I just finished 128 miles of great roads on the sort of Harleys that people like me can’t tell people like you about. Not those of us who’d like to remain gainfully employed anyway. All will be revealed soon enough. Meanwhile, I was talking to one of my friends from Milwaukee—a well-placed Motor Company executive who knows more than he can tell but is always dead honest about the stuff he can talk about. I asked him why the average Big Twin feels so cramped to those of us who are above average in the inseam department.
“Good question,” he said. The conversation was off the cuff. Not for attribution. So I’m not attributing here. Still, the next thing was more interesting. He figures most of Harley’s recent offerings fit the vertically challenged better than those of us in excess of 72 inches tall because most of the input he’d seen came from short people. Tall types—including yours truly—are evidently content to suffer in silence, taking what solace they can from a Tallboy seat or relocated pegs and foot controls from the Genuine H-D Motor Parts and Accessories Catalog.
I think we’ve suffered long enough. Especially if a little whining is all it takes. So let’s try a little experiment. Is the top of your head further than 73 inches from the soles of your feet? Do you like most everything about the Milwaukee mystique except the prospect of folding your protracted frame onto one of theirs? Maybe you should let `em know. If enough of us do, maybe we can drown out all that whining that’s been coming from down around our knees. Or maybe I’m all wet. It wouldn’t be the first time. The only way to find out is to pick up the phone, or some stationary and a pen.
To speak with a Harley-Davidson customer service representative call (414) 343-4056.
Harley-Davidson Customer Service
3700 W. Juneau Avenue
Milwaukee, WI 53208