Permanent Waves?

I'm not too sure where you guys (staff of Motorciclist) got this guy "Seate", but it's my opinion that you can send him back.  Mr. Seate has apparently either not spent much time around the motorcyle culture, or as I fear, simply does not "get it".  

He stated in his article that for one rider to wave to another is a "dated" ritual, but one can also read into it that it is a time honored tradition.  I've ridden streetbikes consistantly for 25 years and ridden everything from an old Honda CB400, a Nighthawk 650, Ninja 500, Honda 919, and I'll go ahead and include my latest CBR1000RR to name a few.  

While I'm no Peter Egan, and will never be, I have amassed a whole bunch of miles on two wheels at varying speeds.  The one thing that has never changed, much to my delight, is the wave.  I remember the days that Seate spoke about, when Harley riders snubbed the rest of us.  I remember fondly when that began to change, and I remember the times I have been sitting on the side of the road "broke" but glad to see a fellow rider, and my salvation, on the horizon.

For Mr. Seate to call to question this tradition gives me some insight that he most likely wouldn't be the one stopping to help a fellow biker.  It's sad that you'd hire this hack to write for your publication.  He appears to me to be one of the biggest problems with the pastime of riding.  He apparently assumes that bikes are no different than cars and neither are the mentalities.  It also tells me something else.  If Mr. Seate can't spare a hand to say hi to a fellow rider, he OBVIOUSLY is not adhearing to another time honored tradition, that of riding with a reserve.  My one hope is that sometime real soon, that Mr. Seate will indeed be stranded in some forsaken stretch of highway, sitting on his broken steed, and without cellphone signal.  I betcha were he to see a bike coming, he'd wave then.  

I had a feeling this story would raise some eyebrows, thank you for sharing your point of view.

Personally, I felt the story was about safety. Not diverting ones attention from the road in order to ride safely. What about the head nod? It seems less distracting.  

The head nod is a gateway to the drool, the depends diaper, and the all fiber diet.
Best to just flip the other rider off when he waves. Nip that brotherhood of the road stuff in the bud.
Joe  

Good point, thanks Joe.  

I also disagree with the article, but only in part. The wave is an integral part of a brotherhood of motorcyclists, now including sisters. The wave is not superficial, perhaps it does not mean as much as it once did back in the early seventies when I began to ride, but when Hardlymovingson riders and sport bike riders and the various other brands of riders all take a moment to "wave", a camaraderie that transcends the type of bike, the type of riding, and even the age or ethnicity of the rider takes place. I for one, like it, and am glad it is still around now after I took off 30 years from riding while raising a family.

I agree with the safety issue, there are times I simply will not wave, those times being when my hands are busy keeping my tire side down, such as approaching intersections, rounding sharp curves, or making a turn. At such times I give the head nod, and hope the other rider understands.

I agree safety is job one, I disagree that the custom is meaningless. Perhaps the article was hyperbole, intended to generate thought and discussion. The custom has evolved, from the hand raised high wave to the wave dropping your hand toward the tarmac. Clearly this is in favor of safety, and I like the evolution of the wave.

I close by telling a funny story on the subject. I took a young man for his first MC ride a while back, passed another rider who performed the "wave", and I replied in kind. At the end of the very brief ride, the young man said he had been worried ever since we passed the other biker. He asked me why the other rider pointed at our tires, did we have a flat or something? It took a minute to realize what he was referring to. I had to laugh, then explained the "biker wave".  Long live the wave, at appropriate times and places.  

I always welcome anyone to voice their perspective, and I will take it for what it is worth.

If I get something, anything from it, then it has some value.

Wave, don't wave, nod, whatever -

I wave and anyone and everyone on 2 wheels 99% of the time.

Generally, the majority wave (or nod or signal) back.

And sometimes, I see a rider too weary to wave, but I hope they know that by my wave, if they need anything, I am there for them.  
Steve

Ride for one - Ride for all

Mike's article kind of rubbed me the wrong way, too.  Waving and acknowledging fellow riders is part of the fun of motorcycling, and if it's not fun, why do it?

I understand that safety is important, but do we have to be damn serious about our pasttimes?  If you can't afford the time and effort to wave, maybe you're pushing a bit too hard, eh?

Oh, and, I lived in Germany for 9 years.  Waved all the time, and got lots of waves back.  Mike, you must have hooked up with some SERIOUS dudes.  Spare me.  

"I'm not too sure where you guys (staff of Motorciclist) got this guy "Seate", but it's my opinion that you can send him back.  Mr. Seate has apparently either not spent much time around the motorcyle culture, or as I fear, simply does not "get it"."

I can't believe Motorcyclist hired this guy, either. Mike doesn't get it because he doesn't understand the basic premise of camaraderie. Or humanity, for that matter. He jumps onto whatever scene strikes his interest, claims ownership and runs it into the ground.

Did I mention racism? This level of professionalism would be one of the reasons I won't be updating my subscription.

Adopting Asian kids becoming latest fad - By Mike Seate, TRIBUNE-REVIEW - June 19, 2008
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/opinion/columnists/seate/s_573477.html

Have a little fun at the NRA convention - By Mike Seate, TRIBUNE-REVIEW - April 8, 2004
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_188422.html

Google him. It's not like this is news.  

While Seate's column took me aback a little, too, what I got out of it was the safety aspect. I've not returned waves when I needed to tend to the clutch or going through a turn when it would have been unsafe, but I do give a head nod and hope the guy going the other way sees it. I've also waved and knew the other rider couldn't return it for the same reasons I just gave, but I like the spirit it imposes.

I think part of what Seate was getting at (and what I took away from it) was to keep safety top of mind and don't be a poser, understand what you're doing and why, and make it meaningful and truly keep the faith it depicts, not just a thing to do.

Don't know if I'm reading too much into it. I've liked other things of Seate's that I've read, though I've only been riding for a little over a year and only read him in Motorcyclist.

Ride safe, watch out for cagers on cell phones, and thank The Man Upstairs for every safe ride.