Harley Davidson motorcycles - why???

Question

Why oh why oh why do so many fat middle-aged men think that Harley's are "cool"?

There's a Harley showroom near where I live, and every Saturday, regular as clockwork, several dozen aging, greying old men get dropped off at the Harley place by their wives IN FULL LEATHERS and then proceed to "hang out" looking at those travesty of motorcycles before being picked up again an hour or so later.

Best of all though, they all have top-rockers proclaiming their allegience to a certain "chapter".

Do these guys think they're the Hell's Angels? They just look very very sad indeed.

Are you one of the aforementioned "bikers"? If so, why do you do it? Have you no shame or taste? If you want to ride motorbikes, that's cool, but for God's sake, get a DECENT bike. No one thinks you're the Hell's Angels - you are all far too sqeaky-clean, and I'm pretty sure that the half-dozen or so Angels that I know would either find it hilarious, or would be very insulted.

PS - to all the Americans - this was actually posted in the UK section....

Why are you all so defensive? It's the people, not the bike. Or rather, a specific set of people.

I just love the guy who started his response with "punk". Oh ****, I'm sooo scared.

And as for that "drop me off at a Harley bikers bar" just made me howl with laughter. Fat, middle aged men just arent scary.

Still, got a decent response, mainly from rednecks I guess.


And for the record, I don't ride a bike since I got "Volvoed" off my Ducati a couple of years back when I was back in the UK on leave, having finished a tour in the middle-east. Difficult to ride with one leg and an arm that won't work properly!

Answer 1

I used to ride a Harley - I'm 40 - but I certainly wouldn't hang around with those types off tosspots - it's for riding - not staring at with another load of balding tossers

Answer 2

As an actual owner of a Harley, I'd like the opportunity to give you a straight answer. First of all, the Harley's of today are built much better than those of years gone by. True, when AMF owned Harley, quality wasn't job one. But, let me ask you a question...I have noticed, and I'm sure you have as well, that ALL manufacturers of bikes, with possibility BMW being the only exception that I've seen so far, why is it that at a distance, ALL Honda's, Yamaha's, Suzuki's, etc., design their bikes to LOOK like a Harley? I mean, if they are hated so much, why would anyone want to buy a cheap imitation? If I could afford a Ferrari, I'd buy one. I wouldn't buy a VW and make it look like a Ferrari. Yet, people, like yourself, talk all the time how bad Harley is, and yet copy it? I just don't get it. Why would you want a cheap imitation? I do know the answer...you can't afford a Harley, and your a bit jealous. That's ok. When you get a real job, and make a little money, then you'll be able to walk around like the big boys.
One more question...how many people do you know, that have a tattoo on their chest that reads, "HONDA"?

Answer 3

Well i have a Harley, I am 40 and i am not fat either and have been riding bikes for many years mostly muscle bikes ZRX1100, V-max my first bike was a GS650, I got my Harley after been knocked off my ZRX and spending many weeks in Hospital and a few months at Home, my compo paid for it I had always wanted one, I love my Harley and am a member of a bike club I clean my bike every so often i never go down the dealers on a weekend as H.D parts are so expensive i use a aftermarket Harley shop. I suspect the guys you see are HOG members, I too know members of the H.A as my club is linked to them I have never heard them laugh at the old guys outside the dealer and as far as i know there opion of them is the same as mine live and let live if they want to do that well its OK by me, and most of the bikers i know are of the same mind, I don't think you can call a bike a travesty, fair enough I have seen some pretty tasteless bikes of all description and again its down to personal choice my bike for example has very little chrome it has a black engine and the paint job too is black as i not a fan of polishing but again its personal choice.

Perhaps you should appreciate because you don't like doesn't mean its rubbish and only narrow minded people go round thinking like that..

Im not sure that the two answerers who said Triumph and Harley are the oldest companies, they are probably the oldest still producing bikes but surely names like AJS, Sunbeam are older..

Answer 4

Oh Bushraider, you're such a tease. Don't go upsetting them rednecks boy! Hardly-Ablesons are American, America is the best therefore Hardly-Ablesons are the best bikes. Seriously... that's the mentality you're up against. Just like with dubya... he's the US president therefore 99% of them will support him no matter what. It's just patriotism gone mad...

I mean, look at their responses:

1) H-D is the oldest bike builder (except they're not)

2) Everyone else builds bikes that look like H-Ds (except they don't; Ducati? KTM?)

3) I didn't git me no respect till I got me a H-D (sorry to be the one to break it to you, but things ain't changed...)

4) People turn their heads to look at me when I pass on my H-D (only because they heard you half a mile away with your stupid farting vulture - sorry, screamin' eagle - exhaust pipes and they thought it was a dumper truck).

5) Ain't nobody got a Honda tattoo (where *you* live, maybe... probably not the case in Japan though... not that having a tattoo makes a bike better in some way)

The thing that I find funniest is that the image is all rebellion / freedom / 1%er / whatever, yet the only people riding these contraptions - in England, at least - are accountants! That, my American brethren, is why we have a chuckle at H-D owners; they're dressing up and pretending to be ruffty-tuffty bikers, until Monday morning comes along, at which point it's back into the Ford Focus and off to the office we go...

Answer 5

well...........i'm 24, and as a rider who likes harleys (and bikes in general, victory, triumph, yamaha, choppers, whatever) i know what you mean, but at the same time, theres a certain tradition in the Harley Davidson name that most people overlook, and just get a Harley because its a status item, which is the wrong reason to get anything.

my grandfather was in the army, and when he got home from fighting overseas, the first thing he did was go get a bike. he liked the freedom of it, and some of his pilot friends used to talk about how it was the closest thing there was to the feeling of flying.

the hell's angels were actually started by a bunch of military guys who really had a brotherly bond and wanted to keep in touch after they got back to the states, so they were pretty tough guys in that they were all soldiers. unfortunately overtime, there have been a lot of rumors about them and the things they do, and they also have taken somewhat of a more aggressive stance than what they started as. but i've known a few, and they're really not all thugs and murders. like any group, there are guys that are real mellow, and others that are more prone to altercations.

anyhow, my grandfather had a Harley, my dad and uncle had them, and having grown up around them, i ride one too. dont get me wrong, the new ones arent the same as the old ones, and they've kinda become a name that a lot of people flock to without knowing the history of the company, and i definately know a bunch of guys who are middle aged and trying to be "tough" or something. i just plain like riding, and found a good deal on a used harley. also, its really not that hard to chop a sportster at all. i know a guy that can take parts from a trashed harley and make a chopper out of it for less than $5000.

anyhow, the leather thing... i dunno, leather is cool. lol. but also, its good for riding in that it will regulate body temperature pretty well, and if it starts raining or gets really cold or windy, you'll be happy you're wearing it.

end of the day, i like harleys, but i like motorcycles in general. and if i was buying a NEW bike, i'd probably go with something else. japanese bikes are really reliable and a lot cheaper these days. once upon a time though, Harley was pretty much the only option in a lot of places.

Answer 6

"And for the record, I don't ride a bike since I got "Volvoed" off my Ducati a couple of years back "

I guess my first question would be, why were you Volvoed off the Ducati in the first place?
Maybe because you thought since you were the coolest thing on two wheels with your Italian "Zoom Splat", and forgot the most important rule about riding a bike. "Yield to the right of weight."
Obviously the crash was not the reason for your disability, so why don't you relax, take that chip off your shoulder and enjoy the freedom you fought for. The best thing about being free is that you don't have to like what other people do, think or say and they don't have to like what you do, think or say. We only have to respect the right we all have to do so. If The "Fat Middle-aged men" want to hang out at the Harley shop, WTF why should you be bothered by it?

BTW thank you for your service.

Answer 7

I am a biker. I am not a harley rider, honda rider, kawasaki rider, I am a biker. I ride a Honda currently because it is the most comfortable big-*** bike I can afford. I ride with people who ride rice rockets, vintage tiumphs, trick harleys and custom choppers. The key is that I ride - alot. Ever since I got my first dirt bike in first grade, I have ridden. I may look more like what you consider abiker to look like, but we are all really the same. For all I know some of the guys I ride with could be doctors and what you would classify as "wannabes", I just don't really care. FTW. Ride to live, live to ride.

I saw a guy with a shirt the other day that I will buy as soon as I see it it read:
"I own a bike, not just a t-shirt."

Answer 8

Define decent bike? That's a proper each to their own one, mate.
Nothing wrong with Harley's... If you don't mind tightening all the bolts every few thousand miles because they've been vibrated to death. I suppose that's the same reason the ex wife wanted me to get one, though.
Stop watching the old duffers that you profess to be so boring. What does it say about you if you're watching them? It doesn't make you Mr Excitement.
Get out on whatever 'decent' bike you've got (if you've got one) and if it's actually capable use it to overtake a few Harley's at ridiculously high speed.

Answer 9

I'll break it down and answer it all for you.
#1: Their opinion.
#2: Seriously doubt it.
#3: No.
#4: N/A, see #3.
#5: Apparently in a different class than yours.
#6: is a reply to the statement that wasn't a question.
As long as I've been riding, I have always had at least a DECENT bike. No matter who made it.

Answer 10

Hey Bushraid, what else do fat middle-aged men have to do with their time? Their too fat to even see their dick and no decent looking babe would have anything to do with them so they need something to do that makes them feel special (don't we all?)
I have been around Harley's all my life, being 44 years now, to me there is no other bike. Honda, Yamaha, etc. they all build decent bikes and cheaper than HD does, but there's just something about owning a Harley that you just don't get from a rice burner. How many people turn their heads to look when a Honda passes by?
Then see how many heads turn when a Harley passes by......
Can you tell me why ALL other bikes try to imitate H.D.'s look?
Harley is a great bike, they are a blast to ride and they are by far the best looking bikes out there, which is why everyone else tries to copy them!
So go easy on the poor short, fat, bald middle-aged guys out there, they're just looking to get back a little of their youth, back when things were a little easier and more fun and they were getting laid on a regular basis, which is what you should do so your not so bitter..............................

Answer 11

Quite judgemental aren't we?
I had a Harley once, it was an ok bike. Lots of my friends have them. I have an Italian bike now. I still ride with them. They don't care, nor do I.
It's all good, as long as peeps are out there on 2 wheels.
Posers, I don't know any- even though I live right by the HD Store, I haven't seen the phenomena you describe.... :)