4 or 5 yrs old one of my Dad's friends pulled into our driveway on a Harley (of course did not know the difference then)Always remembered the look,the sound,and getting scolded Do Not Touch!! it is very hot!Been hooked ever since.

 

I was putting a couple of gallons in my Dyna at the gas station yesterday while out for a Sunday ride....some young guy pulled in with a very nicely restored 280z...pre ZX days. As I was pulling away I had to pull up next to him and comment "very nice to see an old original on the road!" with a thumbs up. I miss seeing those original Z's around.

To answer the thread topic....since being a little kid I've had an addiction to riding anything with a motor (engine..lol). Go-karts, friends of mine that had older brothers that had dirt bikes we'd often ride in the fields. My uncle had an old Vespa scooter..the 3 spd shifter on the left handlebar..I used to ride that around the backroads for so long he'd get pissed at me for being gone too long. I also did a paper route...and this guy down the street that I delivered to had a Peugeot moped that he'd let me borrow sometimes to finish my paper route on.

My dad was a gearhead, into classic cars, european sports cars, american muscle, old airplanes, and Harley Sportsters..simple lean and black. So all though growing up, he got my ear tuned to engines and their sounds..and learning to appreciate the better engines out there and their unique sounds. Naturally Harleys stand out from the crowd. Although in my younger years I started out on a rather boring beginner street bike..a Honda CM400. And then in college, my roommate had a 1980something Honda 650 special..a little nicer with more meat to it, enjoyed country roads on that.

Most of my early to mid adult years was spent bikeless...my "toy" money was focused on boats...fast boats. I had a house on the water, so a dock in my backyard. And my circle of friends brought along PWCs..so our meets at the beach involved a big thrill as I'd spend a lot of time on "water scoots". The more potent PWCs were incredible fun for me...you can get similar grins and thrills to what you get on a bike, and the bonus...you can get crazy with them..if you wipe out and fall off...who cares, you only hit the water...climb back on and take off again.

Fast forward a few years, a few divorces (2)...and other girlfriends, hooked up with a girl that spent her entire life from toddler on up around Harleys, so spending time with her circle of friends started to bring back my old affections for them. Ended up moving away from my home town, to where she is, sold my house, got married to her (marriage number 3...just shoot me if this one tanks)....and recently got the bike in sig pic. She loves riding on the back.

Similar to 60's and early 70's big American musclecars....Harleys have that sound of effortless pure grunt power....and that's one of the big things that puts a grin on my face....the sounds my right hand can elicit from it. And feeling my wife rest her chin atop my shoulder as we ride travel down the roads.

 

Dad rode a '48 Chief. Mom rode with him while she was pregnant with me & Dad had me on the tank when I was still in diapers. Guess it's in the blood. (BTW. I rode my own when I was preggers with both my girls & my oldest is riding pregnant now)

 

What did it and does it for me is that I'll just jump on my bike and ride . Just going where ever and ending up in places I've never been . So what's hooked me is the places I would have never seen and the people I would have never met if I didn't ride .

 

One of my neighbors who was 5 or 6 years older had an old AJS that he rode when he could get it started. It was loud! Some times he would kick and kick trying to get it started. I thought it was pretty cool! I started off on dirt bikes at 13 or 14. Mostly rode back trails! When I got out of the Navy in 70,I bought a street bike. Been through a bunch of bikes over the years! Don't enjoy riding as much as I once did! Probably the traffic and aches and pains you get as you get older. Not sure how much longer I will ride. I've tried to quit a couple times but always seem to end up with a bike in the garage. I'm 62 and hope I still ride a little when I'm in my 70's,might be on a trike or one of those scooters from the scooter store

 

In the 1950's, my brother played ball after school and when he got home it was after dark, walking along country roads, no lights, and every animal you can think of. So, my father figured it was safer and faster if he had wheels, being only 10, he was too small for a car, so he bought him a cushman scooter. He would ride me all around on that thing, me standing in front of him so he could hold me and keep me safe.

Fast forward to the 1960's, brother needed a way to roll, so dad bought him a Piaggio (Vespa now), and again, he rode me everywhere on that thing.

When I turned 14, my father said that I needed wheels so he bought me my first ridable motorcycle, a 1964 Honda 305 Super Hawk. I rode that thing in all kinds of weather for two years, then bought a car (kept the bike).

Enter the Air Force, and learned to fly (privately) and forgot all about bikes and hot cars (still pursued the hot girls), wanted, still do, my own airplane. Anyway, all my money went to flying.

Jump to the 2000's, my Marine son comes home with a bike and my wife wants me to buy one and ride with him. Bought a 1994 Yamaha Virago 750. This re-ignited the desire to have a Harley. Found a plane I wanted, but the ground costs are now so high I had to forget, then up pops a used Harley for $500 more than the cost of the airplane, so I bought it instead. Still enjoying it even though my son has had his fill of bikes.

Every once in a while he will ride my Harley but still not ready to get back on bikes.

 

When I was five years old - several friends and families of my parents got together for an outdoor fish fry. A man road in on a Harley that my dad worked with - everyone was gathered around looking it over. He offered me a ride and my dad sat me on the seat. Got a ride for maybe 100 yards and back. When we got back, I tried to get off by myself and burned my leg on the pipe. It was loud and I loved it and I remembered it for years until I got my Honda 300 Scrambler at age 16.

 

When I was 5-7 years old, a bunch of 70's type "East Rider" looking bikers, hundreds of them, used to have a rally every summer about 200 yards from my house. I started buying toy motorcycles, chopper trading cards, model motorcycles, etc., when I was a youngster but I wasn't allowed to have a real one as a child and couldn't afford one as a teen. Got a Honda CB 750 from my brother in my 20's and started riding then, but I never "really" got into it until I got my first Harley a couple of years ago.

 

This Guy...

 

When I was maybe 10 years old in the early 70's my mom's boy friend taught us to ride a Honda 90 step through. My mom bought us each one and from there it has only grown into a family hobby.