It’s been 49 years since my Harley Davison chopper took first place at a show in the New York City Coliseum.
After taking a break from motorcycling to spend 20 years enjoying hang gliding, about five years ago I got back into custom choppers.
This motorcycle site was set up originally just as a hobby site and even though choppers have gone out of favor (I’m sure they’ll be back) of baggers, I’m still totally hooked on their looks, power and most of all, they are smooth highway cruising.
My two favorite bikes are my current iron horse Texas chopper and the big dog K9 chopper. As far as factory produced custom choppers I don’t think you can get any better than these two.
2007 Big Dog K9
In May, this site had over 26,900 unique visitors! Now, I’m not talking about hits I’m talking about one IP address counted in a 24 hour period. I think this goes to show that there still tremendous interest in choppers and custom motorcycles in general.
A chopper is a type of custom motorcycle which emerged in the United States in the mid-1960s. The chopper is perhaps the most extreme of all custom styles, often using 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.
Perhaps the best known choppers are the two customized Harley-Davidsons, the “Captain America” and “Billy Bike”, seen in the 1969 film Easy Rider.
It’s been 49 years since my Harley Davison chopper took first place at a show in the New York City Coliseum.
In May, this site had over 26,900 unique visitors! Now, I’m not talking about hits I’m talking about one IP address counted in a 24 hour period. I think this goes to show that there still tremendous interest in choppers and custom motorcycles in general.
