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Years ago, I started this thread over at Sportster section and enjoyed reading many stories on how people got into Harleys, specially the ones with pictures of their fathers and older brothers and their old Harley bikes and in some cases metrics. If you havent already posted there then I would like to read yours.
Nobody in my family rode a motorcycle. I had a cousin who owned one of those automatic Hondas, forgot the model, but it was made in 70s and easy to ride. He was several years older than me and would not let me touch the bike ( he was a mean cousin over all). I was 12.
One weekend, they were visiting for lunch. I somehow got the hold of the key and rolled the bike down the street and started it up. With some trial and error I figured it out and rode away. A big smile was on my face when passing my bicycle buddies on the street.
I remember my biggest concern was how to stop the bike smoothly so it didnt choke and throw me off in the air. Anyways, when I got back to our street I could see my cousin waiting up front, mad with anger. I am not proud of what happened next, but I think over all it worth it.
My parents would not let me have a motorcycle. I got busy with school and then marriage and forgot all about the love for riding. But it never died.
After I changed jobs years back there was this motorcycle dealer on my way to work. One day I stopped by and almost bought a Honda Shadow Phantom. And then I saw a 48, and I had to have it.
1982ish, me and a buddy were skateboarding in the neighborhood (all baked up) a guy down the street from my house just bought a 1980 wide glide, black with fireball flame. It was like a religious experience looking at that bike. I had dirt bikes as a kid. I had sportster and a black trans am when I was first married, then when my wife was pregnant with my first child I sold them. A year latter I was driving a Plymouth horizon. Flash forward I was 30 something did some stone work for a buddy an took his sportster as payment. Then I saw in 2010 the new wide glides reminded me of that 1980 one that I fell in love with so long ago, I bought my 2012. This past winter I added my Fxr . I am now 50 and I guess I am gonna do the bagger thing sooner or later. But I want to be baried with my wide glide!
No cool stories of in laws, friends or close family members with Harleys. But I'm a 70s child and have lusted for a Harley since a young buc. Easy Rider and chromed out choppers help me realize that one day I'd own one. Took me many years on the dirt via motocross, crotch rockets during college and finally a metric cruiser when I became a Dad to finally realize it's time to make that lusting dream a reality. Per some of the BS I read on here, I can honestly say I made the right choice at the right time with my Dyna...saur! She's no chopper but she's mine and will say she'll be with me until I give it to my son someday. Then he can come back here and tell his story about his Daddy's ride and how he's making it his own ride...he's 7.
No cool stories of in laws, friends or close family members with Harleys. But I'm a 70s child and have lusted for a Harley since a young buc. Easy Rider and chromed out choppers help me realize that one day I'd own one. Took me many years on the dirt via motocross, crotch rockets during college and finally a metric cruiser when I became a Dad to finally realize it's time to make that lusting dream a reality. Per some of the BS I read on here, I can honestly say I made the right choice at the right time with my Dyna...saur! She's no chopper but she's mine and will say she'll be with me until I give it to my son someday. Then he can come back here and tell his story about his Daddy's ride and how he's making it his own ride...he's 7.
1982ish, me and a buddy were skateboarding in the neighborhood (all baked up) a guy down the street from my house just bought a 1980 wide glide, black with fireball flame. It was like a religious experience looking at that bike. I had dirt bikes as a kid. I had sportster and a black trans am when I was first married, then when my wife was pregnant with my first child I sold them. A year latter I was driving a Plymouth horizon. Flash forward I was 30 something did some stone work for a buddy an took his sportster as payment. Then I saw in 2010 the new wide glides reminded me of that 1980 one that I fell in love with so long ago, I bought my 2012. This past winter I added my Fxr . I am now 50 and I guess I am gonna do the bagger thing sooner or later. But I want to be baried with my wide glide!
I can relate.
When I was a kid back in the 70s I caught "Gimme Shelter" on the local PBS station while flipping through the channels. When I saw those bikes I thought 'cool'. That was my first dose.
Fast forward to the early 80s I was at a "Labor Day Weekend Bash" party and the guy throwing the party had a Wide glide sitting in his living room.
That bike was beautiful, unlike all the Japanese crap you would see on the streets during those times.
The FXWG <86 is still my dream bike.
Last edited by JustDave13; Sep 2, 2017 at 08:33 AM.
needed an upgrade from my honda training wheels... never wanted a harley, even said as much to the sales folks at the hd dealer where i took my MSF.
first bike was a vt500c from the 80's,
honestly a great bike and i'm sorry i sold it. the person i bought it from dropped it and i didn't even notice when i bought it but, over weeks of staring at it and starting to fix/rehab the bike... it hit me that the bike had been dropped or something on the right side.... restored it to new like condition while learning to ride. learned all the carb fails like riding off and not turning fuel on, loose fuel hoes.....whole 9. got on the highway and enjoyed!!!
once the honeymoon wore off, i realized the bike was a great starter and time to move on. i was going to buy a sport bike but, i stumbled on to a sporty with 187 miles on it for cheap. i went to see it and owner turned on the bike.... i handed him the money about a minute later. no test ride.... i just felt it. been my best buddy ever since. love my sporty!!!!!!
vt500c got me ready for wrenching on the sporty... once i started, i was hooked. rolling hobby kit. changed my life
saw dual disk wide glide fxr in one of the worst movies ever made...
Never really considered anything else. Maybe a Guzzi here and there. My familiy has been riding exclusively Harleys since the 50s. My parents were pictured in Easy Rider once. There's only two of us left now. My uncle has a '63 Electra and I have the first and only Dyna.
Bikes were big in my immediate family. My dad was military, and his thing was Brit and Euro bikes. We had Triumphs, BSAs, and Ducatis around. I was on 2 wheels at 6, with a new Z50, as grandpa owned their local Honda shop.
Multitudes of dirt bikes from there, and a few weeks after high school grad, I bought a GSXR750. My first and smallest street machine.
My father's friends had Harleys when he was on his Trimuphs, and my years on sport bikes threw me into the mix with Harley riders, and I told my wife when we went on our first ride together at age 19 "someday, we will be on a Harley" she never believed it.
23 years, and piles of liter and bigger bikes, I kept looking for that Harley that would tip me over to the dark side. Then the FXDLS hit the market. My best friend was on a Night Train, and the timing was perfect. I traded in my beloved Hayabusa, and we have been having a blast. I am an HD Convert
How did you get into Harleys?
and here we are.
