20,000 Miles

So last week was Spring Break.

You would think that the College where I work would be empty, but actually it was a beehive of activity.

The contractors were busy pouring concrete on one side of my office, and busy building a building on the other side of me. In the parking lot a tractor safety class was being held. In another parking lot, facilities was using a scissors-lift to check the parking lot lights. Sometime in the middle of the week, the Diesel shop needed a couple of large machines picked up and another dropped off.

That's a lot of activity for someplace that is not even really open.

But today was day one of Spring Term 2009, and I was thoughtful regarding a post in another blog that I read.

He was talking about special parking for low emissions vehicles and how motorcycles usually fit into that category.

Generally, motorcycles fit into the "cheap, economical and (depending on your point of view) environmental friendly" category.

So, I was thinking about this as I left work today, and was delighted to discover that I was only 4 miles away from 20,000 miles. After frittering away three and a half miles, I took a before picture:



Then I took an after picture:


20,000 miles.

That is a lot of miles on a motorcycle that is really considered to be a "starter bike" in the motorcycle world.

A couple of years ago, someone started a discussion on a Honda Rebel Newsgroup that I belong to regarding the economics of motorcycles.

It was inevitable that the more numbers minded members would work out the numbers of owning a motorcycle.

Generally, it works out like this:

MSRP for a 2009 Honda Rebel: $3399
Arai Quantum II Helmet: $525 (or a less expensive brand, for about $100)
Insurance Premuim Per Year: $230
Basic Rider Training: $150
Riders Skills Practice: $90
Advanced Rider Training: $150
Revit Jacket: $450
Winter Gloves: $90
Summer Gloves: $70
Willie and Max Saddlebags: $250
Floorboards from Jacks Rebel Warehouse: $139
Yearly Maintenance: est. $200
Gas: $4.33 per fill up (I'm sorry, how much were you guys in the minivans spending on a fill up during that last gas price hike?)

So while some costs are only spent once (motorcycle, training courses, ect), some are spent more often (yearly, every few years, or every week) and it was decided by the person who did the numbers that really, motorcycles are only economical if you were going to buy a second vehicle anyway. Then really, you would spend less.

But, the poster also pointed out, rather astutely I might add:

YOU DO HAVE THAT WONDERFUL MOTORCYCLE FEELING, which is the biggest and best advantage, and one cannot really put a dollar value on this!

That wonderful motorcycle feeling.

I originally got a motorcycle in 2005 because I was not interested in spending $4.50 a gallon for gas and was really only intent on using it to commute to work and back in the summer.

My sister said once that when I got on my motorcycle, I never really got off.

And she is right.

I discovered that wonderful motorcycle feeling and found that even though it costs me a bit more to run the motorcycle than it does to run my pickup, I prefer the motorcycle because of the "wonderful motorcycle feeling".

And part of that "wonderful motorcycle feeling" is what I paid to fill it up today:







Ta!

Balisada