Military Vet Trades Harley Leather Vests for Corvette Leather Seats
Both are great weekend toys, but which is more fun, the Harley or the Corvette?
The Corvette is the best all-American car you can own, no matter which era and model you choose. Harley-Davidson makes the best all-American motorcycles you can ride, no matter which era and model you choose. But which all-American ride is best all-American ride? For one owner, both are best all-American ride.
VINwiki sat down with Corvette owner and military vet Alex Moranz to talk about his experiences among the most American of vehicles. Growing up, his father bought a 1967 Corvette coupe for his mother, and has a 1956 ‘Vette as his retirement project. For Moranz, though, Corvettes “were just always out of [his] reach.”
Meanwhile, the motorcycle bug left a couple of bites on his spirit, having ridden once upon a dirt bike when he was a kid (he landed in the pool with a bike on that first—and until then, only—ride). After his military buddies formed a motorcycle club, Moranz wanted to give riding another go. His tattoo artist happened to have a purple Harley-Davidson Sportster available, and offered to let him ride around the cul-de-sac a bit to get a feel for it.
The next day, though, Moranz received a baptism by fire by embarking with his friend on a 100-bike poker run. Through the wind amongst the big-n-burly set “feelin’ like Jim Carrey on Dumb and Dumber” on the little purple Sportster, he earned enough cred to upgrade to a “big-boy bike,” a Wide Glide with a 103 cubic-inch Twin Cam under the tank.
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The Harley fun lasted until he and his wife decided to have children of their own, both making the decision “that maybe a motorcycle isn’t the safest thing” to have around. After selling the Harley and shopping for a replacement thrill ride for a couple of months, Moranz found a 2008 C6 Corvette with a modded, 500-horsepower V8 mated to a manual transmission.
As with the Harley, Moranz underwent a trial-by-fire with the Texas-bred Corvette, having never shifted his own gears before. He adds that the Corvette is nice with the targa top off to “get that open-air fun factor” he once had with the Harley. As he puts it, this all-American ride is “a good substitute” for the two wheels of American freedom.
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