Just about said something to "Got Harley" guy.

[ctex]

Fifty miles west of Fort Worth yesterday my 1980 GS850 decided to take a little break. Three Harley guys not only stopped but stayed with me in the Texas heat for two hours till my kids showed up with the trailer. The roughest looking one's first bike was a GS 650 and he later owned an 850. The world is small and my life is too short for petty allegiances or prejudices over brands. In the end, aren't we all just looking for a good time? I made a couple of friends under a bridge. One of em went about 325, had a gray goatee, wore a black tee-shirt and looked pretty durned awesome as he roared off on his 2014 Road King.

[trevor]

Last week AZR and my cousin and I went up to Gold River for an over nighter. On the way home we had a pretty "spirited" ride.
Anyway I was riding my 81 1100e and Rob was on his 78 1000 and my cousin was riding my K1300R. We came up on a Harley on the highway. We were behind him at a stop light (yeah don't ask about lights on our highway) and he is in the left passing lane. Light turns green and we are off. I'm behind him and we are doing 75mph and he is not getting over to let me pass. Dick! So I go around him on the right and so does AZR and then my cousin. We get to the next light and we are wearing senas and I can here him talking to my cousin...this is the exchange.
The guy is looking at the 1300 my cousin is riding and says "no wonder I couldn't keep up to you"...my cousin says..."you couldn't keep up to any of these bikes"...Lol Awesome!!

[edgeofvamp]

I want to start off by replying to the OP and his original intent.
I hear you loud and clear on wanting to say something to someone wearing a shirt that contradicts his position. If you are willing to wear the shirt, please be willing to show up on one. I generally don't have a filter, even with a back story on the person. In general, I tend to ignore anything that says harley on it unless there is a person sitting on one. I will explain further in part 2 of this comment. I can respect you minding your P's & Q's in the situation and instead just going back to enjoying your day. Good for you.

In response to the overwhelming disgust of everyone to the weekenders, posers and self absorbed. That is in every culture, every scene and every group. You have those that start off arrogant, those that get a false sense of bravado after purchase or customization and those that get caught up in the "scene". Whatever people do, this will happen. The best way to deal with them, is not to give them the satisfaction. It completely throws them off.
Case in point, i was riding an old Yamaha Virago-shafty i acquired after the owner gave up hope on it(3 faulty grounds and coils hooked up wrong). I was sitting at a gas station talking to a few people i knew just having fun. After awhile, a group of harley roadtrippers pulled in to gas up. I heard a few of them snicker, talking flak about how old it was and the funny flame paint job the PO put on it.

While they were all getting gas and most of them were inside the gas station, i decided to leave while most of them were indisposed. If anyone has owned or been around an old virago know what i mean by the "bench grinder" bendix starter system in this bike. After a couple failed attempts to start and the god awful noise. I heard a bunch of them laughing and making the stereotypical jap crap comments. I unloaded my tools from my backpack and started making adjustments to the starter angle. While i was paying attention to the bike i heard 2 people walking up and I just thought they were a couple of my friends. So i keep working and these guys start talking to each other and i catch bits of the conversation. One of the guys actually had a virago awhile back and he was explaining what i was doing to the other and i finally figure out that it wasn't my friends. I look back and here are these 2 300lb guys smiling and reminiscing about past experiences. The one that had owned one, asked if I needed help and offered up some very useful if not a little unorthodox information to get it lined up properly. I got the bike buttoned up and it kicked over easily. I started talking to these guys, I talked about how I got the bike and they told me stories from there travels and how this little bump had brightened up there day.
This is a good situation, on the flip side I had a bad situation on the same bike. I pulled up next to a weekend warrior and quickly left him in the dust on the way to the next light. He must have taken that as an insult, because he pulled up next to me at the next light and started revving his engine. I again left him in the dust and just went on with my day, a few blocks later I pull in to get fuel. When I start putting fuel in, I hear a familiar engine roaring up. As, I am walking up to pay for this fuel. This moron almost runs me over and proceeds to park and storm up to me. He started yelling that I was somehow cheating and that I should fess up. When I responded I don't shift as slow as you, I don't accelerate as slowly as you do and I actually ride more than on the weekend. His only response, is that I was full of **** and if I say one more thing he was going to beat my ass. As stated before I do not have any real filter, so before he could finish his sentence I said "one more thing". The weekend warrior decided that he wasn't ready to swing, just spew more seemingly empty threats. By this time, this moron had drawn a decent size crowd of onlookers. So i cut him off once again, stating that if all he was going to do was yell i was going inside. He grabs my shoulder and says that if I walk away, he was going to knock over my bike. So i warned him, I am armed and will defend my property whatever way I see fit and that i was going inside. He said bull**** and started walking towards my bike. So i kicked him in the back of the knee and knocked him down and pinned him to the ground. He decided this was not proof enough, so I stuck my lighter to the back of his neck and he froze. Some of the onlookers had called the cops for me and I held him there until they arrived. Unfortunately for me, they had also mentioned that I was armed. So when the officers arrived, I was expecting them to see the lighter in my hand and nicely handle the situation. Nope, instead they show up and immediately draw their weapons on me. Start demanding that I put down my weapon, after a few tense moments of this I finally get it through to them that my firearm is holstered and I am holding a lighter and they finally approach. One of them aggressively pin me to a nearby car and try to help the guy up. I must have scared him more than i thought, because it took them awhile to get the now weak kneed idiot up on his feet. The officer finally lets me up after he takes my springfield and gets me in cuffs. I show him my license and conceal permit and he finally gets off my case about the loaded firearm. Another 20 minutes go by and an officer comes out after reviewing the surveillance footage and uncuffs me. They actually threatened to ticket me for the way i detained him, really? ticket me for defending me and mine? They accompanied me to pay for my fuel and back to my bike and the main officer thanked me for what he could see was doing what i could do to defuse the situation by walking away(glad he didn't see me talking back at first and testing his resolve). He returned my firearm and let me go on my way. Later in the day I had come across the same officer and decided to be nice. I picked up a cup of coffee and set it between my gauges and rode over to him. He was a bit apprehensive about dropping his window at first remembering me. He finally lowered the window and i gave him the coffee. We started talking and he let it slip that the idiot involved was not what he was expecting.
This is the part that confirmed with me the weekend warrior image, he was a damned dentist. Now i know i am gonna catch a lot of flack from folks about this. Just before you judge, put yourself in my position during the heat of the moment.

As far as my other point on the riders is that I am the son of an MC club enforcer. Enforcers are the worst of the group, since they get infloated egos being responsible for keeping the other members in line and having carte blanche to do as they please. My father in this regards was no exception. He got pulled into the roll, the drugs and the onslaught of stupidity(as evidence of a darker version of above videos). It is due to him, that i am hesitant to give MC members the time of day. I will admit that there are some good ones out there and I know there are bad ones. No matter the situation, just remember the bike does not represent the person-but society condemns the ride as a result of the rider.

On to the topic of the Harley itself.
I am not a big fan for numerous reasons. Starting at the shaking, how do you tolerate the constant bone rattling. Then you move onto the noise, i have always been under the influence that noise should be equal to speed. Quiet at idle and louder at high speed, not just loud all the time. Then we move onto the oil leaks, all bikes have them. How many have them after 10 miles? The last 2 issues are personal taste issues with them. I do not like bikes that you have to slow down due to the pegs being so close to the ground that you can't lean very far for the corners and what is the obsession with heavy gaudy chrome? It seems redundant to put that much weight on a motorcycle to me.

Hopefully I have covered the OP and everyone else's points.

[Gorminrider]

You made an excellent stab at it....and what about Those Dentists!(

he was a damned dentist

)
Is it the mercury-poisoning?

[Octain]

I want to start off by replying to the OP and his original intent.
I hear you loud and clear on wanting to say something to someone wearing a shirt that contradicts his position. If you are willing to wear the shirt, please be willing to show up on one. I generally don't have a filter, even with a back story on the person. In general, I tend to ignore anything that says harley on it unless there is a person sitting on one. I will explain further in part 2 of this comment. I can respect you minding your P's & Q's in the situation and instead just going back to enjoying your day. Good for you.

In response to the overwhelming disgust of everyone to the weekenders, posers and self absorbed. That is in every culture, every scene and every group. You have those that start off arrogant, those that get a false sense of bravado after purchase or customization and those that get caught up in the "scene". Whatever people do, this will happen. The best way to deal with them, is not to give them the satisfaction. It completely throws them off.
Case in point, i was riding an old Yamaha Virago-shafty i acquired after the owner gave up hope on it(3 faulty grounds and coils hooked up wrong). I was sitting at a gas station talking to a few people i knew just having fun. After awhile, a group of harley roadtrippers pulled in to gas up. I heard a few of them snicker, talking flak about how old it was and the funny flame paint job the PO put on it.

While they were all getting gas and most of them were inside the gas station, i decided to leave while most of them were indisposed. If anyone has owned or been around an old virago know what i mean by the "bench grinder" bendix starter system in this bike. After a couple failed attempts to start and the god awful noise. I heard a bunch of them laughing and making the stereotypical jap crap comments. I unloaded my tools from my backpack and started making adjustments to the starter angle. While i was paying attention to the bike i heard 2 people walking up and I just thought they were a couple of my friends. So i keep working and these guys start talking to each other and i catch bits of the conversation. One of the guys actually had a virago awhile back and he was explaining what i was doing to the other and i finally figure out that it wasn't my friends. I look back and here are these 2 300lb guys smiling and reminiscing about past experiences. The one that had owned one, asked if I needed help and offered up some very useful if not a little unorthodox information to get it lined up properly. I got the bike buttoned up and it kicked over easily. I started talking to these guys, I talked about how I got the bike and they told me stories from there travels and how this little bump had brightened up there day.
This is a good situation, on the flip side I had a bad situation on the same bike. I pulled up next to a weekend warrior and quickly left him in the dust on the way to the next light. He must have taken that as an insult, because he pulled up next to me at the next light and started revving his engine. I again left him in the dust and just went on with my day, a few blocks later I pull in to get fuel. When I start putting fuel in, I hear a familiar engine roaring up. As, I am walking up to pay for this fuel. This moron almost runs me over and proceeds to park and storm up to me. He started yelling that I was somehow cheating and that I should fess up. When I responded I don't shift as slow as you, I don't accelerate as slowly as you do and I actually ride more than on the weekend. His only response, is that I was full of **** and if I say one more thing he was going to beat my ass. As stated before I do not have any real filter, so before he could finish his sentence I said "one more thing". The weekend warrior decided that he wasn't ready to swing, just spew more seemingly empty threats. By this time, this moron had drawn a decent size crowd of onlookers. So i cut him off once again, stating that if all he was going to do was yell i was going inside. He grabs my shoulder and says that if I walk away, he was going to knock over my bike. So i warned him, I am armed and will defend my property whatever way I see fit and that i was going inside. He said bull**** and started walking towards my bike. So i kicked him in the back of the knee and knocked him down and pinned him to the ground. He decided this was not proof enough, so I stuck my lighter to the back of his neck and he froze. Some of the onlookers had called the cops for me and I held him there until they arrived. Unfortunately for me, they had also mentioned that I was armed. So when the officers arrived, I was expecting them to see the lighter in my hand and nicely handle the situation. Nope, instead they show up and immediately draw their weapons on me. Start demanding that I put down my weapon, after a few tense moments of this I finally get it through to them that my firearm is holstered and I am holding a lighter and they finally approach. One of them aggressively pin me to a nearby car and try to help the guy up. I must have scared him more than i thought, because it took them awhile to get the now weak kneed idiot up on his feet. The officer finally lets me up after he takes my springfield and gets me in cuffs. I show him my license and conceal permit and he finally gets off my case about the loaded firearm. Another 20 minutes go by and an officer comes out after reviewing the surveillance footage and uncuffs me. They actually threatened to ticket me for the way i detained him, really? ticket me for defending me and mine? They accompanied me to pay for my fuel and back to my bike and the main officer thanked me for what he could see was doing what i could do to defuse the situation by walking away(glad he didn't see me talking back at first and testing his resolve). He returned my firearm and let me go on my way. Later in the day I had come across the same officer and decided to be nice. I picked up a cup of coffee and set it between my gauges and rode over to him. He was a bit apprehensive about dropping his window at first remembering me. He finally lowered the window and i gave him the coffee. We started talking and he let it slip that the idiot involved was not what he was expecting.
This is the part that confirmed with me the weekend warrior image, he was a damned dentist. Now i know i am gonna catch a lot of flack from folks about this. Just before you judge, put yourself in my position during the heat of the moment.

As far as my other point on the riders is that I am the son of an MC club enforcer. Enforcers are the worst of the group, since they get infloated egos being responsible for keeping the other members in line and having carte blanche to do as they please. My father in this regards was no exception. He got pulled into the roll, the drugs and the onslaught of stupidity(as evidence of a darker version of above videos). It is due to him, that i am hesitant to give MC members the time of day. I will admit that there are some good ones out there and I know there are bad ones. No matter the situation, just remember the bike does not represent the person-but society condemns the ride as a result of the rider.

On to the topic of the Harley itself.
I am not a big fan for numerous reasons. Starting at the shaking, how do you tolerate the constant bone rattling. Then you move onto the noise, i have always been under the influence that noise should be equal to speed. Quiet at idle and louder at high speed, not just loud all the time. Then we move onto the oil leaks, all bikes have them. How many have them after 10 miles? The last 2 issues are personal taste issues with them. I do not like bikes that you have to slow down due to the pegs being so close to the ground that you can't lean very far for the corners and what is the obsession with heavy gaudy chrome? It seems redundant to put that much weight on a motorcycle to me.

Hopefully I have covered the OP and everyone else's points.

Not all Harleys "shake". If you knew anything about what you were talking about, you'd at least know this. It depends which engine the bike is equipped with. Not to mention, they don't shake off idle.
I have three road bikes in my garage. Guess which one has the most miles and is most dependable(with no leaks)? Not "all" bikes leak btw.
Weight makes for a better ride on a bike. Plus, chrome plated metal weighs more than plastichrome.

Jes saying..

[Ecklund]

Not all Harleys "shake". If you knew anything about what you were talking about, you'd at least know this. It depends which engine the bike is equipped with. Not to mention, they don't shake off idle.
I have three road bikes in my garage. Guess which one has the most miles and is most dependable(with no leaks)? Not "all" bikes leak btw.
Weight makes for a better ride on a bike. Plus, chrome plated metal weighs more than plastichrome.

Jes saying..

I got to ride a new Road King when I was home last summer. Great bike. Excellent build quality, sized for a normal sized human, thought it good looking for my part, the rushmore project upgrades were really very good. The 103 never missed a beat and ran great. Heavy does have its impact, but I don't ride 9/10ths anyway.

One of those crate 120 would have made a great bike brilliant - at least for me.

Sportsters are too small for me but they are an honest ancestor of the '58 and a good 'retro' type bike. The touring FL bikes are really very good at what they do. A GL1800 or a K1600 are great bikes, but that doesn't make the FLs bad.

Yes, I realize that Harleys attract a very large azzhole segment. But that does not make the bikes bad.

[JEEPRUSTY]

No the engineering is what makes them bad.
Sadly several other manus are now into mystique BS for marketing their bikes.
Ducati and Moto Guzzi are two as is Triumph.
Selling a lifestyle for folks who cannot choose their own wardrobe.

[Ecklund]

No the engineering is what makes them bad.
Sadly several other manus are now into mystique BS for marketing their bikes.
Ducati and Moto Guzzi are two as is Triumph.
Selling a lifestyle for folks who cannot choose their own wardrobe.

They certainly have different set of design goals. Bad? How so?

[Killer Canary]

No, the way that they seem to twist otherwise rational people's thinking is what makes them bad.

[Ecklund]

No, the way that they seem to twist otherwise rational people's thinking is what makes them bad.

Well, wasn't aware Harley had that kind of power over people. Guess I'll try and steer clear.

[Killer Canary]

Glad I could help.

[Killer Canary]

Here's an example of harleypower for you.
There was a guy that I used to talk bikes with; not a close friend, just somebody that I used to talk bikes with whenever we bumped into each other. He'd first had a British bike then a Yamaha but really wanted a harley. When he finally got one, a change came over him; it was like I no longer existed. He hasn't deigned to speak to me since and no loss.
Now that's power.
And no, I've never experienced anything remotely like like this with:
Wingers
Beemers
sportbikes
any other bike
.

[Killer Canary]

harley power.
The wife and myself decided to go to the next small town over for a beer. We got on the Honda 550 and rode the 13 clicks. As we turned off of the highway into town, coming toward us was a chimp on a harley giving us much stink eye. He turned around behind and followed but didn't stop at the bar. As we were enjoying our beer, the herd members were continually coming into the bar and looking at us and flapping back and forth outside the bar. Leaving town, I noticed that I'd picked up my escort again a block back.
My wife always thought that I was embellishing my stories about my experiences with harley owners. This experience changed her mind.
And no, I've never experienced anything remotely like like this with:
Wingers
Beemers
sportbikes
any other bike
.

[Killer Canary]

harley power.
One winter day I walked into a hydraulic shop to purchase cooler fittings. Being looked after by the counterman was an old chimp in a harley jacket. As I was waiting at the counter, he looked at me, gave a sniff and moved a couple of feet down the counter. He was obviously buddies with the employee because when the clerk finally paid attention to me, before I could fully explain what I was looking for, he told me that they didn't have it and to go elsewhere.
By now the wife was getting used to this kind of retardation but I couldn't myself figure out how they'd known that I was a jap rider.
Then the wife reminded me that I was wearing my Honda wing hat.
And no, I've never experienced anything remotely like like this with:
Wingers
Beemers
sportbikes
any other bike
.

[JEEPRUSTY]

Had a talk with a long time Harley owner. He is not an overly ardent dogmatic guy but loves his bike.
He did a really nice job of skewering the silliness of the BMW crowd.
HI Viz fibre jackets as opposed to leather and so on.