Many years ago I loved riding my motorcycle on winding roads. My motorcycle had better acceleration that almost any car on the road. My brakes were at least as strong as any of the fast cars. I got better gas mileage than even the best economy cars.

However, two wheels can only get so much grip on the road.

A typical modern sedan can accelerate about as well as my current motorcycle. Even the cheapest cars have better brakes - because the design of a four wheeled vehicle with anti-skid means a lot of rubber will be gripping the road. Also, my gas mileage now, even on a mid-range motorcycle, is just comparable to a hybrid automobile.

It is amazing to see how much the automobile has improved. It is sad to compare how little the motorcycle has changed in that same time.

I think it was the incentives. Government safety standards triggered significant improvements in automobile brakes. Government fuel standards triggered significant improvements in automobile fuel standards. Motorcycles are largely ignored in those standards. Without a mandated incentive, the motorcycle industry seems focused on selling pretty much the same product they have for over fifty years.

This is most evident to me now on the windy roads. Now, rather than my trying to get around the old farm truck and family sedan, I am the slow one. There are times when I pull off to allow pickup trucks and economy cars to zip past me.

Part of it is me. I no longer feel a need to be fast. Instead, I enjoy looking at the view. I enjoy the ride for the thrill of the scenery rather than for the near-death experience it once was. But part of what has changed is that an average automobile now has better performance than the average motorcycle. I wonder what the motorcycle industry could do if they really wanted to make changes?