First Contact

Courtesy is called for...

by R. Bruce Thomas

Here we are with the first AMSS News of 2026 so it seems like a good time to talk about First Contact.

Winter is a good time to read and I've always enjoyed science fiction books - Asimov, Clarke, Heinlein, Bradbury, and recently Scalzi and Corey. Last fall I was introduced to the work of Ray Nayler, a Canadian author whose 2022 debut novel The Mountain in the Sea was ranked #46 out of the top 75 Science Fiction books of all time by Esquire magazine. That ranking put him ahead of such stalwarts as Robert A. Heinlein's The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress and H.G. Wells' The Time Machine.

So what is Nayler's book about? Alien First Contact, and how to go about it.

The kicker is, the aliens in this book are not extra-terrestrial beings but intelligent lifeforms here on earth - specifically, a community of Octopuses.

Now, you may think that many motorcyclists don't like riding in the rain so how could interacting with an underwater species have any bearing on riding? Well, one of Nayler's characters had written a book, How Oceans Think, and portions of it get quoted in the story.

"We must understand not only how we organize and perceive the world, but how the world sees us."

This should resonate with you as a rider because we react with the world in a totally different manner than those other road users we often derisively refer to as cagers. Are we the aliens or are they? We may enjoy the power and maneuverability of our machines, but drivers with no such experience often just view us as reckless and dangerous.

"We must understand how the world around us is truly structured, and how we are perceived by the other selves which inhabit it."

In other parts of the world, where motorcycles are common transportation, a greater percentage of the drivers have grown up riding two-wheeled machines, or know someone who does, than what is 'normal' here in North America. Take the case of riding in Great Britain as seen in the photo above of the Ferrari who has moved over so I can safely pass. Even the oncoming traffic is aware of the bike and moved towards the outside of their lane to make room for me up the middle. I wouldn't dare to regularly do that here because I have no faith in driver awareness and courtesy. The times I have done close riding have been in lower traffic volumes and only after observing and communicating with the driver to ensure we are on the same page and in some cases I have played Charades!

"If we are to communicate with a sentience that has gained language skills like the ones we have, everything will rely on how sensitive we can be to how that alien mind perceives our actions. Everything."

The preceding photo was taken from the upper deck of a bus in Rome. Again, automotive driving minds perceive the scooters and realize that the smaller vehicles can get through the congestion with ease thereby shortening the lines of vehicles and allowing everyone to make faster progress. I would love to go back and actually ride the streets of Rome because this cooperative approach to driving is amazing and refreshing in contrast to the seeming misery-loves-company "you can't get ahead of me" attitude prevalent in our neck of the woods. So we as riders have to be sensitive about our interactions.

So, we should treat all interactions with other road users as first contact situations, don't be overly aggressive or rude in your riding, try to exercise patience and understanding in the presence of others who may not have the driving experience that you do, and if you really feel the need to ride like you stole it, head to a track day or find some really empty rural road far away from others.

Ride responsibly, and often.