What Every Motorcyclist Needs to Know About Freedom

Feb 25, 2022 — Motorcycling makes you feel free. At least, that’s what Harley reps will say when they want you to buy something. If there’s a real need to drum up business – like the panicky, bankruptcy kind of need – companies will even tell you that freedom is motorcycling.

They will say:

Freedom is sitting on two wheels, it’s having fire and metal between your legs, and feeling the wind in your hair.

You know, that sellout answer.

And we’re actually prone to believe it, after having tried the riding experience out ourselves. This is because we are not being sold a product, we are being sold a lifestyle, and in many cases, a feeling of empowerment that provides a sense of escape from our daily busywork. When we’re told freedom is motorcycling, we’re essentially told that freedom is obtainable through motorcycling, that it can be bought like any other product on the market.

After all, how can you blame anybody who wants to take part in the riding experience? On two wheels anything is possible: we feel alive, clear-minded, at peace, in our element, in tune with the elements. Companies have understood this fundamental desire, and they do what they can to convince you that freedom isn’t free, that it is consumable, within arm’s reach, as long as you are willing to sign here, here, and here…

The Bargain

A bargain is struck. You give away some of your hard-earned cash, but you get the world in return. Some might say that’s a hell of a good deal, and that money means nothing in comparison to the possibilities you are now afforded. But how can we ever be content with such a wonky definition of freedom... That is to say, freedom as a commodity, as a purchased feeling?

Is there not something more to freedom? Is it not logical to assume that feeling free, like all feelings, fades in time? The adrenaline and sheer joy of escape through riding are not binding in this particular contract; your future experiences are never guaranteed to provide the same feelings of liberation they once did.

In a time that is more focused on immediacy, on wanting and having things right away, on speedy delivery of products; we expect things to bend to our will. A product must do what we want it to do, and we are entitled to this because we have paid for it. But what happens when this function is psychological, and not purely practical? Can we really feel entitled to freedom and joy through a product, in the same way we expect it to function as intended?

There’s the catch, the fine print, so to speak. If we are always chasing after our own tail, romantically hoping that products we buy will fulfill us emotionally, we omit a sense of understanding that might prove effective in combating the fleeting aspect of our own desire.

The Feeling

The more you know, the more questions you ask... And the more of a pain you are to sell to. Advertisement thrives on a whim, on decisions made through feeling, only to quickly vanish when it no longer serves a purpose; when it either no longer appeals to your wants or when it succeeds in doing so.

Here, one must stop and ask the questions: Why does motorcycling make me feel free? Are these reasons simply frivolous and cosmetic, or do they connect on a deeper level? Just asking these things can reevaluate one’s perspective; we know all too well how common it is to buy a bike only to sell it some time after, when enjoyment fades and the potential danger of the sport tips the scale in its favor.

The point to be made is that a sense of freedom which stems from understanding and interrogation will ultimately do more for our enjoyment of riding. If we know why our riding experiences are to be valued as individuals and not just consumers, we step outside the framework, and the strong feelings of joy and liberty are ever the more likely to accompany us down the road, instead of fading away after a couple of rides.

The Truth

There’s a truth about motorcycling and freedom that is more complete than the kind you see plastered against the brickwork of dealerships. A truth that doesn’t come in big, orange block letters.

Freedom isn’t an actual thing, product or feeling to be sold. It isn’t something tangible – something you can find in between two wheels or at the end of a rainbow. Freedom is awareness of conditions where captivity is felt, and inevitably, a rebellion which seeks fulfillment outside of these conditions.

So what does this mean for us riders? Since we’ve been waxing philosophical, we can point to that book (Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance). Pirsig saw how “On a cycle the frame is gone. You’re in the scene, not just watching it anymore, and the sense of presence is overwhelming”. That frame – that boundary of normal existence – is what freedom is relative to. Each person will find freedom by overcoming the barriers in their own lives.

You won’t fit that definition on a billboard, and that’s probably why it has some meaning to it. Step outside the frame, you’ll find freedom on the other side.