"She" or "Her"

[mrbuck]

I have long been curious as to why some riders refer to their bikes or cars as "she" or "her".  As a mechanical engineer I have always admired a well designed/built piece of equipment but never considered gender.  

Does anyone care to give us their personal reason for assigning a gender reference to their bikes.  

[Lucky_Lou]

Ok.. as a marine engineer I can give you my take on this, most vessels were regarded as "female" dating back as far as you can think. This may be superstition but spread into other areas of hi risk male occupations, in times of conflict planes ships tanks etc would be given female names probably to afford comfort to those in perilous situations.
eg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enola_Gay
Gertie being a vaguely Germanic name seemed suitable for my  ride..
Lou

[mrbuck]

Good point, Lou.  Now if we can all just avoid those "perilous situations". [smiley=furious3.gif]

[thrang]

If a motor can have a gender then my LS 'The Bimbo' is most definitely feminine because if I don't lavish her with enough attention she turns into a cantankerous bitch.  

[MichaelSydney]

Call me old fashioned but I would feel slightly uncomfortable referring to the object of my affections as masculine. (not that there is anything wrong with that!)

I have a bit of a harem with my R65 Rosamund (the "Fair Rosamund", German mistress of King Henry 2) and a Citroen DS Francoise (Francoise Hardy, sexy in the sixties and still rather lovely).

[clonmore1]

It's simple to me, they take up a lot of time fixing/cleaning etc. They need lots of money spent on them, they can be unreliable and let you down at the most inappropriate moment.

They can be unforgiving when you make a mistake, they like lots of attention, they don't like getting old, want me to go on....?

That's why we refer to them in the feminine gender!

[k_enn]

There is an old saying, "if it has tits or wheels, I am going to wreck it."  

So I think the logic is:  

1.  Things with tits get wrecked.
2.  Things with tits are feminine.
3.  Things with wheels get wrecked.
4.  Therefore things with wheels must be feminine.  

k_enn

[mrbuck]

Any lady  riders want to comment on all or any of the above?

[balibeemer]

For motorcycles, I think 'she' is very apropriate as bikes are capable of changing direction very quickly!

[wildknits]

Wading into a quagmire here.

Lots could be said about the previous posts on why riders consider their bikes a "she". My first impressions: not one of the reasons is a positive portrayal of women; some are down right misogynistic; none make me feel, as a woman, very welcome in this forum (assuming I was judging the whole group by these responses - which I am not).

If I was a visitor to this site and stumbled onto this thread first I might be dissuaded from exploring further.

Fortunately I have been lurking, and occasionally posting, for a few years and know these comments do not represent the entire community.

[clonmore1]

And, should be taken with a 'pinch of salt'.

I am sure my dear wife of 25 years would offer her view which would be equally unfaltering and written with a smile.

Simple, harmless fun, nothing more or less...

[MichaelSydney]

As with and special interest forum there will be a wide range of attitudes and beliefs. One can not expect the members to be any less diverse here than in society in general. It was inevitable that this question would tease out some odd views on gender.... it was a question about gender perceptions!

Wildknits, I can understand how you might be taken aback by some of what you have read  but pleased to hear that you will not condemn all. This still begs the question though, how do you as a female member consider the gender of your motorcycle, and is this completely rational? Maybe you stick to the pragmatic "It"... just a simple, utilitarian machine?

[Luca]

I gave my bike a Germanic name (which is a diminutive nickname [fitting for a type 248] of a name that means "noble" or "of a noble sort") because it's a BMW and a female name because I do that with machinery that I have a romantic attitude towards... or some would go so far as to say share a relationship with.  This is especially so on a machine that I own and therefore care for... and conversely the machine does its job (or cares) for me.

My 60's Ariens snowblower is a She... some worn out 3 year Troybilt with a Chinese motor on it is not.

I'd call my brother's old Ford Falcon a She, but not my roommate's VW Jetta.



Also, having studied Latin for 8 years, I'd like to point out that machina, machinae, whence we get "machine," is a first declension feminine noun.

[davidpdx]

I think a lot of it comes from sailors and their relationship to their boats who they depended on to keep them alive and safe for months and years at a time. Who wouldn't want to anthropomorphize a little in that case. I wonder if women give their boats/cars/motorcycle male names? I can think of at least one bright orange VW bug names Sherlock Holmes by a female friend.  

[Lucky_Lou]

Wading into a quagmire here.

Lots could be said about the previous posts on why riders consider their bikes a "she". My first impressions: not one of the reasons is a positive portrayal of women; some are down right misogynistic; none make me feel, as a woman, very welcome in this forum (assuming I was judging the whole group by these responses - which I am not).

If I was a visitor to this site and stumbled onto this thread first I might be dissuaded from exploring further.

Fortunately I have been lurking, and occasionally posting, for a few years and know these comments do not represent the entire community.

Wow.......... Duluth MN I watched the series "Fargo" with Billy Bob Thornton... brilliant but was it true? ............. I "get" your post.
Lou