Streetwise: Most American men want a Harley

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ^ | Friday, April 23, 2004 | Lauren Rudd

[Willie Green]

What do men want more than anything else? No, not that ... well maybe that also; but that is not the topic of today's column. According to a survey of 1,000 men nationwide, besides wanting more money and keeping their wives happy, six out of 10 men dreamed of owning a Harley-Davidson motorcycle.

Steve Piehl, Harley-Davidson communication director, said, "When asked why they had not bought one, there were some interesting answers such as, 'My wife won't let me,' 'I don't have the time' and the one that really drives us crazy, 'Don't they cost at least $20,000?' "

The survey revealed that 75 percent of the respondents thought a Harley was too expensive. Not true, says Harley. "What we're finding out is that people know owning a Harley is cool, but they just do not have the facts. If they did, they'd have one in their garage right now," Piehl said.

[Not A Snowbird]

I had a sportster and every time I backed it up, I dropped it.

Agree! I got the sporty for my first bike because I'm short and only weigh 105 pounds,and I have to be very careful backing it up. It's just too top heavy. The last time I tried I ended up dumping it in my mother's driveway, which just impressed the heck out of her. I'm eyeing a Dyna for my next bike.

[IamHD]

"The last time I tried I ended up dumping it in my mother's driveway, which just impressed the heck out of her."

lol...I know what you mean! I was always having to pick mine up. Luckily, I had "crash bars" on mine, so it didn't damage my bike. I've got 5 lbs. on you, and I'm short, too. When I got my Fatboy, my mechanic lowered my bike 1" and it was perfect. I can even sit on it without my hands on the handlebars because of the center of gravity of the tank.

A girl that I worked with at the Harley shop was short, too, and one day she came into work with her front brake handle in her hand. She dropped her bike and broke it off. LOL You'll love the Dyna, no matter which model you get. :)

[elbucko]

I should mention that by overall land speed record I meant for all vehicles, including cars.

No, this was just for motorcycles, open class and single engine.

did attempt to search on the web for more information,...

Darn little on the Web unless you snag a word that leads to info. I resorted to my book on Harley History to get the numbers.

. Know anymore about the engine they used? Naturally aspirated or supercharged? Gasoline, alcohol or nitromethane?

Hilborn Fuel injected, nitro and prayer. The engines were hand grenades.

As the story goes, the West Coast Mktng Mgr was on the Salt Flats in Aug of '70 and saw Don Vesco go 251+. The Mgr. marshaled all the resources of Harley for Vesco's team. By Oct, with Cal Rayburn on the bars, they went 265+ for both the ultimate land speed record for motorcycles of any size or class and the single engine record.

Don't think other's didn't try to beat them, I saw a four engine, Honda 750 powered "Liner" in Gardena, CA, about 1975. It went 225 before an engine blew. I think an HD 74in. based engine finally broke the little Sporty's record.

[elbucko]

It's just too top heavy.

Yes it is, but once you learn the to use the weight to your advantage, it makes taking corners a real blast. I never chopped my Sporty, I put dog bones with short bars and left it stock. I was skinny too, when I bought mine. I weighed 145#. But I did learn to cope and I had lots of experience from my other bikes. I never dropped mine (when someone was looking).

[nickcarraway]

Since when did the the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette start 5running ads as editorial content. So a reporter took a Harley Davidson press release and made minimal changes to make it an article. Pathetic. The paper probably didn't even make any money of this advertisement.

[Eastbound]

Hey, cute! But will it do a 'wheelie'? Watch where you snuff your butts.

[Not A Snowbird]

Luckily, I had "crash bars" on mine, so it didn't damage my bike.

I put crash bars on after I replaced the left rear turn signal for the second time... didn't drop it for a long time after that, until I ever so gracefully went over in Mom's driveway. Didn't even scratch the bars, it was so graceful. :-)

[Not A Snowbird]

Yes it is, but once you learn the to use the weight to your advantage, it makes taking corners a real blast.

I do love my sporty. I can do without the batter casing poking me in the leg, but for a first bike it's great. The road up Mt. Rainier in the summer is fabulous on a bike.

[cyberaxe]

If you're lusting after the 150 CFM air compressor on the back, a deal can be arranged. Rotted airhoses included at no extra charge

.....lol, naw the H2 has an air compressor.....

I've got a couple of Korean-era M211 GMC Deuce-and-a-halfs located too, with the GMC Hydramatic transmission burned out, as usual, and a couple of thoughts about what might be done about that.

.....but if the rear ends are in good shape.....

.....they can bring a pretty penny.....

[-YYZ-]

Yes, I did a little more searching, and I'd have to say I'm impressed by their achievement. I'm not sure that anyone's build a faster single-engine streamliner bike yet. I guess one advantage they had going for them was the Harley engine's architecture, which allows for significant displacement increases. It looks like they set the record with an engine in the 1650-2000 cc class, which is possible for a Harley engine. Most of the Japanese inline engines, due to bore limitations, have real limitations on how far you can go with displacement. Here's a couple of relavent records:

2000CC S-F C. Rayborn H/D 8/70 265.492
2000CC S-G D. Vesco Yamaha 8/75 303.812

But tht Yamaha was a twin TZ-750 engined streamliner. And then this one:

3000CC S-BF Don Vesco Kawasaki 8/78 318.598

But I'm pretty sure that would have to be a multi-engine bike, too, as I'm pretty sure 2-3 litres is bigger than you can take any Japanese inline engine.

It does appear that development of full-streamliner bikes has slowed somewhat. Looks like most of the activity these days is in the more narrow classes. Unfaired bikes with gasoline burning engines and that sort of thing. I suspect the cost of developing all-out top speed streamliners and the dangers involved has dampened enthusiasm in this area somewhat.

[sauropod]

Simply awesome.

And the right color too... Although it needs some mud on it :-).

[JoeSixPack1]

Freeper banter, as in real world banter always goes heads and shoulders above the norm for the last century's never ending question.

"HEY, IS THAT A HARLEY?"

Well, it either is a Harley, or it looks like a Harley, or it sounds like a Harley, or it's faster than a Harley, or slower than a Harley, or doesn't leak as much as a Harley, or leaks less now then older Harley's, or it's nothing like a Harley, or it's exactly like a Harley but different.

Crotch rocket commandos, cruiser posers, chopper freaks, V-8 cycles, turbo charged, fuel injected, nitrous oxide injected, opposing 6, opposing twin, v-twin, jap car's with 2 wheels loped off, Split frame trikes, volkswagon trikes, ,,,

It all boils down to sittin' ON something rather than IN something. If you've owned ONE bike, to you, it's the best bike going. If you own two, one is better than the other.

If you've owned 9 different Honda motorcycles, you probably like Honda. Etc., etc.

This article refers to an urban, all American myth. As Americans we prefer choice. But once we make our choice woe to the sob who ridicules us because of our choice. The myth surrounding Harley's is not hard to encounter if you ride. Harley's are out there. Either in the way, making noise or otherwise. Your non-biker friends or acquaintances are usually the ones to mouth the word "Harley" long before you do when discussing your 2(or 3) wheels of choice.

As bikers we have a much shorter life span than cagers. We wave at each other. We stop specifically to help the guy or gal with the same bike as you 8 of 10 times. We have shorter range capabilities. We have rain gear, and know exactly how long it takes to either put it on or decide to hide under something without a big discussion.

We ride. The manufacturers make money and in exchange improve our ride or entice us to buy newer rides or in some cases way older rides. But who has the answer to the question:

"HEY, IS THAT A HARLEY"

If you ride you know. Live with your fellow riders, accept the yuppies and the dirtbags and the speedfreaks, maintain your pride in what you ride and just continue the tradition and singular purpose we all share - getting from point A to point B without a stop at the hospital or morgue for a tune up.

Hollywood, bad guy bikers and gangs, 2 world wars, sex drugs and music, politics, popularity, friendship, wallet size, spousal advice, peer pressure or even dreams have had a roll in your brand of choice.

Live to ride, ride to live and live and let live.

But if you don't like the exact same style and brand of bike I like, you suck.

<|:-)~~

[US_MilitaryRules]

Another American Motorcycle

Cannondale

My Choice before they went bankrupt :(

http://www.cannondaler.com/gallery/album121/fa983d82

I now own 2

[martin_fierro]

Just damn.

Gimme some o' dat new medication you're takin'.

<|:)~

[cyberaxe]

.....don't have any pictures of it with mud on it.....

.....but i got some with blood on it!.....

[Iberian]

Thats what I'm talking about, 22 to 32 MPH quiet powerful, aprox 1/5 of a horse power, smart and very unimpressive.

Beats the the hell out of rice bowls and Harley's.

Not impressed.

I still have and ride my Cannondale 450 every other day for at least 20-30 miles, no loud exhaust pipes to impress anyone, just ride.

[Melas]

What? Evo? V Rod? Gimmicks.

Superficial. Seriously, if you compared even a 30 year old Harley, with a modern one, you'd be surprised. Outwardly, they appear much the same, but that is by design. However, when you start to take one apart you'll find many, many technological refinements. A host of engine sensors that keep the engine computer with flashable ROM's informed up to date so the EFI can adjust itself on the fly. The multi-curve single fire, electionic iginitions, compared to points and condensers?

I could go on for hours. Yes, Harleys retain the character of the older bikes, and that's not borne of laziness or lack of progress. That's a very, very intentional decision, and very much by design. Under the skin, they're different beasts from the bikes that went before them.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

The available accident data bears that out; big touring bikes tend to be underrepresented in the aggregate accident data.

The large displacement motorcycles are under represented in accidents but they are associated with higher injury severity when involved in accidents.

[flying Elvis]

I worked at a national park last summer and if I had a nickle for every middle aged white collar worker who had shaved his head, grew a goatee, and rode a Harley into the park I'd be riding an Apache.

[P-Marlowe]

That's a Japanese Bike.

Tojo's revenge.