I had long ago drawn the conclusion that almost all journalists who attended this epic party would write a historical piece. I therefore looked for an alternative way in which to pay my own, more personal tribute. During Harley-Davidson’s Centennial year I have undertaken a ride across the southern states of India, ridden the fantastically scenic Route 62 (The Wine Route) in South Africa on a rented Harley, and more recently flown into Denver, collected my Harley and set forth for Sturgis.

The ride from Sturgis to Milwaukee would have been enough for most bikers, but after spending a lifetime rushing from A-to-B, I decided that I would not take the direct route. Instead I would head north after Sturgis, ride up through Canada, tackle the Alcan (Alaska/Canada Highway), and then proceed to explore Alaska prior to turning round and heading in the direction any sane rational person would have done in the first place. I figured five weeks should be plenty of time.

After researching Alaska, I found that the town of Seward was also celebrating their Centennial; and although it was a long way out of my way, it just had to be added to my burgeoning itinerary. As it turned out, many Alaskan towns that I passed through were just about to, or had just celebrated their 100th year in existence.

Arriving in Milwaukee was something of an experience, having attended both the 90th and 95th parties I thought I would be able to take it in my stride. Wrong! Wow, there were bikes everywhere! Milwaukee certainly still looks like it needs Harley’s success, being in a similar condition to much of Chicago or Detroit; run down and seedy looking. Many buildings are in a state of disrepair; litter fills the gutters, legions of homeless plod the streets, and all the accoutrements of a poor neighbourhood are in place, pawn shops, charity stores, pay-day loan/cheque cashing shops, launderettes and gas stations with better bullet proof glass than most banks. Yet there is an undeniable appeal to this grime encrusted ageing industrial city. The people warmly welcomed all the visiting bikers, ‘Welcome Home’, ‘Thanks for Coming’ and ‘Happy 100th’ banners festooned bridges, overpasses, shop windows, cars, lampposts and anything else that the public could attach them to. The downtown headquarters of US Bank turned the top of their tower block into the largest H-D symbol I've ever seen by the clever use of office lights. The H-D symbol utilised the top eight floors north, south, east and west, and could be seen for miles.

Milwaukee hotels and motels were booked solid, and had been really expensive anyway and I did not want to spend a whole year’s income attending the 100th, so instead of being there for the full four days, I planned to arrive in time for the big (free) party scheduled for Sunday at Veteran’s Park. As it happened, I arrived earlier than planned, pulling into Milwaukee Saturday evening. For the first three days activities bikers had to purchase a $55 ticket to attend the harbour front Summerfest Grounds. I’ve been in the Summerfest grounds twice before during visits to earlier H-D anniversaries, and had already missed most of Billy Idol’s headline set for that evening, so I, instead, decided to attend one of the downtown street parties that had been scheduled to run from noon until midnight. It quickly became evident that finding a safe parking spot, or any parking spot for that matter was not going to be a quick and easy option.

Thousands upon thousands of Harleys lined all the streets and swamped ‘no parking’ signs on the sidewalks.

Hey, if it was good enough for everyone else, it would be good enough for me, so I joined the mass ranks ignoring the law and parked on the sidewalk. The street party was a loud, boisterous affair that made me feel like I had been suddenly transported back to Sturgis Main Street. As I stretched my legs with a $4 plastic cup of frothy sweet American slop that passes for beer in these parts, I could not help but notice almost all of the bikes were the same. At least ninety per cent of the bikes in attendance appeared, from my vantage point, to be baggers. There is nothing wrong with that, not at all, I just thought, but where were all the other Harley owners? And where were the Knuckles, the Pans and the Shovels? This was, after all, a party to celebrate one hundred years of the marque.

Sunday morning started with a beautiful but rather ominous red sky, (one awakes early sleeping rough!), my hangover and I adjourned to Starbucks, where I washed and ordered a large Americano and bought the local paper. The quality of reporting was disappointing however they did have some awesome aerial photography taken prior to Saturday’s parade of 10,000 bikes that set off from Milwaukee Zoo. It must be nice to have the resources to hire a helicopter. As I drank my steaming pint of coffee and tried to straighten out my spine, I was approached by the Salvation Army and asked if I needed anything. Did I look so rough from my trip that they mistook me for a homeless street urchin?

Sunday’s main event was listed as free to enter, but due to capacity constraints, tickets/passes were required. Those bikers that had procured three day event passes could use them one last time to gain access, plus there had been an undisclosed amount of free tickets issued through local Harley-Davidson dealerships allowing bikers and locals alike the chance to attend the 100th Grande Finale. The event however was vastly over subscribed! Bikers started to form queues at the main public entrance to Veteran's Park along North Lincoln Memorial Drive at around 5:30am, that meant that they had to wait until noon before attaining access, but the first couple of thousand were to be allowed to stand right in front of the main stage. I’m not entirely convinced that many of the bikers were particularly queuing for the prime location. I think, that many of them, just like me, had spent the night on the street, and really had no other place to go.

At 10:30 all the world’s media were assigned their credentials, it was a two tier system, some got purple wristbands that allowed complete roving access of the party grounds, albeit, with an official Harley minder/babysitter. Others, like myself, were given ‘Gay Pride’ pink wristbands as one Scandinavian journalist called them, that only allowed us to stand in one of two small fully enclosed locations. All of us were escorted in and out like beasts going to market or convicts on a chain gang, we even had to be escorted if we wanted to go and get a drink, something to eat, or go for a pee. Wow! My own dick shaker! This level of security seemed ridiculous to the majority of the media, but Harley-Davidson officials insisted that it was a condition imposed upon them by the stage acts, and completely out of their control.

The stage acts had been kept a closely guarded secret; I’m told that only three or four top ranking Harley officials were in the know. That did not stop the estimated 150,000 plus bikers and Milwaukee locals who showed up for the free event from speculating. Top rumours included the Rolling Stones, ZZ Top, Aerosmith, U2, The Eagles, Ozzy Osboume and Bruce Springsteen. Some even thought that Elvis might somehow be reincarnated. To further increase the building anticipation, there were to be no live acts on stage until 6:00pm.

All journalists, apart from airborne television crews, were working under the most stringent, signed agreements that we would all stop and disable our equipment and cease taking photographs at 7:30pm. We therefore surmised that there would be two acts, the first we would be allowed to photograph, and the headliner, whom we would not. Whilst the corralled journalists resorted to taking photographs of each other, the drinking masses turned the rumour mill into overdrive. So, for the first six hours in Veteran’s Park most foreign photographers only had the option of photographing the front line of the huge crowd, or an empty stage, neither option particularly appealing, especially as we knew that it would not demonstrate the event adequately. We each became increasingly frustrated as the long hours slowly crept past, however, the mixture of alcohol and time had the increasingly lively Harley enthusiast audience putting out progressively more numerous and dodgy sounding rumours about who had been seen, and who would eventually be coming onto the stage. Anyone for a supergroup containing Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Keith Moon?

The crowd could not believe that we as media did not know who would come on stage. Hell, we as media could not believe we did not know! Then with a loud roar the stage burst into life and Dan Aykroyd came on and acted as master of ceremonies. However, any hope of some live activity on stage was soon scuppered, what we had instead was a succession of video footage which was broadcast to the masses on two huge screens that had been set up either side of the main stage, plus a bunch of agonisingly boring speeches.

The crowd erupted when a pre-recorded happy birthday speech was broadcast from US President George W Bush. A similar reaction greeted the presentation of a cheque to the Muscular Dystrophy Association for a staggering 7.3 million dollars. My frustrations of not being allowed to do my job boiled over at around the same time, and I went to complain to chief Harley-Davidson media representative and Director of Communications Steve Piehl. I pointed out exactly what I needed, and also that it was my belief that the home team had been favoured, by which I mean that only American joumos were given roving access. I had to wait another hour, but eventually, one of Steve’s team sorted me out with a minder, and I was allotted 20 minutes to walk amongst the bikers crowded into the Veteran’s Park arena taking photographs. As there was no high ground, all I could photograph were individuals and groups of bikers whom had shown up from around the world. At least I got more pictures than most!

As the time slowly counted down for the main bands to come on stage, the Doobie Brothers walked out as a warm up act. These ageing soft melodic rockers went down rather well, but I think after waiting, in some cases around twelve hours by this point, any act would have gone down a storm. Dan Aykroyd came back on stage and further bolstered the speculation, noting all of the rumours that had gone around, and adding a few I had not even heard. He mentioned Elton John’s name in passing and a notably audible boo resonated around the ground.

Country singer Tim McGraw rode up to the front of the stage, killed the engine on his Harley, and hit the stage singing. Country music is not to my personal taste, and it obviously was not to many others whom had waited all day as a mammoth amount seemed to rise as one and head for the exits. This was not the party people had come for, or expected! Perhaps some thought that McGraw was to be the only act of the night? Next up was Kid Rock, again not really up my musical street, but he seemed to go down reasonably well with those remaining.

But no one was prepared for what was to happen next, there was indeed to be a third act, the main act that was to crown the entire 100th Centennial celebrations. With baited breath we waited, something that we had become used to over the past fifteen or so hours since arriving. A familiar melodic tune began to float through the air, the curtains moved back and Elton John played a long version of Funeral for a Friend. The bikers had come to party, this was not what they wanted or had been expecting, and they left in droves. It was sad to see, and a real disappointment. Personally, I thought Elton played a good set, but I have to agree, he was the wrong act, in the wrong place, at the wrong time. I cannot imagine what the man himself thought? Let’s face it; the guy is a legend who sells out all over the globe. It therefore cannot be commonplace for him to see people get up and leave his concerts.

Later that night as I watched the expensive, expansive, wonderful, loud, and extremely colourful firework display that lit up the Milwaukee skyline, I tried to accrue as many opinions as possible. The bottom line, from my highly unscientific research is simply that the vast majority was unhappy with the choice of headline act. Very, very unhappy! Even those who openly proclaimed to love Elton John, and would be happy to purchase his concert tickets, thought that he was the wrong choice. Elton was someone whom you would only wish to see: ‘A’ knowing that was whom you were going to watch and listen to; and ‘B’ at a seated area; and ‘C’ most importantly, not at a place where you were expecting to party. All in all, reasonable comments. I had a hotel room booked for my last night in America, so I set forth in search of television news broadcasts. I have to say that, for American news channels such as Fox 6, the reporting was very restrained, only pointing out that some of the attendees were disappointed, and that a sizeable number had decided to leave the party early.

Over the past 100 years Harley-Davidson have certainly made their fair share of faux pas, and the Party finale on Sunday 31st August 2003, sadly has to be added to such bloopers as the oddly shaped Boat-Tail 1200cc Shovelhead Super Glide from 1971, and the company sell out to the massive AMF Corporation in January 1969 for a measly $21 million. I am inclined to believe that only a select handful of Harley’s top brass knew for sure whom to expect as the main act, I can not find it in me to comprehend that had H-D’s 9000+ workforce known that Elton had been hand picked to end, what was supposed to be the party to end all parties. Surely, they would have put a stop to such nonsense?

I’m a great believer in the old adage, a party is what you make it, and all in all, have come to the conclusion that I had a good time. It could have been better for sure, but the logistics involved in hosting such a gigantic party were considerable, and at the end of the day it is impossible to please everyone. After such a long wait, it would have taken the Rolling Stones to have blown everyone away. Who would I have liked to have seen given the choice? Of the names suggested – hey, that’s an easy one – Steve Tyler’s Aerosmith! It could have been worse too, I might have been one of the crowd whom had paid ticket touts upwards of $200 for a ticket, or it might have rained! Something that the clouds had threatened all day.

The New York Times ran a front-page story the following morning; a couple of things have stuck in my mind from that article. Firstly, they claim that 250,000 bikers were in and around the Milwaukee area during the four-day event. To put that in context, there were only an estimated 80,000 for the 90th and 95th Anniversaries. Secondly, they released details of H-D’s demographic study that was last undertaken in 2001. The study shows that the average income of new Harley owners is $78,300, and the average age of new bike owners is 45.6 years old. All but 9% of new bikes are sold to men.

That got me to thinking, just as during the previous night when I arrived, there was a lot more going on in Milwaukee than those events officially scheduled and planned for the masses in the Summerfest Grounds. So, I’m sure that those who bothered to seek out the party in Milwaukee after leaving Veteran’s Park disappointed found somewhere to have a blast of a time and get a chance to raise their glasses to the Motor Company. Hey, I’m in my 40’s and if I had access to $78k annual income I would be having one hell of a party!

Of all the bikers with whom I spoke, that had been there for the duration of the four-day party, not one was unhappy overall. Okay, "Sunday had been a disappointment", many would lament, but they could not fault the whole enchilada. Activities such as The Harley-Davidson Experience, factory visits, Milwaukee Arts Museum’s Rolling Sculptures ‘The Art of Harley-Davidson’, demo rides, Ford truck demo drives, the much awaited 2004 model launch, drill teams, stunt shows, HOG member only events, and an extensive list of live entertainment that included:– Kansas, 38 Special, Poison, Joan Jett, Peter Frampton, Styx, REO Speedwagon, Steppenwolf, Billy Idol, and of course, the highlight for many; Saturday’s parade through the streets of Milwaukee, had kept them enthralled. The parade was limited to 10,000 riders for safety reasons.

The rolling parade of Harley pride, led by MDA heroes, (each of whom had raised at least $5,300 for MDA), set off from Milwaukee Zoo at 9:00am. They then turned onto Bluemound Road which was lined with extensive crowds of well wishers, many of whom had waited for hours just to get a prime spot. The parade then continued downtown via Wisconsin before ending at the Henry W. Maier Festival Park Summerfest Grounds. Every vantage point along the route was lined either by flag and banner waving locals or visiting bikers that were unable to be a part of the parade themselves.

The world’s media had a field day as Harleys roared out of Milwaukee on Monday morning; here is a selection of news clippings that I came across:

"It wasn't so much an outright disaster as an unmitigated flop. Things were worse with Tim McGraw. Tim is a country singer with a fan base that skews young and female, not exactly the prime Harley demographic."

"For bikers. Rocket Man never took off."

"Harley’s hush-hush (headline) guests flop."

"The line up seemed to have been selected by someone who didn’t know any bikers. Isn’t Harley the company that has a T-shirt proclaiming, "If I had to explain you wouldn’t understand?"

"Sir Elton stayed with the hits: ‘Bennie and the Jets’, ‘Daniel’, ‘Philadelphia Freedom’, ‘Rocket Man’, ‘The Bitch is Back’, and ‘I Guess That's Why they Call it the Blues’. Huge hits, but it scarcely mattered. Monster hit after hit was met with scattered applause and loud boos. At the end, the crowd had thinned out so much, concert staff let down the barriers allowing everyone to filter into the VIP area."

"Glitches on Sunday were mere bruises from an otherwise rousing success."

"By now I’m assuming that Harley-Davidson has figured out whom to fire for putting Elton John in front of 150,000 of their best customers as the 100th anniversary party’s grand finale. Wrote local newspaper journalist Jim Stingl. So Stingl called Harley to find out. H-D spokesperson Amy Alarupi’s response was; "No of course not, no one is going to lose their job over this."

"Final impressions count, and Elton John belting out his pop hits for a Harley crowd was like mixing engine oil and water. Witnesses said people were streaming out of Veteran’s Park with each new song."

"Can you imagine beer-fuelled Harley riders dancing to ‘Don’t go breaking my heart?’ Didn’t think so!"

"It is common to see fans holding up cigarette lighters during a concert, but not normally with the idea of burning down the stage."

"Which Harley official’s wife likes Elton John?"

"The ‘Party’ was about biker life – NOT music!"

"Someone at the top of H-D just doesn't get it!"

"How embarrassing, bikers came from all over the world for this!"

Party success or not, my ‘ride home’ to Harley-Davidson’s 100th Birthday Party had proved to be something of a pilgrimage. I flew from Milwaukee to Chicago and then on to England a happy man, in almost no time at all my adventure had ground to a halt, it felt, and still feels very strange not to be on the move ...

For a less personal and impassioned outlook on the 100th party, you might want to look at the official Harley-Davidson website.