Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126891
~ ~ lationship and 1 guess that's mainly because 1 enjoy the sport very much. "During my free time I'm out on my bike, it's kind of a LOtal involvement, my wife and my children are all involved in this thing and when we take .a vacation we go on our motorcycles. " Willie G. 's son William has not only taken to motorcycles;but also to H-D itself and currently works in the marketing department, becoming the fourth-generation Davidson to work for the company. However, that's the LOtal family involvement at'the moment. There is absolutely no one from the Harley side involved at all. Does that sadden Davidson? "I think these things evolve," he says philosophicall y. "There area lot of members of both families that maybe dQn 't have the ,intrinsic interest my son Bill and 1 have. While they have had the opportunity LO be here, they elected to go into their own areas of interest that maybe had nothing LO do with motorcydes. "Believe it or not," he says only half jokingly, "there are people in the world who don't love motorcycling - 1 can't imagine it, but there are some." Not around the Davidson household though! There's even a 1912 vtwin (the first Harley with a clutch mechanism, siuing on an Oriental rug in the family room, while a collection of some of his favorite H-Ds are around about with several at the office. A couple of the bikes which he worked on which are in his personal collection incl ude the 1971 Low Rider and the '77 XLCH Cafe Racer, and he professes they are among his favorites. Ask for one favorite, though, and he won't be able' to answer you. Go the other way and ask if there was ever a Harley which he wished he could take back to the drawing board and the answer is similarly negative. "While trying not to sound like a miracle worker,! don't think we ever came up with a total flop as far as new products are concerned, just because of our evolution-rather-thanrevolution phil,osophy. "Maybe we're not the quickest to make a major engineering or tooling change, maybe that philosophy is why we've survived a couple of wars and depressions." And as far as Davidson is concerned, will survive a lot longer with him in there for as long as possible. After all, his ,commitment to H-D is not only through family; he put ina bundle of his own money and became a part-owner in the buy-back frpm AMF in ,[981. And his investment is being rewarded, says Davidson. "I can't tell you aboutthe '88s and '89s.'1 can't tell you about the product-planning brainstorming sessions and that's very exciting stuff to me, and it's ever changing. It's not monotonous because we work hard for our piece of the market and we have very tough com petition." The future includes the Nova Vfour, an engine which, if it makes it to production, will, he says, be marketed totally separately from the Vtwins. But will that future include Willie G., and if so, for how long? "I've been here for 22 years ~nd f really wouldn't know what to do if 1 weren't totally involved down her«r. I have no desire to go to Florida or retire. "Those are negative words to me. I've been very Lucky because my hobby and my job are really married and they have become one, and my family and friends are all involved in this thing. "So really 1 have no idea when 1 would not be here. And," he says concluding, "I hate to even talk about it." • (,,0 00 O'l ........ ~ 00 >- l-< Cl:S How To Get Kenny, Eddie and Broe To Show Up At Your Next Barbeque. Would you like to have Kenny Roberts, Eddie Lawson, Broc Glover and the rest of the world's fastest racers show up at your next get-together? There's somebody who can ar· range it. Your participating Yamaha dealer. He's got videotapes of this season's 500cc Road Racing and Motocross World Championship series, piUS the award winning documen- tary, "The Lone Champion" on VH5 and Beta videotapes. 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