--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Never mind the track. The track is for…" description: "\"Never mind the track. The track is for punks. We are Road People. We are Cafe Racers.\" — Hunter S. Thompson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bb/hunter-s-thompson-278_cafes_never-mind-the-track-the-track-is-for-pu_1206585.jpg" --- # Never mind the track. The track is for punks. We are Road… ![“Never mind the track. The track is for punks. We are Road People. We are Cafe Racers.” quote by Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bb/hunter-s-thompson-278_cafes_never-mind-the-track-the-track-is-for-pu_1206585.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bb/hunter-s-thompson-278_cafes_never-mind-the-track-the-track-is-for-pu_1206585.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1bb/hunter-s-thompson-278_cafes_never-mind-the-track-the-track-is-for-pu_1206585.jpg) > “Never mind the track. The track is for punks. We are Road People. We are Cafe Racers.” [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Reject mainstream norms; embrace rebellious, fast‑paced subculture of motorcycle enthusiasts. **In simple terms:** Reject conformity; be a road rebel. Key Takeaway Live fast, ride free. Themes rebellion freedom motorcycle culture Mood defiant energetic Type cultural motivational When to use this quote - road trips - night rides - bike clubs - personal expression Key Concepts counterculture identity speed Questions to Reflect On - What does “road people” mean to you? - How do you balance risk and freedom? A Different Perspective May alienate those who value safety and order. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cafes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cafes/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Punk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/punk/) [Punks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/punks/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) ## Related quotes > [“Balls,” I said. “Never mind the track. The track is for punks. We are Road People. We are Cafe Racers. Being shot out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/balls-i-said-never-mind-the-track-the-track-is-for-punks-we-are-road/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [A book very much is the center of the road, so people always can refer back to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sakyong-mipham/a-book-very-much-is-the-center-of-the-road-so-people-always-can-refer/) [Sakyong Mipham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sakyong-mipham/) > [“Take the high road. People will rise up to join you or fall out of sight.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/take-the-high-road-people-will-rise-up-to-join-you-or-fall-out-of/) [Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/) > [It's great if you can afford to carry a string section on the road with you, but most people are used to the idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-rundgren/it-s-great-if-you-can-afford-to-carry-a-string-section-on-the-road/) [Todd Rundgren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-rundgren/) > [I love to travel, playing drums, and being on the road as not many people can say that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-slade/i-love-to-travel-playing-drums-and-being-on-the-road-as-not-many/) [Chris Slade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-slade/) > [Marathon running, like golf, is a game for players, not winners. That is why Callaway sells golf clubs and Nike sells running shoes. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/marathon-running-like-golf-is-a-game-for-players-not-winners-that-is/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [The great irony was that the punks were more conservative and narrow-minded and musically bigoted that anyone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/genesis-p-orridge/the-great-irony-was-that-the-punks-were-more-conservative-and-narrow/) [Genesis P-Orridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/genesis-p-orridge/) > [Remember all those times I stood by your side, gave you evrything, gave my life, when things got tough, all you did was run,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-hoods/remember-all-those-times-i-stood-by-your-side-gave-you-evrything-gave/) Mike Hoods > [I like punks who also like Saxon. I guess I am one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gylve-nagell/i-like-punks-who-also-like-saxon-i-guess-i-am-one/) [Gylve Nagell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gylve-nagell/) > [I got into punk at 17 after discovering an all-girl band from Long Island on the Internet called The Devotchkas - four crazy-looking girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-nash/i-got-into-punk-at-17-after-discovering-an-all-girl-band-from-long/) [Kate Nash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-nash/) > [I never understood why the metal heads in my school hated the punks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trevor-dunn/i-never-understood-why-the-metal-heads-in-my-school-hated-the-punks/) [Trevor Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trevor-dunn/) > [“Everyone ate as a group, and a huge cauldron of dumpster-dived gruel bubbled over a campfire, tended by a grubby-handed group of chefs dicing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-power/everyone-ate-as-a-group-and-a-huge-cauldron-of-dumpster-dived-gruel/) Matthew Power > [In my mind I still qualify as punk, though I know four out of five punks would disagree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-k-samson/in-my-mind-i-still-qualify-as-punk-though-i-know-four-out-of-five/) [John K. Samson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-k-samson/) > [Typically, people think, 'Oh the hippies and the punks hated each other,' or that those things don't go together musically. Sometimes that is true,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryce-dessner/typically-people-think-oh-the-hippies-and-the-punks-hated-each-other/) [Bryce Dessner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryce-dessner/) > [I love punks!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-nash/i-love-punks/) [Kate Nash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-nash/) ## More by Hunter S. Thompson > [“There was also the fact that sending a penniless writer to get $135 worth of beer was — as Khrushchev said of Nixon —…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-was-also-the-fact-that-sending-a-penniless-writer-to-get-135/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“Cases of champagne and scotch lay broken in the street, and everyone I saw had a bottle. They were screaming and dancing, and in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/cases-of-champagne-and-scotch-lay-broken-in-the-street-and-everyone-i/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [No music + Bad TV = Bad mood & no pages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-music-bad-tv-bad-mood-no-pages/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [By disgracing and degrading the presidency of the United States, by fleeing the White House like a diseased cur, Richard Nixon broke the heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/by-disgracing-and-degrading-the-presidency-of-the-united-states-by/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [No one holds command over me. No man. No god. No Prince. What is a claim of age for ones who are immortal? What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-one-holds-command-over-me-no-man-no-god-no-prince-what-is-a-claim/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“The person who doesn't scatter the morning dew will not comb grey hairs”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/the-person-who-doesn-t-scatter-the-morning-dew-will-not-comb-grey/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [Hope rises and dreams flicker and die. Love plans for tomorrow and loneliness thinks of yesterday. Life is beautiful and living is pain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/hope-rises-and-dreams-flicker-and-die-love-plans-for-tomorrow-and/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [If we get chased out of Iraq with our tail between our legs, that will be the fifth consecutive Third-world country with no hint…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/if-we-get-chased-out-of-iraq-with-our-tail-between-our-legs-that-will/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [At age 22 I set what I insist is an all-time record for distance hitchhiking in Bermuda shorts: 3,700 miles in three weeks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/at-age-22-i-set-what-i-insist-is-an-all-time-record-for-distance/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [Paranoia is just another mask for ignorance. The truth, when you finally chase it down is almost always far worse than your darkest visions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/paranoia-is-just-another-mask-for-ignorance-the-truth-when-you/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“No doubt they all Got What Was Coming To Them. All those pathetically eager acid freaks who thought they could buy Peace and Understanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-doubt-they-all-got-what-was-coming-to-them-all-those-pathetically/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“For several months they'd been drifting toward political involvement, but the picture was hazy and one of the most confusing elements was their geographical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/for-several-months-they-d-been-drifting-toward-political-involvement/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [He wandered into the Newsroom and asked for a job the same way he’d walk into a barbershop and ask for a haircut, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/he-wandered-into-the-newsroom-and-asked-for-a-job-the-same-way-he-d/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [There's no point in getting into politics at all unless you plan to lash things around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-s-no-point-in-getting-into-politics-at-all-unless-you-plan-to/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [There’s a lot of things wrong with this country, but one of the few things still right with it is that a man can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-s-a-lot-of-things-wrong-with-this-country-but-one-of-the-few/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) [Explore all 765 Hunter S. Thompson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) ## More Cafes quotes > [Cafe society is as old as the hills. Starbucks and its imitators are the coffee face of the new man in a hurry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-anderson/cafe-society-is-as-old-as-the-hills-starbucks-and-its-imitators-are/) [Ian Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-anderson/) > [I'm never bored, never ever bored. If I've got a day off I'll sit in a cafe and watch and observe. I'm a great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-suchet/i-m-never-bored-never-ever-bored-if-i-ve-got-a-day-off-i-ll-sit-in-a/) [David Suchet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-suchet/) > [All of the people who are using their BlackBerries or their iPhones, Facebook, all of the people who are sitting in cafes and hotels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-abbott/all-of-the-people-who-are-using-their-blackberries-or-their-iphones/) [Tony Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-abbott/) > [The majority of people imagine a chess master as being a townsman who passes his life in an atmosphere of smoke and play in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-reti/the-majority-of-people-imagine-a-chess-master-as-being-a-townsman-who/) [Richard Reti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-reti/) > [A girl came in the cafe and sat by herself at a table near the window. She was very pretty with a face fresh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/a-girl-came-in-the-cafe-and-sat-by-herself-at-a-table-near-the-window/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [I hate solitude, but I'm afraid of intimacy. The substance of my life is a private conversation with myself which to turn into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/i-hate-solitude-but-i-m-afraid-of-intimacy-the-substance-of-my-life/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [I listen to the things people want out of love these days and they blow my mind. I go to the pub with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tana-french/i-listen-to-the-things-people-want-out-of-love-these-days-and-they/) [Tana French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tana-french/) > [Jumping off that cliff in Jamaica.It was years ago. It was at this place called Rick's Cafe. Actually, it was two cliffs. They were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/queen-latifah/jumping-off-that-cliff-in-jamaica-it-was-years-ago-it-was-at-this/) [Queen Latifah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/queen-latifah/) > [There was something about being in the vicinity of Grahame Coats that always made Fat Charlie (a) speak in cliches and (b) begin to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/there-was-something-about-being-in-the-vicinity-of-grahame-coats-that/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [I've given up wanting to make a killing or be a bigshot. I just want to find happiness and maybe open up a little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/i-ve-given-up-wanting-to-make-a-killing-or-be-a-bigshot-i-just-want/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [My mum and dad ran a family cafe in Sligo for 35 years and worked long hours. We grew up in a very hard-working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-filan/my-mum-and-dad-ran-a-family-cafe-in-sligo-for-35-years-and-worked/) [Shane Filan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-filan/) > [Cafe De Flore speaks of love, its joys, its pains and its dramas - to love and to lose. This story upset me, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanessa-paradis/cafe-de-flore-speaks-of-love-its-joys-its-pains-and-its-dramas-to/) [Vanessa Paradis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanessa-paradis/) > [But we must take other steps, such as increasing conservation, developing an ethanol industry, and increasing CAFE standards if we are to make our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-costa/but-we-must-take-other-steps-such-as-increasing-conservation/) [Jim Costa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-costa/) > ['The Night Cafe' and 'The Starry Night' still emit such pathos, density, and intensity that they send shivers down the spine. Whether Van Gogh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-saltz/the-night-cafe-and-the-starry-night-still-emit-such-pathos-density/) [Jerry Saltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-saltz/) > [When I'm gone, you'll be sitting in a cafe and say, "Do you remember Agnes?"](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-denes/when-i-m-gone-you-ll-be-sitting-in-a-cafe-and-say-do-you-remember/) [Agnes Denes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-denes/) [Browse all 138 Cafes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cafes/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Never mind the track. The track is for punks. We are Road People. We are Cafe Racers.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Hunter S. 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