How old is your bikes rider?

age:40. saddle time: 6 yrs. bike: harley sportster. on 2nd bike.

number of times asphalt surfing.....none yet (keyword: YET). cages dodged: lost count.

I have now reached the grand old age of 42, which was according to the last time I looked, the statistics is the average age of the Harley rider. I must admit, that when I was a young punk, I had the opportunity to ride many Harley's, but was never inspired to own 1! (that is about 25 riding years for those of you unable to count past fingers & toes)

I love my sports bikes, & and I definately LOVE the bike I have at the moment, which is a Suzuki GSXF 750 (Katana for you US people). I hope to be riding her well past the time that I can get a full membership tho the Ulysses club (& not just the junior memeber) Which funnily enough is the largest motorcycle club in Australia and most of the members do not ride Harley's.

Personally I cannot understand this thing about "graduating" to Harley's as if they are better than anything else. I think this Harley atitude is something that is confined to the USA or if overseas, by young punks or middle aged retirees who haven't ridden a motorcycle before (except for the "bikie clubs" but its there image thing so its cool for them not the pretend "bikie's" out there).

I think people should be able to ride what they like & if some people are so hung up on saying that more maturing riders would or should ride Harley's is this putting Harley's in the catagory of "two wheeled walking frames for nursing home candidates"?

I probably shouldn't be answering this question, 'cause I already see the more *ahem* "mature" Harley riders reaming my *** for this one: but, I'm 27, and have only been riding streetbikes (legally) for 9 years. If it's any consolation, I've been riding dirt bikes since I was 5.

...yeah, I know, it's no consolation! lol

Only 1 wreck in those 9 years, though. And that includes all the hours that I've spent on a track. About 10,000,599,999 close calls, and counting...

(Oh, and 2006 Suzuki GSX-R1000 K6 is my most current project. But, I'm already making plans to trade it for a K7 750. In a few years, and depending on how well my business is doing at the time, I'll probably look into a V-Rod or Street Rod for some added fun, and an Electra Glide for the really long hauls. I'd also love to get my hands on a Ducati 999R, but I'll probably have to settle for the 749 due to the inherent expense. Regardless, I'll always have a sportbike of some sort in my garage, and that will never change.)

I ride a FJ 1100 Yamaha when I'm having fun. I am 40. I have never been down. I have clocked over 111,000 street miles on sport bikes and 30,000+ on other bikes. I also sell motor scooter's and scooter parts for a living ( so I also ride a 50cc scooter which has never been down). I am a very mature business owner, if I mature even more, I will not likely ever mature enough to want a H-D...the performance I like is just not there. Buell maybe. For now I will stick with large displacement "sport touring" bikes so I can go where I want, when I want, and how I want.

It's safe to say that the "sport bike" is not something that ONLY young punks ride. I would not recommend a sport bike for any new rider...ever. If you ride a sport bike you should make good decisions fast and already have experience.

Keeping the shiny side up is best...always.

Get a "crashin' sucks" sticker for your tank, and read it every time you get on your bike...it works for me.

I am 44 and ride a Harley at the moment, but I am not your average harley rider, I didnt "graduate" to anything, I bought what I felt like riding at the time, and dont even own a harley t-shirt and never will, and I have owned many japanese and european bikes, and may even own one again next time I buy a bike, I am not like a lot of harley riders when it comes to this big image thing (read: w*nk), I ride what I want and wear what I want, and to heck with what anyone else thinks, my harley doesnt even have harley badges on it. Most people I know dont even know I ride a harley and I like it that way, as I dont want to be seen as a wannabe poser harley rider that lets everyone within a hundred miles know loud and clear that they ride a harley, I sit back and laugh at those idiots. I am as comfortable on a sport bike as I am on a cruiser, and talk to anyone no matter what they ride, the fact that they ride is good enough for me.

Sport bike rider here. 34 years old, married, no kids, and an oppressive mortgage. I started riding because the payments, insurance and gas on a new bike was cheaper than just the gas for my Jeep. Turns out I LOVE to ride- who knew?

But some questions leave little doubt as to the maturity of the person, regardless of age:

"hey i want a frist bike an i think a gsxr1000 looks cool i realy wanna get it is this a good first bike 4 me? im 16 now and i get my lisense in a week i want to lern to wheelie!"

Even for an older rider, a racebike is STILL too much to handle. A person needs to start slowly and safely and work their way up to a fast bike.

I'm 44. I don't feel I graduated to anything. I just found the bike that fits me. I gotta admit, I had a wandering eye over the winter months, I usually do. But I took a little ride today between jobs and I think that took care of that. The few people I know who ride sport bikes are about my age. It's the ones pulling stupid-assed stunts on public roads that I consider young punks. If they aren't, they sure do act it.

38 yrs old and ride a BMW R1150GS. I have had it for 5 years, and have had numerous sport bikes in addition throughout the years - ducatis, honda 1000rr's (2), R6, Triumph T955 Daytona, etc.

I am currently looking to fill the "second" bike roll with a ducati or triumph.

And no matter how old I ever get, there will never be a Harley in my garage. Afterall... I'd have to throw away all of my safety equipment. Can't ride a Harley and wear the right gear... it's agains't the rules. Plus, I'd have to get used to huge engines that put out far less horsepower than they should. That would certainly be different. And I'd have to cancel all my weekend plans for the next five years. Not to ride, but to polish the chrome. As we know, looks is more important than function. And that scowl... how would I ever develop such a convincing menacing face when riding around? I'm used to full-faced helmets... it would take a lot of getting used to.

I'll just stick with passing Harleys. We all have our role in the universe and this is mine.

47 years old. I ride a 1985 Yamaha Virago 700. It's a ratbike. The price was right. I wanted my next motorcycle to be a Suzuki Bandit 600s, but Suzuki doesn't make those any more. Oh well!

Previous motorcycles:

1986 (?) Kawasaki Police Special 1000 (This is the only motorcycle I've owned that I chose for myself!)

1986 Honda Nighthawk 450

1978 Honda XL350

Over 50 - Harley Davidson

Age 42.

In 20 years riding I've graduated FROM a cruiser, to a sport tourer, to a luxury bike, the BMW K1200LT. A big pig that rides like a magic carpet but also gets up & GOES now & then. Handles nice at higher speeds too. Oh, and it can carry a hundred dollars worth of groceries home with room to spare.