today I had an early morning run to the coast and called in again at Fridaythorpe on the way back at about 10.30am. There were about 10 bikes there and all the riders were of a mature age,
Every time I go to somewhere that bikers tend to gather at, be it a show or cafe, they all seem to be as old or older than me.
When I was 16, way back in the dark ages, the moment the clock ticked past midnight and you became 16, you were roaring off your driveway on your 50cc moped (with gears) that you had spent the previous months/weeks drooling over in the garage. - Now, you have to wait for a week or two until your booking at the local CBT place.When I was 16, your parents could insure the moped for pennies with "any rider" - Now, it costs a fortune and must be named riders.When I was 16, there was a generation of parents who had ridden bikes themselves as bikes were cheap transport so had no issues with their kids riding bikes - Now, very few parents have ridden so just think bikes are dangerousWhen I was 16, all the kids had done their cycling proficiency and knew the rules of the road, and actually cycled places, on the road - Now, they may have done it if their school could be bothered (my sons didn't) but they never cycle on the road so don't understand how traffic flows.
Supply and demand is probably a big factor along with how dangerous a cheap bike can be (and feel) compared to a cheap car. In addition another factor is service items; tyres, suspension and brakes are much more expensive on cheap bikes than on cheap cars and have a significantly larger impact. Buying cheap things for your cheap car just to keep it on the road and get you to the shops isn't a great idea, but it will work. Doing the same on a bike is exponentially increasing the risk of a crash, injury or even death by comparison (opinion)