Another Good Read - Bikers

I just finished Jay Dobyn's book, "No Angel." http://www.jaydobyns.com/

This is some **** stuff, if you ever wanted to take a peek inside the Hells Angels organization without becoming a "hangaround," "prospect," or getting your ass kicked for asking too many questions.

It's written in a trashy, "memoir" style, which would make most practicing grammarians drop dead, but I think it really adds to Dobyn's non-fiction story.

There are no XRs in the book, but plenty of other powerful things.

I remember camping in the 1960s. We carried a couple of guns in the camper and it wasn't for bears! I remember a few times when a bunch of Harley guys rode into the campground. It was a BIG problem. My dad always went out and spoke with them. Never knew what was said. But my dad was armed. I never met a person who had a bad thing to say about my father. He could talk to anyone without offending them and it usually created friends. He was somehow always respectful and respected. That said, he was a guy no one ever picked a fight with. 6'2", the best athlete to come out of Oklahoma his year, used to box in the circus for money when he was broke, and so forth. The Harley guys always rode on and left amicably.

I reckon it's one of a never finished list of questions I wanted to ask
my dad but didn't, "Hey, what did you say to those bikers back then?" He would have likely made a joke out of it. Probably said something like, "I just told them I'd seen a camp full of naked German prostitutes about 20 miles farther down the road."

I have a relative who likes to say, "Back when bad guys rode Harleys..."

Cool story, Bump.

My dad was similar. He saw a lot of combat during WWII, including D-Day, but would never come clean with proper answers on how he accomplished difficult tasks. He always joked about such things when asked. My mom told me about some of the real stuff that he brushed off. Crazy, nuts, insane, madness, etc.... I don't blame him for making the war sound like a stroll on the beach.

Bikers.... Like your relative said, they don't make them like they did, back in the day. I'm sure you saw it too, but back in the 80's, every dood with a perceived mid-life crisis was riding a Harley, at least in the Los Angeles area. It's still pretty bad, even here in Tucson, 29 years later.

There are still a few "one percenters" floating around, but not like before. In the late 80's it was not uncommon to find some out in desert BFE, with a broken bike (I was out in BFE daily). They were always cool with a ride into town (in my truck), but never talked to much.

I asked him about WWII and he also wouldn't share specifics.

But he did once tell me something. He used to have a way of kinda saying the benediction on something when he wanted a new topic. He was from North Carolina and he said, I'll tell ya this: there ain't no meaner animal on this planet than an American country boy in a foreign country with a license to kill."

And I had 2nd cousin over there too who told first hand stories about how fratricide occurred. I really like to hear stories of remarkable coincidences too. The 2nd cousin ran into his cousin, my grandpa's brother, in a hospital. They just kinda woke up almost right next to each other!

It's amazing that those guys came home, and were given (obviously deserved) the GI Bill, and geez did they really do a lot with it. Just goes to show you what a free college education can do.