Harley Davidson, all revved up and ready to go

By Agni Amorita

JAKARTA (JP): When Agustinus "Nugie" Nugraha gained public recognition as a professional singer about three years ago, he made his teenage dreams a reality.

One of them was to buy a Harley Davidson motorcycle. Nugie lovingly cared for his beloved bike; he even showed it off by riding it in the music video for one of his smash hits, Pembuat Teh (Tea Makers). Nugie also rode it across Java to Bali in October 1999.

"He was heading to a concert at the Hard Rock Cafe in Kuta but in Ketapang he had a minor accident with his bike," recalled Emji, Nugie's manager. He was left black and blue but at the end of the day he still managed to arrange a new song dedicated to the bike.

Nugie's devotion is testament that the Harley Davidson is definitely no mere motorcycle; some even consider it a lifestyle. For them, Harley Davidson Indonesia provides supporting merchandise, which were introduced in a two-day exhibition and fashion show in Plaza Senayan Jakarta last week.

Besides the bike itself -- the new four-piston Harley Davidson 2000 sells for between Rp 100 million (for type 883 cc) to Rp 250 million (1450 cc) -- fanatics can also buy genuine goods of traditional Harley belt buckles, hats, caps, money clips, watches, sunglasses, to lighters. There is a wider variety in the apparel section, from T-shirts, boot straps, wallets, handbags to women's semiformal outfits that can be worn for more serious occasions.

"Harley Davidson's apparel is not only for riding the bike," explained Rina Suhasti, marketing manager of PT Emhade, an Indonesian authorized dealer for Harley Davidson, who organized the event.

"We also provide casual outfits, even formal and working attire like these semiblazer jackets for women," she said as she showed items from the collection, which is dominated by Harley's colors of blue, gray and reddish tones. The brightest color was orange, considered to show off the flame-fire character of the bike.

Sold for between Rp 99,000 and Rp 400,000 each, the outfits are designed specially for the bikers. For example, there are "boot-cut" pants to be matched with footwear. The coin pocket in the jeans is not on the right side, as is usual for jeans, but on the left. It is for practicality's sake as the right hand is needed to rev up the engine.

Harley Davidson riders are usually middle-aged men. Some women, usually wives or daughters of bike owners, have joined the club because of their spouses or relatives.

"The bike is quite heavy to be operated by women," said Eva Farlia, club manager of the Jakarta branch of the Harley Owners Group (HOG). She has more than a dozen women members, but they have never experienced riding the bikes by themselves.

"But they are quite active in the club, always taking part when we organize tours." She said the women were active in organizing charity events in the towns visited during a bike tour. There are three fixed schedule annual long-distance tours and dozens of shorter trips, like to Pangandaran in West Java last week.

Owners of Harley Davidson bikes are mostly businessmen, Eva said. She dismissed the common conception that most of the members were from the military, even though Gen. (ret) Herman Sarens Sudiro served as longtime president of Harley Davidson Indonesia and Lt. Gen. (ret) Suyono was injured in a fall from his motorcycle during an annual tour of Manado when the July 27, 1996 unrest broke out in Jakarta.

As for most of the drivers being forty-something, it probably has a lot to do with the fact that it is not a cheap hobby. Bikes cost in the millions of rupiah, and the requisite accessories can take an even bigger bite out of pocketbooks.