Outlaw Machine Book

Brock Yates is well known for his writing about cars. In this book, he explores the history of Harley-Davidson motorcycles as well as it's cultural and social influence and how the motorcycle became known as an outlaw machine.

William Harley, Arther Davidson, Walter Davidson and William Davidson began manufacturing motorcycles in 1903. The first Harley-Davidson motorcycle was a single cylinder engine strapped to a modified bicycle frame. They were hoping that the motorcycle would become the major mode of transportation for society at large. They were not alone in this quest. In the first few years, there were as many as 10,000 different people/companies trying to develop a viable motorcycle.

Harley-Davidson wanted their motorcycles to be viewed as fun machines, with a clean image. But all that changed in 1947, when Life magazine published a story about the "Hollister Riot" with a photo of a drunken biker on a Harley surrounded by broken beer bottles. Brock Yates traces the image of the outlaw biker to this event and this story. He also asserts that most of the story and the image itself were mostly manufactured by the media and blown out of proportion.

It's true that there are outlaw motorcycle clubs and they have had a large impact on the psyche mainstream society, but according to many, this is only 1% of the riding population. It's one of the reason that such clubs refer to themselves as "one-percent clubs".

The Harley-Davidson motorcycle is steeped in tradition and history that is undeniable. The basic engine design has not changed from the original V-twin design of 1909. It's this adherence to tradition and refusal to change that almost lead to the demise of Harley-Davidson, but in the end would be its salvation.

Harley-Davidson initially fought the outlaw image associated with their bikes, but in the end they decided to embrace it and eventually co-opt it. This contributed largely to their recovery and eventual world-wide reputation.

Harley riders are very clanish and very devoted to their machines. There is something about the deep rumble of the engine, the feel of the machine, the thump, thump of the large V-twin. It's very primal and strikes deep.

I can tell you from experience that there is nothing like a Harley. I rode a Honda Goldwing for years, but when it died, I bought a Harley Road King. I spent a lot of time at Honda dealers, when my bike was being serviced. It does not compare with a Harley dealership. When you walk into a Harley dealership, you're family and they treat you like it.

I don't own a car. I ride my bike every day. I can tell you that I love my Harley.

When you ride a Harley not only are you riding a machine steeped in tradition, you're riding living history.