How do you feel about "motorcycle soul"?

[sammyseaman]

 

[bomber]

All good motorcycles go to heaven.

[st2sam]

Number two.
A peg leg women got more soul than the bike I'm riding...

[sammyseaman]

Number two.
A peg leg women got more soul than the bike I'm riding...

 

[stromgal]

Says Red Molly to James, "That's a fine motorbike,
A girl could feel special on any such like."
Says James to Red Molly, "My hat's off to you
It's a Vincent Black Lightning, 1952.

And I've seen you at the corners and cafes it seems
Red hair and black leather, my favourite colour scheme."
And he pulled her on behind
and down to Boxhill they did ride.

Says James to Red Molly, "Here's a ring for your right hand-
But I'll tell you in earnest I'm a dangerous man.
For I've fought with the law since I was seventeen,
I robbed many a man to get my Vincent machine.
Now I'm 21 years, I might make 22
And I don't mind dying, but for the love of you.
And if fate should break my stride
Then I'll give you my Vincent
to ride."

"Come down, come down, Red Molly" called Sergeant McRae
"For they've taken young James Adie for armed robbery.
Shotgun blast hit his chest, left nothing inside.
Oh come down, Red Molly to his dying bedside."

When she came to the hospital, there wasn't much left
He was running out of road, he was running out of breath
But he smiled to see her cry
He said "I'll give you my Vincent to ride."

Says James, "In my opinion, there's nothing in this world
Beats a '52 Vincent and a red headed girl.
Now Nortons and Indians and Greeves won't do,
Ah, they don't have a soul like a Vincent '52."

Oh he reached for her hand and he slipped her the keys
Said "I've got no further use for these.
I see angels on Ariels in leather and chrome,
Swooping down from heaven to carry me home."
And he gave her one last kiss and died
And he gave her his Vincent
to ride.

[JReazor]

I chose the first option but then I think all motorcycles have soul. Except for the FJR maybe.

[Joey Stalin]

i chose 3 options only because i could.

"soul" in a mc/car exists, but it is not solely apportioned to select manufacturers, like many Euro and Harley Davidson snobs love to believe. it's really model specific. and i think a better description for it is simply, boring or exciting. some bikes are just boring. if it weren't for the exhaust note, my vfr would be boring. i had a kawasaki ZZR600 in plain silver that was absolutely boring. but my RT, while having many huge drawbacks and is definitely not as fast as those other two in a straight line, makes me want to ride it like no other. maybe it's because i both love it and hate it at the same time. that dichotomy makes it interesting.

[SuperHans]

Soul and character are synonymous. It means you spend more time fixing the damn thing then riding it. It's an excuse Eurotrash wannabes use for spending an assload of money on a POS bike.

[County Tar]

Moto Guzzi.  Making mechanics out of riders since 1921.  

[MDHCO]

Soul, we don't need no stink-in soul!  My ride is car like, completely devoid of character, not to mention is a real pain to push around a parking lot, i.e. it is too heavy.  (so I tend to throw a leg over and fire it up)

 

[stevent]

Yeah why not.... Some bikes I've owned certainly had more "something" than others, I guess you could call it soul. maybe they just scratched the itch better than others. My GS is so well suited to me I couldn't have designed a better bike so does that mean it has "soul" or that I just like big German gals?... tough call but I do love to ride her    

[Scratch33]

My GS has heart, at least.

[ConPilot1]

I talk to my Connie sometimes, patting her on the tank after a ride. That bike has soul.

[Skee]

My 2-stroke had soul.   I'm pretty sure it went to Hell; I cursed it enough.

My Wee is just a machine - albeit a d@mn good one - it's got everything but soul.

[Mr.Black]

I believe in the one true Cylon God.

[mugwump58]

This comes from drinking your own bath water.... Soul, yer kidding right?

[nater]

A good friend told me that I can only claim my motorcycle has "soul" if it's a BMW twin.  So, I guess my bike has no soul.

[R Doug]

Bikes have characteristics, not soul.

[Justin]

My inline 4 has no soul, but it will run forever without any problems, and doesn't need to maintenance every 10k miles. I've traded soul for reliability.

Admittedly though, there is a part of me that yearns for a Guzzi

[Papa Lazarou]

Japanese bikes are functional, Yurpeen and Mericun bikes have soul....

[bungie4]

Japanese bikes are functional, Yurpeen and Mericun bikes have soul....

Kinna like a beetle-legged woman huh?

[County Tar]

Japanese bikes are functional, Yurpeen and Mericun bikes have soul....

And Canadian bikes have.....

[sammyseaman]

And Canadian bikes have.....

Beaver pelt seats?

[ConPilot1]

And Canadian bikes have.....

Coin-op beer dispensers in lieu of hardbags.

[Justin]

And Canadian bikes have.....

Last I heard, Canada was part of "Mericu"

[stevent]

Last I heard, Canada was part of "Mericu"

Careful, they get pissed when you point that out to them.....

[County Tar]

"Vespucciland, vespucciland, God shed its grace on thee..."  

[PatM]

Soul and character are synonymous. It means you spend more time fixing the damn thing then riding it. It's an excuse Eurotrash wannabes use for spending an assload of money on a POS bike.

^
This

[Frankienuckles]

I think that "soul" for a motorcycle is just how much it inspires you when you ride it (or look at it). It is different for each bike and each rider. Some bikes inspire some people, some bikes don't. Many will put up alot of "flaws" or weaknesses from a bike that they think has "soul". Many others will lose interest in a bike that works great if it doesn't have enough "soul". I often don't get it . For example a good friend of mine lost interest in his Honda 919 (awsome bike IMHO), but LOVES the chromed out Harley that he replaced it with (It is very, very purty and shiny and low and loud and to his credit he rides the shit out of it). To each, their own.  

[Kootenanny]

Careful, they get pissed when you point that out to them.....

Damn right

[Kootenanny]

Soul and character are synonymous. It means you spend more time fixing the damn thing then riding it. It's an excuse Eurotrash wannabes use for spending an assload of money on a POS bike.

Not at all!  My Buell has tons of "soul," yet it's as reliable as a stone axe (and about as refined, too )

[OMJunk]

Soul is a glaring defect, you must put up with to like a given bike.

[Kootenanny]

Soul is a glaring defect, you must put up with to like a given bike.

No, "soul" is a motorcycle that feels like a motorcycle, not a microwave oven.  I, for one, ride motorcycles because I enjoy the sensations of riding, and those sensations include the feel of the engine as it pounds out torque as well as the feeling of balance as the bike leans into a corner.  While I'm all for for electric motorcycles, I don't want to ride a gas-powered bike that feels like one.  My Buell may not be as fast or powerful as an electric-smooth I4, but I'm willing to give up a bit of power to ride something that feels "right" to me.

When I got my first Japanese I4 back in the 80s, it made the (also Japanese) parallel twin it replaced seem positively archaic and crude.  For years, I never rode anything else.  But then I rode a big V-twin sportbike (VTR1000 "Superhawk"), and I loved the feel of it.  I decided right then that this was the kind of bike I wanted to ride; I eventually ended up with a Buell, which fit me well and pushed all my "fun" buttons.  I realize that my expectations are different from those others have, but...I understand now what someone means when they say a bike has "soul" (and even why some are willing to compromise on reliability for that feeling).

[Dan K]

No, "soul" is a motorcycle that feels like a motorcycle, not a microwave oven.  I, for one, ride motorcycles because I enjoy the sensations of riding, and those sensations include the feel of the engine as it pounds out torque as well as the feeling of balance as the bike leans into a corner.  While I'm all for for electric motorcycles, I don't want to ride a gas-powered bike that feels like one.  My Buell may not be as fast or powerful as an electric-smooth I4, but I'm willing to give up a bit of power to ride something that feels "right" to me.

When I got my first Japanese I4 back in the 80s, it made the (also Japanese) parallel twin it replaced seem positively archaic and crude.  For years, I never rode anything else.  But then I rode a big V-twin sportbike (VTR1000 "Superhawk"), and I loved the feel of it.  I decided right then that this was the kind of bike I wanted to ride; I eventually ended up with a Buell, which fit me well and pushed all my "fun" buttons.  I realize that my expectations are different from those others have, but...I understand now what someone means when they say a bike has "soul" (and even why some are willing to compromise on reliability for that feeling).

That may apply to bikes ridden slowly, but I can take my Daytona, which is smooth as butter, and which has no "character" (other than a very nice torque curve) to the track, and when I lean the shit out of it, it feels great.  Nice and clean, smooth acceleration, maybe some minor lift of the front wheel as I come out of a lean and gas up into a straight.  I don't think that's what people talk about when they say "soul" but the mental place I am in when I'm riding like that is somewhere I can hardly ever find without pushing my self to 9/10ths.

I think soul is something the bike provides to you, not something you pull out of the bike.  A bike with too much soul will need maintenance and repair.  A boring, bullet proof Japanese bike can be ridden to the edge and help you find your own soul.  My Aprilia was bullet proof with a crazy powerful Rotax V-Twin like a tractor.  Isn't that what the Buell is shooting for?  I didn't find the bike to have soul. It just did what it was supposed to do. Did I like its characteristics - big torque, fast as shit, great handling? For sure.

If I was to ride on the street for a few hours at low speed without deep leans and hard acceleration, I'd prefer a big cruiser.  That would provide me the riding enjoyment I look for - torque a plenty on starts from stop, good guts in the motor, good feedback frmo the bike as to what I'm telling it to do.  Is that soul?  I don't know.  But to say one bike has it and another doesn't depends on the type of riding its intended for more than the type of bike it is.

Or no.  

- Dan

[Kootenanny]

That may apply to bikes ridden slowly, but I can take my Daytona, which is smooth as butter, and which has no "character" (other than a very nice torque curve) to the track, and when I lean the shit out of it, it feels great.  Nice and clean, smooth acceleration, maybe some minor lift of the front wheel as I come out of a lean and gas up into a straight.  I don't think that's what people talk about when they say "soul" but the mental place I am in when I'm riding like that is somewhere I can hardly ever find without pushing my self to 9/10ths.

Uh, there are a few guys out there racing Buells--and at least one mag--from Britain--rated the Firebolt the "best cornering bike ever made."  Hype, sure, but--just because my Buell has "soul" doesn't mean it won't go around a track.

A bike with too much soul will need maintenance and repair.

Why?  Why is it that "soul" is always associated with poor reliability?

A boring, bullet proof Japanese bike can be ridden to the edge and help you find your own soul.  My Aprilia was bullet proof with a crazy powerful Rotax V-Twin like a tractor.  Isn't that what the Buell is shooting for?

Yes, but that boring Japanese bike requires maintenance and can break down, too.  I can ride my Buell just as close "to the edge" as any supersport--actually, probably closer than most--and all the while it still has those qualities you liked about your Aprilia (because yes, that's what Buell was shooting for, and as far as I'm concerned, the Firebolt delivers).

I think, in the end, it's a discussion of semantics.  To me, "soul" is a quality that a bike has, that makes it feel "alive" under me, willing and wanting to be ridden--I know, I'm romanticizing it, but then again, it's the quality that speaks to the emotions.  And remember, I ride because I enjoy it--I have an emotional response to riding a bike that I don't get from driving a minivan, and part of that enjoyment is the feeling of "soul" that I get from the bike.  It's personal, though, so not everyone will have the same response that I do (obviously, or Buells would've been a lot more popular).

[Dan K]

Can't disagree with what you are saying, although yes, it is romanticizing.


Not sure why soul is associated with unreliability - maybe because so many people say Guzzi's have soul?  (j/k...never owned one!)

Anyway, I definitely enjoy bikes in different ways.  If that's because of a bike's soul, so be it .

- Dan

[Justin]

Not sure why soul is associated with unreliability - maybe because so many people say Guzzi's have soul?  (j/k...never owned one!)

I think there is some confusion here between "soul" and "character"

[tixen]

Every motorcycle has a "soul" in my opinion.  I always name my bikes, and they develop personalities around their names.  As far as I'm concerned, personality is in many cases synonymous with soul.

Every motorcycle has it's own unique personality, and every personality deserves love. <3

[Orson]

back in my 20s, nuthin lit my fire like a Yoshimura Superbike like the ones ridden by Cooley & Crosby, et al

even into my 40s, I still salivated over a nice GSXR

but, just as your tastes in food changes, so did my taste in bikes.

It finally came home to roost when aprilia unleashed its V4. Back in the days of yore, I woulda been crazy about it...now I find myself wondering if a nice detuned Futura version might be nicer  

I'm willing to settle for less power for the added gob of engaging character that the Guzzi offers  

[Kootenanny]

I'm willing to settle for less power for the added gob of engaging character that the Guzzi offers  

Funny how that happens.

[Dan K]

back in my 20s, nuthin lit my fire like a Yoshimura Superbike like the ones ridden by Cooley & Crosby, et al

even into my 40s, I still salivated over a nice GSXR

but, just as your tastes in food changes, so did my taste in bikes.

It finally came home to roost when aprilia unleashed its V4. Back in the days of yore, I woulda been crazy about it...now I find myself wondering if a nice detuned Futura version might be nicer  

I'm willing to settle for less power for the added gob of engaging character that the Guzzi offers  

I'm getting there too (40 in a few months) but you DO still have that Mille in your line up, and the Le Mans is what, 90+ for both HP and torque?  Not too shabby. The Thrux is obviously there because of it's beautiful design and not the power, but your garage has plenty-o-power...

[Orson]

I'm getting there too (40 in a few months) but you DO still have that Mille in your line up, and the Le Mans is what, 90+ for both HP and torque?  Not too shabby. The Thrux is obviously there because of it's beautiful design and not the power, but your garage has plenty-o-power...

Yes, the Mille is in mothballs at my sister's house in the USA awaiting my return. Even before my injury, I wasn't able to enjoy it to its fullest ability. As a rider, the Mille is out of my league  

The V11 fits the sport touring bill to a T. Since most riding in the twistys is done between 50 and 80 mph, the Guzzi's power is more than capable. I came to the Guzzi from an FJ-1100, and the Guzzi sport tours just as capably as my old FJ, with an extra dollop of character  

The Thruxton serves well on narrow, British back roads and the engine sounds like a proper motorbike with a surprising amount of torque, but lacks about 20 hp. Once the roads open up, I find myself longing for the extra punch of the Guzzi