Why do motorcyclists get a bad reputation?

Answer 1

Originally in the 40s and 50s, motorcyclists were considered the outlaws of the road. They rode mostly Harley Davidsons and they chopped up their bikes and otherwise tried to live outside the norms of society. They formed into gangs and gave themselves outlaw type names, like the Hells Angels. They thrived on scaring the public with their outlandish antics. There were many gang fights between motorcycle gangs over the years and that helped cement the image that they were bad people. They drank heavily and were into drugs. Honda tried to overcome this bad image with their advertising slogan in the 60s in which they said "the nicest people ride a Honda" and it worked for them as sales of Hondas rose dramatically and more and more regular people bought motorcycles.