Harkey Davidson

Not so long ago the company was almost bankrupt and ownership of a Harley-Davidson was considered by many to be antisocial and irresponsible. The riders were frowned upon as rebellious and immature, as having stepped out of society. A whole motorcycle cult developed and the film and media world were quick to make the most of it. Most riders these days however, portray a very different image while at the same time maintaining the ideal of not quite conforming. Among a gathering of riders you will find characters from every social and economic background, with this fascination in common.

A love of Harley-Davidsons begins the moment you sit astride one and fire it up for the first time. A push of the starter button and the engine instantly comes to life, the steady beat of the pistons keeps time with your p

When the USA became involved in World War I, the motorcycle manufacturers started producing machines for the troops. Harley-Davidson’s main rival, the Indian Motorcycle Company, switched its entire production to making military motorcycles, while Harley-Davidson contributed about half its output. Indian’s total commitment was made more for commercial reasons than an excess of patriotism, for this was at a time when its domestic sales were suffering. Harley-Davidson capitalized on Indian’s absence from the domestic sales market by initiating a campaign to encourage its competitor’s dealers over to its side. The campaign proved very successful and, after the war, Indian returned to civilian production to find its network of dealers depleted.

After peace was declared in Europe, Harley-Davidson re-established its export business to the UK, and soon afterwards Duncan Watson received two of the 989cc pocket valve racers that he had requested. These had been specifically ordered to try to win the title of the first motorcycle to exceed 100mph in the UK. Five months later, 28 April 1921, they did just that, after much attention had been paid to adjusting the handling characteristics of these bikes to take account of the bumpy Brook lands racing circuit. Douglas Davidson attained 100.76mph. The following day, Bert le Vac, riding an 8-vavle Indian, surpassed this with a speed of 106.25mph, but it could not take away the glory that had been captured for Harley-Davidson.

During the post-war lull at the beginning of the 1920s, sales plummeted to 10,202 in 1921, compared with previous year’s record high of 28,189. For the first time the company recorded a loss on the year. Now lets jump ahead to the end of the 1970s.

Walter Davidson’s victory in the first Federation of American Motorcycles endurance run in 1908, made the press really sit and take notice of what was happening in Milwaukee, and sales rose to 410. Meanwhile William Harley had graduated from Wisconsin University and returned to start work on a new model.

Around this time, a 45-degree V-twin engine was being designed by most of leading manufacturers, and William Harley set to work to produce Harley Davidson’s own version. By fitting a second cylinder, which added very little weight to the machine, the power could be simply more than doubled, and the extra cylinder would still slot easily into the bicycle-type frame that was used at the time.

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