Harley Davidson, all revved up and ready to go
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.