HOG Magazine instead of the Enthusiast & HOG Tails?

[Mr V]

Below FYI is an email I sent to the editors of HOG Magazine.  It's probably not a big deal but It seemed like a dumb change:

(PS:  I didn't really mean the part about riding Japanese)


To Whomever it is that decides these things:

Although I have no expectations this note will accomplish anything, I still feel compelled to write as Matt King asked in his "Sign of the Times" message.  Before I express my disappointment in the "HOG" decision, I'd like to first say that I absolutely agree with, and understand cutting down the number of magazines being mailed to my house by the Motor Company.  I've been receiving the Enthusiast, HOG Tales, and the Accessory and Motor Clothes catalogues in rapid succession.  Clearly, an expensive endeavor, and one that likely "does not pay".

Having agreed that the need to reduce the stream of printed material is very real, I will now vehemently argue that dropping the Enthusiast and HOG Tales is a HUGE MISTAKE!  Both publications are steeped in tradition, and tradition is what makes Harley Davidson what it is. I joke with my Honda riding friends that "I cannot for the life of me understand why they would buy twice the bike for half the money" but the answer and the simple philosophical truth is:  "If you have to ask, you wouldn't understand".

There is nothing wrong with combining the publications.  Continuing to print "The Enthusiast" with a "HOG Tales" chapter or insert would ring much truer to the Harley way.  Cutting down to only one issue each, per year would have been fine as well.  WE UNDERSTAND;  Dropping a 93 year old title was dumb!  (it may not be too late to recover though).

Good luck with this!  The Motor Company has been successfully modernizing and upgrading a legacy for years now and a 2009 Electra Glide is very different and much improved from a 1965 Electra Glide.  Boy it's luckily someone didn't have the bright idea of changing that name, Huh? 

If tradition didn't matter and I simply wanted something "better" , I'd ride Japanese.

Very Truly Yours,

MR V

[wood02]

Mr. V....you are exactly correct!  BIG MISTAKE!!!!!

[GaryD]

I agree
It seems like all the young bucks all over the place want to change every tradition. In Chicage some want to change the date for the Toy Run - to a warmer time ---- bull "Potty mouth" ---- keep the damn tradition of having it in Dec.
There are so many traditions being changed it makes my head spin. They all claim it's for the better ---- better what?

Leave traditions alone!

[Kansas]

Apparently I missed something.  Are both the Enthusiast and HOG mags being eleminated?

[GaryD]

Combined

[Memnar]

I think you hit the nail right on, you will be surprised how far your up the chain your letter will go.

-Erik

[hogpipes1]

So if you don't rec the hog tails you won't get the enthusiast mag?if so what a joke .i been getting the enth. sense 1963 every mo.back then up until the 1980 + yrs it was a good mag, lots of stories, pics, . then the junk advertise came in , down to 4 x a yr. lately i might only get 2 a yr. so they are not what they use to be.they can stop sending me the overpriced motor clothes cat. if they want to cut cost.

[Dennis The Menace]

I dont mind...because, for the past 10 years, I have received the Enthusiast mag maybe 4 or 5 times.  Been a HOG life member, so get Hog Tales religiously, but I was starting to think Enthusiast was only printed every other year, for crissakes.  At least now I know I will get it monthly (or only get Hog Tales every other year too!)   

Seriously, HD couldnt figure out why I wasnt getting Enthusiast.  I figure the postman is stealing the damn thing.  Its a mystery.

menace

[boooby1744]

F the Hog magazine...........DON'T FVCK WITH THE "ENTHUSIAST"!!!!

[f-x-d-w-g]

Doesn't matter to me.  It finally occurred to me that I wasn't getting anything for my HOG membership dues other than the road atlas (which is too small for my old eyes to read).  The one time I called for roadside assistance, they basically told me to F*Off.  So, when my renewal notice came last week, I simply dropped it in the trash.

Maybe now I'll stop getting the fashion magazine.  I can't recall ever seeing a biker or anyone else riding a bike looking like those faggy models in the magazine anyway.  What a joke.

[GaryD]

I agree with fxdwg about the fashion magazine, but that is probably the only thing that's keeping H-D alive is all the high priced merchandise they sell. I'm not completely against that since I have been known to purchase "some" stuff --just not the clothes.

[Memnar]

I bet this committee is the same that thought Elton John would be an awesome headliner at the 100th Anniversary celebration.

-Erik

[dakota224]

Yeh a real biker band    what a joke..    

[harleyjt]

I hate to see the Enthusist go away.  I understand the need to save some $$, but to completely change it to a new title just doesn't make sense to me.

[hd06myway]

No love lost for HOG TALES, it went straight from my mail box to the garbage can because there was nothing (for me) of interest in it.  Enthusiest at least was worth flipping through and even had an article or 2 worth reading.  I don't have a problem with them combining the 2 mags, or if they cancelled them all together, neither one was/is that interesting for me anyway.  I know alot of people are "collectors", so I sense that alot of the disappointment in combining the 2 rags has to do with their "collections" ceasing.  I mean you want to draw a crowd, just promise pins and patches to a HOG member and they'll step over eachother trying to get there.  I agree with an earlier post, HOG claims you get all these "benefits" from being a member, but other than a new atlas every year, what else do they do?  Try calling them if your broke down on the rode, good luck!   

[Panzer]

GARYD,
Don't change tradition.............I agree, but they took saying a prayer out of the classroom didn't they?
                       Big, big mistake.

[Ultrashovel]

Harley is cutting back right now and this is typical among paper publications. Too bad, too. The Enthusiast was around 100 years old IIRC. I really don't care though since I don't belong to HOG anymore.

I used to be in a HOG chapter and even got to be one of the officers. All they did was bicker and squabble all of the time so I left. I was in the national for a long time after that but those magazines weren't worth $45 as year to me so I let the membership go.