Social networking on two wheels…

Each of us has different passions that we like to share with others. In today’s world of instant global communication over the information superhighway, face-to-face social networking seems to be evolving away. With Internet social networks like Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and YouTube, to name a few, keeping us glued to computer monitors, many of the old skills like writing letters, sending cards or meeting face-to-face seems to be evolving away from today’s society.

Not so in the motorcycle community!

You may have noticed over the past year and a half I’ve penned The Experience here at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com, many of the experiences I’ve shared with you focus around a variety of social networks that generally involves a gathering of motorcycle enthusiasts.

The weekly “meeting” of the Motorcycle Sport Touring Association (MSTA) group on Tuesday evenings for dinner is a chance for like-minded motorcycle enthusiasts to share their experiences. Likewise, the new iDESMO club is a social network of motorcycle enthusiasts who have formed a bond of camaraderie around a common passion for Ducati motorcycles.

These gatherings take on all sorts of forms. I recently discovered a weekly bike night at Cheese Burger in Paradise on the south side of Indianapolis. A couple of us cruised down there last Tuesday after our MSTA “meeting” to check it out. Wow, what an awesome event! There was a wide variety of motorcycles from cruisers to sport bikes to exotic customs to touring bikes. I rolled in on my ’06 Ducati 999R Xerox, and a young enthusiast instantly sought me out in his excitement of seeing what he proudly stated to be the best example of a Ducati superbike ever produced!

The occasional cruise to downtown Indianapolis’ Monument Circle for a tasty treat at the South Bend Chocolate Company, hanging out with the Shell’s Angels or the weekly Saturday gathering at The Suds in Greenwood, Ind., are all alternative forms of social networking. Each of these venues offers the opportunity to share experiences face-to-face.

What may soon become the “grand daddy” of motorcycle gatherings in Indianapolis is just around the corner. The second running of the Red Bull Indianapolis GP will take place at The Brickyard out on West 16^th Street on August 28, 29 & 30, 2009. Three days of race activities will encompass events not only at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway but also dirt track racing at the Indiana State Fairgrounds, speedway racing at the Marion County Fairgrounds, motorcycle stunt shows downtown and probably the biggest Bike Night of the year Friday and Saturday evenings stretching from Monument Circle down to Union Station on South Meridian Street.

So if you want to experience the biggest motorcycling event at the grandest racing venue in the world, be sure to make your plans to join us here in Indianapolis at the end of August and keep internetworking by your favorite social network for more details.

I’ll see you all next week at www.redbullindianapolisgp.com

Greg