Mid-Life Rider

I heard about Larry Hartl through a “little bird” on one of the Forums I frequent. Something about being a “thoughtful and interesting guy.” When I contacted him, he wanted to be sure I mentioned he wasn’t yet in “mid-life” yet, despite his gray hair!

Just to clear up that point, the “mid-life” part is less about age, and especially too much of it, and more about what you’ll find in this conversation: the ability to reflect, a desire to teach and mentor, and a sense of how the big themes in life might fit together.

Larry touches on some specific themes that repeat in these conversations over and over again . . .

• I rode for the first time as a kid, but my parents wouldn’t hear about a motorcycle.
• I put cards on my Sting Ray to make it sound cool.
• Once re-hooked (at a later age), riding becomes a passion.
• Get trained early and often.

One of the things that really stands out about Larry is his passion for and interest in teaching riding to others. A big part of that is obviously who he is, but it’s a great testimony to the importance of Basic Rider Training on so many levels. I’ve talked to others about teaching. A lot of us like that idea, both to give back, but also as a way of honing our own skills.

Many of these interviews are done in writing, and the other thing that stands out is how clearly Larry expresses why he rides. His descriptions about riding the first time, his commitment to and experiences with teaching, and what he thinks about when he rides are wonderfully evocative.

Tell me a little about yourself. What do you do, do you have family, that sort of thing.

I’m a technical recruiter……a headhunter. I recruit chemical engineers for companies throughout the United States. I’m also a motorcycle riding instructor. I teach Basic Rider Courses through the Motorcycle Safety Project of Northern Illinois University. My wife, along with her friend/business partner, owns a very successful quilt shop and we have two teenage daughters, as evidenced by my gray hair.

Do you remember your first bicycle? Is there a good story about it?

My first bicycle was a lime green Schwinn Stingray with ape-hanger handle bars and a low rider banana seat. It was around 1969 and at the time, that bike was to kids what choppers were to adults. I remember using clothes pins to attach playing cards to the front forks so as I rode, the cards would flap against the spokes and the bike would “rev”. It was probably one of the early signs that I was destined to be a rider as well as a bit of a gear head.

When did you first ride a motorcycle?

When I was eleven or twelve, a friend of mine bought a used dirt bike and he let me ride it a few times on some trails near our house. It was the coolest thing I had done in my eleven years of existence. The only problem was that my parents were totally against motorcycles. Owning, or even riding one, was not even an option for me. It would be another 26 years before I would officially start riding.

What was the first bike you owned?

It was a 1998 Honda Magna. Many people warned me that it was “too much bike” for a new rider, and in hindsight, I can see where that would hold true for many new riders. However, that “muscle cruiser” turned out to be the perfect first bike for me. I attribute that to being older and wiser (in theory, at least) when I started to ride. Had I owned that bike when I was younger and….well, less-wiser, I’m sure I would have gotten into some serious trouble.

How many bikes have you owned?

I’ve owned just two: my first bike, the Magna, and my current bike, a Yamaha FJR1300. Besides cruisers, I also love the styling of sport tourers. The problem was, when I first started riding, there weren’t many that were affordable to me. In spring of 2006, I just happened to notice a local ad for a used FJR1300, a bike that was in my “top 2 wanna haves”. I went and looked at it and after proving to the owner that I was a riding instructor, he allowed me to take it for a ride. I remember him saying “OK, but if you ride it, you’ll want to buy it” (as if I didn’t want to buy it already). So I rode it and then I bought it.

A few days later, I showed up to a class with my new bike. My teaching partner was admiring it and telling me that the FJR was also on his short list of “bikes he’d like to own”. So I tossed him the key and told him to take it for a ride. Before he left, I said, “If you ride it, you’ll want to buy one”. He just smiled and rode away. Five days later, he bought a new ’05 FJR.

How many bikes have you ridden?

The only bikes I’ve ridden any distance have been the two that I’ve owned. Other than that, just short rides on friends’ bikes (mostly cruisers) and the program bikes we use when I teach (small displacement cruisers and dual purpose bikes).

How many miles do you expect to ride this year?

Last year I was able to ride a little more than 10,000 miles despite having a pretty full weekend teaching schedule. This year my teaching schedule is even a bit heavier, but I still plan to get in at least another 10,000 miles.

Riding gear (street) of choice?

My favorite helmet is my Shoei X-Eleven. The jacket (and pants) of choice is a silver Olympia Airglide 2. My favorite gloves are my Held Steve model (weird name; great glove). I have a few pairs of boots, but the ones I like best are my Teknics.

How would you describe your involvement with motorcycling now?

I have a true passion for both riding and rider education. Some people would call it an obsession. I split my time pretty equally between riding and teaching. I could probably ride a whole lot more than I do, but it would be at the expense of being able to teach. I do quite a bit of commuting and occasionally I get to take some longer day rides. I try to do as many group rides as I can too. I enjoy the new friends I’ve made, and continue to make, through riding. I’ve met some great people through the FJR Forum, some of who share the same issues as me: so many places to ride and not nearly enough time to ride there!

What attracted you to motorcycling? Why do you ride?

Having been brainwashed as a kid that motorcycles were just “too dangerous”, it wouldn’t be until the Fall of 2000, at 36 years old, that I seriously considered riding.

One day I was visiting a relative who I’d always looked up to and respected. He had just purchased his first bike, a used BMW RT1100, and as he was showing me this beautiful motorcycle, he explained how he had taken a free 20-hour Basic Rider Course through the state and had received his motorcycle license. It was something he’d always wanted to do but, like me, as a kid, he wasn’t allowed to even think about it either. Then he got married and had four kids and had no time.

His experience with the class he had taken sounded very intriguing, so in the spring of 2001 I registered for the Basic Rider Course, out of curiosity more than anything else. I wanted to see if riding a motorcycle was as dangerous as I’d been told it was and as fun as I’d imagined it was. It was during that class that I fell head-over-heels in love with motorcycling. I was the only student in a class of 24 to achieve a perfect score on my riding evaluation (with virtually no prior riding experience) and missed only one question on the written evaluation. More important than that, though, I learned that what my parents had instilled in me as a kid: that motorcycling was just too dangerous to even consider, was not really the case at all.

I learned that with good instruction, responsible application and lots of practice that one could effectively manage the inherent risks associated with riding a motorcycle. It was through that class that I started to develop my commitment to rider education, both mine and others. I wanted to get my instructor certification in 2003, however, I just couldn’t make the 85+ hour commitment to do it that year. So I waited another year before becoming a riding instructor.

I ride because of the pure unadulterated joy I get from it; from being out in the open, able to see, hear and smell things that you just can’t see, hear or smell from inside of a car. Simple trips to the grocery store or to work that have become so monotonous in a car are absolutely exhilarating on a motorcycle. I teach because I want people to be able to experience and enjoy riding as much as I do. It also forces me to keep my riding skills as sharp as possible.

How does your wife feel about your riding?

My wife had concerns when I started showing interest in riding. She would say things like “I don’t want to be a widow” or “I don’t want our girls to grow up without a father”. However, when she saw my passion and my commitment to rider education and riding responsibly, including my commitment to wearing all the gear, all the time (ATGATT), she became more accepting of the idea. I can’t say she’s in love with the idea of me riding, but she understands my passion for it and won’t stop me from doing something I love so much. As a matter of fact, she’s often the one to say “It’s a nice day and you have some time, why don’t you go for a ride?” Of course, sometimes she’s just trying to get rid of me for a while, but still, I seldom say no.

Does she ride with you?

My wife has never ridden with me and shows no signs of ever wanting to. My girls have only been on some relatively short rides. I’d love to see all of them have more interest in riding, but that’s not an issue I’m going to force upon them.

What do you think about when you ride?

One of the best parts about riding for me is when I ride, I think about very little other than the ride itself. I take in the smells and the scenery. I hear and feel how well (or not) my bike is performing and I instinctively enter that “search, evaluate and execute” mode. I basically free my mind of everything other than the task at hand. Riding is a great stress reducer in that way, because it allows me to step back from life’s challenges momentarily and forces me to clear my head to the point where when I’m done riding, I’m much better able to prioritize and handle all of life’s little challenges.

This is perhaps an indelicate question, but how do you think about the “dangerous” part about riding?

I think about it often and use it as motivation to continually improve my riding skills.

Look, anyone who denies there are risks associated with riding a motorcycle is asking for trouble. Yes, there are risks in everything we do and for the most part, either consciously or subconsciously, we try to manage those risks.

For example, taking a shower can be dangerous, so I don’t leave a bar of soap lying on the shower floor and that helps reduce the risks of falling. Crossing a busy intersection can be dangerous, so I look both ways before I cross it to avoid becoming a hood ornament. I try (emphasis on the word “try”) to eat right and exercise regularly so I can stay healthy and avoid the risks of obesity or heart disease.

Motorcycling isn’t much different, except that there are a lot more imminent risks that must be managed simultaneously and sometimes there’s little if any room for error, especially at higher speeds and/or in heavy traffic. I suppose that’s one of the reasons I’m such a proponent of rider education.

Barring an inflated ego or acute ignorance, I believe even the best riders on the road benefit from some form of rider education, whether it’s taking or retaking a Basic or Experienced Rider Course, reading or re-reading some of the better books on riding, or simply listening to and learning from other responsible riders.

What one piece of advice would you give to someone coming to motorcycles for the first time? I’m thinking about the “mid-life” rider now?

That’s easy, start with a Basic Rider Course. It’s relatively inexpensive….free in some states…and it provides a very solid foundation in terms of basic riding skills and strategies that can be built upon. I think too many new riders rely on either no instruction or instruction from friends or relatives who themselves have never received any formal riding instruction, so they end up not learning all they should or they acquire other peoples’ bad habits…or, worse yet, both.

What bike would you recommend (and why)?

For a new rider? That’s not a black and white answer. I would, however, recommend buying a used bike rather than new, for a few reasons.

First, you might decide that riding is not for you or you don’t have the time to ride and you may end up selling the bike. In those instances, you’re likely to take a bigger financial hit with a new bike than a used one.

Another reason is, new riders tend to have more slow speed mishaps, like dropping their bike, than more experienced riders. For most people, having such a mishap with a used $5000 bike is a little easier to handle than with a new $14,000 one.

I would also recommend a smaller displacement bike on which to practice and develop your newly acquired riding skills. I know some people advise against buying a bike that “you’ll outgrow in a year or two”. I happen to think that’s a much better idea than having a new rider buy a bike whose weight and power far exceed their skill level.

What’s the coolest thing you’ve done on/with a motorcycle?

This is a little difficult to explain, but I’ll try: there comes a point in every class I teach where most new riders, people who’ve had no riding experience whatsoever, start riding with a fair amount of proficiency. Their movements start to become more smooth, fluid and controlled. They transition from being a little apprehensive or even intimidated, to feeling more confident as they start to realize the true joy of riding a motorcycle. They also begin to smile from ear to ear as they perform the range exercises and don’t want to stop riding, even on 100 degree days or in torrential downpours. It may seem a little odd to someone who’s never experienced it, but THAT’S the coolest thing I do with a motorcycle.

If you could pick one place you’d recommend as a riding destination / experience, what/where would that be?

I’m not a good person to ask because I’ve taken so few long trips. The best bike trip I’ve taken so far has been a 3-day, 1200 mile trip around Lake Michigan. I was actually very surprised that we have such great places to ride right here in the Midwest. I did that ride with my friend/ teaching partner, Greg.

If someone handed you a blank check and said “go buy a motorcycle you’d enjoy riding (not just collecting), what would you pick?

I have to be honest, I absolutely love my FJR. But if I could buy any “second” bike I wanted, I’d probably go with a Confederate F131 Hellcat Combat. I love its uniqueness.

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Tags: MotorcycleSafety Project of Northern Illinois University, Honda Magna, FJR1300, Shoei X-Eleven, Olympia Airglide 2, Held Steve, ATGATT, Confederate F131 Hellcat Combat