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Not So Easy Rider safety film

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This 1973 safety film starring Easy Rider star Peter Fonda and legendary stuntman Evel Knievel is not only hilarious, with some great period music, but also still surprisingly relevant today.

While the film doesn’t endorse lane filtering or splitting, most of the information supplied is still as relevant today as it was in the 1970s when the film was produced.

That is not to say that you will agree wth everything they say; for example that you should wear a white helmet to be more visible.

However, it’s an entertaining 17-minute video that features a segment with Evel.

Evel Knievel Harley-Davidson XL 1000 Sportster
Evel Knievel

We particularly love the reference to defensive motorcyclists treating all drivers as either “asleep, blind or drunk”.

There is also some great LA motorcycle police synchronised riding. It’s fascinating to watch, but it doesn’t have much to do with the message about how police cops “riding by the book” are actually safer than police in patrol cars. They quote the statistic of 18 accidents per million miles on police bikes compared with 27 in patrol cars.

There is also a true/false quiz to test your motorcycle knowledge.

And it finishes with a cringe-worthy safety message from Mr Easy Rider himself: “Have a good trip and don’t ride too easy.”

Could the Easy Rider Captain America chopper soon become the most expensive motorcycle in the world?
Peter Fonda on Captain America in Easy Rider

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

Motorcycle News, News

Peter ‘Easy Rider’ Fonda dies aged 79

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Peter Fonda, the actor who played Wyatt riding a Captain America Harley chopper in the 1969 movie Easy Rider, has died at the age of 79.

The hippy film recently celebrated the 50th anniversary of its first screening.

It was shot on a shoestring budget in a haze of pot smoke and with a plot that was made up along the way by Fonda and fellow actor/director Dennis Hopper who died in 2013, aged 77.

Fonda’s screenplay was nominated for an Academy Award, the film was added to the USA’s National Film Registry in 1998 and it is listed as one of the top 100 American movies by the American Film Institute.

The veteran actor died yesterday of respiratory failure due to lung cancer at his Los Angeles home surrounded by his family.

Iconic moment

He starred in many films including the cringe-worthy low-grade bikie movie, The Wild Angels in 1966.

It includes his line: “We want to be fee to ride our machines without being hassled by the man … and we want to get loaded.”

Fonda also made a cameo appearance in the 2007 Wild Hogs that lampoons Easy Rider.

The opening scene of Easy Rider features Peter in an iconic gesture of throwing away his watch.

The choppers then fire up and roar into the desert to the accompaniment of Born to be Wild. Truly a classsic cinematic moment that has stirred the hearts of riders this past half century!

It has also started a fad with riders and other travellers to discard their watches and disregard the constraints of time.

A watch is a symbol of “the man”, society and capitalism that constrain us.

Motorcycles are freedom machines that allow us to escape the rigours of timekeeping.

In a hilarious parody of the famous Easy Rider scene, John Travolta and his buddies throw away their mobile phones before a cross-country ride in Wild Hogs.

“You don’t need a GPS to discover America; you need a bike and you need the road, ok? Freedom,” says Travolta.

Fonda also rides into town to end the long fight scene.

His closing line is also a classic: “Oh, and guys… lose the watches.”

  • What is your favourite scene from Easy Rider? Leave your comments below.

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

Motorcycle News, News

Easy Rider celebrates its 50th anniversary

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Today is the 50th anniversary of the first public screening of the cult 1969 movie Easy Rider.

In the USA, many theatres are showing the film again. Here in Australia, you can watch it on DVD and maybe a streaming service.

The hippy film was shot on a shoestring budget in a haze of pot smoke and with a plot that was made up along the way by actor/director Dennis Hopper.

Dennis died in 2013, aged 77.

His film was added to the USA’s National Film Registry in 1998 and is listed as one of the top 100 American movies by the American Film Institute.

50th anniversary

Although the 50-year-old  film may seem anachronistic in these modern times, it still has its merits.

The opening scene where lead actor Peter Fonda famously throws away his watch is a highlight.

The choppers then fire up and roar into the desert to the accompaniment of Born to be Wild. Truly an iconic cinematic moment!

Fad

It has also started a fad with riders and other travellers to discard their watches and disregard the constraints of time.

A watch is a symbol of “the man”, society and capitalism that constrain us.

Motorcycles are freedom machines that allow us to escape the rigours of timekeeping.

In a hilarious parody of the famous Easy Rider scene, John Travolta and his buddies throw away their mobile phones before a cross-country ride in the 2007 movie Wild Hogs.

“You don’t need a GPS to discover America; you need a bike and you need the road, ok? Freedom,” says Travolta.

Exactly!

There are no deadlines on the open road. Even sunset is no limit.

So there really is no need for a watch. Besides, you can’t see it under your jacket sleeve and gloves when riding.

Besides, most bikes these days have clocks, although I have my bike’s screen set to the trip meter, rather than the clock.

  • What is your favourite scene from Easy Rider? Leave your comments below.

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com