The motorcycle rider's wave

Do you wave to aknowledge riders going by in the opposite direction? What do you think when a Harley rider doesn't wave back? Is there an internal awkward moment when you realize you just waved at a scooter?

I figure the June bugs and the pavement don't know what brand you ride so I get over it.

 

Yes, always unless hands too busy then I knod. If I'm on the Norton or if it's a Britbike, then it's a thumbs-up; otherwise a simple wave.

Harley riders who won't wave to anything except other Harleys are just proving to the rest of the world what we already know.

 

I've found that scooter guys DON'T wave.
Harley guys mostly wave. I slide my left fist off the grip, low.
Just straighten the elbow.

 

I wouldn't sweat it. The guys I ride with ride nothin but harleys. They don't razz me about my bike, because I do my thing, work on my own bike, hold my title and and don't follow what everyone else is doing. 20 grand and 20 miles don't make you a biker. It is about freedom, why would you care what someone else thought about you or your bike.

 

that's what i think Chaos. my opinion is the only one that matters (bout anything that's mine really) unless it's good then i'll take a little praise or such, lol. I figure if somebody don't like my bike then i'll let them buy it for my asking price and then do as they wish. I used that line when my boss wanted me to run errands in my truck cuz the company truck was out, told him give me 5 grand i'll hand over the title then you got say so about it.
and yes, i do wave, around here it seems to be popular for a flat hand extended mostly down.

 

yeah, I don't sweat it. Just throwing it out for discussion. There's actually very few that don't wave back around here.

 

Some wave, some don't.
In my experience the majority that don't are riding Harleys.
I have never seen a scooter dude give a biker wave.

 

I lower a hand to everybody and most do the same.

 

when I go by a Harley rider and I wave and they do not wave sometimes I think I should have lowered my arm and stuck up my middle finger. Thats ok because what they don't know is I have a Harley(my stepdads) I can ride anytime I want to, which is hardley ever

 

Once in a while, on a whim, I'll make a totally spontanious comment to a total stranger in a store or a mall, just trying to introduce a bit of humor into a mundane circumstance. Most people respond in kind with a chuckle or a quick-witted answer of their own. Some just look at me like "Huh, you talking to me?" Waving on a bike is like that. Some get it, some don't. I choose to be one of the ones that get it.

 

I concure about the Hog riders, some of them are sticks in the mud. 8) :lol:

 

Wow, you guys are harsh on the harley guys.

I wave at everyone I pass unless I am watching the traffic around me and don't see someone go by. XJ's, crotch rockets, other harleys... Makes no difference to me. They all get a wave. Maybe its not the harley but the person sitting on the seat.

Still hanging around here trying to 'pay it forward' here for all of the help I got getting back into bikes.

 

It is because of what you have ridden in the past. Take a guy who has never owned nothing but a Harley and cant even spell motorcycle then you see what we are talking about.

 

The Hog riders are not being ignorant - their bikes handle so bad they're just too afraid to take a hand off the bars....... :roll:

 

Just got done with a long laugh. :lol:

 

I always wave at anyone on two (motorized) wheels, whatever brand. Left hand low if traffic allows, if not a lift of the head.

Had to laugh recently when a cager on the interstate thought I was indicating a left turn for a lane change. He was zooming up pretty fast in the left lane when I waved at a biker across the median. I saw him jump on the brakes in my mirror.

Wish they saw us that well all the time!

Herb

 

I wave to motorcycles and scooters alike if my hands aren't busy, otherwise I nod. I sometimes think scooters should get a full blown salute with the little tires on some of those things. You wouldn't catch me in traffic on one of them! :lol:

mikeg

 

My favorite video on biker waves:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqykEhOIaRk

 

I wave to everyone too. For me it says hi road brother or sister be safe....

 

I find that usually 9 out of 10 people either wave back for have already started to wave before I get my hand off the grip. The one funny thing I find is that when I'm on the Maxim pretty much everyone waves except for some crotch rockets and when I'm on the GSXR pretty much everyone waves except for some cruisers. Then the Harley's are sort of hit and miss, though a week or so a guy on a nice Harley pulled up besides me at a long red for a nice little chat, so you never really know.

 

You know, there's more truth to that than you realize, I think. I rode my dad's Harley for a week, and came to realize that at least at low speeds, they need a lot of clutch modulation if you want a smooth ride. More than once I couldn't wave because I had my left hand full, so to speak.

Around here almost all the Harley guys wave, it's the crotch rocket guys who never seem to. And I wave at the scooters, but they usually seem pretty surprised when I do...

 

Anyone here hate scooter riders because they're all a bunch of lazy self involved arts students?

PS how in the world do you keep from sliding off the sides of those things?

 

it's okay Joe.... a sportster isnt a real harley anyway...

let us know when you take the training wheels off of it
:lol:

 

I'm pretty much the same way. If my hand's free, I will generally wave to any biker that's riding responsibly, regardless of make or style.

I generally won't wave to the (typically) sport biker's wearing shorts, sandals and have their helmet strapped to their bike instead of on their head where it belongs...I don't want to be misunderstood to be accepting or encouraging of that kind of behavior.

I definitely would have to agree with this to a point. The clutch on my Dyna takes a lot more work at low speeds than my Seca did. Since there's way more torque at low speeds (<20mph) than my Seca had, it takes a lot more work to keep that ride smooth. Once I get it above that though, it's far less work with the clutch.

 

Hey, that is what the harley big twin people say. Do you have one? :lol:

 

I don't hate scooters or their riders, but it does strike me as odd that we, as motorcycle riders, are required to wear helmets and we generally hold to the principle of ATGATT, while most of the scooter riders I've seen out on the road are in sandals, shorts, t-shirts, and no helmets.

 

:lol:

nah, no desire for a harley.
maybe a really old one, but too many running around the street now.

 

Well, sure... you don't need to use the clutch much if you never have to shift! :lol:

 

they will learn... most people equate the bike as the problem; the fact we have 80, 90, 100 horse they think it's the problem and not the other cars on the road.
"my scooter is small and only has 20hp, it cant get me hurt"

 

Spaceships (Harleys with the HUGE fairings on them) and Scooters i give the O.K. hand to. Ya'll know what I'm talkin bout. The, "Look at this hand with the O on it and I get to punch you once" hand. HA ha. Makes me laugh when they wave back, "Awh that guy was really nice!" Ah ha jerks.
I just think they're both silly.
I wave to my neighbors, friends i know, my local NaPa. and almost every other motorcycle rider. I hate it when people wave to me at stop lights and such, or when I'm taking off from a stop light. My hands are busy! And they're all huffy and angry lookin. Everyone round here sits at lights in Neutral. Scary. Oooo but their hands are free! Losers
-Chris

 

If it's got 2 wheels or hell even 3, I wave....
If my hands are busy I nod....

Harley riders are about a 50% return
Goldwing riders are about 25% return lol

Scooter riders often wave, if not they are probably shocked because someone waved Here they are classes as a motorcycle and require helmets, electric scoots are classed a bicycles... should see the stupid stuff those people wear!!

 

You guys need to stop picking on those Harley riders. It's not polite or proper as they have other things on their minds.

I read an interesting statistic the other day. 98% of all Harleys ever made are still on the road. The other 2% made it all the way home!

 

For me it's coolest to raise your left hand just off the bars - or nod if you are busy wringing it's neck.

BTW - what is a "Scooter" in the US?. In the UK a scooter would be a Lambretta or Vespa 150 cc or thereabouts. In years gone by there were traditional seaside fights between Rockers (Bikers) and Mods (Scooter riders).

I am wondering if you mean small Japanese 50 cc MOPEDS, ridden here by spotty 16-year-old youths wearing training shoes and Hoodies!!!

 

Don't you have giant "scooters" like the Yamaha Zuma or the Suzuki Burgman? Weird step-thru things with the motor under the seat looking like a streamlined suitcase with undersized wheels?

 

there's always one wave garuanteeed to get a return. when you pass a few kids on bicycles just give them a wave, it'll have been so cool to see a motorcycle rider wave that they always wave back, at least to me anyhow.

 

I always wave, provided I don't need that hand on the clutch, in which case I'll nod.

And y'all need to lay off the harley guys...You ever try to wave while pushing something that heavy?

 

When I first got my XJ, my buddy used to bust my ball$ all the time that "real men ride harleys". That stopped real fast when he asked me to teach him to ride haha.

When it comes to waving, in DC I wave to every motorcycle on the road and usually get a positive response back (even from the Harley riders).

Philly is a different story.... I don't wave to crotch rockets unless they wave first. I ride a lot in West Philly and have had some pretty heated words screamed at me from crotch rocketers here. Guess they don't take too kindly too me here....

I don't wave at scooters unless they wave at me first except for one kid who lives next door with a 50cc "motorcycle style" scooter. I get a kick out of him when i see him riding around. Most other people on scooters usually give me a "why are you waving at me?" look.

In my mind though, we are all one family of two (and three) wheelers out there trying to find some peace and freedom amongst all the cages....

 

Markie, On this side of the Atlantic a scooter is, as you say, a 50 cc or so motorcycle wannabe. A Vespa is a good example. Fitz is correct also. 650 cc Honda SilverWings, Burgmans, etc are also scooters. On steroids. A scooter is also a slang term we Yanks use to replace the word motorcycle. ANY motorcycle can be a scooter or a scoot. For example my BMW K1200 LT at 854 lbs is still a scooter. It is also referred to on occaision as The big girl, the fat lady, the pig, POS as well as many other choice pet names. Such as "don't you fall over, don't you fall over you pig. Aw, you POS! Now I have to pick the fat lady up.

Loren

 

Well the Scooter definition is a motorcycle with a step through frame.
Here everything from the 50 cc to a 650 burgman

 

Ha! Yes, I have seen some Burghmans - in fact ten or so of them all huddled together!

I was just checking! - A motorbike/cycle would never be called a scooter in England! Theres too much history.

I take it "Crotch rockets" are sports bikes??!!

 

Crotch rockets are sport bikes. Often operated by under 30 year old young males with an apparent death wish. We refer to persons operating one of these bikes unsafely, i.e. weaving in and out of traffic at high speeds, riding for extended distances on one wheel, lane splitting at high speeds, or just operating their crotch rockets in an unsafe manner as squids or squidders.

When one of these crotch rockets passes you riding on the rear wheel in excess of 100 mph thereby interrupting your pastoral ride in the country one might utter under ones breath: Damn Squidders! Then, because he scared the crap out of you, you pull over to the side of the road, clean out your shorts, get your heart rate under control, and then signal and carefully ease back onto the road.

 

i always wave at scooters, someday they may grow up to get a real bike
harleys rarely wave and if there's more than one they never wave, testosterone i guess
sport bikes seem most likely to wave, i think they just look for ways to relax their wrists
no helmet is no wave no matter what he's on

 

funny about the more than one. i passed about 5 the other day riding together. i waved and got nothing from the first 4 but the guy in the back snuck in a quick one at the last second, lol

 

I have never had a crotch rocket rider wave, even after I waved first. Even though I kinda sorta by way of joint property own one. Here we call them 'organ donors'

Here in East Tennessee everyone owns a motorcycle and it's our favorite past time to get out. Everyone is super friendly especially if you're on two wheels. That is except the crotch rocket crowd.

 

i kind of think of the seca as one of the grandfathers of the modern day crotch rocket. it really shows if you have the tank propped up with a block of wood.

i wave at everyone and usually get a wave back. doesn't hurt my feelings if they don't - i figure a lot of riders don't know about the wave. especially the harley riders that don't put many miles on and aren't comfortable enough on their machines to take a hand off the bar. i think HD would do well to make a 500cc entry level bike. the 883 sportster, in my opinion, is too much bike to learn how to ride on. i don't mean to pick on harley riders - for the most part, the one's i've met are cool.

i think the one's that are jerks or are "if it ain't a harley, it's junk" are just in some sort of denial and can't admit to themselves they could have gotten just as good of a machine for 10% of what they paid for theirs. i don't have the heart to tell any of them that a 1981 XJ750 can turn out more horsepower than a 2009 1200cc sportster.

my brother-in-law told me when he got a jeep, he found out that jeeps wave to each other - that, i think is kind of silly, but whatever.

 

I've always waved at everyone, I've found some Harley riders wave, other's don't. Scooters I've found don't usually wave, I think this may be due to that they don't know.
Skeeter, that is a good point, I've always thought this and have been told by other people that the Seca is (in some circles) known as the fore runner to the modern crotch rocket and the first bike with the forward thinking styling pointing toward the crotch rockets.

 

I like the Mordeth wave I'll have to try that sometime.

 

They do, It's called a Buell Blast. Which I am seriously looking into buying. I rode one for my safety course, it's a very well balanced bike, and it's cute!
If I don't get one of those I'll probably ride the Daytona for a bit since my boyfriend is getting a Ducati this spring.

Of the two Harley riders I personally know, one is a total @$$ not because he rides a Harley, just because, well he is.. in everything he does on a daily basis. The other is the coolest cat you'll ever meet.

 

I don't think the 2010 Blast will be a big seller...

http://www.buell.com/en_us/bikes/blast/


:lol:

 

hahahahahaha My boyfriend would buy that. Just to say "Here's your bike dear"