Backseat - From Where I Sit

June 2002

By: Michelle

Turning a Negative into a Positive

Rolling Thunder XV was a major success. In my 5 years of attendance, I have never seen such a sea of chrome. The moving tribute honoring our Veterans and the call for action for accountability of all POWs and MIAs was moving and patriotic. Yet, it was hard to find much on it in the way of news. That is, unless you count the articles that mentioned the traffic back-up. Yet, I have noticed whenever anyone associated with motorcycling commits a crime, headlines flare up all over the place. Not being one to just whine, I try to do what I have always been taught and that is to take a negative and turn it into a positive. So how can we use the negative image to our advantage? Well, if you think about it long enough, the possibilities are endless.

Take for example, telemarketers, probably more feared and disliked than even the grungiest of bikers. Picture this: An anonymous voice calls your home at an inconvenient time, trying to convince you to buy an unwanted product. As soon as you realize that you have been victimized by the "random dialing telemarketer". You can quickly end the conversation by immediately informing them "I have a Harley and I know how to use it." It will only be a matter of seconds before you hear dial tone. Problem solved.

Tired of door to door salesmen? Try answering the door in full dress gear. The initial look on their face is worth it alone, not to mention the actual few minutes of silence that you will ever get from one in your entire life. If you play your cards right, you could even end up with a free sample or two probably thrown up in the air as they run away. At the very least you will probably receive some form of mumbled apology and a hasty retreat. Actually, you could probably deter any unwanted knocks by simply fashioning some form of a "Warning - Biker Inside" type sign preferably framed in barbed wire. Never again, will you have to get up from the supper table to answer the door.

Do you have rowdy partying neighbors keeping you up all hours of the night? Try this simple solution: Get a few friends with motorcycles and have them park all their bikes in front of your house. Nothing stops a rowdy party faster than the threat of an even rowdier one.

This next example is the perfect parent's revenge! Is your teenager acting up? Try cruising in front of his buddies while they are hanging out. The trick here is to make as much engine noise as you can to draw attention to yourself. Once they are all looking in your direction - stop. If you are wearing a full-face helmet, be sure to remove it long enough so that you can be plainly identified. To insure there is no doubt as to your identity, call your child by name and then rev the engine a few times for some great sound effects and ride off. Nothing ticks a teenager off more than having their peers tell them that their parents that are "cool".

Yes, we all have the ability to undo these injustices of the world. However, like all good powers, you need to know when to use it and when not to. For example, though it may be tempting, I don't recommend going to an IRS audit, asking for a raise or attending a parent/teacher conference in full dress leather. Remember, though we posses this great power, we must use it wisely, less it will backfire.

While much of the world fails to acknowledge the blood drives, the Rolling Thunder chapters, the toy runs, and we are waiting for them to become enlightened, why not have a bit of fun? I am not saying we should stop the good works. It is only through continuing these missions, that we will eventually convince others that all motorcyclists are not lawless thugs. We just need to recognize that we have some great raw material here, why not work with it?

Thanks for visiting VirginiaWind.

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