Most people don't know what to make of a Boss Hoss motorcycle, and if they do, they're probably wrong. Unwieldy. Intimidating. Homebuilt. Bizarre. Absurd. Those are the adjectives that seem to come to mind when you see one of these V-8 powered behemoths thunder down the street.
We would have been counted among those with such sentiments. And at least one of our staffers, Friedman, had the experience to back up his opinions. In 1992, he rode one of the first bikes put together by the then-new Boss Hoss Cycles, Inc. It was crude, even more cumbersome than it looked and plagued by functional and finish flaws.
He was impressed by the bike, but not entirely favorably. That 355-cubic-inch engine got your attention, but the clutch arrangement was awkward, making just getting underway an exercise in adrenaline production. High, wide, bars of near-apehanger proportions further complicated control. Construction was definitely cobby, marred by compromises like the distributor located immediately in front of your crotch. Many of the components came from the Harley aftermarket and were overwhelmed by the size, weight and power of the Hoss.
However, when you got it pointed down a straight road and cranked on the throttle, all those flaws suddenly seemed tolerable. Even with the linkage to the secondary throats of the carburetors disconnected, the motorcycle flew. You did kind of wonder what would happen if you had to stop or turn suddenly, though.
"It was an interesting novelty," Friedman recalls, "but nothing I felt any need to repeat. It's the sort of bike you'd buy if you already had a couple of bikes you could ride every day, something you'd ride once a month or less when you wanted to make a splash."
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