ON a sunny evening in Glasgow’s Pollok Park, a row of motorbikes – red, blue, black, orange, brown and silver – is lined up along one side of the car park, chrome gleaming. Their owners – a doctor, a computer engineer, a florist, a police officer, a photographer and the like – are clad from top to tail in coal-black leather. Average age? Somewhere around 50. While many teenage lads will always find motorbikes irresistible, and a fair few will come to grief trying to take corners too fast, the average age of British bikers is steadily creeping up. The most recent figures, from 2003, show that more than half of British motorcycle owners are aged between 30 and 50.

 

Alarmingly, statistics show that accidents are not restricted to the young and reckless. In 1996-2003, just over 2% of those killed or seriously injured were in their teens, 22% were in their 20s, but as many as 65% were aged 30 to 49. Police in Scotland are so concerned that earlier this month, they launched a motorcycle safety campaign, involving all eight of the country’s forces. Patrolling on marked and unmarked motorbikes, they’ll be taking proactive steps to clamp down on speeding.

 

Their target is a new, mature breed of two-wheeled menace. In a recent BBC Front line Scotland documentary, Lothian and Borders chief Inspector Kenneth Buchanan defined the “born-again biker” as usually male, “a bit older, inevitably has a family, a bit more money in his possession; was a previous motorcyclist and has decided to take up motorcycling again”.

 

That description fits many members of the Clyde Valley Harley Owners Group (Hog) pretty closely. Most have owned smaller bikes in their youth, taken time out to raise children and pay mortgages, and returned to biking in their maturity. But they resist being bracketed with the born-agains.

 

According to the group’s leader, Alan Kirk: “These are people who’ve maybe bought a Japanese bike at 16, then given up when they got married. Twenty years later they buy a new bike, but in that time the Japanese sports bikes have become far more advanced. They’ll do 190 miles an hour, and these guys don’t know how to handle them. People tend to grow into a Harley.

 

”And if these riders don’t look particularly mean, nor could their bikes reasonably be defined as killing machines. Harley-Davidson's are built for comfort, not speed, despite the huge engines, which range from just under 900 to a whopping 1700cc. The touring models come fitted with stereo surround-sound, CB radio and rider/ passenger intercom system as standard. They’ve got cruise control, too.

 

New bikes begin at around £5000, but the average is £12,000 to £15,000. And then there’s the customising: extra chrome parts, bigger petrol tanks, different saddles, flashing lights, helmets and accessories. One member of the Clyde Valley Hog, an AC/DC fan, recently took delivery of a specially commissioned bike, styled after a Gibson electric guitar and Marshall amplifier. It’s said to have set him back a good £40,000.

 

Owning a Harley also grants you membership of the clan. There’s a Hog for every Harley dealership – 29 in the UK alone, with 15,000 members; and close to a million members worldwide. Anyone who buys a new bike gets a year’s free membership.

 

So what do Hog members actually do when they get together in the somewhat innocuous surroundings of the Lochinch police recreation club car park? (Who said motorbiking was about rebellion?) As if in defiance of all those Hell’s Angels clichés, Hogs do a lot of charity fundraising. Recently the Clyde Valley chapter raised over £4000 for Enable, which helps people with learning disabilities.

 

This year the group is hosting its first rally, The Gathering, at Ayr racecourse. The event includes a biking display to tie in with the annual Burns An’ A’ That festival. According to Jim Deas, Hog activities organiser, Burns would certainly have been a biker . “ He’d have liked the free spirit of things.

 

”Talk of freedom is tempered with caution. Traffic cop Ian Kinning, the group’s safety officer, runs a refresher course every March, on the weekend before the first ride of the season.

 

“There’s no need to tear about the countryside to enjoy motorcycling. Slow down and enjoy the scenery. It gives you a great sense of freedom.”The Gathering is at Ayr racecourse, May 27-29, with the Burns Country Rideout on May 28, 1.30-2.30pm