There was just one major problem in this dream. My mother was a theatre sister- and she saw all the people who's longing for freedom ended on the operating table. So her response was: "Over my dead body will you ever ride a motorcycle..." Fortunately, she is still alive.
When I went to high school a friend of the family made a huge mistake. He had this Yamaha Chappy 80cc which were just standing idle in his garage. A motionless Bike eats batteries! A motorcycle really needs to feel appreciated, by spending some time with it, otherwise it dies a sad, sorry death. So- this friend decided that I would have some time to spend with his little bike. And on that Chappy with it's 4 gears I learned to ride a motorcycle. Yes, I did fall many times, being ever so ambitious to become the best motorcyclist in town. But the Chappy was very forgiving, never ever breaking anything expensive... but I totally became hooked.
Mom still said: Over my dead body. Dad said grumpily: buy it yourself! So I took the challenge of Dad more seriously. I started to look for any jobs for a Standard 6 guy (Grade 8). I started delivering newspapers in the morning before school. In the Natal winter, being under freezing point, that was fun! I delvered magazines like Die Huisgenoot on a Thursday. I delivered the free local newspaper, about 150 copies, each Friday. I did temp work at the till of the local Spar. And little by little my bank balance grew...
At the end of my standard 7 year, I was more than halfway to a brand new 50 cc. But what to buy? That was some epic mindsearching! The other High School in town were leaning towards Suzuki- the RG 50. In the third High School they liked the limegreen Kawasaki. And in our High School you would find some of each major Japanese brand, but mainly we were Honda or Yamaha fans...
In the High School, there were naturally also various subgroups. And the people I admired, (but never got the chance to be accepted in their midst :-( ) were Honda people. Our local pastor were a small man, riding big Honda CB's - I think the 9oo F. And his sons were on MB 5's. I Tried to be the pastor's son' s friend, unsuccessfully. But he brainwashed me into believing that Honda is the only brand of motorcycle worth being on this planet.
The next question at the end of 1982 was: which Honda? Many of the guys were on Honda MB 5's. The Bobcat. Other were on the little scrambler- the MT 5. But the new generation was coming out- the MBX was supposedly much faster AND watercooled! And with that also came out the MTX 50. Much bigger than the MT, and as I reasoned- Honda is THE best, so this new MTX would be a much faster bike than the famous Yamaha DT 50. I approached my dad, he made a small loan, and I became, as far as I know, the first owner of a 1982 Honda MTX 50- brand new. I paid R990 for it at Hannes Strijdom's father- who owned the Toyota and Honda dealership in our town.
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| My Honda MTX 50- 1983 |
This is a classical Honda look, continued in the bigger XT range of scramblers as well. I was so proud of being the owner of this motorcycle. But in the first week I found out: it is MUCH slower than the Yamaha DT, or the Suzuki! It could not even approach the MB 5's in speed! I bought the wrong bike!
It could only reach a top spead of 80 kph. But still- it gave me a sense of freedom that just was not possible on a bicycle! I continued the newspaper route: for buying fuel and tires! On this bike I did over 30 000 km in just 24 months! I practically lived on it! And where I had a hard time to connect to friends, even harder making an impression on the ladies, I had the freedom of my bike: If you don't own wings you'll never fly, the ad said. It was true: This bike became my best friend, my girlfriend, my travel companion in life.
Yes, I did fall of it a lot! I tried my best to go as fast through the corners as possible. MOTO GP on a set of knobblies! I once went through the back window of a ladies' Corolla- thinking about an exam in stead of being alert to the road in front of me...
I had such good times with my bike, but, it being the slowest of the slow, I never had the chance to be part of a group.
I had this bike till halfway through matric. I never ever could be honestly described as a technical person. I plainly did not remember to change the oil as often as I later found out bikes should be serviced. And one day the engine had enough abuse. It just seized.
In our town, there was a big steel factory. And the workers of the factory could only ride in to their workplaces on a bicycle, and on 50 cc motorbikes, no bigger engines were allowed. So secondhand 50's was in big demand. As such I sold my broken down bike for R 360 as is to an appy at Iscor.
But I was not without a bike for long... but that is another day's story.
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| Cleaning up after a long muddy dirt road- about 1984 |
The love for motorcycles is as part of me as my personal faith. I probably will always have a soft spot for dualer motorcycles as well, giving me the freedom to sometimes go to the roads less travelled!
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