the blood. Then at age 17 Easy Rider hit
the screen everyone wanted a bike.

As a kid my dad used to bring home dirt bikes for my brother and I that he'd always have bought for a carton of beer. My favourite memory was riding my little Honda XL70, that little beast took me everywhere, all without a service... ever! There was heaps of other bikes, namely my brothers 1973? Yamaha DT400 that had a piston the size of a 186 holden and had problems keeping the head on without helicoils. He was around 12 when Dad and him told mum it was a 125 hahaha

We also used to have around the houses motorcycle racing in Collie when I was a kid. They stopped it many years ago and now it is survived by the WA Historical motorcycle club racing at the Collie Kostecki motorplex.

14 yo with a mate spending many months trying to get a Yammy 200 cc twin going after his old man said it'll never run again, bastard fired up on me one day trying to get her going, I'd never ridden a scoota before that, baptism of fire, farted and started with me piloting, i wuz hooked. AJ, I remember his riding skils, could ride anything, balls the size of watermelons on steroids!

14 yo with a mate spending many months trying to get a Yammy 200 cc twin going after his old man said it'll never run again, bastard fired up on me one day trying to get her going, I'd never ridden a scoota before that, baptism of fire, farted and started with me piloting, i wuz hooked. AJ, I remember his riding skils, could ride anything, balls the size of watermelons on steroids!

14 yo with a mate spending many months trying to get a Yammy 200 cc twin going after his old man said it'll never run again, bastard fired up on me one day trying to get her going, I'd never ridden a scoota before that, baptism of fire, farted and started with me piloting, i wuz hooked. AJ, I remember his riding skils, could ride anything, balls the size of watermelons on steroids!

Growing up on a farm its kinda a no brainer that I'd get into bikes. I think my first riding lesson was on my older brothers 70cc honda(no idea what it was). I was about 6years old? Loved them ever since

For me it was my Grandfather - centuries ago when I was knee high to a grasshopper he used to fascinate me with stories of travelling the state in search of work on a variety of machines including an Ariel Square Four an Indian (Scout I think) and a Harley of some sort.

I loved the tales he told of fleeing the coppers, who rode outfits, by continually taking left turns so they couldn't keep up.

He told me sometimes the roads were so bad back in the 20's that he'd be lucky to travel 20 or 30 miles in a day some days and flat tyres were common. He said that sometimes during the depression years times were so tough that people were known to stuff their tyres with grass after a blowout just to keep mobile since no one could afford to buy tyres or tubes. Mind you speeds were only a fraction of what we do today.

Just like in Easy Rider ,oh no, that was the petrol tank wasnt it.

Started on a Postie bike 90cc auto clutch 4sp with a high low range about age 10

hand on bible I swear this is true........learnt to ride on a mates farm .....the bike WLA 42 HD with sidecar ..AND ..held together with bailing wire .. we were about 14 /15 and that old thing would go like shit ..till somthing broke, then more bailing wire ................the first bike I owned was a 350 Mac Velocette I used for short circuit ( dirt track ) racing...........................Grumpy

I've never met a horsepower I didn't like, one taste of a BSA Bantam paddock basher @ 15 and I was hooked.

fossil wrote:He said that sometimes during the depression years times were so tough that people were known to stuff their tyres with grass after a blowout just to keep mobile

I did that just a couple of years back but different reason, had to get home, no spare worth repairing and this tyre wouldn't have taken repair.
Better than being stuck in the middle of nowhere.

I saw photos of my dad on a bike before I came along. Then my Uncles started taking me on Bike rallys at about 9 or 10. Wet t-shirt comps. Welcome to the world of women. The odd ride on my mates yz 80j at about 13. Then 16 and 9 months I got my L's. Freedom.

What got me into bikes? Good question. End of '75 was the year when I bought the mighty Yamaha AT1 (yep, not DT1). Great for rounding up the cows for milking. But why did I even have an interest in bikes? My elder brother (2 years ahead of me at school) had bought a CB360 Honda 12 months earlier so maybe the sibbling thing came into it. He was also buying bike mags to go with it so there was plenty of 'you need one of these' photos. Must have been it and have never regretted a moment of it since!

I don't know to be honest. I think it was a combination of things. I always wanted a bike, my dad had ridden bikes in the 40's and 50's. My brother-in-law rode bikes and a few of my mates lived on farms and had bikes. But my parents wouldn't have a bar of it. When I was 17 my dad said "You can get a bike over my dead body".

7 years later I was married with a kid and short of money, I thought I had succesfully convinced my wife that WE needed a bike to save money. Unfortunately one of the blokes she worked with had a major off that wasn't his fault. That put paid to that idea.

Fast forward to 1996. We now had 2 kids and still short of money. I again promoted the idea that WE needed a bike, she agreed and before she could change our mind I got my L's. Thanks to NSW law at the time within 3 months I was on my full licence and the 250 had been replaced by a 650. I must point out that my dad was quite right, he'd died in '95.

Riding road bikes was what I expected and more. I'm really pissed that I waited until I was 31 to get my licence, all those years I missed out on.

Now I've got a Bandit 1200 (obviously), my wife has a 750 monster, our eldest son has a FZ6N (no car licence) and our youngest is undecided about getting a car or bike.

Hmm, tri-post, i blame IE9, anyway, a follow up question, what now keeps us on 2wheels? For me its very simple, I love riding powered 2 wheel machines (except mopeds...). Ticks a few things including staying upright and managing the steed, quietness, freedom, one, speed (to the speed limit...), diversity of motorcycles and heritage for which many are and come from... I s'pose with a few suds and couple to propmt me, could go on... Family and kids curb the enthusiasm, but enthusiasm is alive and well now graced with a modicum of common sence! Stay upright and enjoy as long as you can.

Driving has become so sanitised these days so I like the mechanical and physical interaction required to get from A to B on a bike.
A monkey could drive a modern car and many do! But a bike takes some skill even at a basic level. I consider myself to be nothing more than a basic rider as far as skill goes.
Oh and it keeps me sane

2wheelsagain wrote:Driving has become so sanitised these days so I like the mechanical and physical interaction required to get from A to B on a bike.
A monkey could drive a modern car and many do! But a bike takes some skill even at a basic level. I consider myself to be nothing more than a basic rider as far as skill goes.
Oh and it keeps me sane

Couldn't agree more.

Used to be a professional bikerider(A postie)got my liscence in 1962 bought a BSA Bantam,followed by James 125 and then a leadbeater matchless 500 single.Wouldn't be game to ride them now in the worn out condition they were.In the 70's it was RD350,CB450 followed by the mighty GT750 waterbus,all bought new in Bunbury.Then marriage,kids and then no more joy until divorce.Since then R80(should have kept it)Trumpy Sprint Sports(divorce lawyers took it) K75s,Sprint RS,2008 1250sa.

[url= Uploaded with [URL=http://imageshack.us]ImageShack.us

It all started at a young age............ since then it was all just a forgone conclusion.

Great pic

Hi Fossil,Is that an early SA number plate on the Matchie?I think mine(1954)was a later model,it had an AJS fuel tank and a stubby muffler.Still have dreams(or nightmares)about that bike.Maybe dreams on how I ever survived it.