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Kind of an interesting article from Donny Petersen of heavy duty cycles.
Donny. You don't seem to be prejudiced against Sportsters like some Harley riders. Why do these people seem to look down on my favorite Harley?
Sammy Shortster
York Pa.
Hey, Shortster. Ya got me. But I know one thing. The problem is theirs not yours.
Something I’ll never understand is why some Harley riders discriminate against other riders, Harley models or other motorcyclists forthat matter.This seems even stranger in light of the way society has stereotyped the Harley community and discriminated against it over the years.I'm not talking about friendly camaraderie here. Friendship and mutual feelings of being brothers or sisters in the wind will bring amicable tete-a-tetes back and forth. Poking fun at each other's perceived foibles where the jabs are not meant to be carping or hurtful is a time honored tradition between motorcyclists. But you’ve all heard the disparaging comments like “Half a Harley” or “Girl’s Bike” along with many others levied against the Sportster by some in the Big Twin crowd. Similarly, the Big Twin set don't like it much when the Sporty riders derisively refer to their pride and joy as "an old men's bike". So, Shortster, let's get into leveling the playing field here and talk about the Sportster's attributes and some of the REAL men that have rode them over the years.
It's Faster
How come it's faster than the Big Twin is? It always has been off the line. The best a Big Twin can do is in top end riding. Remember one thing though, the "half-a-Harley" will get there first. I can hear it now! My hi-perforanced Evo will wipe the lowly Sporty's proverbial rear end. Yeah! Well put 2500 hundred bucks into a Big Twin and do the same with a Sporty and then the big twin will only be a speck in the Sportster's rear view mirror. Kinda reminds me of a former partner of mine, 25 years ago, that increased the cc's on his XL 900 cc Ironhead about 1250cc using stroker flywheels. My 1200 cc Big Twin had been taken up to 1525 cc's using stroker flywheels and a big bore kit. We were side by side on the highway. I caught up to the "little" bike at around 65 mph. Now, I was prepared to dominate. With a sly smile, my partner, twisted the throttle and had that baby standing on one wheel….and, I mean it was close to rear fender scraping up there! He blew me away literally and psychologically. He deflated the remaining wind out of my sails as he accelerated ahead on one wheel. He took advantage of my thinking that since my engine had a larger displacement that it would be faster. He knew it wasn't, by a long shot. I learn my lessons well. Back to the 1990's, there is a customer of mine who is a seemingly mild mannered pharmacist. He minds his own business as he interacts nightly with the Harley community while unwinding from the stresses of his day job. Inevitably, someone on a "man's" Harley mouths off. Softly, the pharmacist politely asks if the gentleman has any money in his pocket. The meek shall inherit the Earth. He wins about $500 bucks a month racing Big Twins on his 883 converted to a 1200. He could win lots more but he makes his point and moves on. He hasn’t even reached for the big gun yet….the stock Sportster 1200S with a hundred ponies at the rear wheel. A lot of Softails have difficulty mustering half that horsepower to propel a heavier bike!Now, I ask you. Why is this smaller Harley called half-a-bike when it can generate twice the horsepower., Don't look like no beginners bike to me. We ain't even got started talking 'bout the Buell, Harley’s answer to Japanese super bikes, being based on the Sportster. But we will leave the Buell out of this since it arguably isn't a traditional Harley. Besides, Shortster, we don't want to beat on our bigger brothers that bad, now do we? The goal here, afterall, is to gain some respect not losing friends.
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Donny Petersen on the Sportster
85 FXST Belts are for Pants...If it said custom when you bought it..it ain't.
