Lucky Harley-Davidson Sportster Nightster

HI Skol, I’m interested to have my bike featured in your magazine. Here is my story:

BIKE: 2009 Harley-Davidson Sportster Nightster. It’s nothing super flash. I have done some mods: dual seat and sissy bar, mini ape hangars, Rizona air filter, windscreen, white wall tyres.

I think it looks okay. Some people have commented to me that it reminds them of a cop bike. Well, I always did like the little 2-stroke that the original cop (Nick) on the TV show ‘Heartbeat’ used to ride. Being an ex-motocrosser I have a soft spot for 2-strokes. It may have subconsciously influenced the build.

MODEL: I would like to see my wife Monya featured in your magazine because I think she has got a super-hot sporty body and she has never done any modelling before. She is a former professional volleyball player.

ME: I raced motocross from when I was a kid. In 2000 I had a big crash and damaged my right arm. I was off work for six months and recovery was a long painful process. The accident shook me up pretty bad so I gave bikes away after that.

It wasn’t until eight years later that a chance encounter made me fall back in love with motorbikes. I was in Cambodia when I met a French dude who told me about a Temple on the side of a mountain in Laos. The only way to get there was to hire a scooter and ride the 40k’s from Pakse. I took his advice and had the best day riding around southern Laos. I decided then and there to get another bike when I got back to Australia.

As the 10-year-anniversary of my accident approached I thought I should do something special for myself so I went out and bought a Harley. I had only been riding it for three months when I came off and broke my left arm. I didn’t let a little crash stop me and have since done over 40k of fantastic riding from Byron Bay to Tasmania. I’ve even taken it to a few track days at Phillip Island: best lap time of 2.22.

JOSEPH McPARLAND, Melbourne, Vic.