Does H.O.G.® need to change?

[Ultimate Bagger]

Originally Posted by RABNTN

I have never seen anyone in our Chapter wearing a patch proclaiming how many miles they've ridden - and we have 35 to 40 members that ride from 12 to 40 thousand miles a year. We just ride too...and have a hellava lot of fun doing it!

Ridin' regards,
RABnTN

It's the mileage program that is offered via HOG. And I'm glad you have a great chapter. I'm sure there are many many out there, it's just my experience with the one that I'm a charter member of.

I for one would never go to the meetings and start to lay out what was wrong. That isn't my make up. Since we all can make our own choices, I choose not to associate with those members, but I have several riding buddies that are members of other chapters. This dealership is literally .2 miles from my home, so I use it for service and such.

Glad you have a great chapter!

[45507]

I'm a metric rider and even I can figure out that in order to be a member of a brand specific club you should probably own the brand in question. Whether or not a local chapter lets other brands join in on their closed chapter rides is their business. They can't stop you from following them on a public road but why would you want to tag along if you're not wanted? Want to be a HOG member? Buy a Harley or a Buell. Has common sense completely left the building?

[albertmangled]

Well done Caveman....you've got it in a nutshell!

[kfengler]

We have a local group, "BVR" (Boise Valley Riders), that looks to be an OK bunch. All makes are part of the group and on their runs you'll see it all!

I joined HOG, (the national HOG) mainly for the Basic tow package they have and I must admit I like the Little Atlas you get, not to mention their two rags, Pin and Patch. I'm not into the local HOG group at all. I'm not into wearing any graffiti on my vest/jacket, haven't found any patches I really want.

Don't BUELL riders have B.R.A.G. ?

I tend to disagree that BUELLS are really Harley's. There nothing in the Chassis that even comes close to anything the Air Cooled Harley's have. The engine may have a Sportster heritage but it's quite a bit different that what you find in an XLH1200.

[03flstfi]

I think I may have been misunderstood. The "Rebels" in our chapter also ride Harleys, but from time to time they bring out their other toys for kicks... (or the HOG is in the shop)

Even the Chapter director has 2 bikes... but for him they are both Harleys...

[Far 3ast]

Originally Posted by kfengler

Don't BUELL riders have B.R.A.G. ?

B.R.A.G. is dead. I don't know why they killed it off, but if you go to the Buell web site you will see that they killed it off. They say it will be replaced with something else but they haven't put a name on it yet. Meanwhile the H.O.G. website has been updated to state that Buell owners are eligible for full membership in H.O.G.

[Biker Bry]

My old local chapter would let anybody in. You could be on a Vespa Moped and hang with us. We didn't care. Some people can't work a Harley into their lives, and we didn't care. Good Poeple are good people. The non-Harley riders just couldn't get into the MoCo events, but our own events were much better anyways.

[DBotkin]

Originally Posted by 8-Ball

I'm sitting here with my renewal letter and trying to decide whether I want to cancel.

I don't like the meetings, just not my cup of tea. I'd rather ride with friends or alone. I also find that most of the members are old and fat. This was not my dream either.

8< snip...

I do like the 10% off parts at my local dealer that the national HOG membership provides me.

I had the same thing when I got my renewal letter. I decided not to renew either my HOG or GWTA membership this year. That was in October or November; I just recently went ahead and renewed the national HOG membership. I even added my wife as an associate so she'd get the patch & pin.

We don't own a Wing, but some good friends invited us on some GWTA rides. We liked it, joined and more or less stayed. Neither of us care about the meetings, and the dinner rides seem to be a contest to see who can find the crappiest restaurants. Still, we do enjoy getting out with the group once in a while. As for group rides being a little slow and sedate, that's certainly not limited to HOG, trust me. I could fall asleep in the saddle and wake up with a beard on a GWTA dinner ride.

We went on one dinner ride with the local HOG chapter. They seemed nice enough but a little uptight, and though it all went well no one seemed to really care if we went back or not. Barring any real change, I doubt we'll join the local chapter. I'll try a few rides with them this year and maybe catch a meeting to see if my first impression was in accurate, but I'm not expecting anything big.

In short, it was touch and go whether we'd renew this year. If this year isn't significantly different than last, we won't renew with either group next year for sure. As for the other "benefits" of HOG membership, I tried to find something worth the money and failed. I like the magazines, but they are really pretty much H-D advertisements and can't justify the cost. The roadside assistance looked pretty thin, and I can buy a road atlas anywhere. And I get 10% off at my dealer just for having bought the bike there - used, even. I'm looking hard for reasons to remain a member of either group, and keep coming up short.

[elvrs-27]

While I've found a great deal of use with maintaining a HOG membership, (Road Info, Events, Points of Interest, etc.) I haven't experienced much use with being a HOG chapter member. Now with that having been said, I gave myself roughly 18 months as an active chapter member in order to shake out the bugs as it were before I finally came to the conclusion that I just don't like getting in line and playing "Follow the Leader". Because of my experiences I have a distict dislike for HOG Road Captains and the quasi-elitist mentality that they sometimes seem to possess. The Chapter that I belonged to, somewhere in the LA/Ventura area, has a definite aspiration to enlist anyone who wants to become a Road Captain. Once they have weathered the training that qualifies them, they become part of an elite inner circle that enjoys greater benefits and perks, (meetings, dinners, events and rides), then the average rank and file member. The general membership are nothing more then "Command Fodder" for this inner elite "Command Structure". Real live Bikers, mind you, who from time to time like to compare themselves with the local patch holding faternaties. Plus, as others have previously stated in this forum, you'll fear for your life the entire time your out on a group ride with these guys for one reason or another, novices not withstanding. There's one thing more dangerous then a soccer mom in an SUV with a cell phone, and that's a indecisive motorcycle rider with an MPM player stuck in his or her ear. I guess that my point is, if your going to ride, then just do it. You'll meet and make your friends and associations along the way. The real bikers are out there along the road, beyond the edge of town, and you'll be crossing their path each and every time your out there.

[03flstfi]

Maybe my outlook differs from some... I am a life member of hog and have been a local chapter member for some 5 years.

The chapter I belong to (there are 3 on the island of O'ahu) is great... they all are actually and as I stated elsewhere in this topic, we welcome any and all bikes for the informal rides.

The only truly exclusive HOG event is the state rally, of which chapter members volunteer to take our out of state visitors around to points of interest... lotta bigwigs from the MOCO and a great way to network friends for a future trip.

My wife and I have been asked to lead these groups of visitors for the last 4 years, and all the visitors seem to enjoy the hospitality and Hawai'is unique "Aloha Spirit". Last years October 15th earthquake and the resultant power outage put a damper on the riding, but not the spirit... the catering company cooks with gas, so we had food, and we picked up a bunch of 15 passenger vans we rented to take our guests around... All in all, a great fun filled 3 days... and we hope to see some of our guests back (and some have said they will return...this year...)

Too bad the HOG offered shipping companies dont offer transport to-from Hawaii... makes it a difficult trip without my horse... so travel for me is limited... Thats what we get for living in paradise...

[03flstfi]

As far as the life membership... $400 and yes, no renewal fee, just the patch/pin/atlas/other stuff you get annually.

I used roadside assistance twice.

Once when I went down in morning traffic avoiding a sliding Jeep, and once when I had a failure of the charging system.

The two tows were over $100 each and was reimbursed both times. IMHO, well worth the annual fee, or the LIFE fee... whatever you qualify for.

[TomB]

Did HOG make a stinky?

[JohnT]

I belong to the National H.O.G., and probably will keep renewing as long as I own a Harley. It's inexpensive and I like the magazines (commercials) well enough. If I were to switch makes, I'd join their National, also, just for the sense of community. As to the local chapters, there are good and bad ones. For the most part, these are social organizations, with many of the same characteristics of other social organizations: inner circle, proceedings dominated by the usual suspects, and on and on. You'll find the same in your local Rotary, Kiwanis, fraternal organization, Chamber of Commerce, etc. If you're a joiner and want to go to the trouble to fit in, it will work for you. Bottom line: it's an individual thing. I belong to my local chapter, but don't participate very much due to their limited planned events and my time/family constraints, etc. There's another non-brand-specific riding club in the area that I prefer made up of riders of all ages and owners of all makes, whose only commonality is that they all like to ride . . . often. That's what does it for me.

[03flstfi]

Originally Posted by JohnT

I belong to the National H.O.G., and probably will keep renewing as long as I own a Harley. It's inexpensive and I like the magazines (commercials) well enough. If I were to switch makes, I'd join their National, also, just for the sense of community. As to the local chapters, there are good and bad ones. For the most part, these are social organizations, with many of the same characteristics of other social organizations: inner circle, proceedings dominated by the usual suspects, and on and on. You'll find the same in your local Rotary, Kiwanis, fraternal organization, Chamber of Commerce, etc. If you're a joiner and want to go to the trouble to fit in, it will work for you. Bottom line: it's an individual thing. I belong to my local chapter, but don't participate very much due to their limited planned events and my time/family constraints, etc. There's another non-brand-specific riding club in the area that I prefer made up of riders of all ages and owners of all makes, whose only commonality is that they all like to ride . . . often. That's what does it for me.

^^^ well said.

I seem to fit in with our local chapter(s), where I dont think I'm stuffy enough for our Rotary club...

I enjoy the events I can attend, but work and family time constraints keep me away... but with new leadership this year, the chapter has changed some of the events and moved them to time/day slots more user friendly to myself and others. At least I wont get the joking "new member" ribs when they dont see me for months now...

[Molly]

Local HOG members here have recently been involved in the promotion of a porn expo. I don't see how that fits in with the 'squeaky-clean' image they usually enjoy.

Personally, I just find they're not particularly intereted in their bikes for what they are as much as for what they mean (or they think they mean). Nobody seems to do thier own work or much less care about that side of things. I can't relate.

Molly.