Recently I found myself hanging out at Strokers on a nice
Saturday afternoon. This afforded me the opportunity to introduce a friend of
mine to the culture of the local motorcycling community. This friend is
somewhat new to the lifestyle of Harley-Davidson in particular and motorcycling
in general. Saturday’s being somewhat slower and only slightly less crowded
than most Sunday’s at the legendary bike destination, the people watching was better
and sight lines were ah…better.
My friend was amazed at the seemingly different types of
people present. Lawyers, doctors, plumbers, car salesman, felons and the latest
in biker chic was apparently of great interest. I related that this venue
probably gave a greater cross section of riders than almost any other
biker-friendly hangout in Dallas.
Just take a bench and
take in all that is glorious in the local biker world. Stroker’s clientele is
90% Harley-Davidson people. But you will see the rare sport bike rider, a
Victory rider looking for respect and his place among the other big bikes and yes,
the occasional weirdly silent Gold Wing. Teutonic BMW riders in their high tech
gear and extra gas tanks, Triumph guys that can’t help but look cool. Then there
are the Moto-Guzzi riders who are as passionate as Harley folk. But mostly it’s
the Orange and Black that is represented.
Since the motorcycling and especially the Harley lifestyle
is a social thing, slightly more of those throttle-twisters will be riding two
up today than riding solo. There are many happy couples hanging out enjoying
each other and the lifestyle they’ve chosen to share. It’s always been that
way. The Founder’s promoted that from the beginning.
Of course on the
other hand there is always the interesting drama of an ex wife, husband, girlfriend
or boyfriend showing up on another bike with the new soon to be next ex. It can
be a touchy situation. This writer has seen tears shed as the old ex walks by
with the new, hopefully improved version. I’ve also seen slaps on the back and
howling laughter as the poor, unsuspecting new flavor of the month looks over
and wonders “why are those people laughing and pointing at me?”
You’ll also notice on any Saturday or Sunday that there are
women sitting around looking for backseats and guys frantically hoping not to
be riding solo for very long. For women it’s that ageless 80’s club thing. Turn,
flip the hair, glance around to see who staring, turn and talk to your friend,
then repeat. For guys it’s taking that long look behind dark shades that will
keep the dude from being caught doing that staring thing for too long.
Looking around, you might see the newly divorced rider who
has a shiny new vest and a deer in the headlights look at all the strange
goings on. He may elect to submit to the extreme peer pressure in his newly divorced
guys bike club and go helmet-less. But he has the Sons of Anarchy doo rag
expertly tied to cover a receding hairline and that will do nicely this day.
There are the
veterans standing around who have no more room for any additional patches on
their leather or denim vests and have that bored been there done that look. They’ve
“Seen the Elephant” more times than they would like to remember. Motorcycle
crashes are hard to forget. Friends are too. They don’t ride without a helmet
but respect the right for the other guy to do so if he wishes’.
There are the two really sunburned gal’s dancing by themselves
in front of the Bad Company cover band on stage. SMU students in bikini’s (well
that’s their story) selling beer and of course working their way through
school. Their soon to be ex boyfriends standing close, but not too close,
giving the evil eye to any and all possible new friend boys or boyfriends. Then
there are other girls in bikinis attempting to wash bikes still too hot to
touch, the steaming pipes resulting in a bad hair day.
At opposite ends of the covered patio you will sometimes see
the bike-riders from the different outlaw bike clubs eyeing each other
suspiciously but keeping in mind this is somewhat neutral territory. But today
it seems to be different. There is an obvious tension in the air. This day
there are the Outlaws MC from Oklahoma that have made a loud presence as they earlier
rode in as a large group. There are no local Outlaw’s chapters in Texas. Maybe
it was just a reconnaissance in force, to show the flag so to speak. Funny,
there are no Bandido’s or Scorpions present for some reason this afternoon. Maybe
there was an agreement among the 1%’ers that this would be the Outlaw’s day at
Strokers. Or maybe it’s just blind luck that they are the only MC here. Who
knows? But I’m sure many feel like I do… relieved that they are the only ones
here. It’s always interesting to observe an outlaw club. The social interaction
among other bikers is a study in this close community of bikers that may have
different goals in the two wheeled world. Quick glances are shared, but don’t
get caught looking for too long.
Mixing with most other riders are the ever present
Booze-Fighters from Ft. Worth. They are a social riding group, starting in
California with Wino-Willy Thornton in 1947. They always seem to be in a party
mood and this day is no exception.
Of course there are
always HOG members just being social and also having a good time. Then there
are the posers desperately trying to look cool, see and be seen is their
mantra. Rolex riders, weekend warriors, they are all there. It’s all okay,
that’s what makes up the interesting tapestry of motorcycling.
Well, the suns going down and as a leg is thrown over the
iron horse and waits for the friend to saddle up behind him, the pilot glances
over the crowd one more time. The big bike roars to life, and it’s northbound
on Harry Hines. Just another Saturday and another slice of motorcycle mayhem!
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