Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Tips on how to become a real Biker

Back in the day, 1964?, I bought a 1948 Mod 74 with a strong motor for $250. It was the last year of the spring fork. Looked like it had been painted red with a paint brush, but the leather bags were nice and wifey and I rode it proudly. Only leather worn was the hat with the small hard brim and the gold wings. Wouldn't that one be nice to own now?

LMAO!!! That is priceless!!

"Mein Furhrer, we were not able to rent Harleys. We rented... Gold Wings!"

I think a lot of people get too hung up over what constitutes a "real" biker. IMHO, you don't have to be a 1%er to be a "biker". There's a lot of bikers who live The Life who have never broken a law, and to be a 1%er, an outlaw biker gang member, you have to pretty much be a criminal or dang close to it. Are 1%er's bikers? Absolutely. But so are non-outlaw motorcycle club members who put thousands of miles on their bikes every year in the name of their favorite charity, or their faith, or whatever.

I really enjoyed Jay Barbieri's book that came out a few years ago, for the fact that he made it clear that being a "biker" is nothing more than being someone who takes motorcycles and motorcycle riding as a serious pursuit, and makes it a major part of their lifestyle. Harleys are desirable for many bikers, but there are others who love their Hondas and their BMW's, and they're no less bikers than the serious Harley lovers.

I know a guy who has a garage full of Harleys, and never rides. He has maybe 2000 miles of pavement under his ass in his lifetime, by his own admission. As far as I'm concerned, even though he shows up at local rallies in his immaculate leathers on one of his Milwaukee Steamrollers, he ain't a biker. He reminds me of the guys who come out to the gun club every week in their trap vest and hat, uncase a beautiful $15,000 Perazzi, put it in the rack, then sit and drink beer without ever firing a shot. Those guys aren't hunters, and they aren't necessarily posers, but they sure ain't shooters.



Right. I ain't no shadetree mechanic, nor will I ever be. I change my oil, do routine maintenance on fluids and so forth, but I leave the real mechanical work to the real mechanics. The LAST thing I want to do is have my bike break down on me in the middle of BFE because of a bone-head amateur mechanic's screw-up. I have huge respect for the guys who can fix anything on their bike (and frequently enough, someone else's) with an amazingly small but complete tool kit they carry in one of their saddlebags.

I hear you. My ministry is to bikers & I deal with 1%er's on a regular basis. I ride a Honda & detest the wanna be's behavior.

Define wannabe behavior, will you?

Saw it at Mule Creek Junction during this last Bike Week. The Full Throttle Saloon sold a shirt with their logo on it deliberatley made to look like 1%er colors.

I am there every year passing out water to bikers. I see quite a few that trailer their bikes that far & then ride on up to Sturgis.

There are motorcyclists and there are bikers. I have no problem with either one. A person just needs to be honest with who they are. A motorcyclist is one who rides as a pleasant thing to do. Whether it is 10 or 10,000 miles a year. A biker is one to whom motorcycles are a way of life. I know one guy in NM who has logged over 250,000 miles on his way of life.

To me a wanna be is one who buys a motorcycle to buy into the bad guy image and look cool. What they want is the image.

Well, I don't think you've answered my question yet. Define "way of life". When, exactly, does one's hobby become a passion, and one's passion become a "way of life"? What's the dividing line?

That's where I get confused in all this biker/not-a-biker discrimination business.

Is it possible that someone could have made motorcycling their "way of life" for more years than you've had hot dinners, then because they physically can't ride that many miles any more and trailers their bike up to Mule Creek Junction so they can ride the last 200 miles has proven over a liftime that he is actually more of a biker than you are? And because they're doing something that appears to you to be unworthy of bikerdom, you're unjustifiably condemning them?

Now, I'm not trying to pick a fight with you here. I'm just sayin' that most of us find posers to be a PITA. But the older I get, the less secure I am in my assessment of who constitutes a "poser" and who constitutes the genuine article. Hunter, shooter, biker, whatever.

Anybody who buys fake merchandise to try to look like a 1%er when they're not is nuts, so on that score you and I are in accord.

Plenty of cool bikes available but I like Harleys the best and don't see the need for anyone to apologise for owning and enjoying one.... but riding a harley and looking down your nose at a Suzuki ain't cool.

...have never really understood the concept or fascination with the 1% crap.

I have been riding Bikes since I was 14.Thats 53 years ago.I ride from anywhere from 5,000 miles to 20,000 in a year.Riding Bikes is part of my life,but not my life.I also like to Hunt,fish.I belong to The Vietnam Vets MC but am not a 1%`er.Yes I have long hair and tats,but got those in the Military not at any stupid rally.Does any of this make me a biker???WGAFF!!!!!

I only got 25,000 miles + 73,000 miles + 40,000 miles + 46,000 miles + 56,000 miles, or about 240,000 lifetime miles. So your NM friend has me beat. OTOH, it seems Huntz might have us both beat together...

Of my grand total, maybe seven or eight thousand were 1,000 mile days riding non-stop while crossing the country. A 1,000 mile day is a pretty cool thing, just amazing to climb on in San Antone at 5am and climb off at 11pm at a rest area somewhere east of Nashville

I've done only about 10,000 of that total miles in the last ten years, and about 5,000 of THOSE were on a single can-I-still-do-this trip to New York and back last year.

But personally, I have never found the ability to ride a motorcycle for long hours to be a claim to any sort of special machismo. It DOES amaze me tho that this plain ol' 650 dirt bike can carry me so far, so fast...



...as to the greater topic, maybe Huntz said it best... WGAF?

Birdwatcher

I've been pondering if a Harley is on my bucket list or not.

Maybe one of them nifty Sportys, set up a bit taller so as to be able to hustle down a backroad.

But if'n I cant do 1,000 miles in a day on it I'll be disappointed

Birdwatcher

Birdie, I'd go chain drive if anything approaching a dirt road is in your Harley future.

I like the smoothness of the "Rubber Band" drive, but it is very susceptible to damage from small objects between the belt and sprocket.

I just sold my last bike, A WideGlide. Back to giving boats a hard time, sliming them up with fish.

I'm not a motorcycle guy but a coworker lent me a book of Peter Egan's short stories a while back and he certainly makes me want to have one sometime when I am far far away from the moronic drivers around here.

I kept company for a period of time with a girl who rode her own Harley (shovelhead, an older admirer had given it to her). Best of all she used to let me ride it sometines while she rode on my "ahem"... Japanese motorcycle.


One time we passed this passel of bikers coming the other way and me and them all waved at each other to beat the band. 'cept none of them waved at her because she was on a Japanese bike

That was obviously back in the day when you could still TELL a Harley from a clone at a glance. Last time I was at an actual biker bar a red Softail pulls in, and so help me until I looked close I thought it was one of them new Kawasakis

Birdwatcher

Didn't one of those guys from The Village People ride a Harley ?

Hey, Mark

Ya gonna ride that Rocon to Sturgis?? Better keep that nice leather jacket limbered up.

Just axin...

I must have became a "real biker" without knowing it. I don't know just how many miles I have in but it's sure to be well over 200 thousand.
Up until now I thought I was just a guy who liked to ride. :grin
I've done Sturgis a couple of times but If I go next year I will trailer the bike because it's tough to haul a big ass tent and several days worth of camping gear on the back. I've always done it up and back as a day trip but I'd like to be able to stay around for a while

Iron Butt Rally...

http://www.ironbuttrally.com/IBR/default.cfm

...11,000 miles in eleven days...

...do THAT Grasshopper and you will be a for-real no-s&&t biker.



In my best years I never even came close...

Birdwatcher

A friend does this on a 1927 Harley.I have an old Indian,but am not up to doing this Ride!!
http://www.motorcyclecannonball.com/

I suspect real bikers don't watch Youtube.