Biker rivalries

Those of us who favour two-wheeled transport are well used to the factionalism that comes with it. Probably the best documented “rivalry”, and the one that everyone would point to as evidence of the unsavoury nature of bikes, scooters and the people who ride them was between the original Mods and Rockers. Naturally, this all unfolded well before my time but looking back, what happened then still seems to prejudice views towards those of us that ride bikes and scooters nowadays.

Personally, I don’t believe the hype. I prefer to think that both groups actually rubbed along pretty well most of the time and that it was the media at the time that sensationalised and encouraged hostility between the two factions – just as they would with the world of football hooliganism years later. After all, these were working class movements and, although there might be fashion and generational differences (younger/older brother etc), those following these trends would co-exist on the same council estates, in the same schools and in the same workplaces. But happy to hear otherwise.

I grew up in the years around punk and the second wave of mod culture in the late 70s and while I took the route towards the new wave of heavy metal and bikes, I retain respect for the Mod movement (despite them being a bunch of over-dressed pansies). Like us, they had a clear identity, like us, they had a road and group presence (and rallies), like us they were followers of distinctive music. But both groups retained a bad reputation from what had gone before.

Rather than Rockers/bikers v Mods, perhaps the biggest factionalism these days actually occurs within the biking fraternity itself, in some instances diversifying into crime and violence – and sometimes between each other (Gerry Tobin’s murder best exemplifying this in recent years). These days we still have rival clubs, rival websites and rival communities – Hells Angels, Road Rats, Outlaws, Bandidos, etc are at the “bad boy” end of the spectrum, while online communities like Visordown, London Bikers, UKbikeforum, Bikerssnug and a plethora of bike-specific forums exist for the mainstream. It may take a while but those that are interested in “belonging” generally find the right place to suit them.

Personally, I’ve been part of a formalised bike club (in a couple of different formats) for 8 years now – and have done some of my best ever biking in that time and made some good friends along the way. It’s not for everyone, but I do think clubbing up into different sized communities is a definite feature of the biking movement, and it is something that transcends borders. Wherever you travel, on the continent or further afield, you will find that bikers always respect other bikers. It is that camaraderie and shared bond that makes the movement special and unique.

So let's concentrate on the common enemy instead...cyclists