I am not a biker or part of the biker culture. And I do not enjoy the deafening roar of bikes with straight pipes – a sore point with many city residents. However, I do appreciate a well-engineered and pleasant-looking machine. And this Harley, with its gleam and striking satin finish parked on the Lower East Side, is partly that. Partly, because there are aspects of the engine and bike engineering that are archaic and could be improved (actually, some changes are being made with newer models), but due to the strong cult phenomenon which has grown around Harley, many aspects of the early design have been kept.
Harley-Davidson as a company is a fascinating story. Founded in 1903, the company was nearly bankrupt by 1969 – the image of the outlaw biker was partly to blame, along with deteriorating quality and proliferation of Japanese motorcycles which were less expensive, better-made, and had superior performance. In the 1980s, the company was resold and, under new management, began its ascent. Rather than attempting to compete with the Japanese, the company marketed Harley’s retro factor. There are many things associated with Harleys: chopper customizations, the unique “potato-potato” sound of the engine, hardtails, etc.
The marketing of the historic aspect of a product brand is a smart move seen with many legacy businesses such as Levis, Coca Cola, Disney, Lego, etc. It also readily lends itself to product line extension and licensing (Harley sells accessories and apparel). In the late 1990s, there were waiting lists as long as a year for some models. The bike has become an American icon with a certain symbolic iconoclasm. The median age of Harley buyers is now nearly 50, with many affluent, well-known, or powerful individuals as owners: Jay Leno, investor Jim Rogers, etc….
Beautiful bike. Reminds me of the television program that used to be a big hit around here. They custom made bikes.
Just added more photos from 1954 to my Japanese blog.
http://sendai-shi.blogspot.com/
Harley’s are so sexy! Great image.
teeth whitener
Nice photo.
Do you like live cams? Elephants at Pete’s Pond in Africa right now. I even found a hummingbird live cam. Just go to my personal blog and click on the link I posted
Thanks – the bike was a natural subject.
Hi there,
Cool stuff you got. Nice take, where did you get this?
By the way, let me show you some of my works
photosorcery.com
Many thanks
Great photo, love all the tones of silver and gray in an intense machine. I didn’t realize even the particular potato sound had its fans…
I am like you: not a bike fan but love the design. It has an almost “liquid” feel.
And thanks for the research – this is one of the things I really like about your posts: I always learn something.
That’s Mario’s bike!! LOL