I’ve been riding for a very long time, but gray in my beard hasn’t caused a loss of interest in this form of transportation and recreation. I’d been looking for a replacement for my Honda sport bike and cruiser; the CBR900RR riding position was uncomfortable around town and the engine lugged below 12,000 RPMs, the Magna suspension was sloppy and its overall appearance was less than substantial. I decided I’d try one of the bikes I had always criticized while speeding by on the open highway, a Harley-Davidson. I guess I hadn’t been paying attention to them for some time, so I didn’t realize how many models and variations H-D offered, or how much the product had improved in recent years.
I like the Fat Boy, but I thought someone might think the name emblazoned on the air cleaner was a statement of my condition. I liked sitting on the Low Rider, but I felt as though I were sitting on the ground, and it had a bunch of frame and hardware appendages that interfered with anything more than a minimal angle of inclination. The models with extended forks and increased rake angle, the Night Trains, Wide Glides and Deuces, weren’t for me; as an issue of balance and short legs, I like my feet down under me and not pointing forward into traffic. The Sportster is too narrow, too high and the bar position is sort of funky. I’m pretty sure any of the Touring models would result in an immediate and painful hernia. After a good deal of consideration, I picked the FXDX, a Dyna Super Glide Sport, that seemed to fit just right.
The initial ride down from Oakland was interesting; a break in rev limit of 2,500 RPMs, rush hour traffic and a lot of trucks with tires much larger than I could ever recall. The bike felt light and very balanced, the control was very positive and very predictable, the gas mileage was excellent, the sound was right, and there was plenty of torque to pull the bike around slower moving vehicles on the highway – although with a 2,500 RPM cap, there weren’t many. With a few weeks of riding behind me, I feel even better about the purchase. No leaks, no rattles, no old days of Harley with a trail of parts following behind. This one even has a seven year parts and labor warranty. Okay, Joe, I know you’re on vacation, I know you’re having fun with your bike, but what the hell are you doing talking about motorcycles on Real Guns?
Shortly after buying the motorcycle, even before the plates and registration arrived from DMV, I began receiving mail from various motorcycle riding advocacy groups, protesting; unfair insurance rates, new unreasonable smog requirements, unfair pending noise level legislation – all asking me to contact my Congressional representatives, to become a member of their organizations and to immediately send a check to support their lobbying efforts. Unfortunately, this would be the same Congressional Royalty that voted in opposition to their constituents over firearm’s related issues. All I could think was “Oh, no, not again!”.
It dawned on me that cultures form around certain types of products, typically because people who don’t understand these products form groups against them, causing a cultural bond when product owners are drawn together in a common defense of their interest. Lone riders can be vulnerable, so bikers frequently go on runs in groups. Lone gun owners are vulnerable, so they join the NRA. The motorcycle owner can become politically active, as can the gun owner, so the struggle becomes one of balance, where to draw the line between being a responsible enthusiasts, versus being a political activist. At some level, too many non-riding complications and activities could become an overwhelming negative aspect of motorcycle ownership. Too many days of not getting to the range, or going hunting, as a result of making too many phone calls to politicians, and working to get too many petitions signed, can take the fundamental enjoyment out of firearms ownership.
How many organizations does a person have to join to assure he or she is being treated fairly and respectfully by outsiders ? How many battles must be won to insure they will have access to the activity of their choice in the future ? Even in a free society there’s just no getting around it, you have to fight for the things you enjoy, or someone will decide you’re not entitled to that enjoyment. But what happens when you are one product owner, and you have a multitude of organizations, all bidding for your time, all wanting your money and requiring your immediate attention – insisting that if you don’t make the effort they seek, you are somehow not a legitimate member of the product’s culture, not a responsible firearms owner, not a responsible motorcyclist.
Today I have a membership in the national Harley Owner’s Group, because the membership includes free trip planning, towing service and other very practical benefits. I haven’t, as yet, committed to a local chapter membership; I don’t know if weekend club runs will be a part of my future social agenda, or if I would give participation and group support an honest effort. I don’t think I’ll be riding to Sturgis, or Las Vegas, or any of the other places serious riders go…unless I can come up with a really good nickname for myself. I guess I’ve concluded, I don’t want to live the life of a biker, I just really like to ride.
Maybe things are looking up…..
I believe I’ve gotten more daily correspondence since the site has been closed for the summer, than when it was in routine operation. It’s nice to see so many people are active with firearms this time of year, and it appears we may be coming out, just a bit, from the political dark ages of the previous President’s influence. What makes me believe this is true?
I was auditing the RealGuns’ links page, and I found far fewer dead links for gun shops and suppliers than has been typical over the past years, and there were many more new additions to offset any minimal loss. It was nice to see the Redfield name back. This month’s American Rifleman was huge, and it was filled with the best articles they’ve had in a long time – very interesting. Over the past several years, the magazine had gotten so thin and so narrow in physical size and coverage, I thought they had forgotten they were running an publication for enthusiasts, who happened to also be NRA members. It seemed the magazine was being used only as a vehicle to raise money for political purposes. Yes I am, and will continue to be, an NRA member – but there is a need to enjoy firearms, in addition to lending political support to gun ownership.
GOA-Mart?
I’m worried about some of the firearm industry’s recent business and political directions. Perhaps some of the participants developed the sense that, since they were under attack by federal agencies and anti-gun factions, they would grab the last quick buck and begin to hustle customers. I was really offended when a GOA press release inaccurately summarized K-Mart’s decision to stop carrying all ammunition and, in the same release, announced launching it’s own GOA Mall where retailers could advertise and sell the same and other products. I think an organization can either be in politics or sales, anything else is a conflict of interest. I guess GOA is going to save us from the bad people at K-Mart, by opening their own mall.
Who’s leading the charge, who’s picking our pockets ?
I was dismayed at the industry’s lack of staying power in pressing UPS, and how the burden for protest was placed on the consumer rather than being spearheaded by the entities that actually select and utilize UPS services. The same goes for all of the publications that not only sold ad space, but wrote very favorable editorial copy for S&W, at a time when S&W was doing so much damage to gun owners and dealers. It appears the industry survives and thrives on customer loyalty, however, there appears to be little evidence of reciprocity. The reality is that virtually all shipping companies profit from freight charges, the higher the shipping cost, the greater the company’s revenue.
I thought Midway USA’s recent change to customer paid shipment was the lamest piece of double talk I’ve seen in a long time. With the double talk detector on, “Rather than charging higher prices to get back our “free shipping cost”, we are going to reduce prices by half the actual cost we were paying for freight and call this a major discount, then we are going to charge you twice as much for freight, now that it’s on your nickel. If you buy something big and expensive from us, don’t order small supplies because we are going to penalize you with an add on charge, so just call us again when you want to spend a lot of money.” I no longer purchase product from Midway USA. It wasn’t the freight cost, it was the dishonesty in an attempt to make it sound as though they were doing something good for the customer.
What ever happened to .ORGs?
Until this year, the NRA would routinely distribute legislative updates through its list servers and e-mail, but currently messages must be retrieved from sites where you are exposed to other commercial information. My Cal NRA email began to look like a flea market, rife with special offers, sponsors’ ads, etc. I would do anything to assist organizations I support with cash and coverage, but I’m not going to promote, or subsidize what amounts to commercial advertising. Nor am I willing to weed through five pounds of spam and junk messages to get to one already well traveled “alert”. In the need to disseminate information, or create a popular web site to attract advertisers?
When RealGuns resumes in the fall, it will be devoid of political messages, legislative alerts and related press releases from any organizations; organizations that report this information, and benefit from this information, can serve as the source. I will of course continue my selective private support of pro firearms organizations. Like I said, I don’t want to live the life of a biker, I just really like to ride.
The intent is still to return the site to active status in the Fall. Until then, thank you for the interesting, friendly and informative e-mail. Oh, if you’d like access to the links page in the mean time, you can get there from https://www.realguns.com/links/glinks.htm.
Thanks,
Joe
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