I remember riding in the back of my parents '69 Barracuda somewhere near Cleveland, Ohio, and hearing a rumbling and sitting up to look out the window. I saw pair after pair of black bikes going by. I could tell that my parents were nervous for some reason. Then I remember my mom telling me to just look, no waving, silly faces or anything else. Kind of left me with the impression that they were bad people. That feeling lasted for a long time. I rode dirt bikes since I was 8 and when it came time to buy a street bike I wouldn't get a Harley, until I rode with a group of guys from church. I was riding the only Jap bike in the group. We parked in the "motorcycle only" parking at Battlefield Harley in Gettysburg and I was still the only Jap bike rider amongst hundreds of Harleys. To my delight no one said a negative word about it. I even got some nice compliments on my V-Star. Then I went inside and saw a brand new Ultra for the first time. The rest is history.

 

when I was a young boy 7 or 8 years old my dad took me camping . there was a bunch of taverns down the road at an old river town and a group of bikers had been down there partying apparently they were feeling pretty good because when they left they made a wrong turn and before they got stopped a couple of them rode right past our camp and into the river.

 

My Dad had a Pan head Electraglide and rode meeverwhere. I loved riding, back then that motorcycle was huge.
As far as"Bikers", I read about them in Easyriders back in the70's but didn't see any till my first Daytona in 1977. They were scary looking, free spirited people that are hard to find these days.

 

I remember my brother who is much older than I am joining and riding with the Jokers in Michigan. For years I thought you had to be a funny person to join the Jokers, most of them were hillarious and did some of the stupidist things you ever saw on and off of scooters. I laughed my *** off at them more than once.

My brother died 12 years ago and here I sit at the age of 42 thinking back on my brother and the Jokers and I have a big smile on my face. Thanks Dastark for starting this thread which brought back fond memories of my brother. Nobody truly dies if they are remembered.

 

As soon as my memory cells developed I was surrounded by my dad and his friends bikes. They've always been there.

 

By Uncle is/was a 1%er. To the n'th degree. My first biker memory is him rolling into our small home town with a couple buddies. They would head over and grab my dad to come fix on thier bikes. My old man is a wizz with motors and they all knew it.

I was scared shitless of my uncle for the longest time, because of those memories. But I was intrigued with bikers always. He still looks like a rough ol biker and he is even one of the head instructors at MMI in Phoenix but here is the kicker. He rides BMW bikes now....doesn't want anything else.

 

Probably CHiPs.

 

That is a great statement!

 

Not only can I tell you my first memory, I can tell you the bike. My dad owned a gas station in Brooklyn and rented out the back two bays to this guy Joe. Joe had a bad leg but this guy John (his brother, don't remember), who worked for him had a KZ900. Awesome almost all original with the wire wheels. Every chance I'd get I'd go back and check out the bike. Must have been the late 60's and I couldn't have been 7 or 8.
Probably served to keep me away from bikes for a while because these guys were crazy - Joe got hurt on a bike on Coney Island Avenue, and their friend Russel changed lanes on his Virago in the Battery Tunnel and they had to pick him up with a sponge.
Guy later worked for my mom taking a truck outta the house to fix peoples cars in front of peoples houses (Mike B) and left his KZ450 at the house. He used to leave me the keys so I could ride (first time) till my mom caught me at like 14 with my then 5 or 6 year old brother on the back. When Mike B and Steve S upgraded to matching Honda 750/4's I lost riding priveledges.
Thanks to these guys me and my younger brother both caught the bug and have H-D's...

 

First time i reeally noticed a bike was in 60 or 61....i was a little kid and remember going to the doctors office for something with my Mom..{ our family Dr. was actor Carroll O'connor's brother..ya know..Archie Bunker} and he always had a big blue Electra Glide parked outside the office. Once he was leaving as we pulled in, and the sound had me hooked! A few years later the biker movies finished the job on me.....Sadly,just a few years later, Dr, O'conner died in an accident on his bike in an unmarked road construction site.....