Social: Online forums and communities.

One of the greatest resources for a Motorcyclist is the online communities and  forums that are available for owners to get information and tips about their passion.      But they are not all friendly.   I've been on Honda Forums, BMW forums, Yamaha Forums and others with a lot of nice guys,  but it seems the forums that are specific for motorcycles that only the retired old guys ride are full of crochety old grumpy men that will nail you to a cross if you are wrong, but don't you dare question them when you find they are wrong.   Case in point I have been wrenching and riding motorcycles for 37 years and I'm only 45.  Yes that means I have been on two wheels and working on the since I was 8 years old.  My father made sure that us boys got our hands dirty and knew what we were doing with motorcycles, so my education started early in life and stayed with me to this day.    I have rebuilt and repaired at least 6 Bikes in my lifetime,  Two brought back from the dead that others have had no hope of ever recovering and one was stored wrong back in the early 70's forgotten in a barn for 40 years and restored to running and darn good looking status.  I have rewired motorcycles, reprogrammed the Ignition system computer on newer ones, etc...   So I actually have a bit of knowledge in the arena.  So I question an old guy and try to clarify and he blows up that I dared even question his words or not take them as gospel. And no this has not only been once,  I have seen it several times on this specific board.  They will say something that is wrong and if you point it out nicely  you will get jumped on hard.  I discovered that I ride a bike that has a typical owner age of 65.  So that explains why all these guys keep dropping it on the ground in the parking lot, cant fix it them selves, and go postal on anyone that questions them nicely.    I really like a touring bike and I want to do what they are doing (Riding not complaining) before I get old  and crotchety.

And I typically try to be as friendly as I can be,  but any time you correct one of these Retired fellas who is repeating yet another bit of bad information they read elsewhere on the internet,  suddenly they wig out.  Ask for clarification or where they got the information,  they wig out.  And then let on that you are not 60+ but in fact what they consider a snot-nosed kid at 45 and they go way overboard on being insulting and raging.

I strongly suggest to lurk on most and only ask questions when you need to,  Helping others with answers is only for those with very thick skins, yes even when you post links to 5 different places that back you up you will have someone trying to shoot you down for daring to correct them.

Secondly, remember only people with problems post on the boards.  People that have zero problems with their motorcycles rarely post on the boards as they are too busy riding, so do not gauge the reliability of a bike by the number of complaints.  Knowing what common failures are is one thing,  obsessing on them is another.  Look for real failure rates.  I found the rear drive of my BMW has a failure rate of around 4-7%  That is so low that I do not even need to think about it.  Yet on the forums it sounds like every BMW is a ticking time bomb waiting for the Rearend to explode at any moment.

My point is,  be nice to your  fellow riders no matter where you are or how you feel.  Being a grumpy old coot only destroys your own reputation and makes others look down on you.  I lose a lot of respect for every old fart online that goes all grumpy rage over another person,  it shows that they may be old but they are not wise.