Topica Loopframe_Guzzi Archive


Subject: Re: LONG DISTANCE LOOP FRAME

Author: Robert Hawkes

Date: Dec 12, 2001, 6:25 PM

Post ID: 1709142329


Zer, I'm curious, what exactly do you mean by this? Do you think Persig is
full of shit? Bob
----- Original Message -----
From: Zerhackermann . <chopp-@hotmail.com>
To: <Loopfram-@topica.com>
Sent: Wednesday, December 12, 2001 1:51 PM
Subject: Re: LONG DISTANCE LOOP FRAME


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It's because of junk like this in his book, giving folks incorrect
misconceptions, that I consider that book to just be a poor substitue for
toilet paper.





"His riding partners are on BMW's. They enjoy riding but consider repair
and
maintenance as things that are done to your bike by others and inherently
take
away from the experience if you have to do them yourself. Their bikes
either
run or they don't. They do not with to analyze even the simplest problems
since
they look at the bike as a single entity. When it's broke, it's broke and
someone with that knowledge must fix it. I read this book before ever
getting a
motorcycle and early on, identified that I would never be satisfied with a
bike
that I did not have the ability to work on myself. "


 From: psabr-@aol.com
Reply-To: Loopfram-@topica.com
To: Loopfram-@topica.com
Subject: Re: LONG DISTANCE LOOP FRAME
Date: Wed, 12 Dec 2001 13:04:25 EST

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OK,

Since we have introduced discussions on books and Guzzi vs BMW/Goldwing,
I'll bring up the annual "Zen" reference. If you've never read it, sit
down with "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance". A book of
Philosophy intertwined with a study of motorcycles and their riders. The
reading can be dry at times, so be forewarned. The author (Pirsig) rides
an old motorcycle and performs routine and roadside maintenance because
it
 
 is an anticipated and expected part of the entire riding experience. He
understands that his bike is a collection of interoperating systems that
all tie together to make the bike run. If one system fails then the
entire
 
 "system" fails. Troubleshooting and analysis of problems adds to his
pleasure.

His riding partners are on BMW's. They enjoy riding but consider repair
and maintenance as things that are done to your bike by others and
inherently take away from the experience if you have to do them yourself.
Their bikes either run or they don't. They do not with to analyze even
the
 
 simplest problems since they look at the bike as a single entity. When
it's broke, it's broke and someone with that knowledge must fix it. I
read
 
 this book before ever getting a motorcycle and early on, identified that
I
 
 would never be satisfied with a bike that I did not have the ability to
work on myself. It is that reputation of low maintenance and longevity
that gives me little desire to own a BMW, Although I respect their bikes
greatly. My experience with HD is that one must perform the same basic
tasks (i.e. replace primary cover bolts) nearly everytime the bike is
ridden. That, to me, is silly stuff. I want a machine that when properly
"repaired", will hold that state reliably until another "repair" is
needed.
 
 Moto Guzzi fits nicely somewhere between the two. Generally when a
repair must me made repeatedly to a Guzzi, then perhaps there are other
factors which must be contributing to the problem. We can see this, in
that many of us have started with neglected bikes, but with time and
persistence, the bikes end up being very reliable and consistent. The
owners grow in knowledge and through familiarity and experience, begin to
anti

cipate when items must be worked on and why.

This may be a little deep and long-winded, but in my mind, it is this
common experience and and ATTITUDE which binds the members of this list
together.

To paraphrase the author one one of my favorite statements:
"When working on a motorcycle, the first and foremost tool one must have
is
 
 Gumption. Without that, no other tools will do you any good."

Thanks for the bandwidth
David Whitmore
'71 Ambassador (still gathering up the Gumption)

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