You may have to be older to appreciate and understand this.

I had two occasions to travel through York, PA, recently, coming home to eastern PA from a work trip in northern VA. If you don't already know, HD has an assembly plant in York, PA. While I've lived in PA most of my life and there's a LOT of motorcycle riders in PA, I never before experienced what I could only call "Harley country."

It was a Friday both times on my return trip from northern VA, and people, men and women, were riding their bikes in and around the town and countryside, about their business of living, perhaps some were on lunch break, and they were just wearing ordinary clothes and gear, nothing that stood out nor any speed demons. What struck me as just plain neat was they were living and riding machines made in the USA; assembled right there in their community, where at least part of their employers dollars and their own wages remain. This is part of what America was once all about; people using products that were made in their own country - you worked and provided goods and services for your community and got paid a living wage to do so; and your neighbors provided other goods and services for your community. They were local inhabitants, and I got to talk to a man and a woman, both of whom worked at the York facility. They were nice civil people. I saw others gathered at local establishments. I can only imagine it was like this in the early part of the 20th century - descent people working and living together in towns all over the nation - and using each other's services and goods.

I understand HD has gone corporate and I know they're no longer a privately owned company; they outsource parts, and have to compete in a global economy, fight against unions, layoffs, reduce benefits, etc., and its probably like this for Ford and Chevy as well. But, I can attest that Harley country, for lack of a better word, still lives, at least around York, PA.

I wish I took the time to take some pictures those days...but like the sign of the times I was in a rush for work and getting things done. Time did seem to slow down though, and it was a neat experience.

 

Go into Pennsylvania a lot mostly northeast Pa . Definitely still Harley country . Great to see.

 

I live in NEPA. Good roads and scenery. There are a lot of Harley riders here.

 

When I was based in Norfolk my family lived in the Winchester/Shenandoah Valley area of northern Va. I've never rode in a more beautiful part of the US (maybe the Black Hills is close) and found that area to be packed with bikes and Indie shops.

 

You'll see much of the same here in Wisconsin. From April to November Harleys are everywhere, far outnumber the metric iron from what I can see.
Part of that I'm sure is due to Milwaukee being the birthplace of Harley and all, but generally just a lot of good, hardworking folks around here that work hard to have their Harleys and take pride in them. Not many rat bikes around.

 

Although born in VA I have never visited the state. The state of RI as far as I have seen for 10 years has the highest concentration of Harleys I have seen except for rallies in some states. They seem to be everywhere. Maybe its the ocean air. Areas i'm talking about are Narraganset, Point Judith, Middletown, Portsmouth and sometimes Newport.

 

PA Abate is one of the best mrf's and maybe the largest in the country. They have considerable political clout..... And have some pretty good events.

 

Was just through PA 2 months ago. I had never experienced so many motorcycles just in general. I saw more people riding in PA than I see in Southern California. Not only did I see more motorcycles, but they were ALL harleys. No street bikes, no other cruisers, just harleys, harleys everywhere. All of em just cruisin. Almost no sportsters. See a lot of sportys here in california, but I saw almost none in PA.

I did feel really bad for the ones I saw stuck in traffic though. I can't imagine not lane splitting, my ***** would roast, I'm air cooled. I see why not many people were riding sportsters though, if you're going to be stuck in traffic, might as well get something big and comfy.

 

I grew up in South Eastern Pennsylvania. Where I grew up was so South East Pennsylvania that my High School District shared the Delaware and Maryland borders. York/Lancaster is about a 45 minute drive down Route 41 from there. A lovely area for riding late April till maybe early November. Can be done most of the year round, save for ice and snow, but not always in any sort of a comfortable fashion. A very nice place to visit . . . but California has it all over Pennsylvania . . . and I've lived half my life each area . . . except for a decade I spent one year in Detroit. Oh, and as lovely as the Black Hills are; and everyone should have the pleasure of visiting there as well, the Black Hills don't hold a candle to either Pennsylvania or California.

 

Pa has its share of Harley riders and miles and miles of great roads with easy access to the north east and south east regions. They only problem with Pa is the miles and time it takes to get to the incredible riding in the north west.