earic23 t1_itr5xxe wrote on October 25, 2022 at 6:22 PM

Reply to comment by beamer145 in A new start after 60: I wanted to do something stupid when I turned 70 – so I learned to ride a motorbike by quellerand

I’m all for semi-loud, because a) its nice to hear your machine, and b) there’s absolutely a safety aspect to it in a lot of situations in an urban environment. Cars simply don’t see us. I live in LA, and I’ve still had cars literally back into me because they couldn’t see me and couldn’t hear me even with a semi-loud aftermarket pipe. My goal isn’t to annoy anyone, but if I’ve gotta choose between a neighbor/random driver/resident near a moto road being annoyed by a sound, or my safety, sorry but that guy can deal with 5 seconds of noise. And idk what roads are getting banned for motorcycles cuz of sound. I’ve never even heard of such a thing and we have some of the best residential moto roads in the world. What are you riding?

beamer145 t1_itruddf wrote on October 25, 2022 at 8:57 PM

Mmmm I don't have a need to hear my machine, if they were not so bloody expensive and have limited range I would have an electric one actually :). If you feel this kind of audio feedback gives you more driving pleasure, would having artificial engine sounds in the speakers of eg your helmet or in ear headphones be a substitute for the real thing (can't be that hard to generate sounds based on your actual drive behavior so it feels realistic, and you could have different parameters to make the sound configurable to whatever mood you are in that day) ? So far I never felt unsafe because of the lack of engine noise, but I did notice that cars don't hear me when I lane split at red lights so I am stuck behind them. Solvable by revving a bit more. But if there is another loud motorcycle with me they make place immediately :), so I (partially) agree with that point. I actually once had a car backing into me, during one of my first moto drivers lessons but luckily my instructor saw it and honked which solved that problem. I am in Europe though, so maybe that is related why I less have the feeling cars are trying to kill me if I don't make a lot of noise ( So far I was never in the US so no idea what it is like there). The motorcycle bans are pretty "popular" in Germany now eg https://www.visordown.com/news/industry/thousands-german-motorcyclists-demonstrate-against-riding-bans. And I understand those people too (in favor of the bans), because you might pass in 5 seconds, but one minute later the next one is there already and you don't have a moment of rest. But as a motorcycle owner I also want to do those roads of course (I have a campervan in which I can fit the motorcycle so I have driven everywhere in Europe). Mine is a honda nc750x, so not really something terribly impressive and sexy I am afraid, but I like it. Anyway, safe travels !

earic23 t1_itsdt07 wrote on October 25, 2022 at 11:16 PM

I get that, but as someone whose always enjoyed cars and motorcycles, I've always had an appreciation for their sound. I'll be the first to admit that super loud straight pipe harleys aren't doing anyone any favors. It's flat out unnecessary, but I do enjoy a complimentary grumble to go with the engine noise. I see the electric bikes around town, and even as someone who is extra vigilant in looking for bikes while driving, they've still snuck up on me a couple times as they're dead silent minus a little whirring sound. What pisses me off is people that have zero stake in the game (that don't ride) having an opinion about it because of noise. They don't even have the first idea of the risks involved in riding, or the constant CONSTANT barrage of people trying to change lanes into us or are just pissed because we can split lanes. If they live by a main road, sure I guess, but that's why those houses cost 200 grand less, cuz noise.