Try it a little differently: Blind on Gold Wing

• Video

Tony Smerdel is an acquaintance of Greg Gulin, a photographer who otherwise looks after the yellowing contents in our house, and here and there, Canon in hand, he comes to the aid of us motorcyclists, as he is also a member of this family. He has worked with the blind and visually impaired several times - once he gave them a lecture on photography (yes, photography, and don't laugh!), the second time they went to see, sorry, feel the Formula XNUMX car in a BMW dealership. .

But he came up with the idea to take these guys on motorcycles to me. Of course, the thought of traveling with a passenger who perceives the environment differently than the rest of us who are lucky enough to see the world in flowers led to the emergence of kayaks and teas, but why not?

It didn't take me long to think about what kind of motorcycle would be suitable for such a feat - I wanted a real motorcycle (not a scooter) with a backrest for the passenger. I know it's not easy to find someone who sees on a motorcycle, because some people are afraid of transportation on two wheels. They are afraid of falling, so they do not behave in the back seat as the driver would like.

First-hand: If you want to put someone in the back seat of a motorcycle, try Golden wing. For example, the father of a friend, who used to hate motorcycles to a small extent, sat in this chair, and in a chair like this luxurious two-wheeled cruiser, he felt damn good that he was seriously considering taking the A exam. That's why Gold Wing - because and driver and passenger feel good (safe).

Tony came to the place where we agreed, on foot and without a white cane. He takes it with him rather as a sign that those around him know that he does not see, but with help they sometimes exaggerate, he said. Z 99% visual impairment he is struggling since birth, so the world perceives these three-tenths of the light long enough for him to learn to be independent.

You might be surprised that his hobby is music at the local club. So he was terribly happy when he touched the volume button on the speaker on the motorcycle. Yes, the Gold Wing has a radio that you can easily listen to at speeds up to 120 mph, as long as the speakers don't get destroyed as much as on the test model. Apparently someone exaggerated, wandering around the city ...

Tony wanted to open the helmets, we also provided a jacket and gloves, and after a brief introduction to the handles, seat, pedals and rules of conduct in the back seat of the motorcycle, we left. At first very slowly and carefully, but when I asked him after a few kilometers if everything was all right and if the pace was right for him, he let me know with a smile and a short “yes, just go on the gas until the end” that he was not at all afraid.

After the trip, he said that he was all in secret. Despite the fact that we met for the first time, he trusted me one hundred percent, because "otherwise, everything does not matter." And it's true - how can you enjoy something if you doubt the ability of a person or thing on which your life depends?

An example is when jumping from the Solkan bridge, you just need to trust the elastic band, and when jumping from an airplane in tandem, you need to trust the skydiver to whom you are attached. The motorcycle must be respected because it can take you to another world, but you should not be afraid of it. Respect and fear are not the same!

Tony says that he liked the music from the speakers when driving smoothly, and when driving fast in corners, the sound of the engine should come to the fore, so I turned off the radio for a while. He was never afraid and compared the comfort of a Honda to a home chair. If he saw this, he would definitely be a motorcyclist, and when asked if he would ever drive again, he replied, "Of course, every day."

Friends, motorsport is a privilege... Anyone who does not try does not understand that by driving a car without a cage, we perceive our surroundings in a different way, more reliably. There are things that cannot be done in a car. For example, lower the handlebars and challenge the air resistance with outstretched arms, or lower your feet to the ground and feel the asphalt slip lightly. ...

Someone (but I don't know if this was written in Auto magazine many years ago) compared driving a car and a motorcycle to having sex with or without a condom. Yes, it's dangerous, but it's also better.

Instead of technical data

You can already read in the text why we chose the Gold Wing to transport the blind - there is currently no more comfortable motorcycle. For €21.490, which is currently the promotional price for a non-airbag model (yes, you can imagine that too), you get a 400kg sedan on two wheels with an 1-litre six-cylinder engine and a 8-litre one. fuel tank and 25 liters of luggage space in three suitcases.

Without hesitation, you can call it a one-and-a-half-wheel motorcycle, but at the same time, it is difficult to expect a successor. In the German competition for 2011, a six-cylinder engine has already been announced, which could step on the Gold Wing's heels. Ten years later (GL 1800 was born in 2001), the novelty could also be presented at Honda, what do you say?

Matevž Hribar, photo: Grega Gulin