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A reference was made to this story in the club magazine -Summer 05.
The Day I Met Elvis
By Kenneth Huskey
Around the end of 1965 or early 1966, I was working on a new show bike a 1964 FLH Harley Davidson. Out of all the bikes I had worked on over the years, this was a showpiece. I had things on this bike that people had never heard of before, such as Airhart disc brakes designed for swing-arm frames (Santa Monica Harley had them on sale for $99 per kit). Of course, I had to have them chromed like everything else on my bike. At the same time, I was the only one running the large, chromed SU carburetors off of the stock manifold one on the right, one on the left that kicked in at sixty miles per hour. also had Chrysler valves and an eighty-stroke engine. There were also little extras like the peacock metal-flake paint job and a six-inch fire extinguisher. All of the wells were molded this was a full dresser that was being built. The main extras that stood out were a four-inch black and white TV mounted behind the windshield, an AM stereo under the TV, and in the back, between the saddlebags on the chrome carrying rack,was a record player that played 45s and a new, state-of-the-art(then)8-track cassette player. I even had a reverb system mounted in the left saddle bag.
On that sunny day as I was working on my bike, I heard several motorcycles passing by. The pack of bikers included the distinct rumble of a Harley motor among them. Back then, North Beverly Canyon was a quiet, peaceful area of Los Angeles, so I always enjoyed the moments when bikers would stop by and inquire about the certain bikes that I was building. As usual,within a half a block, I could hear the pack turning their bikes around and heading back towards me. As they approached, I could see that one of the riders was on a Triumph, and another young couple riding on the Harley, which I had heard earlier (it turned out to be a 1963 stock full-dresser with the factory red and white paint job). The bike that really caught my attention was a new 650Bonneville with a Windjammer. I had never seen anything like it before. I did, however, recognize the young man driving it as John Osmond, from a TV show.
For the first five or ten minutes, all the bikers were asking about my bike. I had no idea that the couple who rode up on the Harley were Elvis and Priscilla Presley. I was spending more time talking to Johnny Osmond about his Triumph, since he told me that he also had a special edition called Thunderbolt.
Elvis was amazed at how tight my clutch felt. I explained that the clutch was tight because I wanted the grip on the clutches when I needed to burn rubber. I also told him I didn’t like to feel my clutch slipping when trying to get a quick start. He told me he had the same problem with his bike. I went over to inspec this bike and, sure enough, he had a soft clutch. I told him I could solve his problem in a couple of minutes if he wanted me to fix his clutch. Naturally, he agreed. I took off his cover plate and started to adjust everything handle grips,mouse traps, transmission rods, clutch plate springs, and a few other things. Since I had worked on Harleys from the age of fourteen, I was very familiar with its system.
After completing the work on Elvis bike, I explained that I had to take a test ride to be sure everything was working correctly. On the first run, I found that I didn’t have things exactly the way I wanted, so I brought it back and made some minor adjustments. When I took the bike for a second test run, it burned rubber in first gear,and a little in second. As I headed back, I’ll never forget smiling and telling myself Elvis was going to love the job I did on his bike.
When Elvis took off for a trial run on his bike, my roommate, Mel, came out of the house and called me to the side.
Do you know who you’re talking to? he whispered.
You mean the guy who just rode off?I asked.
Yeah, you know who that is? Mel questioned.
No. I answered.
That's Elvis Presley! he exclaimed.
Suddenly, my brow scrinkled up into a frown because I hadnt recognized him myself. Both Mel and I agree don who John Osmond was,but I was surprised to learn that Elvis was right there in front of me, and I hadn't even realized it.
When Elvis returned, he was amazed and thankful at how well the bike performed. He mentioned that he had purchased the bike from Santa Monica Harley Davidson and had taken it back three separate times to have the clutch adjusted. I was too embarrassed to ask him if he was Elvis Presley, but I noticed a big "E" sewn on the front of the white leather gloves he was wearing, which obviously stood for Elvis. He was a little taller than I had expected, but I didnt have the heart to ask if he was really Elvis, so we continued to talk about motorcycles.
Before leaving, he asked if I wanted to sell my bike when it was completed. I told him that I had no plans to sell it, but he could still check back with me in four or five months.
Afterwards, he give me his address and phone number and told me that, if I changed my mind, to please contact him first. That was how I learned he was, infact, ElvisPresley. We all talked a while longer, then the group climbed on their bikes and continued down the canyon leaving me in my driveway amazed at the quirk of fate that introduced me to Elvis Presley.
The Day I Met Elvis
By Kenneth Huskey
Around the end of 1965 or early 1966, I was working on a new show bike a 1964 FLH Harley Davidson. Out of all the bikes I had worked on over the years, this was a showpiece. I had things on this bike that people had never heard of before, such as Airhart disc brakes designed for swing-arm frames (Santa Monica Harley had them on sale for $99 per kit). Of course, I had to have them chromed like everything else on my bike. At the same time, I was the only one running the large, chromed SU carburetors off of the stock manifold one on the right, one on the left that kicked in at sixty miles per hour. also had Chrysler valves and an eighty-stroke engine. There were also little extras like the peacock metal-flake paint job and a six-inch fire extinguisher. All of the wells were molded this was a full dresser that was being built. The main extras that stood out were a four-inch black and white TV mounted behind the windshield, an AM stereo under the TV, and in the back, between the saddlebags on the chrome carrying rack,was a record player that played 45s and a new, state-of-the-art(then)8-track cassette player. I even had a reverb system mounted in the left saddle bag.
On that sunny day as I was working on my bike, I heard several motorcycles passing by. The pack of bikers included the distinct rumble of a Harley motor among them. Back then, North Beverly Canyon was a quiet, peaceful area of Los Angeles, so I always enjoyed the moments when bikers would stop by and inquire about the certain bikes that I was building. As usual,within a half a block, I could hear the pack turning their bikes around and heading back towards me. As they approached, I could see that one of the riders was on a Triumph, and another young couple riding on the Harley, which I had heard earlier (it turned out to be a 1963 stock full-dresser with the factory red and white paint job). The bike that really caught my attention was a new 650Bonneville with a Windjammer. I had never seen anything like it before. I did, however, recognize the young man driving it as John Osmond, from a TV show.
For the first five or ten minutes, all the bikers were asking about my bike. I had no idea that the couple who rode up on the Harley were Elvis and Priscilla Presley. I was spending more time talking to Johnny Osmond about his Triumph, since he told me that he also had a special edition called Thunderbolt.
Elvis was amazed at how tight my clutch felt. I explained that the clutch was tight because I wanted the grip on the clutches when I needed to burn rubber. I also told him I didn’t like to feel my clutch slipping when trying to get a quick start. He told me he had the same problem with his bike. I went over to inspec this bike and, sure enough, he had a soft clutch. I told him I could solve his problem in a couple of minutes if he wanted me to fix his clutch. Naturally, he agreed. I took off his cover plate and started to adjust everything handle grips,mouse traps, transmission rods, clutch plate springs, and a few other things. Since I had worked on Harleys from the age of fourteen, I was very familiar with its system.
After completing the work on Elvis bike, I explained that I had to take a test ride to be sure everything was working correctly. On the first run, I found that I didn’t have things exactly the way I wanted, so I brought it back and made some minor adjustments. When I took the bike for a second test run, it burned rubber in first gear,and a little in second. As I headed back, I’ll never forget smiling and telling myself Elvis was going to love the job I did on his bike.
When Elvis took off for a trial run on his bike, my roommate, Mel, came out of the house and called me to the side.
Do you know who you’re talking to? he whispered.
You mean the guy who just rode off?I asked.
Yeah, you know who that is? Mel questioned.
No. I answered.
That's Elvis Presley! he exclaimed.
Suddenly, my brow scrinkled up into a frown because I hadnt recognized him myself. Both Mel and I agree don who John Osmond was,but I was surprised to learn that Elvis was right there in front of me, and I hadn't even realized it.
When Elvis returned, he was amazed and thankful at how well the bike performed. He mentioned that he had purchased the bike from Santa Monica Harley Davidson and had taken it back three separate times to have the clutch adjusted. I was too embarrassed to ask him if he was Elvis Presley, but I noticed a big "E" sewn on the front of the white leather gloves he was wearing, which obviously stood for Elvis. He was a little taller than I had expected, but I didnt have the heart to ask if he was really Elvis, so we continued to talk about motorcycles.
Before leaving, he asked if I wanted to sell my bike when it was completed. I told him that I had no plans to sell it, but he could still check back with me in four or five months.
Afterwards, he give me his address and phone number and told me that, if I changed my mind, to please contact him first. That was how I learned he was, infact, ElvisPresley. We all talked a while longer, then the group climbed on their bikes and continued down the canyon leaving me in my driveway amazed at the quirk of fate that introduced me to Elvis Presley.
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