In a simplified form, a motorcycle club is a group of bikers who are passionate about owning and riding motorcycles, and who also support the club’s norms of behavior and ideals. Of course, it is impossible to give a clear and unambiguous definition of the concepts of “motocommunity” or “motoclub”, since they often differ too much in terms of the goals of their activity: someone is going to relax with like-minded people over a bottle of beer or ride bikes on rest days, while in other motorcycle communities are planning a raid on the bank. By the way, it is no coincidence that it was said about the raid on the bank. It is now that bikers have become peaceful civilized guys, but a few decades ago things were completely different.
Motorcycle communities and their history
The early motorcycle clubs instilled fear in American citizens due to the fact that they were engaged in criminal activities. Post-war life in the late 40s. in the United States was not friendly towards the heroes of the Second World War. The veterans had different reasons for joining gangs: someone became a biker out of resentment because his services to his homeland were not appreciated, someone out of the need to earn a living. As you can see, the then perception of bikers was significantly different from the modern one, in which the biker acts as an image of infinite freedom, fighting against the fettering foundations of society.
In turn, in our country, motorcyclists were not criminals, so in the CIS the attitude towards bikers is much more friendly and benevolent than in the States. The maximum discomfort created by the “rockers” (bikers in the slang of those years) was driving without silencers, stunning pedestrians with a loud roar, and listening to loud music. Otherwise, they were very respectable guys.
The chaotic parties of the “rockers” continued until 1989, until one of them, the Surgeon, gathered a group around him, which was called the “Night Wolves”. 1989 can rightfully be considered the year of foundation of organized motorcycle communities in the CIS. In the future, the “Night Wolves” grew rapidly, spreading their influence to other territories and even countries, for example, to Belarus, Ukraine, Serbia.
The features of the CIS motorcycle party include a significant number of clubs organized according to the territorial principle, i.e. at the level of a large city or region. The explanation here is simple: the CIS countries are large in territorial extent, therefore, when creating 1-2 clubs for the whole country, it will be difficult for bikers to maintain contact with each other, it will be difficult for leaders to manage a network of branches. Otherwise, running a big club will demand all of their attention from the leaders, which will prevent them from doing other things, such as making money. It is clear that few people have the financial resources and free time to devote themselves only to the affairs of the motorcycle club.
Symbolism and traditions
The biker jacket has been firmly soldered into the minds of people as an integral element of the image of a biker since the 50s. The 20th century, namely, from the movie “The Savage”, where Marlon Brando played the role of a daring and handsome leader of a biker gang, who, of course, had a cool leather jacket. Then a leather jacket with an oblique lightning acquired its cult status, which it retains to the present.
And it all started, as always, with the need to solve a certain problem. The creator of the jacket wanted to solve the problem of military pilots suffering from cold and wind at high altitude, as well as the issue of direct zippers, which often broke. Therefore, the jacket was sewn from thick leather and had an oblique zipper from the left hip towards the right shoulder, which was more durable.
Biker jackets appealed to motorcyclists for the same reasons as pilots. The jacket protected the motorcyclist at high speeds from the piercing wind, plus saved from injuries that inevitably occur when an unsuccessful fall on the asphalt.
Now let’s talk about a kind of identification code for bikers – stripes. Their task is to demonstrate the motorcyclist’s belonging to the community, his status in the hierarchy and loyalty to the club’s values. There are 3 parts to the patch: the top rocker with the club’s name, the center with the emblem, and the bottom rocker with the community location. “One Percent” i.e. criminal motorcycle clubs do not write their place of residence in the bottom rocker, because they are afraid of criminal prosecution by the police and other government agencies. Sometimes, for the above reason, “one percenters” completely ditch the bottom rocker in their patches and make it a 2-piece.
The paragraph above said that the place in the club hierarchy is determined by the patch. This is achieved as follows: the old-timers of the motorcycle community do not give newbies the entire stripe when they are accepted into the ranks of the club. The missing elements of the patch are provided as a reward when moving to the next steps of the club ranking table.
What will happen to the biker community in 2023
The key word for 2023 is uncertainty, which will certainly affect bikers as well. The most unpleasant thing may be that the result of the ongoing events will most likely be the transformation of the current lifestyle of bikers, and, consequently, the likelihood of modification of current traditions and the emergence of new ones increases.
Forecasts for individual countries are grouped in a table.
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Country/Region Name |
Forecast |
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Russia |
In short, the following will happen:
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Ukraine |
The main risks, of course, are related to health and life (to die while participating in hostilities or become an accidental victim of a projectile or bullet). In turn, this circumstance is likely to lead to a temporary cessation of the work of motorcycle clubs. Difficulties have already arisen with the supply of gasoline, which further hinders the holding of motorcycle events. On the positive side, I can only note that spare parts for bikes and motorcycles will be available, if not in Ukrainian stores, then for sure when ordering online. |
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Other countries |
Here is the most favorable climate for motorcycle clubs in 2023. The usual mode of activity will continue. If there is something unpleasant, then a slight increase in the cost of motorcycle products, no more. |