Nowadays, a maroon in a suit, totin’ a briefcase, & holding a Visa card can walk into a Harley dealership & come out "bad to the bone"- custom looking bike, jeans & T-shirt, leathers, even fake
tattoos if he’s a real dork.Don’t anyone tell me that guy is a biker; he may ride a motorcycle, but biker? Nope.
Now... Far be it from me to disagree with a good friend, but...
*If* (and only if) "that guy" bought his motorcycle because he's always wanted one; if he's felt the wind in his face and has spent his whole life up to that point trying to recapture that open-air magic; if the sound of a V-twin engine (or inline 4 cylinder, or even horizontally opposed 2 cylinder, or...) gets his blood stirring and makes him yearn for the open road, then he is a biker.
Now, if he's a yuppie piece of shit who bought a Harley as an investment or a status symbol he can go fuck himself. Bikes are meant to be ridden. I put maybe 3K miles on my bike in a good year, and quite frankly I'm embarassed I don't ride it more. Yet I can't count the number of people who have looked at my odometer and remarked at how many miles my bike has on it. Or the number of guys who'll tell me they own a 2000 bike with 1200 miles on it...
Do or do not. There is no try. If you've got it, ride it. And if you ride it, you're a biker.
That is all.
16 comments:
Funny how definitions shift over time. Back when I was young, a biker wasn't something most people aspired to be. Crude, rough, and most times, criminal.
Those types can't even afford a new Harley now.
Funny thing is, back in the day, I used to make fun of the Japanese Harley knock-offs (called 'em Yamaharleys), but now I ride one. Why? Because a similarly equipped Harley would cost me at least 15k more, and I can't afford that.
I think the present day definition of biker is pretty much how you describe it. It's all about the ride.
I never "aspired" to be a biker. Perhaps that's even the definition.
I just loved it. From the tender age of 5 or 6, when my dad picked me up and put me on the back of his buddy's (MA State Police) Harley, I was hooked. I wanted a motorcycle in the worst way from about the age of 10 or 12; finally getting my first bike (a Yamaha 850) when I moved out of my parents' house.
(Mom had a friend in high school who got into a bad motorcycle accident and was barely able to walk as a result. As such I was forbidden to own a motorcycle "while you live in my house". Fair enough, I moved out and got a bike).
In my experience, the price gap between Japanese cruisers and Harleys has narrowed considerably. Honda's getting $12-15K for their higher-end bikes, which is treading quite close to what Harley offers.
I paid $17K for my Electra Glide when I bought it in 2003. At the time, a Honda GoldWing was $18.5K, and the Valkyrie was $15K. Now, granted, I could have gotten a Kawasaki Nomad for $13K, or the straight Vulcan for $11K, but the resale isn't even close. At least Hondas keep value (NOT meant as a knock against Kawasaki, BTW)...
I have a '98 Shadow ACE. Nice lines, takes me where I want to go. Paid about 3.5k, I figure.
I promised myself a Harley after I got out of the Army, but I made that promise in 1980, and by 2001 it became economically un-doable.
Someday....
Yo-
I was mostly referring to the yup POS types that you mentioned.
"Look at me- ain't I cool now too!?"
It used to be difficult to be a biker, you had to REALLY want it to make it happen.
But yeah, the defination does wander a bit over time...
Thanks.
I'm close to becoming an ex-dirtbiker if I don't get out on the enduro trails soon. Don't know nothing about "bikers" - I ride standing up!
Great post. Couldn't have said it better.
I hate being wet, cold, or wind blown. I'm afraid of losing skin on the pavement. I'm afraid of having a permanent head injury.
I guess that makes me "Not-A-Biker".
heh... reminds me of the HOG rally here in Manty a couple years ago. I sat on the front steps of the local ink house, watching the bikes go by. Conversation went like this:
"Middle management, middle management, upper management, middle management... oh, look! An actual BIKER!"
Only got that last bit a couple of times...
Gee, Jay... so glad you allowed as how opposed twins can be ridden by "real bikers"... ;-) And I won't twist the knife by pointing out that I've got 3K on my new-to-me 21 year old Beemer since picking it up in NJ in June.
Does it count towards being a "real biker" if you ride it home with an unset broken ankle because you don't want to leave it at work until you can arrange for a friend to pick it up?
Twisting the knife a little,
Ross
Ross,
I was specifically thinking of you when I added that in. :)
And yeah, that WAY more than qualifies you as a biker. That pushes you into the hardcore category. :)
I rode my Yamaha home from UNH with a partially seized rear brake, does that count?
How about if I add in that there was only one front disk brake?
And no speedometer?
But she was MINE, ALL MINE... No love quite like your first...
Magnific!
Nice Article.
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Magnific!
JgQbHy Thanks to author.
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