# Harley Davidson Gang takes over Town **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 7, 2017, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363 "2017-06-07T15:40:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/1 "2017-06-07T15:40:50Z")
Boy, things have changed since Hollister and **The Wild One** > [@](#): > > Harley is kicking off the summer riding season by staging a concentrated promotion around ease of use. And to dramatize just how simple it is to learn to drive a Harley-Davidson, company marketers came up with the idea of “capturing” a small town and teaching every resident how to ride. > > Harley took over tiny Ryder, N.D., on Saturday, cooperating with the mayor and other leaders of the farming hamlet of 85 people to get literally every eligible resident to agree to take motorcycle lessons. They staged a rally that drew a few hundred outsiders, as well. Only a handful of Ryder residents have motorcycles. > > The company’s inducements included giving the town’s water tower a badly needed paint job and getting Mayor Jody Reinisch to allow the town to be called unofficially “Riders, N.D.,” between now and Labor Day. > > “They wanted to prove to America that they could come in and teach that motorcycle riding is a safe, family deal and teach people how to drive motorcycles safely,” Reinisch told me. More than 50 Ryder residents — the maximum number Reinisch figured actually qualified, being between the ages of 16 and 70 — signed up for a driving and safety course that they’ll wrap up by next month. [http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/easy-ryder-harley-davidson-launches-friendly-marketing-takeover-of-north-dakota-town/ar-BBC8RDc?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=DELLDHP17](http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/easy-ryder-harley-davidson-launches-friendly-marketing-takeover-of-north-dakota-town/ar-BBC8RDc?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=DELLDHP17) In case you were wondering about my refs: [The Wild One - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wild_One) [Hollister riot - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollister_riot) ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/2 "2017-06-07T16:28:45Z")
The updated version is called : _The Wild None_ ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/3 "2017-06-07T16:47:31Z")
In other news, Harley is in the midst of a sales slum and a recall involving 57,000 bikes for potentially faulty oil line fittings. ---
**Author:** ![BobArrgh](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobarrgh/32/2881_2.png) [@BobArrgh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobArrgh)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/4 "2017-06-07T17:07:16Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > In other news, Harley is in the midst of a sales slum and a recall involving 57,000 bikes for potentially **faulty oil line fittings**. (Emphasis mine) I always thought that was a feature! ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/5 "2017-06-07T17:21:41Z")
“Hey, Johnny, Chino and his gang just rode into town!” “You know what we got to do.” “Challenge them to a friendly softball game in the town park?” “That’s right. Schedule it for Saturday so school will be out and the kids can be there.” ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/6 "2017-06-07T17:27:26Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > “Hey, Johnny, Chino and his gang just rode into town!” > “You know what we got to do.” > “Challenge them to a friendly softball game in the town park?” > “That’s right. Schedule it for Saturday so school will be out and the kids can be there.” “…And after that, we can paint the water tower!” ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/7 "2017-06-07T17:30:10Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > In other news, Harley is in the midst of a sales slum and a recall involving 57,000 bikes for potentially faulty oil line fittings. If there isn’t a drop of oil where it is parked, it’s a clone, not a real Harley. Old joke, keep your chaps on. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/8 "2017-06-07T17:47:38Z")
Well, I don’t really want to, but if I have to, can mine have a muffler? And a tune up? ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/9 "2017-06-07T21:00:09Z")
Could we capture a HUGE town full of crotch rockets and riders and then nuke it from orbit? ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/10 "2017-06-07T23:48:26Z")
My dad probably would have thought that would be fun. But he was killed at the age of 85 while riding his motorcycle. Damn truck driver. ---
**Author:** ![Marci\_Al](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e47c2d/32.png) [@Marci\_Al](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marci_Al)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/11 "2017-06-07T23:55:24Z")
Have to ride an electra or a road king before I get too old (54 right now). ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2017, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/12 "2017-06-08T00:14:17Z")
Well, well, well. It so happens that I will be in Hollister, CA tomorrow (June 8) for a lesson of my own! > [@Wikipedia](#): > > The Hollister riot was an event that occurred at the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA)-sanctioned Gypsy Tour motorcycle rally in Hollister, California from July 3 to 6, 1947. […] The Hollister riot helped to give rise to the outlaw biker image. Thanks for the heads-up, **CalMeacham**! I’ll know now to watch my step! Hollister is in San Benito County. Just a short drive to the southeast, up into the San Benito Mountain range, one finds the desolate and haunting (and largely unknown) Panoche Valley and surrounding mountainous terrain, [a hotbed of biker activity](http://thunderpress.net/top-stories/hollister-rally-2013/2013/10/18.htm). > [@](#): > > Hollister has a lot to offer. What other place can lay claim to being known as the “birthplace of the American biker?” That, in and of itself, is pretty awesome. Now add the excellent weather, as well. […] San Francisco is only two hours away, or maybe you just want to enjoy the local riding and drive out to Panoche Valley or down Highway 25, the best motorcycle road in San Benito County. If you did drive out to Panoche, the Panoche Inn has barbecues on most weekends, especially during the Hollister Rally. Driving south for another 50 miles or so and you’ll find the county’s only ghost town, New Idria. There, you can find the [Panoche Inn](https://www.yelp.com/biz/panoche-inn-paicines), local biker-style watering hole ([good inside photo](http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RU8tlnihNDM/VYTeueaNYEI/AAAAAAAAKkA/jTtHIcE500U/s1600/MarianneEducating.jpg)) for the local ranchers and bikers. I myself was one of a group of 20 or so that invaded the place for one of their barbecues, just recently over the Memorial Day weekend. We do that every year, although this year was my first time there – and I helped organize the event! (Yes, one of those dollar bills hanging from the ceiling has my name on it!) We camped at nearby [Mercey Hot Springs](http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-U68wu9opM-I/VYTevE5wKEI/AAAAAAAAKkY/FBg_o5d0U8M/s1600/debriefing%2Broom.jpg) from Friday through Monday and spent our days at a dirt airstrip just across the street from Panoche Inn, which we like to call [Panoche International Airport](http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aKrZLyLalZc/VW6ewhU0sZI/AAAAAAAAJfA/WG1ncv0XHRw/s1600/BarrenPanocheValley.jpg) (seen here with Panoche Inn in the background). To be sure, [most of our vehicles](http://ncsa-buzzard.blogspot.com/2015/06/the-spring-15-panoche-glider-palooza.html) have [three wheels instead of two](http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--SqrNwILSLY/UHHMk2JylUI/AAAAAAAADeE/ndJuVfADGVM/s1600/IMG_9957.jpg), although when in use, at most two wheels (and most of the time zero wheels) are actually on the ground at any time. Here’s an [aerial pic of Panoche International Airport](http://glider-haven.blogspot.com/2012/10/panoche-gliderpalooza.html). Panoche Valley is also a hot-spot for birders, hikers, shooters, and amateur astronomers. Sadly, a very substantial portion of the valley will soon be covered with a massive solar farm, which is already under construction. As for that lesson tomorrow in Hollister… Well, the major portion of that will occur with zero wheels on the ground too. (Oh BTW, in doing the research for this post, I also stumbled across [this Hollister picture](https://www.facebook.com/FlyBASA/photos/a.1380327558685111.1073741838.1277122315672303/1380327532018447/), the existence of which I didn’t even know of until now. Yes, that’s me there in the plaid shirt.) ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2017, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/13 "2017-06-08T02:27:40Z")
Speaking of Hollister pictures, here’s a photo album of mine from October 2014: [Things you might see in Hollister](https://goo.gl/photos/Dm1oT9kfqtwp7P3D9). I was on my way home from Pinnacles National Monument (awesome spot) and stopped to wander around and snap pics of things that caught my eye. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2017, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/14 "2017-06-08T03:15:20Z")
> [@Marci\_Al](#): > > Have to ride an electra or a road king before I get too old (54 right now). Add Soft tail Springer to the list if you haven’t done that yet. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2017, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/15 "2017-06-08T04:07:35Z")
> [@Dallas\_Jones](#): > > If there isn’t a drop of oil where it is parked, it’s a clone, not a real Harley. > > Old joke, keep your chaps on. What’s the best way to become a Harley mechanic? Buy one. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2017, 7:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/16 "2017-06-09T07:48:59Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > Speaking of Hollister pictures, here’s a photo album of mine from October 2014: [Things you might see in Hollister](https://goo.gl/photos/Dm1oT9kfqtwp7P3D9). Did you see [_this_](http://www.airport-data.com/images/aircraft/large/000/331/331964.jpg) in Hollister? Y’all knew I was going to throw that into this thread, didn’tcha? ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2017, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/17 "2017-06-09T07:54:51Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Well, I don’t really want to, but if I have to, can mine have a muffler? they come with one from the factory. don’t want a loud bike, don’t take it off. > [@](#): > > And a tune up? 1974 called, they want their lame joke back. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2017, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/18 "2017-06-09T12:02:11Z")
> [@Marci\_Al](#): > > Have to ride an electra or a road king before I get too old (54 right now). I give people a hard time since I’ll see them at red lights, their arms looking like they’re about to rattle right off their bodies, but I have some friends with them (those huge Classsic or Electra Glides) and they are very comfortable. I will say that running boards, even just on a short test or a few miles, make a world of difference over foot pegs, but it was clearly going to take some more time to get used to the rear controls, I felt like my foot was getting tangled up in the extra lever. ---
**Author:** ![Whiskey\_Dickens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/9fc348/32.png) [@Whiskey\_Dickens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whiskey_Dickens)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2017, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/19 "2017-06-13T20:56:42Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > To be sure, [most of our vehicles](http://ncsa-buzzard.blogspot.com/2015/06/the-spring-15-panoche-glider-palooza.html) have [three wheels instead of two](http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--SqrNwILSLY/UHHMk2JylUI/AAAAAAAADeE/ndJuVfADGVM/s1600/IMG_9957.jpg). Fuckin’ Can-Am Spyder riders. Just the worst of the worst weekend warriors. _Clicks_ Oops, never mind. ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2017, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363/20 "2017-06-14T19:01:40Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > In other news, Harley is in the midst of a sales slum and a recall involving 57,000 bikes for potentially **faulty oil line fittings**. > [@BobArrgh](#): > > (Emphasis mine) > > I always thought that was a feature! only on British bikes (says the MG owner) 😃 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harley-davidson-gang-takes-over-town/788363.md?page=2)