After traversing Angeles Crest Highway, the very road that drove me to aggravation aboard Fatty not long before, I was struck with an inexplicable feeling of simpatico for all 731 pounds of this corpulent cruiser.
Just after I parked the bike for the shot you see here-- framed by a typically Californian desertscape of clear sunlight, Joshua Trees, and a distant wheat-colored horizon-- my riding buddy Levi muttered, "I kinda 'get' the Fat Boy Lo a little bit more out here." For a little background, Levi doesn't particularly gravitate towards Harley-Davidson's offerings, though he deserves credit for maintaining an open mind through the wildly eclectic variety of test bikes I've exposed him to. Though the Fat Boy Lo isn't exactly a part of his usual motorcycle vernacular, I knew Levi had the capacity to understand its appeal for folks who like riding cruisers.
So there she was, Fatty looking laid back and mellow against the dusky sky as her v-twin engine block ticked itself cool. It wasn't a rational mental shift, nothing that could be explained by a spec sheet or a feature list. This was a gut reaction, a feeling evoked by the vastness of roadside Americana and a machine that was far from mechanically perfect, but one that offered a riding experience that was perhaps a bit more earnest, arguably more historically referential than some of its more contemporary competitors.
And that-- at least for me-- is what puts the Motor Company in such an unusual light. No other motorcycle manufacturer is simultaneously so admired and reviled; they're admittedly concerned about attracting younger buyers, which sometimes seems to fly in the face of their throwback designs. And as much as they've snuck technology like anti-lock brakes, cruise control, GPS systems, and high-powered stereo systems into their motorcycles, the bikes are, at their core (with the exception of the V-Rod, air-cooled, pushrod-actuated traditionalist machines. And therein lies the dynamic tension: how does Harley maintain their century-plus heritage while encouraging a new breed of rider to buy their bikes? Though I felt the nostalgic allure of the Fat Boy Lo that afternoon, the experience also made me wonder how the big, loping cruiser will survive a brave new world in which designers strive to make their two-wheeled creations faster, sleeker, lighter, and more attractive to buyers who will fuel their future sales. It's a tough question sure to challenge Harley-Davidson for some time to come.
It was a long ride back that afternoon, and I didn't get home 'till after dark. The Fat Boy Lo's footpegs still scraped through the canyons, but away from the white noise of the city and against the starkness of nature, Fatty somehow started making a lot more sense. After all, what is a motorcycle if not a machine that evokes strong emotion?
- >>Click here for Long Term Fat Boy Lo Update #4: So THAT'S Why They Call it "Lo"!<<
- >>Click here for Fat Boy Lo Long Term Update #3: Customizing Fatty<<
- >>Click here for Fat Boy Lo Long Term Update #2: Did I Just Join a Secret Club?<<
- >>Click here for Fat Boy Lo Long Term Update #1: Say Hello to Fatty!<<
Mileage Log
- Total Miles Ridden: 1,107
- Total Odometer Miles: 2,659
- Average Fuel Economy: 38.3 mpg
