Oh please it was a joke, I know you don't own a Harley,...
yet!
Okay. Enough fun. Tiger first. Then Ironhead. I'm looking at a 2007 Tiger Saturday.
As far as this racing BS goes I go back to the 60s. Remember "On Any Sunday"? Remember the amount of factory support that Mert Lawill got from HD? Virtually zero. While racing was poverty struck back then it was also a situation where any kid could dream and aspire to be a racer. All that changed with the advent of motorcycling popularity and the huge amounts of cash involved. Racing went from an enthusiast level to a factory level. Now one must get lots of sponsorship money to even think of competing. The bikes have become so sophisticated that most people are locked out. Even dirt racing is getting waaaay too expensive with the fragile new 4-strokes.
Along with the more expensive tech we also have the involvement of some of the world's larger corporations. Honda and Kawasaki, each dwarfs Suzuki and Yamaha as corporations and each of the 4 dwarfs HD which again Dwarfs Ducati. These companies now spend money unheard of in AMA racing of the mid 20th Century. They use their power to influence rule making in an attempt to cook the rules in their own favors. Who can compete with that? So, while yes individual racers are competent and so on it doesn't change the pernicious influence of the large wads of cash. AMA road racing has become more like a rich man's club. Factories intimidate the racing association for rule changes that favor them over privateers. It even reached a point where the supersport bikes all had the same bore and stroke. Today privateers have virtually no chance because for all the posturing the rules still allow vast advantages for the factories.
So, maybe the AMA doesn't distribute the Championships but we effectively had a situation where Kawasaki pursued Supersport. Suzuki mainly concentrated on Superbike. Honda and Yamaha expend more effort in MotoGP and so on. This provides virtually guaranteed Championships for each manufacturer's ad copy. Well, I think it sucks. Until effective action is taken to even the field some then the AMA can kiss my @ss. So can HondaYamhKawaZuki.
There are still local flat track races which blow AMA roadracing out of the water for excitement. Until the AMA fixes it, which I doubt they ever will, then AMA road racing for me is a big yawn. Anyhow that's the way I feel about it. I want to see regular talented people to be able to compete again. I doubt I ever will.