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As far back as I can remember I have always named my bikes . Not always with feminine names . For example , I had a Triumph that for about 10 years was my sole means of transportation 24/7 365 days a year . Each and every year I rebuilt one of the two frames I had for it and repainted , changed tanks , etc. It was like haveing a new bike each year . I called it my "Slimey Limey" I loved that old rigid chop . There are days when I still wished I had it .
Two years ago I built a semi custom 1000cc Yamaha Virago , I called it CC for Cafe Cruiser , not particularly a feminine name .
We all have our own personal weird and we are entitled to that . I don't care if mine is weirder than others because I learned a long time ago that I don't have to live up to any one else's expectations . As a matter of fact , I don't have the right to even have expectations of my self . Keeps me a whole lot freer and saner that way .
Regards, Wizzard

My friend named mine Betty, because it's yellow. He likes archie comics, his is black, he calls it Veronica. I call mine The Bike.

Must be a guy thing............or I just haven't got the right bike.

I think it's because most bikes are built with visual appeal in mind. A bike is attractively styled as well as functional. And the tank and pipes and bars make it look all curvy. Women are also built to be attractive (well at least they turned out that way), so there you have it. Bike distantly related to woman in man's mind = female naming system.

That said I just call my motorcycle "Bike". I still love it and am probably overprotective of it, but giving it a human name just doesn't do it justice. Either that or it's because I wouldn't want to ride a woman with a voice that deep . But no really, it's the first thing.

Both German and French add gender to their language, like die uhr is the clock but 'die' (die = dee) makes it female, and das makes it neutral (it).

Also people refer to ships as her and she.

Earwig it's not just in the USA Lol! Our FZX 750 has got to be my No1 ride But Dave refers to our bike as a he, cause he says our bike is no "wimp"

OOps P***y

Simple answer...


Because I sure as hell ain't riding "him" or "it". I prefer to ride "her"...

I dunno, the intimacy of the connection that builds between rider and bike isn't (obviously) the same sort of intimacy of a human relationship, but it is no less present.

After only 2 months riding my F4i, I felt at -one- with that machine when I was riding. I thought, "30mph entry point -here-, late apex -there-" and the bike would do it. I didn't have to think about the controls anymore, I was one with the bike. It's a sort of thoughtless control that enables you to enjoy the ride more, pay more attention to the things that matter, like reading traffic. It wasn't until I'd achieved that comfort level that I truly started to enjoy riding. The separation between bike and man became more and more transparent, and I had more and more fun.

That kind of intimacy between a bike and its rider is why we refer to them, sometimes jokingly, as "her", or "the other girlfriend", etc.

Psycluded wrote: That kind of intimacy between a bike and its rider is why we refer to them, sometimes jokingly, as "her", or "the other girlfriend", etc.

Yup. That and the fact that my bike has a great a$$!



I should know...I just waxed it the other day!