Missives Part III. 5/10/2005
As the group met up, we finally ended up with over 70 bikes. We had all sorts, sports, cruisers and tourers. Kala was awed by the display of machinery, telling me that she had seen bikes on the road and such, but had never been this close to them, let alone being a part of the group. I introduced her around to the others, and we made plans for a short ride up north. Kala asked me where we would be going, and I shrugged my shoulders and said the normal practice was to follow the road captain. The destination was not the issue, it was the getting there. I told her that for most of us in the group, it was the ride that was meaningful, not where we finally ended.
She frowned, trying to make sense of this. I told her to be patient, and it would all be apparent after the ride. We saddled up, and shot off down the highway, at a fairly leisurely cruise speed. The string of bikes heading up the highway was impressive, and Kala and I had a shouting conversation over the noise of the wind. I explained to her the discipline of group riding, and the various rules we had to follow, such as no overtaking the leader, staying ahead of the sweepers, etc. She watched me as I had a hand sign conversation with a friend, 2 bikes riding abreast. She wondered why my left hand was making all sorts of funny signals, and me watching my buddy’s hand in return.
When she asked what was going on, I said we were talking about the new bike that someone had brought, and the various merits of the engine and design. She said it was all Greek to her, and told me it was incredible how we could exchange information like that, crusing up the road at highway speeds.
We shortly drew into Tanjung Malim, where we stopped for breakfast. Kala sat agog at the sheer noise, jesting and camraderie that was going on between the bikers. The conversation, as usual, centered around bikes, and Kala said this was something entirely new to her. She had never seen a bunch of people being so open and friendly to one another, brought together by a common interest. I replied that this was completely normal, and said that she should she us during other events, like Bike Week, where things got even wilder. She laughed, and said this was good enough for her. She liked the fact that we were all treated on equal terms, with no one elevating themself above the other, something she missed when going out with her ex.
When I was sipping my coffee, she looked at me, and smiled, and thanked me for making her forget about her problem from a while. She told me she was thoroughly enjoying herself, especially when a couple of the ‘buaya’ bikers came up to her and started flirting with her. I smiled, and asked her to hang around. “It gets better.” and I gave her an evil smile.
- Posted in : Personal
- Author : thesnark
Comments»
Reminds me of ‘Against the Wind’.