Posted by Polar Pilot on August 22, 2000 at 15:49:21:
In Reply to: "Jap" bikes at Sturgis......... posted by Jim on August 21, 2000 at 20:09:16:
I have never owned a HD.
I doubt I ever will.
I have been to Sturgis twice on motorcycles engineered and built in Japan. There was never any issue about what I was riding.
I love the Sturgis experience on my Savage in '99 and my Hustler in '97. ( You should have seen the raised eyebrows at my buddies Jawa - most folks didn't have a clue what it was and were very interested in both machines - Folks often spoke to me about my Hustler ( it is only a 250 cc) because lots of riders started on bikes like it.)
I would not be surprised in the number of "non- American" produced bikes did increase hugely in 2000 because the participants at Sturgis jumped from 350,000 in 1999 to over 600,000 in 2000., I doubt that mysteriously 250,000 more HD riders suddenly appeared so the largest % of the increase could well have been on overshore manufactured motorcycles.
Rose - I think Barbara simply was reflecting that big rallies like Sturgis will have all sorts of interesting situations - and that it is possible to get into a pocket of folks who just have to be ignorant about what they are riding and reflect on others and equally that there are folks who value the friendship of fellow riders more that for just the shape of a body ( Isn't this why still in Canada at least we wave to other riders on the highway). Certainly WD's experience was quite ugly - and with that kind of experience I too would not have gone back.
So I think it is possible that there were an awful lot of non HD's at this year's Sturgis and that the % will continue to increase
I did see one other Savage in '99 but I did not successfully make contact with the rider
Keep the rubber side down
Polar Pilot