"houstondan" wrote:
jay, yep, i still ride a bike (1700cc yamaha warrior...v-twin) and i
will say that your analysis of the similarity is good. on a bike, as in
a plane, you have your life in your own hands. it's all up to you. i
will say that over the years, my idea of a good bike ride has shifted a
bit. a couple of hours being bounced in a convection-oven (houston
summer at 80mph) is about all i can take, or want to take, any more.
lately, i'll confess to looking at the bike and thinking how much it
would bring in a.m.u.

My husband and I used to ride a lot. He does not fly. I see the
similarities in the passions for both and miss the bikes. However, I
disagree that on the bike, "it's all up to you". Where we lived, the
area had become so congested that the part of the risk factor that is
attributed to *other people* was far greater than the other-pilots
aspect of flying. There's risk in both, but I don't feel nearly as
vulnerable in an airplane as I do on the bike anymore. That
question-and-answer exchange -- "Why don't you ride anymore?" "It's too
dangerous!" -- coming from a pilot always gets some funny reactions.

That said, I still think bikes are a lot of fun and miss an occasional
ride.