Id love me an old rusty Harley. Around here you need a special license to ride one though and I cant afford the bill or the months it takes to get one. Shame, shame. Me and the son got a pair of dirtbikes though since you dont run into alot of cops out in the hills and even if you did those old volvos dont run very well in the bush. A middle age mans revolt on society I guess. Thanks for the thread, I read every update. Sent using Tapatalk for Android
50 States Ranked for Highest Motorcycle Ownership: You Won't Guess Who's No. 2 By Blake Bos | More Articles February 16, 2014 | Comments (44) As of the most recent report by the Department of Transportation, there were 8,410,255 motorcycles registered in the United States by private citizens and commercial organizations in 2011. To put this staggering number into perspective, out of every 36 people you meet in the U.S., one of them probably has a motorcycle. For ranking purposes, we won't be looking at total bikes in a state, but rather people per motorcycle (the lower the number, the more common bikes are). So what states in America have the most die-hard moto-enthusiasts? 3. Our liberties we prize and our rights we will maintain -- Iowa Iowa is now home to the production of the famous Indian motorcycle. Image: WikiCommons Iowa comes in third with 18 people for every motorcycle, beating the national average by 50%. In 2011 the state had 172,929 motorcycles registered, representing 2.1% of all motorcycles in America. Iowa is also home to production of Polaris' (NYSE: PII ) Victory and Indian brands, and has the famous Iowa Grand Motorcycle Rally. This Midwest state's wide-open spaces make for a perfect landscape for Polaris' and Harley-Davidson's (NYSE: HOG ) famous cruisers. 2. Live free or die -- New Hampshire The 90-year-old Laconia Motorcycle Week. Image: WikiCommons New Hampshire comes in second with 17 people for every motorcycle beating the national average by 53%. In 2011 the state had 79,266 motorcycles registered, representing 0.94% of all motorcycles in America. New Hampshire also happens to be one of 31 states without a mandatory helmet law. The state is also home to Laconia Motorcycle Week, which dates back to the early 1900s and is one of the countries oldest rallies. Some sources quote attendance as high 300,000-400,000 bikers for this rally, and it is frequently ranked as one of the best rallies in the country. The combination of no helmets, great natural terrain, and the famous Laconia Motorcycle Week make New Hampshire a top spot for motorcycle enthusiasts. 1. Under God the people rule -- South Dakota 416,272 riders made there way to Sturgis in 2011. Image: WikiCommons South Dakota comes in first with 12 people for every motorcycle beating the national average by 66%. In 2011 the state had 69,284 motorcycles registered, representing 0.82% of all motorcycles in America. South Dakota is famous for the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, which attracted 467,338 riders in 2013. With 77% of surveyed riders riding a Harley-Davidson, this event is crucial for Harley to not only show off its newest products, but also to monitor its core customer. Investors in Polaris and Harley Davidsonwould do well to monitor how their brand's present themselves at Sturgis to see if they're gaining market share or losing it. Since South Dakota hosts the country's largest motorcycle rally and has a small population, it's no surprise this rather thinly populated state takes the No. 1 spot. Wrapping up the 50 top statesIn 2011 the Department of Transportation began more accurately collecting data for states, so for the first time motorcycle enthusiasts can truly see in which states they have the greatest chance of passing by a fellow rider. For the motorcycle companies this data gives them valuable information on where they can most easily reach the greatest amount of riders and customers. For a complete list of the most popular states for bikes, please scroll down. Rank State # Bikes Population People per bike 1 South Dakota 69,284 816,598 12 2 New Hampshire 79,266 1,316,807 17 3 Iowa 173,929 3,050,202 18 4 Wisconsin 317,276 5,691,659 18 5 Wyoming 30,351 564,554 19 6 North Dakota 32,654 674,629 21 7 Vermont 30,070 625,909 21 8 Montana 46,996 990,958 21 9 Minnesota 240,288 5,310,658 22 10 Alaska 30,983 714,146 23 11 Idaho 62,576 1,571,102 25 12 Maine 50,318 1,327,379 26 13 New Jersey 330,470 8,799,593 27 14 Colorado 173,120 5,047,692 29 15 Delaware 30,494 899,792 30 16 Ohio 390,494 11,537,968 30 17 Oklahoma 127,140 3,760,184 30 18 Washington 220,856 6,742,950 31 19 Pennsylvania 404,164 12,717,722 31 20 Indiana 204,402 6,490,622 32 21 New Mexico 64,863 2,065,913 32 22 Rhode Island 32,989 1,052,528 32 23 Michigan 308,338 9,877,143 32 24 Florida 574,176 18,838,613 33 25 West Virginia 56,210 1,854,368 33 26 Kansas 81,354 2,859,143 35 27 Oregon 108,313 3,838,332 35 28 Nebraska 51,371 1,830,141 36 29 Arizona 178,890 6,413,158 36 30 Connecticut 97,960 3,575,498 36 31 Illinois 350,193 12,841,980 37 32 Alabama 127,255 4,785,401 38 33 Tennessee 168,408 6,357,436 38 34 Arkansas 76,293 2,921,588 38 35 Nevada 68,951 2,704,283 39 36 Virginia 195,722 8,023,953 41 37 Massachusetts 159,000 6,555,466 41 38 Missouri 140,936 5,995,715 43 39 North Carolina 223,209 9,560,234 43 40 South Carolina 107,864 4,637,106 43 41 Kentucky 98,475 4,347,223 44 42 Hawaii 30,098 1,363,359 45 43 California 801,803 37,338,198 47 44 Utah 59,355 2,775,479 47 45 Maryland 120,069 5,785,681 48 46 Georgia 199,586 9,712,157 49 47 New York 345,816 19,395,206 56 48 Texas 438,551 25,253,466 58 49 Louisiana 67,486 4,545,343 67 50 Mississippi 28,067 2,970,072 106 51 Dist. of Col. 3,523 604,912 172
I hate you. Not really it's more like green with envy! That's one of my bucket list items is to make Sturgis before I die.
You can tell it's spring in Cyprus, the trees are budding and the roar of bikes echoes around the mountains. I love this island, the weather is fantastic and the culture is one of the most carefree, live and let live, freedom loving ones I have ever seen. They love a party and love their bikes. There will be some kind of block party, rally, parade or run every weekend from now until late in October. I am drooling with anticipation for this summer. My Trike will be there next month and I have already met the local H.O.G. group and will be joining their chapter. Expect lot's of pics of upcoming events! BTW, I had to leave to come back to work the day this run was scheduled. My buddy is the road captain for the H.O.G. group and was going to loan me one of his bikes. North Cyprus – Biker Festival in Nicosia | tfrnorthcyprus
Last time I got close to Cyprus they were having yet another war, glad they setteled down some. Make Love, lots of it!
Must have been some time ago. They have been pretty peaceful for the last 40 years. Since Turkey sent in troops to protect and secure the Turkish Cypriots in the north in 1974. The north declared independence in 1984 and have been self ruled since. They are in negotiations now that everyone is hopeful will result this time in a referendum that will reunite the country into a two state federation.
My time line was more like 1967 less than 50 years ago, of course "we were never there". I hope they can make two states of it and since they are all intermarried only politics can cause the problems we see. Last time we trained both sides, what a mistake.
I don't know if it's mid-life crises or not but it seems a lot of guys I know who are my age (50's) and in a similar financial bracket tend to collect fast cars and flashy bikes. One guy I know, who is an avowed bachelor, has two corvettes and 5 bikes. That's a little over the top, but it seems Harleys are like lays potato chips, you can't have just one. I bought the trike mainly for my wife. She is more comfortable on it and feels safer. I am just getting back into riding after being without a bike for several years and feel better with her and my son on the three wheels. They say if you ride a bike it is not a matter of if but when you will lay one down. I have had to lay down 3 in my day and it's not a pleasant experience. I can't imagine having to do it with someone I love riding behind me. So I am about to buy another just for me. I am going to look at it Monday and will offer the guy what I want to pay for it. If he won't budge on the price I will go ahead and give him what he is asking for it. Which is too much really, but it is a show bike and has a lot of custom work done on it. And it is something I will keep from now on. Hand it down to my son eventually. I don't mind paying a little extra for something that I plan on keeping. Plus I just don't get that old school feel from the Tri-Glide that I fell in love with when I started riding in the 70's. Back then they were all rigid frames, peanut gas tanks, no mirrors, most didn't even have a speedometer. Fairings, stereos, cruise control, intercom, all that's nice but it just isn't the essence of what I think of when I dream of being "in the wind". This is most likely the next addition to my family.
