June 2008 - All Members Of The Family Buzz's Shifting Gears Discuss June 2008 - All Members Of The Family in the American Iron Magazine forums; SHIFTING GEARS All Members Of The Family by Buzz Kanter The Harley family comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Some members are flesh and blood; others are steel ...

[Buzz Kanter]

SHIFTING GEARS
All Members Of The Family
by Buzz Kanter

The Harley family comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Some members are flesh and blood; others are steel and chrome. But we are all members of that family. We can all enjoy this passion, regardless of whether we’re a new rider throwing his leg over the saddle for the first time, or someone who’s been riding and rebuilding machines since Panheads were new on the showroom floor. Well, perhaps not that long, as I was 11 years old when the Panhead was replaced with the Shovelhead in 1966, but you get my drift here.

Most of us have at least one favorite motorcycle manufacturer, model, and year. Some of us are lucky enough to have that dream machine in our garages, others of us dream of the day we do. Considering what it costs to own and maintain a motorcycle, it really does take passion and dedication to be a rider these days. And I’ve always been happy to share that passion with other riders -- regardless of what they own, or what I happen to be riding at the time.

So I have to scratch my head in wonder when I hear one rider knock another based only on what the other person rides. Can someone please tell me what’s wrong with owning a Harley Sportster, V-Rod, or trike? How can anyone deride a Sportster as simply “a girl’s bike” when it’s been Harley’s fastest and most flickable motorcycle for years? And how can anyone claim a V-Rod isn’t a “real Harley” just because it’s liquid-cooled? I have owned and ridden a bunch of Sportsters over the years, had a 1941 Harley trike, and currently own a V-Rod, and I found them all to be excellent and fun machines. Just because a person rides something different doesn’t make him better or worse -- just different. So, if you feel all riders are part of the family, as I do, who cares what they own? It’s the riding that counts, not what you ride.

TO RIDE OR POLISH … OR BOTH?
In the next couple of months, we roll into the heart of prime riding season. And we have dozens of organized motorcycle events to check out. Plus, we have hundreds of places and roads worth exploring on two wheels. And all of us here at the magazine encourage you to do just that. Get out and ride! I can’t list them all in my column, but here are a few events that I am hoping to get to in the next month or two. Regardless of whether it’s a classic bike show, big-time rally, or mini-tour, remember it’s often not the destination, but the journey that counts. So climb on, turn off your cell phone, and rediscover the joy of the open road.

Myrtle Beach Bike Week: Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, May 9-18. One of the big national rallies. Info: www.MyrtleBeachBikeWeek.com.

Riding Into History: World Golf Village in St Augustine, Florida, May 17. Meet Hall of Famer and Harley racer Mert Lawwill. Activities include a pair of organized rides to the activities, a concourse bike show, and a charity biker’s ball. Info: www.RidingIntoHistory.com.

V-Rod Midwest Thunder: Buchanan, Michigan, June 6-8. Track day on Saturday, June 7 at Osceola, Iowa. Email for info: MidwestThunder@V-Rod.com.

AMCA Super Rally: Rhinebeck, New York, June 13-15. A world-class event for classic-bike fans. American Iron Magazine is sponsoring the Rust-Or-Shine Motorcycle Classic June 14 and the Timeline of motorcycles made every year starting in the 1890s. Info: www.AIMag.com or www.AntiqueMotorcycle.org.

Laconia Motorcycle Week: Laconia, New Hampshire, June 14-22, another one of the big national rallies. Info: www.LaconiaMCWeek.com.

S&S 50th Anniversary: La Crosse, Wisconsin, June 27-29. Features a competition between 50 of the world’s top custom builders for $50,000 in prizes. Meet these builders up close and personal. And there’s plenty more going on in these festivities, including drag racing, factory tours, and a ride-in bike show. Info: www.SSCycle50th.com

J&P Open House: Anamosa, Iowa, June 28. J&P Cycles might be the biggest mail-order motorcycle-parts company in the world, and its annual open house never disappoints. Info: http://www.JPCycles.com/MotorcycleEvents.aspx.

Ride safe, ride smart, have fun.

Buzz Kanter
Publisher/Editor-In-Chief

[JayDee]

So Buzz, how many of those events did you make it to?

And how many of them are going to be shown in American Iron Magazine?