ww1flyingace, that was a great post. I especially agree with your last four points. Interesting that you mentioned your HD dealer knows you by first name. When I bought my first H-D at the local dealership, I could only afford the cheapest, old, used, bike that they had. (It looked like a piece of junk, compared with some of the new models in the showroom.) Some time later, I returned to pick up a few accessories. Across the showroom floor, the owner of the place sees me and yells out: "Hey Pauly, how's the bike been treating you?" I had to look around before I realized he was talking to ME. I really was impressed. I can't even remember my coworkers names half of the time, but this guy remembered me by name, weeks after I did a minor amount of business at his shop. I was impressed. I've heard others relate their horror stories about various "stealerships" and so on, but I've really been treated like a king by my H-D rep.

 

You just need to look to understand - for me its just because I love them and having ridden many other makes I just keep coming back.

 

The time machine effect.

The sound, vibration, smell, simplicity, and mechanical rawness of the Nightster makes me feel like I've gone back in time when I'm riding. Like it's the early 60's (before my time, actually) and I'm blasting down a road. Except the bike starts up quick with EFI........ and I'm not on the side of the road fixing it DURING my time machine ride.

I rode my friend's Kawasaki 750 which is a very well engineered bike - smooth, comfortable and capable - but it didn't have the time machine effect.

 

+1

 

I saw and heard a Harley blast out of our yard when I was very young,that sound stuck.1962 bought my first Harley,have ridden them ever since.Born with avid mechanical ability,having built a lot of my Harleys from scratch,my feelings for the brand is hard to put on paper.No other motorcycle moves me like a Harley Davidson.I love the raw power,the feel,the look,the sound,just sitting on the kickstand mesmerizes me.Need I say more?Bonus,my wife will have nothing else parked in our garage.

 

After riding lot of different bikes over lots of years, I wanted a builder I could keep and ended up doing a 100hp Sporty first, then my current T-Sport. (Accepted a lot of money for the Sporty and needed a 2-up ride). The aftermarket (and corporate) p&a support is phenomenal.....more than all other brands put together, I'd say.
I wanted a 2-up cruiser/tourer with 100+ foot pounds of torque at highway speed that didn't weigh half a ton. Plus there's that sweet music coming out of those pipes. A Harley cruiser is what the others try to be...the origional.

'01 FXDXT Ultra Lite Classic
103 by HQ
Handling by Sputhe, Progressive, Excel and Bridgestone
Stopping by Lyndal
Paint by Dodge

[IMG]local://upfiles/32069/E2FCF63FF25A45E7A8AD635B3F5E17C5.jpg[/IMG]

 

the girls, the girls

 

because it's a Harley....

 

Family tradition and i like the ride

 

when I wanted a motorcycle, all that came to mind was Harley Davidson. Is it the best motorcycle out there? I think so, but its probably not in certain aspects.