There’s nothing like riding a good-looking Chopper through the countryside!
Sure, riding any type of motorcycle through open roads in the country is a great experience. But, riding a high-powered, cool looking chopper, it’s really a kick in the ass! How many real chopper riders think about those great rides on the open country roads during the winter off-season? Personally, I bet there’s quite a few, as we’re looking forward to the warmer weather and getting our machines back out on the road.
A chopper is a type of custom motorcycle which emerged in California in the late 1950s. A chopper employs radically modified steering angles and lengthened forks for a stretched-out appearance. They can be built from an original motorcycle which is modified (“chopped”) or built from scratch. Some of the characteristic features of choppers are long front ends with extended forks often coupled with an increased rake angle, hardtail frames (frames without rear suspension), very tall “ape hanger” or very short “drag” handlebars, lengthened or stretched frames, and larger than stock front wheels. The “sissy bar”, a set of tubes that connect the rear fender with the frame, and which are often extended several feet high, is a signature feature on many choppers.
Two famous examples of the chopper are customized Harley-Davidsons, the “Captain America” and “Billy Bike”, seen in the 1969 film Easy Rider.
As the popularity of choppers grew, in part through exposure in movies such as the 1969 classic Easy Rider, several motorcycle brands took note and began to include chopper influenced styling in their factory offerings. None of the factories were willing to go all out and do things like abandon rear-suspension to achieve the classic chopper look, however. As a result, these bikes were given the name “factory customs” and are not considered choppers.
Over the decades since the first choppers were created many different trends and fads have taken hold and held sway, so that it is often possible for someone to look at a chopper and say that it is a “1970s” style or fits into a specific era or sub-type. Some contemporary builders specialize in building choppers that very exactly fit into these styles, which are frequently referred to as “old school” style choppers.
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