Ten Harley-Davidson record breakers

The Motor Company has achieved multiple records over its 120 years. Here we look at some of the most exceptional

1 . FIRST MOTORCYCLE TO AVERAGE OVER 100 MPH IN COMPETITION

Otto Walker, one of the original members of the Wrecking Crew race team, became the first racer to average over 100 mph during a motorcycle race on the newly built Fresno, California, board track in February 1921. Not only was Walker the first person to achieve this feat, but he did it four separate times, winning each of the 1-, 10-, 15- and 50-mile race events at speeds over 100 mph. Arthur and William A. Davidson were present for the win, just a small part of an estimated crowd of 10,000 spectators.

Speeds of 100 mph and greater had been previously reached in time trials at Daytona Beach but hadn’t previously occurred during a racing competition. These speeds would be more common by the end of 1921, and records would continue to be set and broken, but Walker and the Harley-Davidson racing team started it all. The image of Walker on his 8-valve racer has since become iconic, appearing in books, and on posters and T-shirts.

2 . WORLD’S BIGGEST MOTORCYCLE MANUFACTURER

By the early 1920s, Harley-Davidson was the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world, with 2,000 dealerships in 67 countries. This was prominently featured in the marketing materials of the time, which communicated H-D’s role as the industry leader with a brand that people aspired to own. Arthur Davidson was a natural marketer and the driving force behind the company’s sizable investments in advertising and promotional materials, which are artistically designed and highly collectible today. The message? That Harley-Davidson® motorcycles are not mere commodities but stand for something more powerful, something beyond hardware.

3 . BIGGEST FACTORY-SPONSORED MOTORCYCLE OWNERS GROUP

From the very beginning, an important part of the Harley-Davidson experience has been the bonds and camaraderie between fellow enthusiasts, and the company attracted loyal followers from day one. To provide a way for more people to share this common interest and cement the company’s ‘close to the customer’ philosophy, Harley Owners Group® was formed in 1983. H.O.G.®’s rider-focused benefits and events meant that membership was over 90,000 within six years, and by the 10th anniversary in 1993 membership would be over 200,000. By 2006, H.O.G. had signed up its 1 millionth member.

4 . MOST EXPENSIVE MOTORCYCLE SOLD AT AUCTION

A Harley-Davidson® Strap Tank model from 1908 became the most expensive motorcycle sold at auction in 2023 when the hammer fell at Mecum Auctions Las Vegas for $935,000. Named for the nickel-plated steel bands used to attach the fuel and oil tanks to the frame, this bike was a rare survivor of the 450 motorcycles made in 1908, of which only a handful are thought to exist today. This Strap Tank still retained many of its original parts, including the fuel tank, wheels and seat cover, and was found in a Wisconsin barn in 1941, making it an exceptional relic.

5 . JOE PETRALI AND HIS HARLEY‑DAVIDSON® PEASHOOTER WIN IT ALL

An exceptionally talented rider and one of the greatest names in motorcycle racing history, Joe Petrali dominated motorcycle competition in the early 20th century – board track racing, dirt racing, racetrack or hill climbing. It was in 1935 that Petrali accomplished his greatest feat riding his beloved Harley-Davidson Peashooter. The AMA racing season for the 350 cc class consisted of 13 total races, and Petrali swept the season by winning all 13 races of the AMA National Championship, breaking four records in the process. Petrali also accumulated five consecutive National Championship titles from 1932 to 1936 and the land speed record in 1937 on a 61 cu in Knucklehead before retiring from racing in 1938 to work for aviator Howard Hughes as chief mechanic and flight engineer on the famous ‘Spruce Goose’ seaplane.

6 . WORLD MOTORCYCLE SPEED RECORD, 1970

In 1970, Cal Rayborn, considered one of the greatest motorcycle racers of all time, achieved the world motorcycle speed record by hitting 265.492 mph. Rayborn piloted the 15-foot long by 2-foot high, 700-pound Harley-Davidson® streamliner, powered by a single Sportster® engine running on nitromethane, by lying in a horizontal position on his back and steering by peering through the side windows. Rayborn’s win beat the previous record of 254.84 mph set by Don Vesco using two linked 350 cc two-stroke Yamaha motors.

H-D has a long history of speed records; 20 years later in 1990, Dave Campos took his twin Shovelhead-engined bike to 322.150 mph, a record that stood for 16 years.

7 . SCOTT PARKER AND HIS FLAT TRACK WINS

Scott Parker is undoubtedly among the greatest dirt track riders of all time, winning 94 Grand National Championship races on his XR-750 during his career. Already an accomplished competitor, Parker’s greatest success began in 1987 when he hired Harley-Davidson employee Bill Werner to tune his XR-750 motorcycles, and in 1988 Parker earned his first Grand National Championship thanks to a famous run of four wins in the final five races of the season.

Parker was crowned AMA Grand National Champion nine of the next 11 seasons. In two seasons, 1989 and 1995, Parker took 10 wins, with a further eight wins in 1992, 1994 and 1997, while five titles between 1994 and 1998 officially made him the first racer to win five consecutive Grand National Championships. In this same five-year period, Parker won an amazing 39 races. He officially retired at the end of the 1999 season.

8 . TRANSCONTINENTAL SIDECAR RECORD BROKEN

On 28 September 1935, Earl and Dot Robinson set a new transcontinental sidecar record, completing the trip from Los Angeles to New York in 89 hours, 58 minutes. In the same month that Earl broke the single-rider transcontinental record from New York to LA on his faithful 1935 Harley-Davidson® 45 (77 hours, 53 minutes), the couple set out on the return trip together. This adventure was made on a 1935 H-D® 74 model with a Goulding sidecar attached, which was manufactured by James Goulding, Dot’s father.

9 . THREE FLAGS RECORD BEATEN BY HAP SCHERER

Hap Scherer and his Sport model set a Three Flags Run record in 1919, making the quickest possible run between the Canada and Mexico borders over US roads; he covered 1,716 miles in 64 hours, 58 minutes. Scherer also proved the ability of the Sport by breaking the New York to Chicago record by more than 10 hours in 1920.

A motorcycle enthusiast and accomplished endurance rider in the early part of the 20th century, Scherer eventually worked for Harley-Davidson first as a test rider and later in sales. He continued to compete, specialising in endurance contests and riding the Harley-Davidson® Sport model that employed an opposed twin-cylinder design with an external flywheel, allowing for a lower centre of gravity and a smoother ride. The Sport’s high power-to-weight ratio and smoothness earned it a reputation for reliability and being able to handle the challenging conditions of roads in the early 20th century.

10. EVEL KNIEVEL’S XR-750 STUNTS

No list of records would be complete without mention of Evel Knievel, the pioneer of motorcycle long jump records. Knievel began his stunt career with small shows aboard various different motorcycles, and over time transitioned to jumping cars and trucks. Aboard an XR-750 at the height of his career in the 1970s, Evel’s stunts became more spectacular, challenging and dangerous. Knievel’s longest jump was 129 feet over 19 cars in 1971, followed by jumping the XR-750 over 14 buses, taking the world record of 133 feet, which stood for 25 years.

Other stunt performers have continued Knievel’s legacy. Bubba Blackwell, also on an XR-750, raised Knievel’s record to 15 buses jumped at 157 feet. Then in 2015 at the Sturgis Buffalo Chip, Doug Danger completed a record-breaking jump of 22 cars aboard Knievel’s original 1972 XR-750.

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