THE BIKE: AN ANIMAL
Animals capable of carrying people create a freedom that is echoed in our relationships with machines. That sense is carried to an extreme in the motorcycle. Bikes can hush their admirers, just as a respectful silence falls in the presence of birds of prey. Some Bikers think of their motorcycles as iron horses, and themselves might be seen as a parallel to cultures established around the horse. Animals - and subsequently motorcycles - have played greater roles in human lives than purely functional ones. Crypto-zoology is the study of imaginary beasts - beasts of legend that share attributes with animals and sometimes humans. Their existence is purposeful and symbolic, and they are endowed with special powers. Although they aren’t biological creatures, nor just figments of legend, motorcycles have assumed a bestial significance and usage. It arises from the precious feelings that Bikers attribute to them; a peculiarity of human-mechanistic relations.
It begins at basic levels; the feeling of being transported along by a machine has been compared to rides on animals; for example, Harley Davidson latched onto the eagle, because of its grand, soaring power. And animals themselves have been given personalised names since ancient times - the Greek Alexander called his horse Bucephalus. We also apply names to mythical creatures - the Grim Reaper’s horse was called Binky. This is because, when something becomes important to us, we tend to name it in a way that reflects its character. Sports teams and motorcycles have been named after the tiger - one extinct marque is the Panther. Bike clubs and events have assumed the name Dragon, which is probably the most apt, as a fire-breathing monster. Such associations come from a deep meaningful relationship between bike and rider that imbues a sense of pride. Being able to ride a tiger is a privilege reserved for a mythical few. Some little bikes might be a bit more terrier, but the end result is a change of consciousness.
Jackals and lions have acquired divine status, embodying certain beliefs, like the animal-gods of ancient Egypt, or those depicted in the zodiacal signs. The representations that Amerindians have for animals, are like those in the prehistoric cave paintings, which bestowed great respect on them. They were inspired out of love. Because of this long-standing relationship with animals and myth, it was natural to attribute animal capabilities to inspiring machines. It may be trite to call it a baptism of fire, but unless you’ve ridden a motorcycle, you have not experienced that state of mind and emotion that Bikers have entered.
The Egyptian gods were part animal part human, like Annubis, the wolf man. This combined condition is known as duality. The horse is such an enigma, in that we admire its free spirit, yet enjoy its submissiveness as a vehicle. The same duality has been applied to motorcycles. They can be admired for their looks and enjoyed for their power. This admiration combines various feelings; awe, fear and respect among them. The beauty of some machines holds us in awe; some are so powerful we fear them, and through either, we learn to respect them. Once we respect something, it gains a higher status in our minds - and becomes a recognisable entity. The bike as an animal, has achieved ultimate status in the minds of Bikers.
The horse appeared in ancient Greek and Persian poetry, describing it as exotic, lovable and hostile. In his play titled Henry V, Shakespeare allowed the Dauphin to speak of the horse. He said: “When I bestride him, I soar, I am a hawk: he trots the air; the earth sings when he touches it; the basest horn of his hoof is more musical than the pipe of Hermes...It is a beast for Perseus: he is pure air and fire; and the dull elements of earth and water never appear in him, but only in patient stillness while his rider mounts: he is indeed a horse; and all other jades you may call beasts.” In his 1970’s book, Animals and Men, Sir Kenneth Clark commented on these lines, saying: “Today a young man might pronounce the same rhapsody on his motorbike.”
Yet there is that other side to the convoluted motorcycle as an animal. Because we admire its ferocity, we can apply William Blake’s famous statement: “The tigers of wrath are wiser than the horses of instruction.” We not only associate with the running beast, but with the romanticised dread of predatory cunning, represented by bikes that assume similar power. Perhaps because the magic of the mind creates these anomalies, the bike, as a transferred animal, is in essence more like the mythical unicorns or dragons. Its character has been recognised, then assimilated to animals by us. Some beasts have been associated with the demonic or profane, and a few bikes have followed in their cloven hoof marks, only in that they also manifest an awesome power comparable to the magic of the unknown.
A misconception that humans are superior to animals comes from our ability to use more complex language, so being able to out-wit them. Yet the silence of animals as representatives of ancient gods created their enigma. In reality, machines, like animals, aren’t totally silent; they just speak in a language that requires more effort on our part to understand. Once we learn to interpret these codes, we feel privy to something extraordinary. People even consume animals or their parts in the belief they will assume particular qualities. Some crazy people have eaten vehicles, but more generally, bike parts or their representative art-forms are integrated into our everyday lives as symbolic, if not just humorous.
The successes of many early people have depended on animals. Human relationships with animals and transport have correlated to establish societies and cultures, like the way Cowboys and Indians exist around horses and horsemanship. Genghis Kahn mobilized the Mongol hoards on horse-back, and created the largest known civilization. In 200 BC, the Carthaginian general Hannibal, took his army across the Alps on elephants and defeated the Romans. Farmers and trades people also applied animals to various tasks. What they had in common was an understanding of the advantages of mobility, strength and speed; which was later applied to the motorcycle. It was through animalistic associations that the Japanese created the concept of Kioka (at one with the beast). In this context, it infers that a rider who knows every nuance of their machine (the beast), who remains calm in every situation, will become master of their destiny.
Human initiative and amusement, if not nature, has put us on the backs of horses, camels, ostriches and other animals. For early people, possession of a horse equaled freedom. It was more fun than an ox-cart, as they cleaved through the scattering chickens. A magic horse that roared and breathed fire would have set the hearts of those early riders alight. Astride the magic horse, every day is new, a pioneering challenge. The act of biking is an art-form that can express your moods. There is a sense of freedom and achievement not experienced in navigating a sofa (as some Bikers describe driving a car). Only a surrealist could rave about being stuck in traffic. It was rock guitarist Joe Satriani who titled an album Surfing The Alien, a term we might give to an activity performed by people who ride the strangest of mythical animals; motorcycles.