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Photo by Marc Gibaud, Clouds on Tres Cerros and Mount Fitzroy, Argentinian Patagonia

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Old 26 Jul 2010
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What do you call your bike?
Hey y'All,

I've noticed that various people on this site seem to have "pet names" for their beloved motorcycles...

So tell me this: whats the etiquette on giving your bike a name? Is it generally the done thing, or is it totally personal choice? Cool, or not really?

I've already caught myself talking to my bike a couple of times (don't ask!)...is this just the slippery slope towards giving it (her?) a name???

Jeanie Owner of as-yet-unnamed Suzuki Marauder...!!
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Old 26 Jul 2010
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Bully
Funny you should ask this for I have thought the same and does anyone think of their bike in the Masculine instead of Feminine?

Mine have been named 'BULLY' in sequencial order, ie, 'Bully' 'Bully II' and now on 'Bully III'. An ex girlfriend said I rode like a bully when in towns and cities, jostling for space etc. Probably not the best nor PC but it certainly suits my riding style.

I suppose it also comes down to whether you see you and the bike on any given adventure or the adventure on any given bike, for me it's the bike that allows me to do the adventure of choice, hence the name and the familiarisation with my 'Steed'!
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Old 26 Jul 2010
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You mean like "Boanerges" (Lawrence of Arabia's Broughs) or "Armageddon" (Ogri's Norvin)? I really couldn't bring myself to have something like that printed on the side of the tank, never mind something like "Sally" (because we "sally forth" together).

Most of the time it's just "the bike" unless something's gone wrong, in which case I'll make an exception and it can get very personal while I try to see which old "Anglo-Saxon" four letter names suits it best .
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Old 26 Jul 2010
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Of the 3 bikes I have so far owned I have named them all (my Wee Strom is called Gloria) not sure why I started naming them but they have all had feminine names,thought I was a bit odd till I discovered some of my friends named theirs too.
Cant see me having Gloria airbrushed across the tank though lol.
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Old 26 Jul 2010
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My three Yamahas, xt350, xt600 and tt600, were called Lucrecia, Lucre.

The R100GS PD, the Panzer

Ah! my old Nissan Patrol RD28 is called Patrolinho, he came from Portugal
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Old 27 Jul 2010
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Quote:
Originally Posted by geoffshing View Post
Funny you should ask this for I have thought the same and does anyone think of their bike in the Masculine instead of Feminine?

Mine have been named 'BULLY' in sequencial order, ie, 'Bully' 'Bully II' and now on 'Bully III'. An ex girlfriend said I rode like a bully when in towns and cities, jostling for space etc. Probably not the best nor PC but it certainly suits my riding style.

I suppose it also comes down to whether you see you and the bike on any given adventure or the adventure on any given bike, for me it's the bike that allows me to do the adventure of choice, hence the name and the familiarisation with my 'Steed'!
So it's got nothing to do with Dai then Riding like a bully - yep, when you decided to ride a doughnut in a car park full of gravel, the other bikers weren't so happy
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Old 28 Jul 2010
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So it's got nothing to do with Dai then Riding like a bully - yep, when you decided to ride a doughnut in a car park full of gravel, the other bikers weren't so happy

Me..........? Being as irresponsible as that, Nah mate! You've got the wrong guy! LOL. Got a new bike this year.......... Bigger Donuts! All I can say is everyone else chose a bad parking spot.
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Old 26 Jul 2010
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Originally Posted by jeanied1 View Post
Hey y'All,

I've noticed that various people on this site seem to have "pet names" for their beloved motorcycles...
Hmmm, ...bike?
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Old 26 Jul 2010
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The DRZ..

I put a lot of thought into it..
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Old 26 Jul 2010
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The bumble bee... for obvious reasons.

Apparently ALL Italian cars and bikes need names or they break down a lot. I mean, less than they would if they didn't have names. You can change a name too if the first doesn't seem to be working -7 break downs in two years for a brand new Alfa saw a name change. Since then 'Valentino' has behaved.
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Old 27 Jul 2010
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It took me three years but I did name my 2007 BMW F650GS "Ellie". Since I'm very practical, she was named this way since she resembled an elephant with the snug fitting cover. Also, both my first and last names end with the letters L, E ...get it?

Not the most sentimental thing but it works for the kind a gal I am ;-)


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Old 27 Jul 2010
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I'm lucky enough to own about 17 motorbikes, my pension pot Classic Motorcycle Rental, only one has a name, the 1960 Dnepr K72 sidecar is called Boris, well it just had to be! He's famous too, but not unique, 2nd one down when you Google 'boris sidecar', the other one's a Dnepr/Ural too!
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Old 28 Jul 2010
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Originally Posted by T.REX63 View Post
Hmmm, ...bike?
Now there's a spooky coincidence! – except I add 'the' (definitive article).

Seems like the perfect name to me, e.g: .. 'Fancy going out for a ride on “the bike” this afternoon?' .. .. 'I've just checked and “the bike's” insurance renewal is due next week' .. ' Does “the bike” need an oil change?'

“the bike” is THE perfect name imho - and just fits into a conversation ..


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Last edited by Keith1954; 28 Jul 2010 at 15:13.
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Old 28 Jul 2010
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Originally Posted by Keith1954 View Post
Now there's a spooky coincidence! – except I add 'the' (definitive article).

Seems like the perfect name to me, e.g: .. 'Fancy going out for a ride on “the bike” this afternoon?' .. .. 'I've just checked and “the bike's” insurance renewal is due next week' .. Does “the bike” need an oil change?

“the bike” is THE perfect name imho - and just fits into a conversation ..
.

Only downside of that is if you have more than one bike you have to start adding extra adjectives to distinguish one from another ... "Shall we go out on the bike"? .. "Which one"? "The red one" ... "The big red one or the little red one"?... "The big red two stroke Kawasaki". Starts to sound like a toddlers TV programme - "Now children, sing along with the big red Honda - the wheels on the bike go round and round, round and round "

Still can't bring myself to say "Shall we fire up Pegasus or would you prefer Agamemnon, it's a bit more comfortable on a long run". Maybe numbers on the tank would be a way out - "Have you seen the keys to number three"? Easy to do with a marker pen.
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Old 28 Jul 2010
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I call my KLR650 "katir" in Turkish, which means "mule". In fact I used to call my old XT the same and this one is "Mule the 2nd". BTW I also like listening to Gov't Mule while riding.

Cheers from Izmir, Turkey.
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