Your letters
Thanks to all of our readers for writing letters and emails. Here’s a selection of MSL readers’ thoughts.
Thirty years ago I bought a motorcycle which didn’t have a fuel tap, or at least not one which required any contribution on my part. I immediately felt a sense of rejection. Someone, somewhere, was obviously trying to be helpful, but unfortunately they didn’t understand my needs. Something had been taken from me, more than just a tap, they, the man in the white lab coat, was trying to make me redundant and was severing the bond between me and my bike.
“Why have you done this?”
“Don’t worry about it, we know what we’re doing, it’s for the best.”
“But I liked operating my fuel tap.”
“Forget it, it’s not coming back.”
The fuel tap was a simple device with two, or sometimes three positions. Having a manually operated tap provided the rider with the opportunity to make an error and therefore conferred responsibility. Not making those errors implied expertise.
Next to go was the choke, a special control because it was progressive rather than binary. It had a range of settings, but no graduations, and therefore correct operation was learned through experience. Accurate operation required an appreciation of both ambient and engine temperatures. Manual advance and retard timing controls were before my time, but I envied the operators of such devices for their relationships with their machines.
“What have you done with my choke?”
“We’ve got it covered, you don’t need to bother about that any more.”
TechNerd in the lab coat was beginning to annoy me. Motorcycle starting procedure has never been a chore, it is a ritual performed as a prelude to riding. A ritual which brings the machine to life. The fuel flows, the air is regulated, the electricity connected and finally physical energy transferred from kickstart to crankshaft to create that vital first pulse which, if done correctly, fires the machine into life. Men will watch intently as a rider works through the ritual of bringing a vintage machine to life and will smile in relief and admiration as the exhaust barks success.
“Where’s my kickstart lever gone?”
“We’ve replaced it with an electric idiot switch, it’s for your own good.”
“I wish you’d stop being so good to me. So all I’ve got left is a key and a button?”
“Well, I’ve been meaning to talk to you about that key.”
TechNerd has obviously never seen the film ‘The Battle of Britain’. A Spitfire pilot didn’t just turn a key and press a button, there were a multitude of procedures to accomplish before the engine could be started, all requiring skill acquired through experience. I was brought up on this stuff and I don’t want it taken away from me by TechNerd, ‘for my own good’!
“Hey TechNerd, having eliminated the fuel tap, the choke, the kickstart and the key, I bet it really pisses you off that I still have a button to press.”
“Well, actually, this new electric bike we’ve just produced doesn’t have a start button, just twist and go. Now is there anything else I can do for you?”
“Yes, you can stick your electric bike up...”
Paul Bredael
I’m sure a lot of people share your thoughts, Paul. And many others welcome the gadgetry of the TechNerd. It will be interesting to see how our readers respond to this one.
Mikko Nieminen