By Josephine Wong

Besides the Harley-Davidson bikers who mainly use their bikes for relaxation and transportation, some motorcyclists in Hong Kong ride the Honda NSR PGM 4 and compete in illegal races.

Putting on an Aria hamlet and wearing a red tracksuit and a pair of long white boots, a biker can ride up to 240 kilometres per hour. “Riding on a horse”, “flying like a free bird”, “faster than the wind” are common phrases motorcyclists used to describe such feeling.

Mr. Kevin Liu is a bike-racer with three years’ riding experience.

“I feel euphoric and liberated when riding at high speed. Everything seems to be under my control,” he said. “Especially at night, when the frontal light of my bike shines straight on the white lines on the road. I am very comfortable and free,” Kevin said excitedly.

Mr. Kenneth Ng started motorcycling at age 18.

He said, “When I am riding at a speed of 120 kilometres per hour, my eyes focus only on far away objects,” he said. “I can see the lampposts far away and then disappear suddenly.

“I enjoy making fast turns at 120 kilometres per hour. My whole body is thrilled when my legs touch the ground,” he added. “It feels like my whole body is thrown out of my bike.”

The “iron-horse” racers are all riding towards paradise. Most bikers love the excitement, the fashionable look and the speed of motorcycles. Compared with other vehicles in Hong Kong, motorcycles indeed have some outstanding features. They are cheaper and can avoid traffic congestions.

Most motorcyclists think that riding on a bike is extremely heroic. Whenever a motorcycle passes by, pedestrians turn their heads and show admiration. To motorcyclists, this is the greatest reward.

However, rebellious, rude, defiant, violent, insubordinate are popular stereotypes of bikers. Though not all of them are like this. Many bikers seem to share some common personality traits: They are more self-centred and liberated.

Mr. Terry Yu, a Harley-Davidson's fan, used the adjectives “impulsive” and “temperate” to describe his personality.

Mr. Ng holds the same view. He said, “I don’t think all bikers are delinquent, but I’m sure they are not all good guys.” He described himself as “ambitious and assertive”.

Motorcycling is not limited to males nowadays. In recent years, there have been more female bikers. Madonna even continued to ride motorcycle when she was pregnant.

Those who seek the excitement need to pay a price. At any time, bikers have to face a dilemma between the urge for excitement and the chance of being hurt. Mr. Ng always joins bike races in places like Sai Kung, Tai Mo Shan, the Peak and Ma On Shan.

He said, “I experience the feeling of death when my bike reaches 240 kilometres per hour. The border line between life and death is very ambiguous.”

He has experienced more than 10 accidents. The most serious one landed him in United Hospital, where he was unconscious for a week. One of his friends died during a race at Tai Mo Shan.

Death, accidents, danger, however, do not scare the bike racers away.

“I think it’s worth dying on my motorcycle, but I never think of death when I get onto my bike,” Mr. Ng said. “When I turn on the engine, all my fear is gone and I’m totally indulged in my world, and I want to ride as fast as I can.”

Mr. Liu shared the feeling. He said, “I choose to ride even though there is a possibility of being killed.”

Ms Zisand Luk, a bike racer, said, “I think riding on a bike is not dangerous at all, especially for women.

”They usually pay special attention and ride with care. We all have to undergo a series of training courses before getting a license.”

However, Mr. Yu disagreed. Said he: “I would not risk my life just for fun racing bikes.”

Though most motorcyclists are not afraid of death and accidents, they tend to hope that they will die rather than be permanently handicapped after accidents.

Mr. Ng said, “To be honest, everyone is afraid of death. But I really love to ride motorcycles to such an extent that I cannot resist riding them.”

To protect himself from being hurt, Mr. Ng has spent much money on buying equipment such as a better tyres and good shock absorbers.

Ms Jen Mok, another bike racer, had a small accident a month ago.

She said, “Most accidents are not the result of a fault by bikers. Pedestrians also bear some responsibilities.”

Most bikers criticised the carelessness of pedestrians when crossing the roads.

According to Mr. Ng, he would not feel guilty if he knocked down such pedestrians.

“It’s their fault. I would be happy that they were dead,” he said.

Ms Luk shared this view.

Said she: “Old people and children assume that they have the right of way when crossing the road. They just raise up their hands and we have to stop suddenly. Most accidents are caused by these types of people.”

Some motorcyclists will stop racing after accidents. However, others continue to ride at even higher speeds.

Both Mr. Ng and Mr. Liu are the latter type.

Said Mr. Liu: “If a biker does not have any accidents, he will not know how to ride properly.”

Being a passenger on a bike is more dangerous than being the driver.

People sitting at the back do not have any control over their lives.

“I would sit on the back only if I trusted the riding skills of the biker,” said Mr. Yu.

The Royal Hong Kong Police has tried very hard to arrest illegal bike racers. The arrested bike racers have to face a deduction in marks and pay a fine.

However, the bike racers seem to ignore the penalty.

“We are not afraid of the police,” Mr. Ng said.

“We do nothing wrong, I don’t see why risking lives is illegal. We cause no harm on others.”

October 1996

Return to contents