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Book ISBN : 0316967181Format : HardcoverAuthor : Brock YatesEdition : Pages : Publisher :
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Book Description
In 1947, Americans opened thier Life magazines to find a chilling article about a California town terrorized by gangs of motorcycle thugs. Accompanied by a lurid full-page photo of a heavyset man on a bike surrounded by empty beer bottles, the message was clear: motorcycles were a menace to society. In reality, the motorcycle anarchy was nothing more than a few drunken revealers at a Fourth of July bike convention - a small fraction of the four thousand or so riders who actually attended. But the damage was done: from that poitn on, motorcycles would forever be associated with danger, rebellion, and violence. And as the loudest and heaviest bike on the market, Harley-Davidsons were considered the baddest of them all. In OUTLAW MACHINE, noted automative writer, Brock Yates tells the definitive history of Harley-Davidson motorcycles and their place in American culture. From their relatively wholesome reputation before the war (Clark Gable was a devoted Harley rider) to the rise of the Hells Angels (originally a small club formed by disaffected World War II vets, now a huge organization with a worldwide reputation) to the couterculture classic Easy Rider, Yates looks at American history through the lens of the Harley-Davidson. This is also the success story of the company itself - a small family business that became the industy leader, only to get clobbered by stiff Japanese competition. In the 1980s, the company made a stunning turnaround when white-collar suburbanites rediscovered the Harley-sleek, menacing, and loud-as a true American classic. Now, around the world from France to Japan (home of their biggest competitors), Harleys have devoted following. Beginning with the first hand-built Harley in 1903 and ending with today's enormous Sturgis rallies, OUTLAW MACHINE is the remarkable story of a fascinating cultural icon.
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