There’s a reason it’s usually sold from behind the counter

Playboy meets Hot Rod - sort of. That’s how I view this magazine. When I met my ex-husband (you know, the one who was an expert on bikes - i.e., see my other motorcycle reviews), one of the best things about him was his collection of Easyriders magazines. Easyriders magazine came out in the mid-70s (1974 I think, but I’m not positive). He had most every issue. And since I was just becoming really interested in motorcycles, I devoured each and every one. I learned some basics about motorcycles and the people who ride them.

I especially loved the jokes and cartoons. Since I am newsletter editor of a motorcycling group, and I was able to use some of the cartoons in the newsletter. (And I do mean some and not all the jokes and cartoons, because some were more along the lines of Penthouse, etc.) In order to make sure I wasn’t violating any copyright laws, I called Easyriders magazine and spoke to someone in their legal department. He gave me permission to reproduce cartoons, etc., free of charge, provided I stated “Reprinted with permission from “Easyriders” next to the cartoon. So they were really cool about allowing me to do that and not asking for any money. And for that I thank them.

One thing I noticed was that as the years went by, the issues started getting slicker, right down to the paper. The girls in the first issues actually looked like they rode bikes or at least rode on them. By the time he and I split up (about 2 years ago), the girls all looked like they came off the pages of Playboy. They were all gorgeous, perfect, busty and usually, naked. Not that I have a problem with that. I say if you’ve got it, flaunt it.

But the magazine seemed to be turning more into a “wanna-be yuppy” magazine than a biker magazine. Even the owners of the featured bikes, looked more like models than real bikers. And by real bikers I mean some oil on your jeans, some windblown hair. No way, these guys looked perfect.

Two months ago I bought a copy off the newsstand - for old times sake I guess. It was a beautiful issue. The bikes were out of this world and the models were exquisite, but where was my favorite part of the magazine - the jokes and cartoons? Well there was about 1/2 a page of cartoons. But there was nothing there, joke-wise, that I wouldn’t hesitate to show my 9 year old niece. And they weren’t even funny. Of course I still wouldn’t let a kid look at the entire issue, because some of the models are topless, but the whole magazine had a much more mild feel to it. I think that issue will be the last issue I buy for quite some time.

In case you’re wondering what ever happened to my ex’s Easyriders collection, I put the issues up on Ebay shortly after he left and sold them.