When Hogs Fly

           

When you think of a Harley, you don’t typically think of them flying through the air, at least not on purpose. But a little known fact, is that throughout the history of Harley Davidson, a few enterprising individuals have dared to take their Hog airborne. Follow LRS as we explore the history of the flying Hog.

            The world record for the longest jump on a Harley (or any motorcycle) was originally set in 1975 by Robert Knievel, AKA Evil Knievel when he jumped his bike 115 feet over 14 Greyhound buses in Cincinnati, Ohio. 

Evel made 300 jumps in his career, 273 of them were successful, the rest....  Not so much!

     This record was later broken by Bubba Blackwell in Las Vegas, Nevada when he topped Evil by 1 Greyhound bus and jumped 157 feet.

            While both of these jumps were impressive, the record would again be challenged by motocross legend Seth Enslow in 2010, in Sydney, Australia. Enslow would take his Harley XR1200 to new heights and lengths, as he jumped an astonishing 183 feet to shatter the previous world record for the longest jump on a Harley Davidson.

     

   

     We’ve all heard the expression “when Pigs fly”, well these daring individuals had the courage, audacity, and perhaps a touch of insanity, turn the figure of speech into a reality and make hogs fly.

     These examples of modern day jumps are fascinating, but the the roots of flying bikes, go even deeper, dating back to as early as World War 2. During the war, soldiers often prided themselves on being able to jump their hard-tail bikes across ditches, trenches, and even fences in order to move quickly and efficiently across the battlefield.

     It seems that ever since man has been moving on two wheels, the desire to move those two wheels into the air has been a driving force for many riders. Early racing even included jumping, and has been a staple of motorcycle racing ever since. 

   

 The desire to make Hogs fly is not a new concept, and the idea continues to inspire us to new heights, as it did our riding ancestors of days gone by. Thinking of these days brings into sharp contrast the difference between a generation unafraid to take real challenges and risks, and many of our youth of today who only take risks in the online world of Call of Duty...