Does this affect how you view the guy?
One would think being born in Honolulu, Hawaii as the only child of a photographer and painter would make Jason Momoa anything but a rustic Harley-Davidson nut. What most don’t realize is the actor might have been born on an island, but he was raised by his mother in Iowa. Somewhere along the way he was bit by the American two-wheeled bug.
See an elderly man reunited with his old motorcycle decades later here.
In August of 2021 Momoa was interviewed by GQ magazine about what the man can’t live without. Not shockingly, everything he listed off was materialistic and many of the items were products he has a financial stake in. Anyway, he listed Harley-Davidson motorcycles as one of the things, saying they’re his “favorite” and that he loves them. To prove his affinity, the man pulled out one of his many Harley apparel items, a black shirt with white and black long sleeves he’s worn in several pictures posted to his Instagram account.
Back in June of 2019, Momoa released on his YouTube channel a short documentary film called Where The Wild Stomped In. I’ve included the video with this article so you can see if for yourself. Basically, the story is about the first time he rode a motorcycle at the age of six. Like many others, that first interaction with a two-wheeled beast was enough to get him hooked.
Momoa’s first vintage Harley was a 1957 Panhead he bought at the ripe age of 19. Do you know many teenagers who own motorcycles these days? It’s sadly become pretty uncommon. He named the bike after his grandma Mabel, showing he had a strong sentimental attachment to the machine.
Years later, Momoa got into bike restoration when he purchased a rusty old Knucklehead motor from a bike garage. Like so many of us, when he was attracted to the project he knew pretty much nothing about fixing up an old motorcycle. Life happened and the motor had to sit on the back burner while Momoa launched his acting career. Despite the setbacks, the man was hungry to learn and he stumbled his way through the project, making friendships along the way.
That delayed project has led to Momoa adding to his growing motorcycle collection. He completely the 1936 Knucklehead build and also has a 1916 Model J. While they’re not vintage, the actor also owns a 2020 Harley-Davidson Livewire and a 2021 Pan American.
To help promote the enjoyment of vintage motorcycles, Momoa has been involved in events like The Race of Gentlemen, which not only features bikes but also hotrods racing on the beach in New Jersey. People get decked out in vintage motorcycle clothes and really get into it, kind of like a more rustic Pebble Beach. Even crazier, Momoa has been involved in The Frozen Few, which is similar but takes places in the winter on a snowy, icy race course.
Now, not everyone will be impressed by Momoa’s Harley-Davidson fanaticism, including some Harley diehards. Some find his entire tough-but-relatable persona to be just that, a front and anything but genuine. He seems pretty over-the-top crazy about rustic vintage Harleys, so either the man really is head-over-heels in love with the bikes or he’s been coached in how to make it seem like he is as a way of furthering his image.
