Motorcycles? Mystique Puts White Collars in Black Leather

Like that six-pack rediscovered in the garage, the Harley-Davidson motorcycle is once again cool.

So cool in fact that it has become the toy of choice for many businessmen.

Dennis Tune, co-owner of Tune Trucking and Tune Concrete in Fayetteville, grew up watching his father’s interest in the big bikes. Like father, like son, Dennis Tune is not only following in Denny Tune’s footsteps, he’s riding many of the roads his father has traveled on two wheels.

“When my dad got his bike, there were probably only about 15 in this whole area,” Dennis Tune said. “His generation grew up in the ’50s when motorcycles were really popular. Growing up with him, I always wanted one, too. We rode back together from Sturgis [S.D.] this year. I’ve also ridden in four states this year that I’ve never been through in a car. It was a blast.”

The word has apparently spread.

No longer is Eureka Springs the only place to see a collection of Harley-Davidson riders on any given summer night in Northwest Arkansas. Fayetteville’s Dickson Street, particularly in front of Jose’s Streetside Cafe, has become a favorite hangout for Harley riders to show off their bikes. Some even use the location to try and sell their bikes.

There was a time when the perception of a “Harley rider” was Dennis Hopper or Peter Fonda in the 1969 cult classic Easy Rider. In that film, the pair rides across the country incorporating drugs, sex and even politics into their daily lives.

But a closer look at the weekend bikers of today reveals many of the same guys who crunch numbers weekdays for multimillion-dollar businesses.

Being successful in the corporate world certainly makes it easier to own a Harley. Their cost ranges from $12,000 to $23,000.

Of course, they can be much more expensive if they’re custom built, especially if the builder is the renowned Jesse James’ West Coast Choppers. Those bikes may range from $35,000 to $80,000 in price. James built one for NBA superstar Shaquille O’Neal for $110,000. Other clients include actor Keanu Reeves and wrestling star Bill Goldberg. And Ann Margaret and musician Billy Joel are Harley riders.

Dennis Tune said he’s added a $400 custom seat and $50 handle bars for his Harley Road King.

“And I’ve got just about every piece of chrome that’s available on it,” Tune said. “The joke is that when you buy a Harley, what you’ve done is bought a chrome collection starter kit. You basically buy a bike and hang a bunch of chrome on it.”

Convenience, more than cost, was the reason Dennis Tune made riding his Harley his favorite pastime.

“I went through a fishing phase,” said Tune, who briefly fished professionally. “That was fun, but it took too much time.

“And when you’re riding, the cell phone doesn’t ring. My wife loves to ride. The main reason I got the custom seat was for Cynthia. We rode five days in Arizona back in May. That was probably the best trip I’ve ever been on. We saw the Grand Canyon and the Painted Desert on a rented Harley-Davidson touring bike. You just don’t get the same perspective when you’re riding with a windshield and listening to a radio. When we came back the first thing she said was, ‘We’ve gotta get a seat like that.'”

Rent-a-chopper

Rental Harleys are becoming popular nationwide. Although no dealerships rent Harleys in Northwest Arkansas, Harley-Davidson is trying to change that. The reason, Tune said, is that Harley believes once someone gets on one of its motorcycles and enjoys a long ride, they’ll be hooked and want to buy a bike for themselves.

Rental costs for Harleys vary. The Hilton Hotel in Reno, Nev., rents them for $95 for six hours. A three-day rental in Maui is $375. And in Daytona Beach, Fla., a Harley can be rented for $800 a week.

Fayetteville businessman Dash Goff has a love for fast horses and even faster Harleys. Writers have often compared the two. It is said that the Harley provides the freedom today that horses once gave cowboys.

“It’s like being a gypsy of the road,” Goff said. “You do it for the freedom of it. I’ve seen more of America on a Harley than I ever saw in a car. Ride over around the Buffalo River, and you’ll see a huge amount of motorcycles going through there.”

Some people see the scenery go by a bit faster than others. Denny Tune once held the world record on a Harley in the quarter-mile at 218 miles-per-hour.

It was friends Denny Tune, former Fayetteville Police Chief Richard Watson and Arvest-Fayetteville Senior Vice President Buddy Ledford who got Charlie Goforth interested in riding Harleys. Goforth co-owns with his brother, Billy, Bargo Engineering Inc. of Fayetteville. Count him in the number who have become hooked on Harleys.

“Brother Bill and I have always worked a lot of hours — 12 to 15 hours a day,” Charlie Goforth said. “But when you get on that motorcycle, the pressures and strains of business go away. You can’t think about business. You think about riding safely to keep from getting killed. You got the wind on your back, the sun on your face, and you can see forever. You hear the roar and feel of the power of the engine.

“Harleys are a great mechanical marvel. And my business is mechanics.”

Billy Goforth sold his Harley, but the brothers have part ownership in Mother’s Custom Cycle in Denver, Colo., which makes Harley-Davidson accessories such as gas cap molds, ignition covers, etc.

Harley History

Harley-Davidson went through trying times, particularly when it was bought out by American Machine and Foundry Co. in 1969. AMF spent more effort on its golf carts than the motorcycles. The company almost went bankrupt.

The Harley-Davidson name was little more than a trivia question when Harley senior executives purchased the company from AMF in 1981. They ditched the old process of manufacturing, corrected its many flaws and rebuilt the company back to what it is today.

In 1986, Harley-Davidson Inc. once again became a publicly owned company. Charlie Goforth owns some of the stock, which was trading at $53.02 per share on Nov. 7, up $4.84 from one year earlier.

Joe Stephens has owned Happy Trails Motorcycle Connection in Fayetteville for the past 17 years. When he opened his shop, he said he could count every Harley rider in the area on his two hands.

“Harley had a bad reputation in the ’70s and early ’80s,” Stephens said. “They were so close to bankruptcy. But they got bought out and came out with a new engine, and suddenly you didn’t have to work on them all the time. And they came out with a new frame. It became desirable to ride them again. The mystique was back.

“I thought I’d died and went to heaven. I’d been trying to make ends meet, and all of a sudden, boom.”

Stephens also custom builds bikes.

Ready to Ride

The popularity of motorcycles in Northwest Arkansas spawned a new monthly magazine, The Ride. Its publisher, Janet Feichtel-Wright, said there are as many as 15 active patch-wearing motorcycle riding clubs in Northwest Arkansas.

“Motorcycles are truly one of the last frontiers,” Feichtel-Wright said. “They are one of the truest expressions of freedoms left today. You’re not riding horses, but you still get to put the chaps on.”

Feichtel-Wright said there is “an abundance of white-collar riders and bikers” in Northwest Arkansas. Included among them is dentist Rick Nichol of Springdale, who won best custom bike at the Bikes, Blues & Barbecue festival in October in Fayetteville. Nichol built his own bike.