I want to write a few words on the subject of the awareness of the absence of things. Detecting the absence of things can be (a) much more difficult task than determining the presence of things. 

Let me give you some examples. You suffer from headaches. You have always suffered from headaches and then one day, one hour, one minute, your headaches stop. I predict that it could be a long time, perhaps days even before you noticed that your headache was gone. Because when something leaves, it is much less apt to make an impression, than when it arrives. The absence of pain is far less intrusive than the presence of pain.

Another example that might be easier to grasp is this publication that you hold in your hands each month. We have ads that enter the paper and ads that leave. We need to place new ads and keep track of old ads. When the paper is ready to go to the printer one of the most difficult task is determining what ads are absent. What has gotten left off the boards. It’s tricky this absence of things.

One of my favorite examples when it comes to motorcycling and the absence of things is my first experience years ago with Pro Taper bars. They made claims that causing less fatigue than normal bars since they flexed when riding. Pro Taper claimed that you could ride longer and more pleasantly with their bars. That was a trickier thing to determine. I put them on my Suzuki. I rode it. I noticed nothing of any significant difference. Nothing.

That is until I went back to ride my friend’s identical Suzuki, identical in every way, except that is had NO Pro Tapers. Owww! The difference was immediately apparent. There was a lot of pain and discomfort in my hands and forearms. My body was telling me very loudly that it wanted to go back to the friendly bars that didn’t hurt it. And I did.
And do it was the same phenomenon that took place with the Hunter FlatBars. Once they are on you eventually find yourself asking, “How on earth did I ever ride with those other bars for so long?” They are that much better, and the absence of wrist and forearm and inner hand pain is significant. The riding experience is pleasant once again. Thanks Holeshot Hunter, your flat bars are in my motorcycling life for good.

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