Dang, them young whipper snapper long haired scruffy looking motorcycle guys do look weird and threatening.
I know a whole lot of guys that ride around on Harleys trying to look like they are tough. Every one that I know are doing it to have fun and live some type of strange fantasy that I do not really understand. They are mostly a bunch of retired guys.
I do appreciate the groups that show up to keep the protestors away from military service member funerals. I also appreciate the ones who show up when WWII “honor flights” return from DC. Although the old veterans usually do not know who they are and why they are there. I have had several who asked me what all the old “hippies” were doing at their event. To most WWII vets a bunch of long haired scruffy looking motorcycle guys just look weird and threatening regardless of their friendly intent.
I ride too, these are gang bangers on motorcycles, meth death dealers.
Most riders aren’t.
Most bikers are anything but the stereotype during the week, they’re out playing on weekends on their Harleys, it’s a lifestyle thing, keeps them from feeling too old and out of it I guess, wouldn’t hurt a fly but don’t mind being perceived as bad-@ for a few days. Most, not all, though. There are hardcore, violent biker gangs. For unfamiliar people, it’s tough to distinguish the two. I still don’t know what to think of this thing in Waco. A little of both I suspect, but nagging doubts keep popping up about outside “help.”
Dang, them young whipper snapper long haired scruffy looking motorcycle guys do look weird and threatening.
**I know a whole lot of guys that ride around on Harleys trying to look like they are tough. Every one that I know are doing it to have fun and live some type of strange fantasy that I do not really understand. They are mostly a bunch of retired guys.**
Don’t get me wrong, I like riding a motorcycle as much as the next guy, but the image of toughness is indeed a fantasy. Whether is a 4,000 pound car, or a 180 grain bullet, toughness is has very real limits.
I’ve known Harleys (or any interest that ends up superceding being a husband and father) to help break up marriages.
I was sitting in a truckstop once, listening to a driver lament the breaking up of his family years ago. He said trucking OTR is tough on families, so, when a guy gets home, he needs to use that time wisely. Instead, he said, he would go riding his Harley with his friends, stopping at the bars, and the next thing you know, ‘misbehaving’. He said the song by Bruce Springsteen helped take him over the top, and, just like the song, left his wife and kids, “went out for a ride and never went back”.
I remember when I first heard that song, I thought, “I wonder how many strained marriages will fall victim to that stupid advice”. It’s not “everybody’s got a hungry heart”; it’s everybody’s got to battle lusts that destroy families.
One of the best things to happen to my marriage and fatherhood, was selling my sports car, and spending more time with my young family. The memories have proven it so.