Dirtbike Bubble Wrap

Agadez is a really interesting place. Really. Lots going on for a small desert town - some good, some not so good - some out of an adventure novel. One thing is for certain, the locals do love their motorcycles. It is like small engine duel sport heaven here, with the young and old zipping around on sidewalks, yards, through construction zones, markets, and even sometimes they ride on the road. Sometimes. One interesting tidbit you may not read in a big name travel guide is that some of these motorcyclists ride around with bubble wrap around their gas tanks, handle bars, seats, and shocks. I'm not really sure if the bikes are shipped that way and the wrap just left on, or if it is some kind of custom job done aftermarket. Considering the unique styling of some of the wrap jobs we've seen, I'd lean more to a carefully considered and planned approach to this nouveau bubble-moto-art form.  If a young man's car is his rolling castle, then maybe a young Agadezian man's motorcycle is his mud and wood structured hut?  But I digress.  Our theory is that the bubble wrap may act in a similar manner as a plastic cover on the good living room furniture. You can't really see the elegance of any of the expensive pieces, but you can rest assured you are not messing it up by sweating on it. So one day after decades of uncomfortable leg sticking summers that setee will emerge from wrap looking fresh and smelling like plastic residue. So here these guys are in the middle of nowhere, protecting their rolling huts from the inevitable decay of  machines in extreme conditions. At 100 degrees in the shade, that plastic must be hot. So remember, no exposed skin on the ride. A skin/plastic stick here may result in some serious burns.  So there we have it, looking good vs. some possible pain...it appears packing material 'fashion' wins this round.