It seems to me that there is a two tier system amongst foreigner motorcycle riders the 'haves' and 'have nots'. The haves are typically people who are paid in overseas currency by big businesses and governments and can afford the massive cost of 'premium' bikes in China. The have nots are typically people who are supporting themselves from the local Chinese economy, many of whom are English teachers.

This isn't a dig at everyone who has money and can afford a decent bike, there is just a minority, who see themselves as VIP elite, and actually look down on others, and who wouldn't even ride with people who have a Chinese bike.

This attitude seems more common around Shanghai than Beijing. It's also a little sad that bikers who are under so much pressure from car loving government policy can't see eye to eye.

Some 'premium bike riders' dismiss every Chinese bike as 'utter crap' when they've never ridden one. Laugh at or deride others who ride small bikes, but don't realize not everyone can register a 'premium bike' where they live, even if they wanted to. They may regard their Chang Jiang, Beemer or Harley as being a great bike, but don't realize that they are not to everyone's taste, and some people enjoy riding lightweight, cheap, fun and easy to repair bikes, not great big heavy machines. Many experienced riders would never want a Harley or 1200GS, but might like a F 800 R for example. Most people who buy new bikes in the west do it on finance or with a bank loan. These are unavailable to foreigners who live in China. Lots of people ride Chinese smaller capacity bikes because they are legal. There are almost no affordable larger capacity bikes in the 2nd hand market that are legally registered.