There was a time, long before mine.. where if you said the Japanese would dominate the motorcycle market … people would have said you were nuts.
And yet… I dare say that I would have looked at this and have seen it coming. Apparently HD sold Japan the rights to build the design in the Pacific Rim. I might get beat up for saying it…but mow they build a better Harley than Harley does…at a lower price.
I believe it may reflect a larger, more unpalatable truth: HD abandoned that market, and the people in it. The kid that needs a cheap ride back and forth to school, the old stubfart that needs a small bike to putt around town, the teenager that yearns for the open road. They dumped all of them to chase the more affluent customers because they meant higher margins and a better return on investment. Nothing personal, America! It’s just business! Only elderly yuppies can afford American pride now.
It’s not just HD, it’s all of ‘em. I don’t think this will end well for anyone.
I always wanted one of the earlier Ural motorcycles with the sidecar. 2WD!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.ural.com/
Yep. The first Jap motorcycles were terrible, just like their cars. But they persevered with both until they dominated. The 70's Jap motorcycles were the greatest value of any form of transportation ever. Reagan slapped the 100% tariffs on 'em in 82 to help HD and that ended the affordable fun. Fuckers.
ReplyDeleteWish I had a garage full of them. You only know what to 'collect' in hindsight.
In the past, I had a Honda 550, which was considered a good commuter bike. It had all the acceleration I needed, was fuel efficient, and dependable. At that time, Harley's were an AMF bike, and the old Harley fans considered them crap. They'd leak oil on the showroom floor and were far from dependable.
ReplyDeleteI like motorcycles, but don't care for most of the people that don't own one, or understand they're not bicycles to be ignored by drivers. That's why I don't own one, and don't recommend them for anyone that doesn't understand the complete awareness needed to ride one.
My brother, while riding one Sunday morning on a low traffic road, was rewarded with a distracted women that pulled out of a side street with her head turned and talking to her friend. He t-boned the driver's door and lasted for only a few minutes after the collision. She said she never saw him, which translates into "I was distracted because I'm a dumbass not paying attention."
When my sons wanted a motorcycle, I told them no. You can do everything right and die anyway.
DeleteI had a buddy that was minding his own business coming home after work, when a dog ran out in front. He couldn't miss it, hit the dog, dropped his bike at 55mph and broke his collar bone. Another buddy had the same thing happen as your brother. He survived it, but just. That was way before today's distractions.
Similar thing happened to a guy that worked for me. Riding with his girlfriend on the back, T-boned the rear door of a car that pulled out from a side street. He went head-first through the window and looked like hamburger for a while. His girlfriend went over top of him and head first into the edge of the car roof. She was Zucchini in a wheel chair for the rest of her life.
DeleteI had the same thing happen to me, Jess. The guy ran a stop sign right in front of me. He was in too big a hurry to get out there. I clobbered him - couldn't help it. It totaled my truck and totaled his motorcycle. Fortunately, neither of us was hurt except for some road rash on him.
DeleteOh, wait? Did you possibly think distracted or dumb ass driving was limited to "cagers"? Nope. I share your disdain for distracted drivers, but morons are everywhere. The biggest difference between the cager and the donercycle is who walks away and who doesn't.
I used to ride, but it seemed like every time I went out riding, something happened to me. I had one too many narrow escapes, and sold my bike. I'm not sorry I did, but at the same time I liked to ride. It's just the idiots you share the road with that give me pause.
ReplyDeleteThat's why you need the sidecar with the 50 cal.
DeleteMr. Graves said the first Yamaha he saw was on Iwo Jima. He said they shot the rider off it and then inspected the bike pretty closely.
ReplyDeleteHis enlistment story went like this: He and buddy rode his Indian up to the Lubbock bus depot, left the bike idling on the curb and caught the bus to the Marine Corps depot in California for training. That was 1943ish.... We thought he had a cool scar on his cheek, I asked about it once. It was from being shot in the face in combat.
One of my mentors.
I've said for many years that I have an all-American, red-blooded reason for owning Honda's. They're a superior product, and it's only 'Murican to want the best.
ReplyDeleteI started with a CB350 in 1971. My parents would not co-sign a loan, so I scrimped and saved and bought it cash. Traded up to a 550, and put a lot of miles on it until the risks and hazards of the road just took all the fun out of it.
Have an uncle who was a Harley biker from way, way back. Taught me the three fundamental commandments of motorcycles: 1. You are invisible. 2. Everyone else on the road IS trying to kill you. 3. You are not the master of the machine (It can get away from you faster than you can blink). He, and his wife, dumped the Harley at highway speeds twice, and walked away each time. Luck, yes, but they both wore full leathers, head to toe.
I am going to stay on my big cruiser for now but I hear ya. Unfortunately in high summer I just can't take the heat and I am picky where I ride. I am mostly on the highways up here in AB and things are not as crowded as they are in places among the lower 48. I have lots of visibility, and I know all about asshole drivers. In high population centres they're unavoidable.
DeleteI rode a Harley in 1976, not impressed, was the last time I rode one (really? They couldn't figure out syncros?)
DeleteI rode Yamaha's, Honda's, and one Suzuki 500 enduro. My last bike was a 1986 Honda 600 enduro. Sold it in 2008, wish I hadn't, but the bank, real estate, stock market fiasco wiped out my real estate appraisal busines, fall-back-to-tree service and savings in East County, San Diego. Never fully recovered. Being a tard ain't for pussies, neither is being old and I certainly don't advise both at the same time. Still happily married to my big assed, wasp waisted, red headed girl friend of 47 years. I'm more fortunate than most, thank the Lord, karma and good luck (technically I don't believe in luck, but it's a stretch to credit the Lord and karma for my overly, overwhelmingly, unlikely good fortune so far.)
Hang in there eddybody the big picture is going to get way worse, but our individual situations could be relatively peachy.
daughter wanted motorcycle lessons
ReplyDeletehusband said no
used to work in a hospital and said the worst things he saw there were motorcycle accident victims
daughter wanted motorcycle lessons
ReplyDeletehusband said no
used to work in a hospital and said the worst things he saw there were motorcycle accident victims