Whilst driving today, I noticed a sticker on the back a ute which simply read, "Extreme Motorbikes". Even now, I'm wondering what it meant.
What modifications are necessary for a normal motorbike to become an extreme motorbike? I suppose there are several options: make it bigger or smaller, faster or slower, or perhaps, and most ironically, less like a motorbike. (A car, in a sense, is an extreme motorbike, isn't it? A horse, even more so?) Still, as all of these modifications are harmless (and inane) enough, I'm not sure where the word "extreme" comes in. So the other option is forgive the misplaced grammar of the sticker, and to consider that what was really meant to be considered as extreme was the use of the motorbike, rather than the motorbike itself.
What's extreme in motorbike riding these days? Going really fast? Nah. Everyone on two wheels tries to do that. Riding in strange places, or over tough terrain? Again, it's been done. People have ridden motorbikes over deserts, in jungles, and over the ice of Antarctica. Why? Because motorbike riding is pretty dull, really, no matter where you do it.
Which leaves me to believe that the word "extreme" has been ill-used. I think it's high time that people stop using it; not just to ill-describe motorbikes, but other things, too. Let's just give "normal" a run for a while, shall we? And there needs to be a second category for some reason, let's go the other way, and instead adopt a descending nomenclature, whereby, to continue the topic at hand, there is motorbike riding, and then there is moderate motorbike riding. Or, if you'd prefer, mild motorbike riding. Or better yet, push-bike riding.
Naming is primarily about image - a tag or hook by (or with) which to engage with the world. I'm all for spin, but in this crazy, post-modern world, why not try to spin things in a way that takes the edge off things, rather than make it even more cutting?
Or at the very least, let's leave words like extreme for situation that could really use them. The floods in Queensland are an example of extreme weather, not Perth suffering through four days of 40 degrees. You see, if we waste our big-gun words on matters trite, we end up sounding stupid. For an example, look no further than the term, "supermodel".
Language is precious. It is the river of communication in which we all swim. Therefore, it makes sense to be vigilant and retributive when people try to piss in it.
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