OFF THE WIRE, oldie but goodie
http://www.clutchandchrome.com/news/news/outlaw-biker-changing-motorcycle-stereotypes Outlaw Biker: Changing motorcycle stereotypes Monday, 05 April 2010 | Written by Digits
All riders of every age have encountered it. Whether coming from friends and family as you tell them you’re getting a motorcycle or when a non-rider find out you carry the label of biker.
The look of ‘Are you crazy?’ mingled with the fear you’ll start eating babies and pillaging small towns.
How exactly did a form of transport get such a universally strong association to everything bad in our society and more importantly, are we turning the corner of that stereotype?
Ironically, the same media that painted the everyday motorcycle enthusiast as the crazed criminal have been instrumental in bringing the image back to a more realistic version.
Oddly enough, the motorcycle has a touch of blue-blood. Back in the early 1900’s when the motorcycle was gaining popularity it was considered a toy for the rich and a more affordable transportation alternative to the then expensive automobile by the average person. It even became a symbol of the growing emancipation movement by women.
But by the end of the Second World War, America had an abundance of two things; motorcycles and returning servicemen, neither of which the military had any further need for. Although many of the returning soldiers tried to pick up their lives and settled down to jobs, marriage and children, some of the young men were restless, trying to find their place in society and looking for friends that could relate to the experiences they had known.
The post war supply of cheap motorcycles not only presented the restless men an avenue for their youthful energy, the rough and powerful ride from the Harley Davidson or Indian motorcycles of the day gave that edge to life these men had known in war but was hard to find in suburban America. Many chose the life of the road with like minded individuals who liked to ride hard and party harder rather than settle in the routine of a nine to five job, mortgages and the stresses of raising a family. Just as the man either side of them in war was closer than any brother, their fellow riders became family.
Since these were men that were used to serving under a symbol, wearing patches of who they were and what they represented, it wasn’t long before the different groups became more organized and gave themselves an identity, something surely lacking for many. Two of the first such organizations were the Pissed Off Bastards and the Booze Fighters.
How long would these groups have kept the moniker of 'club' and all the civilized air that goes with it will never be known. An event that should’ve been like every one before it became the catalyst that changed Middle America’s perception, and consequently attitude towards the motorcycle and its rider.
Ironically the description and what would become the public perception of 'Outlaw Bikers' came from a leading advocate for motorcycle enthusiasts to this day.
The term Outlaw Motorcycle Club which was originally used by the AMA (American Motorcycle Association) simply to designate motorcycle clubs who didn’t adhere to its standards and whether they could compete in the many competitions held around the country. It was one of these motorcycle competitions in Hollister in 1947 which would become an unclear footnote in riding history and a Hollywood sensation.
The events around an evening which wrapped up the 1947 Gyspy Road Tour would go onto become a famous story in Life Magazine and later made into a movie starring Marlon Brando called 'The Wild One' in 1953.
When the media and consequently the American public reacted to the darker side of the story's telling the AMA tried to distance itself and its members from the bad publicity and the negative feelings towards motorcyclists by claiming that “99% of all of their members are law-abiding citizens and only 1% are 'outlaws' ”.
With Hollywood understanding sensation sold tickets, the floodgates opened for movies featuring fighting sprees, drugs and sexual assaults, all to a chorus of roaring chopper engines, the film and others like it contributed to the negative image of motorcycle riders, especially Harley-Davidson owners.
And some enjoyed the stereotypes.
A 1965 article ‘The Motorcycle Gangs: Losers and Outsiders’ showed such an honest look into the Hells Angels brutal world that the author Hunter S Thompson went on to write an entire book on the club called Hells Angels: The Strange and Terrible Saga of the Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs. These works as well as the media attention would go onto give the Hells Angels their place in American history.
With the image of the outlaw biker firmly entrenched in America’s mind, an actor who starred in a motorcycle gang B-movie a mere three years earlier, would write a movie that not only created a new movie genre, but a new way to look at the motorcyclist.
Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper wrote and starred in Easy Rider, a movie about two men who head out across America on Harley Davidson Choppers trying to find their place in the world. With Dennis Hopper directing, it not only created a new breed of movie known as the ‘road film’, characters with nowhere to go and no reason to get there, but it also associated motorcycles with freedom rather than the hooliganism ‘The Wild One’ had some sixteen years earlier. The film was firmly based in the sixties culture of non-conformism and philosophical outlooks on life, even with the cynical ending of self-disapproval.
But as a generation before it shunned the conventional family life, a new era embraced it staying home, raising children and not riding motorcycles. The two-wheeled industry rode into hard times, not simply from falling sales but also Japanese innovation flooding the international market bringing the end to many famous names such as BSA, Norton and the then Indian and Triumph motorcycle companies.
It could be considered poetic then that the same generation which started the industry's slide would be the one to bring it the breath of life. It was the same broad brush used by the media to paint a segment of society that helped the motorcycle and its rider find its road back into the hearts and confidence of the non-riding American public. The story has been told and retold of the baby boomers sending off the last child only to have an empty nest and some disposable income.
Through the various incarnations of the middle-aged, affluent male taking to motorcycles en masse the public appeared to understand the biker was a neighbor, civil servant, teacher and most of all, a well-known friend. Of course the multitude of toy runs, charity rides and problem-free motorcycle events certainly helped.
The motorcycle industry enjoyed the timing of well made products and smoother rides at the same time the 'me' generation heard the open road calling. Motorcycles started to appear everywhere as the Terminator rode his Harley both on and off the big screen. The motorcycle became a popular and 'hip' form of transportation for younger males with the image furthered in movies starring young action stars
The image of the biker continued to center with Disney’s ‘Wild Hogs’ as a record number of movie-goers watched Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence, John Travolta and William H. Macy ride across America in their humorous but life-changing road trip.
Finally, the best test of non-riders separating the media's portrayal of bikers and the everyday motorcycling enthusiast has come of age with 'Sons of Anarchy'.
Taking place in a small town of Charming, California the member of SAMCRO, Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club, Redwood Original avoid the law, battle gangs and try to live something vaguely representing a family life. The FX motorcycle drama seems to sit well with not only the United States but viewers worldwide who have made FX’s motorcycle drama ‘Sons of Anarchy’ a hit and roaring into its third season.
Riders and non-riders alike made Sons of Anarchy a hit as the fictitious show about a motorcycle club riding in and out legal situations in a small California town rode away with viewing numbers in the second season. Achieving numbers never seen before with either cable or broadcast television, Sons of Anarchy showed the largest season-to-season growth in adults ages 18-49 with 81 percent more people tuning in and 80 percent increase in males 18 to 49. The total number of viewers for the show grew 72 percent.
With the media and motorcycle enthusiasts having come full circle in nearly seventy years the 'Outlaw Biker' label has been retired to the rare, true motorcycle gang and in Hollywood's latest offerings, leaving the everyday rider to enjoy their favorite past time. But while the label may be finding its proper home, the bikers themselves seem to enjoy its lingering facade of black attire, t-shirts and apparel adorned with skulls and crossbones.
Even if it is only worn on weekends and between real life commitments
