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The Lone Rider
The Lone Rider has surfaced. In the last few months I have had the fortune to meet some of these guys and read some of their stories, and it is inspiring.
Lets delve into this phenomenon and understand why this sudden surge in touring alone without the need of a destination. The need to get away from the mundane and ride with the only person you know. Yourself. What I am grappling with is the very core idea of what drives The Lone Rider to leave all that he is a part of to a getaway where he is unknown.
In my search for the meaning behind what goes in the mind of ‘The Lone Rider’ I have come up with some plausible reasons. So without much ado lets get right into what drives him to ride and ride to nowhere.
THE PUSH
The boss, the break-up, the stress, the traffic, the exams, the economy, the corruption.
So is our Lone Rider really getting out of the city or being forced into a short exile by the stress he can’t handle and the job he’s just lost? Is the pressure to sustain a livelihood so immense that you need to ‘unwind’ every other week-end? And why can’t our cities be as inviting as the open road, offer the same relaxation as the mountains do? But that is for a different discussion at a different time.
Till then though, I feel ‘The Push’ remains the main reason for why our Lone Rider would want to escape.
THE PULL
Is it a coincidence that almost all of us when we were kids have drawn the two mountains with a shining sun, a hut and a stream flowing by.
Incredible India! Yes that is the second plausible temptation of our lone rider. The mountains, the deserts, the rivers and the rain forests, we have it all in this land. Thousands of year’s worth of heritage, ruins of the past and the food, not to miss the food. So much to experience and savor in this juggernaut of a country. The list of to-do’s and to-see is never exhausted as one life-time is not enough to explore this vast land. I’ve met people who travel for the sake of travel and the Lonely Planet varieties who like to tick off their list of the 100 most popular getaways but both can’t get enough of this place. But whatever it may be, there is an enigma in every part of this country and the excitement to find a possible haven where you would like to shift when you retire.
So is it the Pull more than the Push or do both work together? We won’t ever know but at-least the question is worth asking?
THE SEARCH
For meaning or for the meaningless. Our land has been long influenced by the great saints who ventured out to find the meaning of all that surrounds us. The answer to the big ‘HOW and the bigger ‘WHY’.
So is that what The Lone Rider is looking for, to make sense of the senseless. The temporary respite from answering the mundane questions of the world to finding what makes him a part of this infinity. Maybe at some level the only way you are with yourself is when on your bike at speed on a long winding road with a stream alongside and the mountains approaching in the distance. Have we all not felt a sense of belonging at that sight, a relief that finally we have arrived, a feeling you get when you are closer to home.
THE ALPHA MALE
The Social Network : A place where you can brag about yourself endlessly. Get a few likes and a few comments from people who you don’t ever meet in real life.
The two minutes of fame is surprisingly a huge motivator, probably not a big one but works at some levels as it gets our Lone Rider noticed. His accomplishment shared and admired and pushes him to ride longer, farther and exceed his limits. He has to now prove a point in the virtual world more so than the real-world. The ‘PEER’ pressure is dead; long live the ‘LIKE’ pressure.
Our ‘Lone Rider’ (The Alpha-Male), the all pervading all knowing and all conquering man, has a social network which he must rule(and he feels he can). He wants to be talked about and his adventures shared, his videos seen and commented on and his blog followed. The hits, the likes, the comments and the followers all count.
THE BIKE
The love of the machine is another one for the Lone Rider. His craving to hear the engine, that adrenaline rush of being one with the wind and the road and his love (his bike). Being able to feel the ride with all his senses, the sound of the engine and the rumble of the tyres, the smell of dawn. The ‘Lone Rider’ treats his bike as his first (and the last) love. He has had his bike longer than he’s had hair on his face. So the bike is more than just a means of transport, it’s a companion, a mate on the way that shares every bump and every fall.
In hindsight when I look at the reasons I have put forth, it seems they all work together at some level and force our Lone Rider to kick-start his engine and ride off into the unknown. But whatever the reason maybe, the resurgence of the Lone Rider shows that there are few among us who ‘can’ when they want to do ‘what’ they want to.
In the end I would like to leave it to you to judge why the Lone Rider does what he does. Leave what he has and go looking for what he doesn’t yet know himself.
And for those of you who have never met the Lone Rider, look closely, there is one lurking inside you somewhere.
The Lone Rider has surfaced. In the last few months I have had the fortune to meet some of these guys and read some of their stories, and it is inspiring.
Lets delve into this phenomenon and understand why this sudden surge in touring alone without the need of a destination. The need to get away from the mundane and ride with the only person you know. Yourself. What I am grappling with is the very core idea of what drives The Lone Rider to leave all that he is a part of to a getaway where he is unknown.
In my search for the meaning behind what goes in the mind of ‘The Lone Rider’ I have come up with some plausible reasons. So without much ado lets get right into what drives him to ride and ride to nowhere.
THE PUSH
The boss, the break-up, the stress, the traffic, the exams, the economy, the corruption.
So is our Lone Rider really getting out of the city or being forced into a short exile by the stress he can’t handle and the job he’s just lost? Is the pressure to sustain a livelihood so immense that you need to ‘unwind’ every other week-end? And why can’t our cities be as inviting as the open road, offer the same relaxation as the mountains do? But that is for a different discussion at a different time.
Till then though, I feel ‘The Push’ remains the main reason for why our Lone Rider would want to escape.
THE PULL
Is it a coincidence that almost all of us when we were kids have drawn the two mountains with a shining sun, a hut and a stream flowing by.
Incredible India! Yes that is the second plausible temptation of our lone rider. The mountains, the deserts, the rivers and the rain forests, we have it all in this land. Thousands of year’s worth of heritage, ruins of the past and the food, not to miss the food. So much to experience and savor in this juggernaut of a country. The list of to-do’s and to-see is never exhausted as one life-time is not enough to explore this vast land. I’ve met people who travel for the sake of travel and the Lonely Planet varieties who like to tick off their list of the 100 most popular getaways but both can’t get enough of this place. But whatever it may be, there is an enigma in every part of this country and the excitement to find a possible haven where you would like to shift when you retire.
So is it the Pull more than the Push or do both work together? We won’t ever know but at-least the question is worth asking?
THE SEARCH
For meaning or for the meaningless. Our land has been long influenced by the great saints who ventured out to find the meaning of all that surrounds us. The answer to the big ‘HOW and the bigger ‘WHY’.
So is that what The Lone Rider is looking for, to make sense of the senseless. The temporary respite from answering the mundane questions of the world to finding what makes him a part of this infinity. Maybe at some level the only way you are with yourself is when on your bike at speed on a long winding road with a stream alongside and the mountains approaching in the distance. Have we all not felt a sense of belonging at that sight, a relief that finally we have arrived, a feeling you get when you are closer to home.
THE ALPHA MALE
The Social Network : A place where you can brag about yourself endlessly. Get a few likes and a few comments from people who you don’t ever meet in real life.
The two minutes of fame is surprisingly a huge motivator, probably not a big one but works at some levels as it gets our Lone Rider noticed. His accomplishment shared and admired and pushes him to ride longer, farther and exceed his limits. He has to now prove a point in the virtual world more so than the real-world. The ‘PEER’ pressure is dead; long live the ‘LIKE’ pressure.
Our ‘Lone Rider’ (The Alpha-Male), the all pervading all knowing and all conquering man, has a social network which he must rule(and he feels he can). He wants to be talked about and his adventures shared, his videos seen and commented on and his blog followed. The hits, the likes, the comments and the followers all count.
THE BIKE
The love of the machine is another one for the Lone Rider. His craving to hear the engine, that adrenaline rush of being one with the wind and the road and his love (his bike). Being able to feel the ride with all his senses, the sound of the engine and the rumble of the tyres, the smell of dawn. The ‘Lone Rider’ treats his bike as his first (and the last) love. He has had his bike longer than he’s had hair on his face. So the bike is more than just a means of transport, it’s a companion, a mate on the way that shares every bump and every fall.
In hindsight when I look at the reasons I have put forth, it seems they all work together at some level and force our Lone Rider to kick-start his engine and ride off into the unknown. But whatever the reason maybe, the resurgence of the Lone Rider shows that there are few among us who ‘can’ when they want to do ‘what’ they want to.
In the end I would like to leave it to you to judge why the Lone Rider does what he does. Leave what he has and go looking for what he doesn’t yet know himself.
And for those of you who have never met the Lone Rider, look closely, there is one lurking inside you somewhere.
This HT appeared in the second (December 2010) issue of the xBhp magazine. You can buy the first issue of the xBhp magazine online here,
xBhp : xBhp Magazine : the Issues
xBhp : xBhp Magazine : the Issues
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