The experience of riding a motorcycle is certainly something you can’t find anywhere else; it’s no wonder riders love it so much. Some prefer the open road by themselves while others enjoy the company of some fellow riders to share the experience with.
It can be a bit frustrating when you want to find a few friends to ride with but can’t seem to find any within your circle of friends that owns a motorcycle or who is willing to take the time to ride with you. Finding new motorcycle friends may be your best option.
So, how do you find motorcycle friends? There are six easy ways to find new motorcycle friends that share the same interests as you:
- Locating local motorcycle clubs
- Using social media such as facebook
- Going to car/motorcycle shows
- Contacting motorcycle dealerships
- Using cyclefish.com
- Taking a motorcycle safety course
Sometimes when you’re trying to find fellow motorcycle enthusiasts that you can ride with, you feel like you’re back in grade school making new friends. But once you find your group that you can relate to and go riding with, it makes all the difference and enhances the motorcycle experience even more.
Local Motorcycle Clubs
Motorcycle clubs tend to have a bit of a stigma attached to them. Most people assume they’re more of a “Hell’s Angels” type of gathering and don’t want to be associated with them.
On the contrary, most motorcycle clubs are meant for everyone who has a motorcycle or who wants a motorcycle. Most clubs openly welcome new members with a bit of qualification and respect.
Anywhere that has motorcycle riders, chances are there are a handful of motorcycle clubs, too. You may need to do a little research to see when and where they meet; also know what kind of motorcycle club it is before you go. If it’s a touring club and you’re more into cafe racers, you’d probably feel more fit in another club.
Motorcycle clubs are an excellent way to find fellow motorcycle friends that you can relate to. That’s essentially why everyone is gathering together, to share their common interest in motorcycles. A lot of motorcycle clubs will hold charities and benefit rides for specific causes, usually something that has affected a member directly.
So not only do you get to find fellow motorcycle friends and ride with them, but you’ll also get a chance to provide to charity and work towards and good cause. If you’re not sure how to find a motorcycle club, keep reading and use one of the following methods that can help locate a club near you.
Social Media
We live in a day and age where we have an endless reservoir of information at our finger tips called the internet. A large part of the internet consists of social media.
Social media is a great way to stay in touch with friends and family and let other people know what you’re up to. It’s also a great way to locate specific information that you’re looking for, such as motorcycle clubs or other motorcycle enthusiasts you can meet up with.
Probably the most popular social media platform you can use is facebook to find motorcycle friends. While there are plenty of other social media platforms you can use, facebook is one of the most universal forms of social media that people use of all ages.
Facebook has a great place to search for specific groups you’d like to join or events that are going on near you. If you’d like, you can find multiple groups to join. You also have the ability or organize a group yourself and attract fellow motorcycle lovers.
Communicating with individuals is also a breeze through the instant messaging system. If there are a few people you interact with over social media and you’d like to go riding with, contact them personally and organize a trip with them.
Car/Motorcycle Shows
Not only are car and motorcycle shows fun to go to because you get to look at beautiful machines, they’re also great for networking. Motorcycles usually aren’t as big as car shows, but they definitely exist so keep your eyes open for one near you. Bigger car shows usually have several people who display their motorcycles, so don’t skip out on car shows because they still have big opportunities for you.
The great thing about going to car and motorcycle shows is that people who are displaying their motorcycles are more than willing to talk to people and make friends.
Aside from becoming acquainted with motorcycle riders at these shows, you can also ask them specific questions about your motorcycle if you’re having issues with it as well as ask about any motorcycle clubs or gatherings they go to and recommend.
Car and motorcycle shows also do an excellent job at announcing any other events that are coming up in the vehicle world. There will be people there sending out flyers and advertising about these events, so keep your eyes open for anything related to motorcycles that could potentially give you an opportunity to make some motorcycle buddies.
Motorcycle Dealerships
Motorcycle dealerships may seem like a strange way to help find your riding buddies because all they do is sell motorcycles, right? Actually, most motorcycle dealerships host several events throughout the year that could be quite beneficial for you.
Most motorcycle dealerships host motorcycle shows, mini carnivals, charity events, giveaways, etc. Dealerships want to get their name out there as much as possible so they do everything they can to gain exposure and get people to come and see what they have to sell.
Motorcycle dealerships will sometimes have incentives for people to come, such as drawings and raffles that give them a percentage off a purchase or something similar. Naturally, something like that will attract motorcycle enthusiasts.
Contact your local dealerships and see if they have any events that are coming up. This would be a great opportunity to network and meet with motorcycle lovers and become part of their cohort.
Cyclefish.com
If you’re looking for other ideas to network with motorcycle lovers but don’t want to leave the comfort of your home, there are still plenty of online websites that you can use.
One of the best places to network is cyclefish.com. For those of you who are unfamiliar with it, cyclefish.com is a platform that holds any resource a motorcycle enthusiast could ever want. They have blogs and forums while most importantly they post motorcycle events around the United States.
This platform is great at keeping up to date with their events and giving specific information about it so you’ll know exactly when and where they are. There’s a search bar on the website you can use to type your specific location and a list of events will come up either in or near the location you indicate.
The forum they have is also valuable. Forums are a great way to ask specific questions to other motorcycle lovers who have joined as well as advertise specifically what you’re looking for (i.e. a riding buddy, people to help with an event you want to organize, etc.).
Motorcycle Safety Course
A motorcycle safety course is an excellent way to interact with fellow motorcycle lovers. It’s also a great idea to take a motorcycle safety course if you haven’t already.
Not all states require a motorcycle safety course, but there’s never really a shortage of people who want to take it whether or not their state requires it to get a license. A motorcycle safety course does cost money, most are usually around $200. But you will be surrounded by motorcyclists who take safety seriously while riding. You’ll want to surround yourself with riders like that anyway.
This is also a great place to practice riding with someone else or help teach someone certain riding skills outside of the classroom. Forming motorcycle friendships happen very naturally in this type of setting, so if you struggle with being outgoing and making friends this would be a great option for you.
Seeing how your fellow classmates ride can give you an idea of who you do and do not want to ride with for leisure purposes. If someone is riding a bit crazy that you know you’re uncomfortable with, you’ll know you won’t want to ride with them. On the contrary, if you’re a fast paced person, you can see who the slow riders are and know you probably wouldn’t be compatible riding mates.
Related Questions
What are some helpful motorcycle riding tips? Some helpful riding tips include checking all motorcycle fluids regularly, knowing hand signals, knowing how to safely swerve, assume no other drivers can see you on the road, always carrying important paper work, and routinely checking the chain tension. Click here to see my article for more info.
Do you have to own a motorcycle to join a motorcycle club? Each motorcycle club has their own rules. The bigger and more well known the club is, you’ll probably need to own a motorcycle as well as go through some sort of initiation. There are a handful of motorcycle clubs out there that will allow members that don’t own a motorcycle to join.