Saturday, January 14, 2012

Define: Bobber

While I like the look of the 2012 Harley Davidson Street Bob presented in this review by Motorcycle.com, I question the use of the word "bobber" as a term to describe this motorcycle.



To me, a bobber is somewhat of a unique motorcycle where no two bikes are the same; bikes that are custom and built by people who have a genuine passion for motorcycling. They are cut up (AKA bobbed), chopped up, stripped down, light weight, fast and just down right "kick ass" motorcycles! Something like these:

Photo: BikerSwag.com

Photo: BikeEXIF.com

Photo: USA Bobbers.com

Photo: Brett Jordan (CC)

Photo: Mbike.com

Although a couple of the bobbers above are the result of custom motorcycle builds, a bobber isn't restricted to professional custom bike builders. A bobber can be built in a backyard garage by people who have a passion for building something unique. So I am left with the question, can a mass produced motorcycle such as the 2012 Harley Davidson Street Bob be considered a bobber? I say no, what do you think?