Letters

LETTERS

SHE’S GOT THE SPIRIT

Sidecars in the past have seemed to receive a disproportionate amount of negative commentary. In the three years that we have been in business we have made many more happy cyclists than unhappy purchasers of sidecars. It seems appropriate that a satisfied customer should be able to shed light on the sidecar controversy. Attached you will find a letter from a young lady who happened to purchase one of our sidecars. The brand name is unimportant. What is important is what she states in the way of editorial that she has read and conclusions that she was forced to draw. In spite of the negative or misleading comments that she read, her physical condition caused her to take a "chance" on a sidecar. The result is a motorcyclist who would be unable to enjoy the sport without a sidecar!

We feel this letter may have merit for those readers evaluating the purchase of a sidecar. Miss Giuffra’s experiences lead me to believe that a sidecar, in fact, can be a very rewarding accessory to many motorcyclists.

Despite the fact that we are the largest American producer of sidecars, we have rarely been consulted on editorial in this area. I mention this only because we could have corrected many of the “misleading” or “false” statements before they were sent to press. We have a great deal of respect for your publication and wish you retained credibility with your readers; however, doing an injustice to your readers defeats your purpose of providing consumer information.

We only suggest that you evaluate the sentiment behind the following letter. If we can be of any assistance in the field of sidecars, please do not hesitate to call upon us.

Robert A. Peterson President Spirit of America, Inc.

I am writing this letter because I am concerned about the articles I read on sidecars. As the happy owner of a sidecar, I thought that I would write about the way my family and I feel.

I bought a Spirit Eagle sidecar last summer. The different articles that we had read misinformed us or led us into forming some wrong conclusions. I admit that at first we were a little bit leery about getting a sidecar. According to some articles, you can expect to have some terrifying moments the first hundred miles or so. I never had any terrifying moments, even from the first.

We travel on off highways and back roads in the hills of the Mother Lode area. Some of the roads are pretty bad. . .curvy, bumpy and steep. We have also ridden on the highway at speeds up to 70 mph, and at times we’ve taken right and left curves at from 25 to 50 miles an hour without any trouble.

The way you take a right-hand corner depends on the curve of the road. We do know that some of the articles stress that the right-hand corner is very tricky. If you take a severe right-hand turn and your passenger does not lean, then the car will lift. I know. I didn’t lean once for a real sharp right and the sidecar did lift a little. My brother has tried several times, without my knowing it, to lift the sidecar and can’t, because I lean on the right-hand corners where it counts and that keeps the car down. So the problem isn’t as bad as the articles say. Just use commonsense.

We are novices at this, and had no experience with a sidecar before now. We have had no problem learning to handle or drive it. We first put the Spirit Eagle on a 350 Honda, but now we have it on a 750. It does handle better on the 750. You have more power and can go greater distances.

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My dad fabricated some special attaching brackets that stay tight and secure, so the car handles really well on the Honda. We can attach or remove the sidecar in five minutes thanks to the way my dad has fixed it.

After a summer of hard driving, the motorcycle and sidecar have stayed in perfect alignment without any fussing or adjustment. I do have the sidecar dismantled now because my brother is going to paint it to match his motorcycle.

I am very pleased with the sidecar. My brother has more fun riding his bike with the sidecar attached than solo. The reason that I enjoy and always wanted a sidecar is that I am not able to ride a motorcycle or participate in sports due to crippling arthritis. My whole family rides bikes. In the summer they used to have to go without me; but now I can go along with them. We have 1 5 bikes in our family. Some are street and some motocross bikes. I can tell you that your sidecar rides great and that I am very comfortable in it. It has brought a whole new world to me and I really enjoy it.

Thank you from a very satisfied sidehacker.

Linda Giuffra Jackson, Calif.

A WOMAN’S PLACE. . .

I felt compelled to write this letter to give my opinion to the letters of R. A. Mandel (May) and Kathy Johnson (June). I am a female and I have been riding less than a year. I hope to soon get into trials competition. My riding is very serious to me and I love every aspect of the sport except for the biased, sexist opinions and traditions that motorcycling has gotten from society. That is why the letter from Mr. Mandel was so refreshing.

I, as well as other women riders, feel defeated before I even start. It seems that most people, including some women, feel that motorcycling is a man’s sport only. They feel that the only place that women can occupy in the sport is as a trophy girl or a model for advertising. Or if we are lucky, they will take us on an occasional easy trail ride. They seem to forget that we are human beings just as men are, that we want to ride just as much and as seriously as the male riders. Then you open up a magazine and you see women draped over motorcycles with a minimal amount of clothing on, such as a halfinch wide bikini or less. I have nothing against the human body, but women were put on this earth to be more than just an object to be admired by man.

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Then there are the trophy girls who, with their little hot pants, passionately kiss the winner of the race as though she has known him all her life. I think if the attitude of this society were updated, women might sometimes be on the receiving end instead of the giving end. If this attitude were changed, women would be less afraid of trying out the sport. They would be less afraid of what you men call “losing their femininity,” and then they could get down and enjoy life, which was once the privilege of men only.

In reply to the letter of Kathy Johnson, I think women will only take a step backward if they follow the unintelligent attitude that men show for women in regard to using half-naked men for advertisements. Men, as well as women, deserve the right to be treated as intelligent human beings and not as an object that is to be admired like some lifeless statue.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t dislike men. I just think men should start treating women, whether in riding or in everyday life, as equals and not as things that are just supposed to look pretty.

My riding partner, who is also my boyfriend, shares my feelings. I am not a threat to him as most men feel that women are when they ask for equality. We don’t want to take over the sport, we just want our equal share and right to it.

I enjoy reading your magazine and, even though I sometimes find some sexist ads and opinions, I think you treat women more equally than any other motorcycle magazines. But as they say, there is always room for improvement.

Diane Giannandrea Glassport, Penn.

This letter is in response to a (Miss?) (Mr.?) R. A. Mandel’s letter in the May issue of CYCLE WORLD. I don’t know where she comes off declaring that advertising in this magazine is sexist. First off it is not, at most this magazine is a reflection of motorcycling in today’s world. At worst it is idealistic, as expressed in its advertising and editorials. Secondly, the magazine is motorcycling as affected by socio-economic and political forces, as well as technology. Thirdly, she (he?) has picked on possibly the least sexually pretentious journal dans le monde.

Things to know about the ad world: people who appear in advertising photos are suitably compensated (paid) for their efforts; sponsors pay for the ad space; the advertising contains intelligence to be transmitted to the reader; there is a certain amount of artistic talent and freedom of expression in the ad.

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There exist in today’s world certain magazines, theaters, establishments, etc. that are described intrinsicly as pornographic. The etymon of pornographic is from pome (which in Greek is “harlot”) and graphic, “to write.” I submit that this is anti-feminist and sexist a la “penis-substitute” and “simpering little chick to ride on the back of his machine.” I suggest that Ms. R. A. Mandel redirect her polemic designs from motorcycle magazines to pornography. Who knows what she may accomplish, provided she doesn’t sell out to do a centerfold.

J. Claude Caci

Auburn, N.Y.

CONSUMER COMPLAINT

I would like to comment on two different letters on motorcycle sales and service in your June ’75 issue. In your letters column, an unnamed dealer complains about “large-volume, little-or-noprofit dealers in the larger cities,” and asks us to support our local motorcycle shops, while in “Feedback” Bob Cassetty of Flushing, Mich., explains why a dealership would want to sell parts only to people who bought their bike from that dealership.

I have bought, equipped and had service done on motorcycles in St. Louis, Mo., Little Rock, Ark., Detroit, Mich., and now San Francisco, Calif.

I have never found a motorcycle part or service procedure being “given away.” I do not blame the ridiculous cost of motorcycle parts on dealers. Absurd change-for-change-sake rework and revision of components with endless streams of one-of-a-kind levers, panels, fasteners and gimmicks force both the bike owner and the dealer into the greedy hands of all the bike manufacturers. But even so, I never bought a part that the dealer didn’t make his profit on.

And, when pricing motorcycles, I never ran into a “little-or-no-profit” outfit yet. Sure, volume sales mean more room to dicker over prices, but I know no bike owner dumb enough to buy out of the back of a van. Service and parts facilities count just as much to a bike buyer as to a car buyer, or are we supposed to be so stupid that we have to be protected by fair-trade laws on bikes or some other consumer rip-off?

Low-volume inefficiency usually results from surly salesmen, parts men who’d rather finish their beer than wait on you, and last but not least, from a service man who cares for his local buyer so much that he charges for adjustments not done just so you won’t worry about something being missed!

Bad dealerships deserve to die out, local or big city. And if a dealer is so shortsighted as to insult an owner of his own marque, a captive spare parts and accessory buyer, he, too, deserves to go out of business.

What the hell do you dealers think service is. . .a name you put over one of your doors if you have one left over after “his” and “hers”? You charge for it. . .supply it!

If you don’t want to stock tons of parts, tell your manufacturer that using 75 sizes of air filters and any carburetor that goes on sale from a wholesaler is bugging the hell out of you and your customers. If he won’t listen and you can’t take the hassle, open a laundry.

Don’t cry on my shoulder. . .I’m still hunting the shoulders on the Interstate for the carburetor your mechanic forgot to tighten down. Or is that supposed to be part of the “high maintenance” required on the modern motorcycle?

Robert Cape Foster City, Calif.

COMING OUT OF RETIREMENT

Last time I sat on a motorcycle was 40 years ago. In April of 1974 I turned 60 years of age. In the meantime I struggled through college to become a school teacher, raise two kids and see them get married. . .all without touching a motorcycle, because of antagonism from family and associates.

Last April I started thumbing through copies of motorcycle magazines and settled on CYCLE WORLD. Late in October I settled on Honda & BMW of North Florida (Jacksonville) because they didn’t “double talk” or try to “push” me, even though they didn’t know of my distant experience.

They guided me to the Honda 200 street model because of my desire for transportation to school and short pleasure riding. My son-in-law rode it the 25 miles home since I didn’t like the idea of learning the toe shift in Jacksonville traffic. However, it took only a half hour of tinkering before that left toe and hand were ready. These modern “two-leggers” are terrific!

My wife looked it over, squinted,

glared, grumbled, and turned on the cold treatment for a couple days. The daughter shook her head and said, “Dad, you are becoming a total disaster!” My son-in-law (professional mechanic) just looked worried. My son (professional flight instructor and corporation pilot) screamed an assortment of obscenities when he heard of it. Others in our small town stared, gasped, lectured me on safety, etc. Young folks always do a double take when I pull off my helmet, and then grin.

How be it? It’s great to feel the freedom of wind in my face again. It’s great to become part of my “twolegger,” to unlock the swivel in my neck, and go to work or simply ride secondary roads out in the country after especially wild days in school.

I’ve never bothered to write to any editor, but your item on page 98, Feb. 1975, about the economy struck me as very realistic. But I find a trend to road bikes in this region by older men to save the family car, gas and time or space. I’m finding literally dozens of my type of rider. I see more and more bikes around town with all sorts of items and packages tied on luggage racks.

Dirt racers or trail bikes are great for the younger folks. The pro racers and technicians have their rhyme and reason for the industry. However, I’ve seen

dealers fold because they confined their shops to too much of this, while others prosper by being honest and logical in meeting consumer needs. I don’t see why the motorcycle isn’t of “legal age” now and can’t prosper.

By the way, my wife is all calmed down and I bought a Honda (new 1975) CB125S for her. Soon as she smooths out the clutch hand I’ll let her take it to work and the store! She doesn’t think it’s too risky having a love affair with a two-legged, two-lunger four-stroke CB200.

H. Graham Selick, Sr.

Green Cove Springs, Fla.

GLAD YOU LIKE US, STEVE

I’m 15 years old and I own a used (very used) 1968 Yamaha YASIC. It was one of Yamaha’s first attempts at producing a dual-purpose motorcycle. It’s really just a street bike with high pipes, but I buzz around the local track whenever I get the chance.

Anyway, the reason I wrote in was to tell you that CYCLE WORLD is the only magazine I have ever read that is worth a dollar, and that includes all magazines.

Steve Matsier San Jose, Calif.