Motorcycles have captured the American imagination
By Joe Olvera ( c), 2011
From the so-called “Hogs” ridden by motorcycle gangs such as the Hell’s Angels, to the putt-putt motor scooters ridden by little ole ladies, the motorcycle has always had a romantic air of freedom about it. In El Paso, with its wide open spaces and scenic drives, it becomes even more of an icon that is beloved by doctors, politicians, and ordinary people who enjoy having a powerful machine between their legs, cruising back streets and mountainous country.
From its inception in1867, when Sylvester Howard Roper (1823-1896) invented a two-cylinder, steam engine motorcycle (powered by coal) the first motorcycle has seen an evolution of sorts. In 1885, Gottlieb Daimier invented the first gas-engine motorcycle, which was an engine attached to a wooden bike. That marked the moment in history when the dual development of a viable gas powered engine and the modern bicycle collided. Motorcycles have figured prominently in Americana, with prominent Americans like Howard Hughes producing a movie called “Chills and Spills,” a 1952 film in which Hughes creates what is described as a “fun film, jam-packed with awesome vintage cycles.” Other iconic motorcycle films include one of Marlon Brando’s earliest films, “The Wild Ones,” in which Brando and his motorcycle gang terrorize a small town – when Brando, the biker is asked what he’s rebelling against, he asks: “What you got?”
Undoubtedly, the sexiest machine in both lore and reality is the one created by William Harley and the Davidson brothers – the Harley Davidson. Prior to developing their own company to build their unique machines, they had such competitors as Excelsior, Indian, Pierce, Merkel, Schikel and Thor. In 1903, William Harley and his friends Arthur and Walter Davidson launched the Harley-Davidson Motor Company, a company which still stands above the rest in providing a motorcycle that still outdistances the rest. The Harley-Davidson is a powerful bike which is still highly popular, even in today’s movie-making ventures, such as the more recent movie, “Hogs.”.
But, perhaps the bikes which still stand out in American folklore are the ones used in the movie “Easy Rider,” starring Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper and Jack Nicholson. The protagonists, Fonda and Hopper, used bikes built on hardtail frames and panhead engines. These bikes, built in 1949, 1950 and 1952, known as Glide Bikes, were purchased at auction by the actors. They used the bikes to tell the story of two bikers who travel through the American Southwest and South with the aim of achieving freedom. According to Wikipedia, this landmark counterculture film becomes a “touchstone for a generation” that “captured the national imagination,” Easy Rider explores the societal landscapes, issues, and tensions in the United States during the 1960s, such as the rise and fall of the hippie movement, drug use and communal lifestyle.
Easy Rider is famous for its use of real drugs in its portrayal of marijuana and other substances, such as Acid or LSD. But, whatever the motorcycles are used for, there’s no doubt that they have captured the imagination of an American public that is only too willing to buy vintage motorcycles, or the more modern versions. Either way, motorcycles, with their powerful, vibrating engines, are here to stay.
