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Shunned By A Harley Owner...

34K views 206 replies 69 participants last post by  RedHorse 
#1 ·
So my nature has always been to wave and acknowledge every other motorcycle rider on the road regardless of brand or type of motorcycle. Even back when I rode sport bikes I always threw a hand out to any passing bike, even a cruiser of any brand. Most of the time I got one back. I feel like we are one big family of motorcycle riders regardless of what 2 wheeler your but is planted on.

Anyways, in a few towns over there is restaurant that always holds events for motorcycles. Yesterday, they had a spring bike show to launch off the cycling season. There are loads of different bikes that show up and enter. People come from all over and there are a ton of bikes there. It's always a really good time. I actually met a friend there that rode in from another direction. He actually rides a classic Harley and it is a very nice bike.

After the show I hit the road back toward the house. A few stoplights out i hit a red light. I was the only vehicle at the light. Shortly after, 3 Harleys came rolling up behind me. All three of them were riding in formation and they stopped in the lane beside me. I looked over and gave them a wave and a look as to acknowledge they had very nice bikes...

Not a damn one of them even looked over at me. Then the one up font looked down at my bike, literally shook his head and gave his bike several hard revs. Letting me know what the deal was on his 15k dollar Harley with proudly labeled emblems, leather jacket and an engine about half the size of mine.

I knew he was going for it so I could not resist. Note: I normally do not take part in this behavior or condone it but this was a very special situation. So when the light turned green i launched my 3 thousand dollar Vulcan 1600 classic and blew his "theoretical" doors off like he was in reverse. His face got redder then the pretty paint on his bike. Afterwards I let them pass on my right and then I pulled right in to the rear of their formation. I rode with them like this for about 12 miles until they eventually pulled off, still with no wave but I know it burned their blood up and it made my day!

I truly don't understand why certain bike owners consider themselves above others. Aren't we all riding for the same reason??
 
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#2 ·
 
#18 ·
Yes, it mounts to the sissy bar and license plate bracket.
 
#4 · (Edited)
I'm part of a MRO here in SE Louisiana, and we have sort of adopted a revolutionary saying... "We must all hang together, or most assuredly, we will hang separately." - Benjamin Franklin. It really shouldn't matter what you ride. I wave to the guys on sports as much as cruisers. I will even ride with them if they aren't speed demons or showoffs. I want them to stay on two wheels as much as anyone... but at the end of the day, if they lose their rights, we lose ours too. However, people... lol

I've got a Kawi 9c with no badges and only the stock breather to say anything about it in text. Two of my brothers have Honda 750's but the rest are various Harleys. One of those money pit owners even works at the HD shop here in town, so my bike is up there on a regular basis and parked out front. Now, aside from the salesmen trying to push me on to their expensive parts shakers, I've never had a cross word said. I've even had a few compliments and several riders who've said, "I used to have one of those..." or "My brother's got one." Those all end the same, though. "Nice bike."

Sorry you had to make a point the hard way, but consider your purists as uninformed. Sometimes, they just don't want the idea, nevermind get it.

The pic is mine and my brother's HD Fatboy Lo
 

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#5 ·
Beautiful Bike Misfire! Your brothers too. I love them all. Most of the time i never have an issue but for whatever reason these guys did. Oh well I just thought it was funny. Pretty much the group of guys I ride with all ride Harleys except one guy who rides an R1. We all ride together all the time though. I have ridden a few harleys. An older bigger one Im not sure what it was and also a newer 1200 sportster. I barely fit on the sportster but both of them shook me to death lol. I'm not a huge fan of that lol. But to each his own.
 
#6 ·
Thanks for the compliment, Daniel. I can't compare the Harley to mine, as I haven't actually ridden one, but watching my brother on the FB lo, he doesn't leave the seat like I do on some of the buckles in the pavement here in SELA. Just more weight on the wheels I suppose. I know the sportsters are hella light, so I can imagine those things leave you hopping all over the place. Truth be told, I wanted the V9 because of the tank range. Still able to keep up with the Harleys before grabbing fuel, and a slightly smaller bike for a practically brand new rider. The ST1300 honda that I learned on doesn't count. lol
 
#7 ·
Most of us on here have had similar experiences.

The world is full of jerks and sometimes they find a common 'status symbol' to rally around.
Not every HD owner is a jerk; but when someone who IS a self important jerk is looking for a ego machine, there aren't too many brands to choose from

It is kinda hard not to let your blood pressure rise a bit when it happens. Just remember; their ignorance only limits their experience, not yours.
Enjoy your ride.

Scott
 
#9 ·
Ain't it fun to smoke their ass like that? I'm like most everybody here, I'll wave, acknowledge, compliment everybody I see regardless of size or brand. But every now and then you'll run into a butt plug like those. That when you really appreciate a V2K!. Makes them really drag their lip! Lol.


Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk
 
#11 · (Edited)
Ain't it fun to smoke their ass like that? I'm like most everybody here, I'll wave, acknowledge, compliment everybody I see regardless of size or brand. But every now and then you'll run into a butt plug like those. That when you really appreciate a V2K!. Makes them really drag their lip! Lol.

When I rode a C14 Concours they were afraid to look at me at red lights. Here I am this fat old dude on a Connie!! LOL

 
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#10 ·
I've met a few like that in my short time riding, but the real bummer is how my family perceives me. My sister and I both ride, something we picked up from my father, who was doing wheelies before he had pimples, if stories are to be believed. ;) He's built/fixed/ridden more Harleys than I've probably ever seen, and they still go through his shop almost faster than I can believe.

My sister picked up that torch and started on the back of a Harley soft-tail, but I couldn't (and still can't) afford anything like that. My first bike was a Yamaha Maxim 600, bought on Craigslist for $500. It was a piece, but I loved it because it was mine. My dad says he's just happy that I'm riding, and I can tell it's mostly true, but my sister and him have always been in their own little club.

As much as I want to believe that we're all in it for the ride, I don't think I really can. As bummed as it makes me, I have yet to meet anyone on a Harley that doesn't look at everything else as 2nd best (at least). Having only ridden on 2, and being extremely uncomfortable both times, I'm wondering how they got that way...

Meh...I like this club better anyway, lol.
 
#12 ·
British, Japanese, American, Russian, Austrian, German, Ukranian, Italian - I've owned a few bikes. I wave on all of them - what the other rider does (or doesn't) is up to them. I'm not going to allow someone else to impact my state of mind.

My current favorite ride is 37 years old. It's engineering is still top shelf, although it does get a little floaty above 110 MPH due to the full fairing. I don't always get a wave back from some riders, but I don't care - I'm not out there chewing up mountain asphalt for their benefit. I'm out there for me. That a bike made nearly 40 decades ago is still more than adequate for today's riding is amazing to me.

I've had Harleys. They're okay; I've enjoyed them. Every bike has a personality - and it's why I've had so many. The people who buy a specific brand/model/type so as to be "someone"? No. That's not for me. I'm there for the ride. Solo. Just me and the bike. Nothing else matters.
 
#35 ·
I wave on all of them - what the other rider does (or doesn't) is up to them. I'm not going to allow someone else to impact my state of mind.

Them be words of wisdom. I feel the same.

i wave at everybody.. if you don't wave back.. meh, whatever.

But to be honest.. well.. I've had people actually flag me down just to chat about the bike..(i've been pulled over by a cop.. not speeding or anything.. he just wanted to check out the bike..)

so, I don't really get "that" type of bad attitude very often.



.
 
#13 ·
The sort of behavior the OP mentioned from that group of HD riders reminds me of junior high. The mentality of having to have certain designer clothing to fit in, ...etc. Seems like most people grow up and some do not. Glad the OP dusted them.

Fortunately I haven't suffered from being shunned from this stereotype. While out riding here in UT seems like everyone with a bike regardless of dress of brand waves to each other.

The biggest issue I have here in UT, especially near and around SLC, are those kids with modded entry level Japanese cars, they get a look at my bike and rev their fart cans to deafening tones... I just let them blast down the road, far far away. The more distance I put between them the safer I am, and local LEO's will leave me alone.
 
#15 ·
That is exactly the thought that crossed through my mine initially. I thought to myself "all three of you guys are at least my age (they had half helmets on) and I'm 33 years old so what in the world are we doing back high school lol"

Oh well... and BTW we have those type of cars here as well. We call them ricers lol. And I will never understand why any car would come up beside a cruiser and rev their engine, I had a challenger do that to me last night. I just slowed down even more and let him pass by like an idiot.
 
#14 ·
My wife & I were in Tallahassee cruising couple a weekends ago, I looked up into the rear view and saw like a dozen or so riders coming up behind use. within min.'s we were surrounded by Harley's of all sizes from Full Dressers to 883's the entire group ignored us. Now my 1600 isn't quiet by any means so off course the big louder bikes surrounded us racking off the exhaust to drowned me out. OK, I don't have a problem with louder, I don't want anything louder than my classic, they really weren't happy when they tried to box me in and Sweet Baby came alive, all they saw then was the tail light, can you imagine those big high dollar High dollar Full Dressers being left in the wind by a 2003 Classic, they didn't appear to be to happy at all. I believe as most here the Name matters not, it's the fact that we ride, if the Harley riders don't return a wave really I don't care. My step dad and one of my uncles were old time bikers and they both felt the same way. I can remember them both helping and working on any bike that had a problem and the owner needed help, didn't matter what it was.

HalfBreed
 
#16 ·
Truth be told. The guys mentioned by the op would act like idiots even if they were driving Yamaha's. LOL! The world is full of idiots and the only things we can do is not stoop to their levels! HAHA! I ride what I want, I like Harley's, I've ridden plenty of them, I just prefer to ride something with power and less shaking. I prefer newer technology, in fact I've been eyeing the new BMW GS1200 for the past few years. That's right in my ball park! My closest riding buddy rides an Electra Glide Classic and let me tell you. That don't impress me much! Radio sounds great however, if only you could hear it over the pipes. LOL!
 
#26 ·
Truth be told. The guys mentioned by the op would act like idiots even if they were driving Yamaha's. LOL! The world is full of idiots and the only things we can do is not stoop to their levels! HAHA! I ride what I want, I like Harley's, I've ridden plenty of them, I just prefer to ride something with power and less shaking. I prefer newer technology, in fact I've been eyeing the new BMW GS1200 for the past few years. That's right in my ball park! My closest riding buddy rides an Electra Glide Classic and let me tell you. That don't impress me much! Radio sounds great however, if only you could hear it over the pipes. LOL!
You're only about half right. :wink2:

There are definitely idiots and jerks on Yamahas; all brands actually.

But, that particular type of asshat is compelled to ride an ego machine.
As good as the Japanese bikes are at most things; they just fall way short in the "status" department.

BMW riders and Wingnuts can get a little douchey about what they ride; but they're a distant 2nd behind the HOGs.

There's nothing wrong with liking what you like and favoring a particular brand. I love my Triumph(s) (multiple soon).
But, the douchery toward complete strangers is 95% one directional.

Scott
 
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#17 ·
out here on the first nicer days of the year the bikes come out like bugs and everyone is just so happy to be on 2 wheels that everyone waves at everyone. I mean hogs waving at scooters. By the next week the stick they pulled out of their ass for a couple days manages to work its way back in. Typically the metric cruiser riders wave more than the standard cruisers but we are few and far between.
I'm going to take pictures of them waving next year as blackmail that they're not as tough as their beards make them look (there's some resentment in my voice as I grow a beard like Mr Miyagi from the karate kid at best).
 
#19 ·
LOl this is funny. Crazy thing is I shave daily for my job but I swear ever since i bought this cruiser my face has been growing hair like a freaking mad man lol. It's almost like your forced to have a thick beard if you ride a cruiser haha
 
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#27 ·
HD doesn't need me on their cheering squad; but lets damn them for the right reasons. :)

They do not make more money on licensing than bikes. Here's a link from Revzilla in 2013.
They've gone through HDs financials that year and found $59 million in licencing; which includes toys, F150s and the like. VS $5.9 billion in motorcycle sales.
Five things you "know" about Harley-Davidson that aren't true - RevZilla

Ride safe
Scott
 
#30 ·
Thanks Scott for clearing that up...like i said i remember reading something but obviously cant belive everything you read on the internet...
I think Abraham Lincoln said that.:laugh2:

If I hadn't cleared it up; our resident HD fangirl @HRH_Z would have been around sooner or later to do so in a more...colorful manner.

Scott
 
#36 ·
You know guys; the OP wasn't whining about not getting waved at.

Three asshats (Ponches magic number for HD douchery...Huh?) wouldn't even look at him stopped at a light.
When one of em did look at his bike he shook his head and revved the snot out of his own bike in some lame attempt to make his half sized machine seem dominant.

Now there's a lot of sense in being coolheaded and not letting a slight from an ignorant moron put you in a bad mood.
But, I have serious doubts about anyone that in the same position wouldn't want to punch that douche right in the teeth.

Ride safe
Scott
 
#37 ·
Just Ride On

There will never be a shortage of snobs, in all walks of life, the world over.
Just my .02
 
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