Wenders I don't think it's the times that are changing, it's the people. The past few months a recurring topic of conversation down the pub has been the changes in the bike scene from when we started out, we all passed our tests in the early to mid 70s and have always ridden.

First is the hoops that you now have to jump through just to get a full license. I do agree that it needed improving but maybe it's gone a bit to far.

It costs a hell of a lot more just to stay legal, cover the service/repair costs and put the go juice in. 

They would rather have a car.

You'd take your bike down the pub. I'm not saying it was right but 50 or 60 bikes outside the Dog and round to the Britt in Preston was a sight to see and yes I'm sure it did intimidate people with all these long haired smelly bikers drinking beer while looking over each others bikes and loudly proclaiming the virtues of their current ride emphasised with many an Anglo-Saxon expletive.  This is definitely not allowed these days.

Basically we decided it was a youth thing then, whereas now it's more of a middle aged, middle class thing and when it was a youth thing part of it was about upsetting the older generation and generally being a pain in the arse.

Could go on and on but I'll shut up now coz I'm really starting to miss those days.

Gloom, the times they are a changin" was my silly way of remeniscing about how it used to be, i was referring to the Bob Dylan classic cos was always on the juke box in The Star pub, which was the bikers pub near me, which is now a coffee shop may i add, whenever i was in there........Just brought back memories, happy and sad, and thought it was apt way of closing my post...........................Totally agree with you that people have changed in every which way, shape and form..........


Haha Rosso, thanks for pointing out my mis-spelling of leper                                                                                                                                                                              

Judging by the reactions of the general public I think we're still the devil's disciples, women still grab their children when I go into shops in case I eat them, times aint changed quite so much...   Baby eater of St Albans                                                                                                                                                                             

I find they go best with some farva beans and a nice pint of John Smiths                                                                                                                                                                               

Oh I don't know, lightly grilled with a philly sauce is quite nice too...                                                                                                                                                                             

are we talking about children here? No wonder mothers usher their children away                                                                                                                                                                             

as an aging (aged) biker...can't say attitudes have changed, or maybe its just me.... some people see a woman in leathers and sporting tatts a wee bit threatening? yet... I am a pussy cat really ;-)                                                                                                                                                                             

Couldn't agree more Cissy, I'm heavily tattooed and have actually seen people cross the road coz they too scared to walk past me which is ridiculous!                                                                                                                                                                             

The worrying thing is that there aren't the number of pimply leather clad teens on bikes that there should be. The average age of biker is getting higher because the kids cant afford to get into it. Look around at the next biker gig you are at, we are not regarded as young tearaways because mostly we are middle aged tearaways.

Sorry ladies, this obviously doesn't apply to you.

                                                                                                                                                                             

When I started riding on public roads (1969 - rode trails for years before that ) helmets weren't compulsory, lots of my mates used wooly hats, all the farmers (many at that time used small motorcycles)  used to wear 'flat-caps', and, where I lived, (Southern Ireland) white lines were a novelty! Our weekend fun was organising road-races between ourselves on local roads at weekends...we were doing in the South of Ireland what a certain young Mr. J Dunlop was doing in the North at the time...

You could get a good B31 BSA or a Triumph twin for a lot less than a hundred quid, in fact my first small bike, a Honda 90 cost £10, and my first 'big' bike, a B31 Beeza, cost me a fortune...£25..my brother paid £10 for his Matchless G3LS....I, nor any of my pals, were never refused service in a pub, or turfed out of anywhere either as I recall....

Large groups = gangs in the publics mind....gangs = fighting and violence, the legacy of the 'Mods' and Rockers lives on in the UK? I think the fact that a lot of 'celebs' own and ride motorcycles has helped our public image a lot, for folk to see Beckham or Cruise on their bikes dispels a lot of prejudices?...Discuss...lol...

Different world in the South of Ireland. In all my years going over there I've never been turned away from a pub nor made to feel unwelcome . People will wave to you as you ride past so maybe you have got something in the theory that the ghost of the mods and rockers still haunts the UK

Mine's a pint of Smithwicks   :)