Jobs are falling by the wayside. The price of fuel is out of control and foreclosures are at an all time high. America is tightening its belt. Personally, I’ve lengthened time between hair appointments; I don’t go out to dinner as much and probably won’t be buying a new car anytime soon – or maybe I’ll buy a hybrid.
Naomi Campbell has an ugly temper and a long history of tantrums. She’s flung a phone at an assistant, beat another with a Blackberry and assaulted a housekeeper with a jewel-encrusted mobile (to name just a few incidents in her checkered past).
"Beautiful souls don't need the notoriety. The old adage for a rock star was any news is good news; in other words, any media attention is a potential pocket liner. If we could all disconnect ourselves from the media and actually live in the real world, what truths would come to Light?"
There was a time when a pack of Harley-Davidson Motorcycles would intimidate even the bravest of men. These iron beasts of the open road were reserved for America's "bad boys", the gangs and outlaws who committed senseless crimes and left a trail of destruction in their path. Those days have since passed. These images have been replaced with the reality of Wild Hogs in corporate America. This is due in large part to the brilliant marketing campaign that Harley-Davidson Motorcycles embarked on in the late 1980's and 1990's. Transforming the freedom of bike riding from a sociopathic get-a-way to a "wanna be" pastime.
"There are people in the world that never expect to be able to afford a Harley. And I'm not talking about non-riders.
I started riding in 1982 when I was attending Galveston College. My first bike was a 1980 Honda 400 CMT, and I guess you could say I loved that bike. I must have as a spent an entire year living on it in Texas where you can ride almost year round.
But my budget and my disabilities kept me from ever hoping to own a Harley. I even named one of my children Harley figuring that would be the only way I'd ever get a Harley. I still ride and now have a Honda Shadow 1100cc, a much bigger bike. It rides more like a car than a bike, and some days I yearn for the old ride, as I used to feel part of the experience, part of the road, akin to the wind. My last bike was a Honda 500 and there were days when it just hummed along the highway in perfect unison with my physical and spiritual being.
Do I need the status of a Harley? Not really. Do I need the cost of upkeep for a Harley? Not even. Do I think less of myself because I never had a Harley motorcycle? Not hardly. Am I less of an American for riding a Honda? No way. Three of my children have served this country, and I'm probably more American than most in my desire to keep my independence and freedom.
And that's one of the reasons I ride. Freedom, joy, independence, and a challenge. Never forget the challenge.
I have to thank all the Harley riders for making it such a challenge to ride a Honda in the good old USA. Keep up the good work, my friends!
In much of the biker world, at least here in the Pacific Northwest where the riding season is way too short, bikers do have a desire to reach out to other bikers. We ride together, Harley, Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, and more, both men and women, and we often do it in the service of others, sometimes raising money and toys for children, sometimes benefits for downed brothers and sisters, or cancer, or leukemia, or domestic violence, or some other deserving need.
Next time you see a biker, you might just ask that person about the next big benefit ride coming up. Chances are he or she knows when, where, and why, and will invite you to join in the fun. Who knows, your next car could be a Harley."
