With dirt bikes now gaining electric start, is the art of kick starting a motorcycle about to die? Does anyone care? I do.
We had an e-mail from a Swedish reader several months ago that stated "Occams razor and the concept of parsimony makes a lot of sense and I hope it will conquer the world!" Uh, I didn't really know what the hell he was talking about either. It turns out he was referring to simplicity and economy of design as a good thing.
Let me explain it this way. Did you ever wonder why it's more fun to drive a relatively simple, air-cooled, noisey Porche 911 with a stick shift, than to glide along in a refined Lexus sedan in peace and quiet, isolated from the road? Well, some people prefer the Lexus, obviously, but not me. There is a distinct pleasure in being more closely involved with the machine and experiencing feedback from the road.
If we take this theme one step further, perhaps we draw more pleasure from motorcycles that are a bit less refined and require more rider involvement with the machine and the road. Maybe the Lexus is like a Goldwing and the Porche is like a Ducati 916 or a dirt bike.
For short bursts, at least, the Ducati 916 experience would be more pleasurable for many riders than a Goldwing, while far less comfortable.
If we strip a motorcycle of all of its "comforts", we get back to the kick start machine. Electric starters are a convenience/comfort most of us take for granted. Would kick starting our machine make us closer to it -- kind of like forming a partnership ("It can't start itself, it needs my help!"). Human beings gain "character" as much from his/her flaws, as from their virtues.
Thus ends another strange article. Oh well, "Occams razor!"
P.S. I have to thank reader Wayman Dunlap for some of the ideas that went into this article.