HHC: About the Club

About the Club

Once upon a time, in a land pretty near, there was a Harley Hummer Club, which published a printed newsletter, collected dues, etc. But no longer!

The Club now exists only in Cyberspace. And all you need to do to join is keep clicking your mouse... So enjoy!

Scroll down a ways, and you'll find the people who make this virtual club a reality.

Scroll down a ways further, and you'll find the farewell letter, from December 2001 - when the former Club discontinued operations. It's easy to find - it starts with some weirdo Latin expression.

Make a Donation to the Web Site Fund

Keep reading...

Dave Hennessey and Dean Hummer at Davenport 1998

Historic Photos

Here are some "historic" pictures from the Hummer Club Tent at Club events at AMCA Swap Meets. These Black & White photos appeared in the HummerNews newsletter (1980-2001). This section will be expanded soon.

1999 HONC	Hummer's on the Nation's Capitol
2001 Oley	The Hummer Display
2000 Davenport	Ace Elliott's 2-cylinder Model 125
2000 Davenport	Lee Lange's Hummster
1999 Oley	Hummer People
1999 Oley	The Hummer Display
1998 Davenport	Porky and Friends
1998 Wauseon	Hummer Happy Hour
1998 Eustis	Hummer People

This 'virtual' Club is staffed entirely by over-worked, unpaid volunteers.

50th Anniversary Celebration, Davenport IA, Sept 2005

Club Founder

Dave Hennessey Got Weather? Dave's career has been keeping the computer systems up and running at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration the U.S. International Trade Commission the U.S. Navy's David Taylor Model Basin and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Dave holds a M.S. Computer Science from Johns Hopkins University. The beautiful girl is Jennifer Hennessey.

Our Raison d'etre

Dean Hummer is the reason we're all here.
H-D named the new 1955 125cc model after the dealer who had sold the most lightweights since 1948. With a love for competition Dean and a partner burned up the tracks racing sidecar rigs both nationally and internationally. Dean is still quite active in motorcycling and he and his wife Priscilla are a common sight riding their new H-D's all over California and beyond. He, his wife and daughters live in Petaluma, California. The beautiful girl is Priscilla Hummer.

Webmonster

Brent Dugan is the guy behind the scenes.
Coming 'on board' as Member #85 he drifted from the Club for a few years. When he popped back up he came on strong and took over the job as treasurer. Dave nurtured him along in HTML web design when the Club went virtual and the rest is History. Brent hails from High Bridge, NJ.

Sic Transit Gloria Mundi
Thus passes a wonder of the world

The Goal - the purpose of the Harley Hummer Club has always been to share information about these bikes and to put people with extra parts together with people needing parts.

Way back in 1979, some friends were hanging out at your editor’s apartment, pursuing the usual Saturday night altitude adjustment when an acquaintance stopped by and offered a Harley-Davidson for sale for $10. We were all sure that his altitude was way too adjusted, but I gambled a ten-spot. Fifteen minutes later, a tiny, rust-encrusted “motorcycle” appeared. Well, it did say Harley-Davidson on the handgrips, and heck, the price was right. The local Harley dealer denied any knowledge. Ads in local newspapers miraculously yielded a muffler, but no other parts, or any information at all.

1980 - 1981 I put an ad seeking other owners in Easyriders. There were six responses. I typed out a letter, made six Xerox copies, and sent them out. Three more “letters” were sent out during this time.

1982 - “HummerNews” first appeared as the Club really started going. Membership reached 120 during the first year. Membership climbed over the next ten years, and HummerNews kept getting bigger and better. But there was really only one person doing all the work.

1990 - a bad year for me personally. But a “white knight” appeared in the form of Travis Scott. Travis volunteered to publish the newsletter until I was ready to resume. I kept handling the membership and other duties until 1994, when I re-assumed the editor position.

1996 - The Club’s web site was born. Dozens of people visit www.harleyhummerclub.org each day for information on Hummers, and swap parts via the “Hummer Exchange” electronic bulletin board.

1997 - The Club incorporates as “The Harley Hummer Club, Inc.”, and receives 501(c)(7) non-profit corporation status by the Internal Revenue Service. The Club “tent” first appeared at AMCA national meets in 1997, and remains a gathering place for Hummer afficionados.

2001 – Parts and information are flowing freely via the Internet, the newsletter, and through inter-personal contacts. Hummer bikes and parts now command high prices, since they’re desirable antiques. Reproductions of difficult parts are now being made by various people and companies. Hummers are now recognized as real motorcycles, and win authenticity trophies at AMCA meets.

Have we attained our goal?

Running the Club for the last 21 years has been a very pleasurable, but a very demanding avocation. I have spent more time on the Club than I have on my motorcycles. There have been numerous times when I wanted to quit, but felt an obligation to fellow Hummer owners to provide the resources needed to help them restore their bikes.

The Club web site has far overtaken the newsletter as the place where parts and information are exchanged as the Internet pervades our lives, and reaches a much wider audience than the newsletter ever could. The web site costs a few hundred dollars each year, where the newsletter costs thousands of dollars. The web site essentially runs itself, it has no deadlines, no printing no mailing, no transportation, no bank accounts, no record-keeping, no quarterly sales tax returns.

It’s a very sad day as I say goodbye to something that has been part of my life for the last 21 years. But as one chapter ends, another begins. The Club, as an informal organization, will continue to maintain and improve the web site as our primary form of communication. We’ll continue to provide hospitality at many of the AMCA meets. And we’ll continue to be available to help you any way we can.

There have been many people who have volunteered their time to the Club over the years: Dean Hummer, Brent Dugan, Galia Saar, Mick Stamm, Joe Bayliss, Travis Scott, Pat Walczak, Jim Sutton, Mike McNace, Stan Waite, Perry Ruiter and many others. Thank you all - without you, the Hummer Club would never have happened.

Dave Hennessey
December 1, 2001