Rant Archive - May 2007

May 31, 2007 - I'M NOT ANTI-HARLEY, I'M ANTI-HARLEY-ARROGANCE

If you are from the Middle Tennessee area you don't need me to tell you that the 2007 Tennessee State HOG Rally is in town this week. The event is taking place at the beautiful Gaylord Opryland Resort and Harley-Davidson owners from all over the Mid-South have descended on The Music City to enjoy the festivities.

For those of you who aren't familiar with Harley-Davidson terminology, HOG is an acronym for Harley Owners Group which is Harley's national members only club with chapters operating out of local dealership literally around the world. It's a good way for fellow H-D owners to get to know each other and participate in group rides together but it also serves as the primary means for H-D to continue preaching the Harley message to its existing customers.

You have to hand it to Harley-Davidson. They are the masters at building brand recognition, customer loyalty and an overall sense of family. (Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki and the likes could learn a lot in this area.) Still, although I am a HOG member, I am definitely not in to the H-D HOG "snobery" vibe that I often see. In fact, some of my friends are aghast because I often flippantly say that I am "anti-Harley".

I guess I need to choose my words more carefully because the truth is I'm not "anti-Harley" but rather "anti-Harley-arrogance". The fact is I love many of their bikes but the Harleyer-Than-Thou attitude that a lot of H-D riders take annoys the crap out of me. Maybe it's because my chosen field is marketing related but it seems ridiculous to me that people actually buy into the message that dropping $20,000 on a particular brand of motorcycle suddenly transforms you from pastel wearing Polo Shirt weenie into certified MOFO in leather who has the right to bad mouth anyone who rides another brand.

Don't get me wrong… I think it's totally cool if someone is legitimately a one brand person (lord knows most of my family has a hard time straying from Chevrolet) but the fabricated personas and the arrogant attitude that seem to frequently come with a lot of H-D owners really chaps me. And it's usually the big-mouthed ones that are the biggest posers. One guy I know takes every opportunity he can to let everyone know he rides a Harley (especially in large settings) but I know for a fact it hasn't seen sunshine more than two times in the last six months. Another guy I know has only been riding his Dyna for about a year-and-a-half… complete with all the H-D branded clothing money can buy. Despite his low saddle time, I hear him smack-talking guys with metric bikes continuously, telling them how their "rice burners" suck. I guess his vast year and a half of riding experience has already made him an expert on brand selection. Amazing! Yet another guy I know, who barely ever rides his H-D was recently bashing a another guys BMW behind his back. Is he serious? Bagging on BMW engineering when he rides a bike that hasn't changed significantly in decades?

In the end, my view point is... who gives a rat's ass what brand of motorcycle someone else likes and rides? If I could afford it, I'd have one from every manufacturer. I say ride what you want, ride safe and stop bashing those who happen to like a different brand than you do. News flash... riding a Harley doesn't make you better than the rest.

And BTW, those of you reading this that are just itching to play the Made in the USA card... all I can say is that if you believe H-D is all about American made products, take a walk through the clothing department at your local shop (a significant portion of their profit) and see if you can find more than just a few items that aren't imported... you won't. Preaching the USA only message is valliant but none the less hypocritical when those doing the preaching are wearing Made in Hong Kong Harley shirts, Made in China Harley hats and Made in Mexico Old Navy jeans.

Holy cow… this turned into a major rant... can you tell it's really late as I write this? hahahaha I didn't intend to write a stinkin' book but I think I'll go ahead and post it so I can get a good laugh from the onslaught of emails I'll get from the rabid H-D fans out there who think I'm bashing the Motor Company. Remember morons, I have an H-D in the garage right now. I just don't buy into the all the hype that many blindly subscribe to.

I gotta go now... have to get up early and go for a ride on the Harley... but just so you know, it's with one of my friends that rides a Honda!

Feedback

May 28, 2007 - THANK YOU - MEMORIAL DAY 2007

Feedback

May 26, 2007 - TESTING, TESTING, TESTING... 1, 2, 3

One of our local Harley-Davidson dealers had an open house today that included a free lunch and more importantly, the opportunity to test ride the '07 models. I've been wanting to check out the Street Bob for some time and today was the perfect opportunity to do so. I rolled in about 11:00, beat the crowd and ended up riding three bikes... a Street Bob, a Softail and the new Nightster. Below are pics and my impressions of each one.

Although I wasn't crazy about the Pewter color of the Street Bob I rode, this bike was awesome! It fit me like a glove, had a very comfortable saddle height and to my surprise was extremely peppy. In fact, I'd say for an H-D, this bike is down-right fast. The ape hangers were also a lot more comfortable than I thought they would be. No doubt about it... if I had an extra 15K laying around, this bike (in a different color) would be in my garage now, no questions asked.

I rode this Softail just because I had never ridden one before. It was OK but I wasn't blown away... and it definitely did not have the cool factor I felt when riding the Street Bob.

The Nightster just looked so cool that I had to take it for a spin. There's no question that this thing has tons of attitude but I have to say, it was not comfortable at all. The seat seemed very stiff, suspension felt just like any other Sportster (rough) and it had a pretty serious vibration in the handlebars. A pipe upgrade would be a must because the stock pipes are super-quiet and something to pep it up would be nice as well. This thing is a 1200 but I can tell you that my old 883/1200 conversion would eat it's lunch for sure.

Of course, all these comments are just my opinion and based on what I personally like so take them with a grain of salt... just observations, you know. And speaking of observations, I noticed the bike above in the parking lot. Two words for it... WAY COOL!

Feedback

May 23, 2007 - A BIG PURPLE GORILLA IN YELLOW BOXERS!

I went out for a quick ride tonight and came across an unusual site. The big purple gorilla in the yellow boxers to the right was perched atop the offices of a used car dealer just south of town so I had to stop and get a pic. I mean come on, how often do you see a big purple gorilla on one of your rides?

It's hard to tell here just how big this thing really was but man, I'm telling you, it was huge! The picture below, taken from across the street,  gives you a little better perspective. (Check out the size of the Jeeps in comparison to the gorilla's arms.)

Hmmm... I really don't know what a big purple gorilla has to do with selling cars but I'll give their marketing man a thumbs up because it sure grabbed my attention.

But back to my ride... WOW, it was really a nice night to ride. The weather was awesome and continued the string of about seven nice days in a row that we've had here in Middle Tennessee. And the good news is that it looks like the awesome riding weather will continue through the weekend., Whooo Hooo!

That's good but it does kind of create a dilemma for me when considering what to do on Saturday. There are so many events going on around Nashville that I'm torn. One dealer is hosting a big benefit ride that would be a lot of fun. Another dealer is having an open-house kind of event with free lunch and demo rides. That sounds inviting. And a town southeast of Nashville will play host to a fairly good sized Rally. What's that saying? So many places to ride, so little time.

All I can say is man, I love spring and summer! This is the kind of dilemma I've been waiting for all winter long and thank God, it's finally here!

Feedback

May 19, 2007 - A GREAT DAY OF OFF-ROADING

It was extremely dusty out there today.

I spent a few hours at the local off-road riding area today. It was beautiful but man it was dusty. We've not had any rain in the past week or so and you could sure tell it. Check out the CR's tires in the picture above... that shot was taken after one quick warm up lap around the motocross track. At one point there were 5 or 6 of us on the track and I literally had to pull off to the side because of the dust cloud we had created.  I couldn't see more than about 5 feet in front of me and there's no telling how much dirt I breathed in!

Later I got the track to myself for a while. I rode pretty hard (for me anyway) and after five laps I was about to pass out from exhaustion. It's amazing how physically abusing it is to ride motocross. It really doesn't look like it when you watch but it is a serious workout from head to toe when you are out there. I'm a little bummed because although I am riding better than I thought I ever would again, my endurance still sucks. I'm going to have to get in a lot better shape before I actually enter a race.

I spent a lot of time on the trails too and actually got a few pics that are posted here. All in all, despite the dust, it was a great day of off-roading.

Only one way out... straight up!

Edging over about a 30 foot drop.

One of the more tame parts of my ride today.

Feedback

May 18, 2007 - THUNDER ROADS MAGAZINE TENNESSEE - JUNE 2007

The June 2007 issue of Thunder Roads Magazine should be on the shelf in just a few days. This months issue is one of the best yet with a feature on the 1175th Company out of Tullahoma, Tennessee. My monthly column is about my return to riding dirt bikes and the challenges older guys like me face. Be sure and pick up a copy if you are in Tennessee or you can grab it on line in .pdf format HERE.

Feedback

May 17, 2007 - BIKE NIGHT TRIFECTA

Man I love summer! This evening I made my way to three different bike nights and it was awesome! I probably checked out more bikes in one night than I have in the past three months.

CLICK HERE to check out a few pics.

Feedback

May 16, 2007 - MY MID-WEEK RIDE... A GREAT STRESS RELIEVER

On Wednesday nights my wife goes to the local church to help out with the youth group. It gives her the opportunity to have a positive impact on some young people's lives and it gives me the opportunity to get in a quick mid-week ride! Now, I know what you are thinking... Swag ought to be in church too, and you're probably right but I've been taking these rides on Wednesday nights now for a few months and I gotta tell you that I really look forward to them. It's my little stress relief ride to get me through to the weekend... I mean look at that picture above... it was awesome tonight!

Oh yeah... and check out the funny road sign I found in the pic below. It's not every day you see a Cow Crossing sign!

Feedback

May 10, 2007 - TWO OF MY FAVORITE WORDS... BIKE NIGHT!

One of our local clubs here in Middle Tennessee held their monthly Bike Night tonight so a buddy of mine and I made the trek across town to check it out. Turn-out was pretty decent despite the forecasted showers and we had a good time as usual just checking out all the bikes. BTW... it never did rain. Here' a few pics:

The "Swag Cruiser" and my buddy's Road Glide parked on the front row.

This CBR was way cool! Looks fast just sitting there... doesn't it?

A nice Beamer... K1200R.

For 25 bucks you could have the Dyno guy tell you how much horsepower you're putting out.

The guy has a pretty slick computerized system, complete with monitors for everyone to see what the results are.

Feedback

May 7, 2007 - ONE OF MY FAVORITE ROADS... AND MY HENLEY CONNECTION

Today was one of those picture perfect days in Middle Tennessee so this morning I decided to head out for one of my favorite roads in Middle Tennessee. Highway 41 connects Murfreesboro, TN. to Jasper, TN. with lot's of curvy's and some amazing scenery that certified bike nuts like myself drool over. If you are ever making the trip between Nashville and Chattanooga, I would highly recommend that you jump off of I-24 and catch 41. It's always a great ride and today was no different.

My choice of music for the 150+ mile trip was "Hell Freezes Over" by one of my all-time favorite bands, The Eagles. I recently added the CD to my iPod because I am currently reading "To The Limit" by Marc Eliot, a book that is subtitled "The Untold Story of the Eagles". I'm diggin' it because it gives a behind-the-scenes look at one of the bands that greatly impacted my life not only as a musician but also as a human being.

In fact, the first album I remember ever buying was "On The Border" and later "Eagles, Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975" became a staple in my personal playing rotation and remains a favorite to this day. Over the years a lot of bands have provided strong musical inspiration for me but the Eagles have provided a much stronger emotional link than most of the others... and specifically Don Henley. Not only is he one of my favorite singers on the planet but his lyrics always seem to somehow strike a chord deep within me. While I'm sure he is much more to the left than I am, I still seem to relate deeply to his melancholy stylings, his questioning of societies priorities and even his quest for spiritual relevance beyond the religion of the hypocritical modern day church.

So why am I talking about this you ask?  Well, first of all it's probably obvious by now that I connect deeply with Henley but stranger than that, after spending the last few weeks in the book "To The Limit" and choosing "Hell Freezes Over" for today's ride soundtrack, what do I come across about half-way through my ride? An old convention center that pays a freakish sort of homage to the Eagles most successful project ever and perhaps Henley's most deep (though highly symbolic) lyric to date... Hotel California. I almost got a cold chill when I saw it and had to get a few pictures.

CLICK HERE to check out pics of my Highway 41 ride and yet another Henley connection.

Feedback

May 4, 2007 - VINTAGE JAPANESE AND EUROPEAN MOTORCYCLE CLUB BIKE SHOW

I had hoped to make it to the motocross track today but a nagging off-and-on drizzle changed those plans. Instead I made my way down to Sloan's Supercenter, just south of town, to check out the VJEMC bike show they were hosting. The poor weather probably hurt their turn-out but those who stayed home missed some way cool vintage bikes. As usual, I had a camera with me and snapped a few pics.

CLICK HERE to check out my pics from the VJEMC bike show.

Feedback