RockMoto

I didn’t realize it was true until I said it. Riding a motorcycle to work is good for my soul. And not for any reason I expected.

Here’s the thing: Every day, on my 21-mile hike down the 405, I constantly have to guess what every car around me is about to do. I have to think about escape routes and quick maneuvers. I have to keep an eye out for bits of blown-out tires, random construction chunks and the occasional bag of clothes that fell off an overpiled pickup. Oh, and I spend some time every day getting annoyed at idiotic drivers. It’s not what I call fun. But what does it get me?

It gets me to work in one piece. And wide awake.

This past Monday was the 18th annual Ride to Work Day. At RockMoto world headquarters, otherwise known as the offices of the Motorcycle Industry Council, we filmed segments for the KTLA morning news. MIC staffers, members and friends showed up to fill the cameras with bikes and riders.

Throughout the morning, one staffer shot interviews with a lot of us, asking why we commute on a bike. (Check out the RockMoto Roller video “Ride to Work Day 2009”.) For some reason, when the camera turned on me, I turned into a spaz. But if you can ignore all my weird hand-waving, you’ll hear me say something about how riding to work is energizing. And, to be honest, I never thought of it that way until someone asked me why I do it.

My daily commute isn’t my idea of great riding. I can’t say that I ride to work because it’s a blast. I commute to work on a motorcycle because I hate sitting in traffic, because it saves me money and because, in almost any case, I’d rather be on two wheels. And I don’t think I realized, until I did that interview, one of the major reasons why I prefer being on a bike. Sure, in general, it’s about the thrill of cornering, experiencing the world in a fresher way, overcoming challenges. But I don’t get much of that on my daily commute. The only corners I have are two roundabouts, the scenery is pretty bland and the air often smells of car fresheners, exhaust and sometimes sewage. Other people have nice commutes on backroads or through pretty residential areas. They probably smell flowers and cut grass. I can see why they enjoy it.

Commuting on a bike is good for my wallet and gets me to work on time. But what exactly makes it good for my soul? Now I know. It’s that riding a motorcycle is about being intensely alive. Being so aware of everything around me that nothing is inconsequential. Being the only person in a sea of traffic who gives a damn about what’s going around her. By the time I get to work, I’m energized and focused. And I haven’t had a drop of coffee.

Have you ever really lived so much in the moment as when you’re on a motorcycle?