Submitted story: My favorite Harley shirts

by Mike Chlanda

Since I've been a screenprinter of my own line of t-shirts most of my life, I've always noticed what shirts other people are wearing. Of course, the Harley shirts stand out, and I'm not talking about the ones from the Honolulu dealership either. No, I'm talking about the ones with the great slogans on back. Not sure if they're all officially licensed, but they got a chuckle out of me.

First there's the classic "I ripped this shirt off from (name of dealership)." Cute the first few times I saw it. Or the one that has a picture of the sign in front of the dealership - "Harley parking only. All others run over". Then there's the one to answer any questions about the hog's mechanical performance - "Harleys don't vibrate - they throb". Guess he wore that one to remind his old lady. I offered to trade him 3 of my t-shirts for that one, but he wouldn't do it.

My all-time favorite is the call and response one, or the he said she said pair of shirts. His shirt back reads "If you can read this, the bitch fell off". Of course, her response, and of course it's the only approriate one, "This bitch hangs on". The funniest one I saw of this one had bloody fingerprints on the back as if she really was clinging on for dear life.

I'm sure there's tons more of great shirts out there - please submit your favorites and we'll add them to the collection!

Submitted story: That "got it!" moment

I knew that my Grandfather rode a Harley Davison back in the very early days of "Harley-dom". I knew my father rode a bike of generic background until he tried to go up a steep hill on his parents horse farm and had a bad accident, flipping the bike and injuring himself. No more motorcycling for him, said my Grandfather!

Years went by, my Father grew up, married and began to have the first of six children. I am the second eldest, the first "Daddy's Little Girl."

When my Father was in his forties, he and my mother divorced. One of the first things he did was to go out and buy himself his first Harley. He had Lone Eagle painted on the gas tank and every spare moment found him riding everywhere he could. He couldn't get enough of that bike and couldn't ride far enough away, from the pain and the memories.

Each and every year, he rode down to Daytona, FL. My Father spoke to me of a feeling that you get when you are riding. I tried to understand what it was that he was trying to share with me. He said it was like to other feeling on earth and he wished he could explain it better. Perhaps it was one of those things that you just had to feel to understand. Try as I might, I just did not understand what he meant. Although I was darn glad that there was joy in his heart again.

My father eventually remarried, happily and raised us kids to adulthood. A couple of the boys also rode Harley's for a number of years.

When I was in my early thirties, I decided that I also wanted to learn how to ride. My then-husband had wanted to learn too, but it never seemed to fit his schedule. I got tired of waiting and went ahead with my own training. I took the local Defensive Riding Class offered by the State Police and passed with fying colors. I practiced riding almost daily, never straying too far from home. I really needed to ride to build my confidence up. It was also the first time working with a clutch!

After about 6 months, I found myself on a back road, on a Sunday morning and I was coming up onto a hill. The sun was shining, the temperature was perfect, it was a mid-spring day and I was feeling confident on my bike. When I crested the hill, a feeling that I had never felt before came over me and I knew in an instant it was that feeling that my Father had tried to convey to me so many times. I had never felt so free, so one with anything before that moment. I will never forget that moment that I finally "got it!"

I also remember telling my Father about it the next time I saw him. His smile was from ear to ear.

Submitted story: Life in Sturgis

Harley-Davidson motorcycles are definitely a family tradition for my husband and his father. Located near Sturgis, S.D., we have grown up with the summertime rumble of 100's of H-D's roaring thru our town on their way up to the hills.

My husband and his father each year attend the rally on their respective H-D's. Even in the bad years' like the year my father-in-law's shop burned - he "ratted" his dresser for that year - burnt windshield, faring, and lenses - still made it.

H-D definitely makes Sturgis what it is.

Submitted story: Homemade fix

I've been using my '89 sportster as a daily commuter for about 2 1/2 years, and while it's had some problems, it's never left me anywhere. I thought this had changed the other night, the starter had been making some strange noises when the bike was cold, but it had always started.

But when I tried to leave work, it wouldn't crank the motor. It made a noise that indicated that something was turning, but not the motor. Eventually I was able to push start it, and ended up taking the 55 to work for the rest of the week. Last weekend I pulled the primary cover.

When I hit the starter button, the ring gear turned, but not the rest of the clutch basket. It wasn't obvious from the manual how the ring gear was attached, so I pulled the clutch as an assembly. The manual gives instructions that involve disassembling the clutch (using a special tool to compress the clutch spring), but not removing it as a unit. First I removed a snap ring and the clutch adjuster bolt and bearing.

Behind it was another snap ring, this was all that held the clutch on the transmission shaft, but I also needed to pull front primary sprocket. It's held on by a nut that is torqued to 165 ft/lbs, so I used an air wrench to remove it (for all I know this is a terrible thing to do, maybe it wrecks the bearings or crank or something, but it's what I did).

When I got the clutch off, it looked like the ring gear was just pressed on. I used an aluminum drift and hammer and gently tapped it off. It was fairly tight, but it was obvious that it had spun ruining both surfaces. Now I could have bought a new primary sprocket and ring gear, but left to my own devices I just rig stuff up. So I decided to just tack weld the gear on.

I spotted it in 4 places with the mig welder, then cleaned up the welds and any weld beads. The blue tape is covering up the alternator magnets, weld beads and grinding dust would stick to them like crazy. So far this fix has worked fine, but who knows, maybe the welds will cause the ring gear to crack and come apart, wrecking then entire motor and trans.

Submitted story: Top heavy

In 2003, my wife bought a new 100 year edition of the Harley-Davidson 1200 Sportster. When she bought it she had never driven a motorcycle but had ridden on a Harley with her stepdad. She had it for about two months before she took a riding course at the same Harley-Davidson dealership where she bought it. Of course, I rode it a few times to keep it lubricated and keep the battery charged, or that is what I told her.

She successfully completed the riding course and began riding it often. I ride another brand of cruiser.

She has dropped it twice. Both times it was while stopping or while stopped. Apparently the 1200's are a little top heavy when you turn the handle bars sharply and don't have much power or speed on the bike. Both times the falls were complete surprises to her. Neither time was the bike damaged.

However, the second time she dropped it, it fell to the right side and nearly trapped her foot. Realizing the bike was going to fall on her foot she jumped away from the bike. Unfortunately, the way the dip stick is stuck into the oil tank allowed her heel to catch it and pull it out of the tank. Since the bike was tipped over she lost quite a bit of oil before getting the bike upright.

Thankfully we were about .2 of a mile from the dealership and I rode up there and bought some oil and refilled the tank. Some other readers might like to be warned about the top heavy tendency of the bike. A male could probably wrestle it and keep it from falling but it tends to be hard to do for some ladies.

Submitted story: Want to be like Dad

The Harley Davidson is seriously the most respected motorcycle and most impressive bike out on the road today.

When my dad first brought home his Harley he was like a little kid all over again it was like nothing I had ever seen before I had never seen a grown man so happy about something in his entire lifetime. When he got off that bike after riding it around for hours it only made me want a Harley even more.

My dad has taken that bike to work and every day since he got it he is a true Harley rider. He loves to ride he is not one of these people that trailers their bikes into Sturgis and then rides it around for one week a year. No that is not a true Harley rider.

The true Harley rider wants to ride that bike every chance they get and that is what my dad is a true lover of the Harley Davidson. When winter finally does roll around and he can't ride his bike anymore its like taking a toy away from a four year old.

The day he puts a tarp on that bike and puts it in the garage for the winter is one sad day at our household. But like a five year old that knows where the cookie jar is he inevitably ends up taking that bike out again at some point during the winter when there is at least one nice day when the roads are clear.

All I can really say is I hope that some day I can own a Harley and enjoy it as much as my dad enjoys his Harley Davidson.

Submitted story: Long Live Harley!

I know that people who are writing about their Harley experiences often are ones that have had years of love and knowledge of what it feels like to be on a Harley. I do not fit that category. I am 41 years old and spent years afraid of getting on a motorcycle of any type. I had a cousin killed in a freak accident many years ago and my parents beset in me the fear of motorcycles. This all changed a year ago. I met an avid Harley rider and that changed my world. I know this may sound odd, and perhaps unbelievable but my first experince on his Harley was life changing. He talked me into hopping on the back of that bike, and within that moment I found a whole new world. It was as if I had always been meant to be on a Harley. The wind in face, the landscape passing by, the chill in the air, all worked together to create an almost surreal experience. I haven't been able to stay away now from riding. It is an intergal part of my life, my relaxation, my concept of the world. Long live Harley!!!

Harleys and the Super Bowl

I guess I'll go see it (or maybe watch it on HBO when it comes out), but the new movie Wild Hogs, advertised during the Super Bowl, doesn't look that promising.