Being at this party/meet-up made me understand for the first time ever the true meaning of "Never judge a book by its cover"
On the 25th of November, I received a call at 9:30 in the morning with Dan Popescu's voice on the other end of the line telling me that I was invited by the Night Wolfe Romanian Chapter for their annual party held about 115 kilometers from Bucharest. The voice said, "We are coming to pick you up in 20 minutes." It was 9:30 in the morning and the last thing I wanted to do was to get out of bed, but somehow I managed to be dressed and look presentable. Exactly 20 minutes later, I was stuffed into a van full of people wearing leather jackets with a lot of chains and badges all around. I took another look around and saw that I was in the midst of bearded long haired tough-looking men. I knew that I was in for an adventure…. realizing it will be a long one when someone mentioned we would be there for the night and wouldn’t be returning until late in the evening the next day. I was suddenly overwhelmed and apprehension took ahold of me.. I wondered what the hell did I get myself into and was about to stay back.
As we are leaving Buchrest, someone in the van spots a Harley Davidson store, and suddenly there was so much excitement in the crowd. I actually cannot describe it in words. I was confused, "its just a harley store" why is everyone so happy. Well, i still dont know..
So… We got to the hotel and everyone started preparing the meeting room. Snacks were followed by more snacks. A few people tried striking conversations with me, but not many people spoke English. After the party, I was invited for a drive up in the mountains with a few fun Bulgarians and Dan Popescu.. It was -3 degrees, but when you're having fun.. you forget to cold. The party went on all night…lasting till 6 the following morning, but i left early around mid-night. I had the best night's sleep in a very very cold room.. haha. The following morning, I was told that we were going to visit an orphanage. I was so surprised to be told that these mean looking bikers were making time to visit these kids. I asked…why are you guys going to an orphanage?! someone replied, telling me that the purpose for this get together was to have everyone who was invited bring a few gifts for little children, and then the following morning hand them out at orphanages. My jaw dropped.. I was confused.... WHAT?!?!? This gang NIGHT WOLVES actually helps people??
Well, to my pleasant surprise, none.. not a single guy there at the party rode a Harley Davidson or any kind of cruiser 'gangsta' motorcycle. They all had either Honda Hornets or some Enduro/dual sportlike bikes.. and got together a few times a year to help out people around them...
Isnt that amazing? Something so small can be so meaningful. Im so glad they invited me and that i made an effort to actually go..
NightWolves is actually a Russian motorcycle gang. Supposedly, they are 100 times more powerful than Hell's Angels. However NW are not involved in any kind of illegal business, their only agenda is to help people around the world.
"Never judge a book by its cover"
Harley Davidson showroom in Bucharest.
Everyone got really excited when they saw the sign so we had to stop.. i yawned at least 385 tims2 in 3 minutes then had to leave the store..
Touring? look at that giant saddle
oh man, i would probably go to sleep in this
Made it to the hotel, about an hour and a half north of Bucharest
Dan Popescu came up with a brilliant idea. He took me and a few Bulgarians for a drive.
where is my bike? why am i not on it?
Epic guy. His name is crazy.
