Tank Bags and Big Guts

I may have mentioned this all before, but winter again brings out the social philosopher in me....

I pulled into a small local bike night last summer on the Superduke. I had a tankbag on it. Most of the bikes in the burger joint parking lot were cruisers of various types, "Metrics" and Harleys. And a fine collection of relatively young big belly bikers. One of the rotund Harley boys is staring at my bike...staring at the tank bag like he's never seen one before. He says, 'Don't that get in the way of yer gut?" (He's probably in his mid 30's and already has proudly grown a considerable and well cantilevered gut, as have most of this crowd. I'm twice his age and compared to this crowd, I'm relatively gut free). I tell him that tank bags are real handy, comfortable and don't get in the way. He walks away still muttering about how, "I can't see how it don't get in the way of yer gut". I've been riding on the street since 1964, but I've only ridden sport type bikes and dual purpose bikes. I have never driven a cruiser, and I have never really understood the lazy-boy chair seating position popular with the Harley/cruiser crowd, feet forward, laying back, arms up on apes...but I suddenly get it..Its all about fitting "yer gut" in behind the gas tank somehow..and the "low end torque" type cruisers that run out of steam at 4000 rpm are intended to lug these huge masses around town.

I get it now. Its all about being fat and still being able to ride a bike. Fair enough...and very American...just like American football and baseball, both sports designed for fat guys...a lot of standing around in the mid-summer or Indian summer heat with brief moments of extreme "low end torque" effort...sort of like cruisers at bike night...Now I'm not saying that everyone who drives a cruiser is fat, but I am saying that these types of bikes are Designed (yes, at the factory)for big guts. Others claim the distinction in riding position is similar to the difference between English style horse riding (sport bike) and Western style horse riding (cruiser) styles....perhaps ...but I think its mostly about wedging that big gut in behind the tank...

..now, what does this have to do with the SD?...ahhh...nothing, I guess...although I have noticed some token respect for the SD coming from the Harley guys...when I first bought the SD back in 07 I found myself riding over to a Harley chopper shop on unrelated business...when I came outside, all the guys from the back, the mechanics, etc, were standing around my SD in a circle...and they all seemed real interested...but for some unexplainable reason there weren't a lot of big guts in that crowd.

Hmmm...bike nite...maybe its not the Harleys...or not Just the Harleys...maybe its also the burgers...

You forgot Robin, to mention the fact that most of "those' guy's" have the shortest leg's as well, and let's face it, a twenty three inch inseem will not work to well on a bike like the SD, so many of them can only dream a little dream and will always voice their opinion even though they know that their feet will never touch the ground on a KTM,,,

Hardley guys don't know what to think of the SD. They were probably thinking it looks like some kinda Bat Bike.!?

Love it and dont forget beards get caught in the lockstops of superbikes, which is another reason all the ZZ Top lookalikes ride cruisers and avoid cornering.

Would any other company have the "guts" to name a model "fatboy"!

That was a clever write up. Poor bastards and their limited naive minds...